THE Otago Daily Times. "Invniam viam out faciam." DUNEDIN, THURSDAY, JUNE 5, 1862.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 173, 5 June 1862, Page 4

THE Otago Daily Times. "Invniam viam out faciam." DUNEDIN, THURSDAY, JUNE 5, 1862.

Upon the principle of better late than never, we should rejoice that to-day resolutions are to be moved in the Provincial Council affirmative of the necessity of Separation. It would have been better that the subject should have been brought on at an earlier part-of the session, especially as a remark in the Superintendent's opening address clearly pointed to the issue, although probably it was made without'that intention. The proper administration of affairs in the Province, from tlis distant scat of Government in the north, he considered impossible. : Immediately oa:the opening of the Council Mr. Dick gave notice of a series of Separation resolutions, which, we believe, he was only prevented from proposing by his translation to a seat in the Provincial Execu T tive. At last Mr. Walker has come forward, and vre hope his proposals will meet with an amosnt of cordial support that'will show how stronglythe feelings of the Province are enlisted in the if favor. We are quite aware that there.-are:-'some who think. such questions as Separation should not be dealt with by Provincial Legislatures, but we cannot concur in the justice of their arguments. The very principle or, which provincial Governments were .fouiided appears to us; to recognise the right to take cognizance of anything affecting the internal interests of the provinces. The Constitution Act which stamps the provinces ,with ,a. distinct individuality, would be a mere farce, it' the right tip discuss their individual interests were denied, to them. ,The Act very specifically defines the questions with which the Superintendent and . Council may not deal, but we-find nothing mentioned that by the widest implication could be construed into applying to the subject under discussion. On the other hand, in .the general definition of the duties of the Superintendent and Council, they are expressly authorised to deal witli anything that "may be required for the peace, order, and good government of such Province." 'Amongst'those who took aii interest in the framing of the Constitution Act, the principle of allowing the unfettered expansion of Provincial requirements was fully [lowed. Mr. Gladstone was even desirous of allowing ea!cb Province a separate Governor appointed by the Crown. Even Sir George Grey was ;at -last reluctantly compelled' to recognise the. developing tendency, of the Provinces, and in a despatch, written shortly before he returned- from his former Governornorship of the colony, he recanted past errors and went so far as to advocate that an inherent power should be granted to the Proovinces to alter their own' forms of Government. Read the following extract and then say Whether Sir George Grey could complain of a i Provincial Council discussing the question of separjijte .ibriiis_ of "Government for sections of the colony;— '^. ::':.;/,.;:: ,r ; In my previous despatches I ixaye-ganerally-shp-. posed tuat the Provincial Councils,would: eventually

merge into a kind uf Municipal Councils. But tha lapid growth of these settlements in wealllrnml prosperity, and the iiini events are taking, now.lead me to thiiiik that they will always'remain distinct and bcpaiate Provinces, and tliat provision should be made for enabling thoii" pio«enc form of government, .consisting oi' one Chamber, to be changed by tha General Leirihlaturj into a form of government composed of a Legislative Council and House of Wepresentatives, whenever the number of inhabitants in any Province, and it1- wants, mi^lit render such a change in its form of Government practicable and desirable.

~No: is the dealing with matters of the kind without well recognised precedent. In the Canterbury Council, years ago, Mr. Sewell, the present Attorney-General, made a bitter attack on the overweening influence sought to be exercised by the Northern Government. AYhat could be more strongly pro-Separation than the following, which, though we quoted only a few days ago, we cannot forbear from repeating :—.

The time will come when the Government at Auckland will find itself without the means of meeting its demand*, and the credit of the Colony will be in jeopardy." .They will, in their desperate struggle to save themselves. Seize our entire Revenue, and devote the whole to their own purposes, leaving nothins for the Provinces. They have the power in their bauds, and necessity will compel them to use it; they have used it partially already.

Again, Auckland has established the precedent beyond dispute—the Council for this Province has absolutely sent home a petition for Separation. But the Assembly itself furnishes the guarantee, if any further were wanted. Tso one dreams of denying the right of the Assembly to ei?tcr upon the question, and surely if the Legislature that represents the whole colony has the right to entertain the proposition of dismemberment ; portions of the colony not identified to the same extent with the whole of the body politic, have the right to consider the subject which affects them equally; without interfering with anything that even by pretence could be construed into exceeding their functions.

We trust that the Council to-day will have no hesitation in discussing the question purely on its merits, without any fear, that in doing so, it exceeds its legitimate powers. We would have liked, as an earnest, that the grant of a sum of money to aid the cause, had been added to the resolutions. Not that the s.ime is much required, seeisig that private subscriptions promise to be" quite sufficiently plentiful, but that it would have evinced the sympathy of the Council. Still, as some of the members are away, it is as well.perhaps that the question of a money grant has not been evoked. ;

We believe the following are the resolutions Mr. Walker intends-to propose at the meeting of the Provincial Council to-day:—l. "That the Province of Otago, in common with the other Provinces of the Middle Island of New Zealand, is subject to great inconvenience and injustice in consequence of the distance from the seat of Government, . and the diverse interests of the two islands.' 2. "That the Middle Island of ISTew Zealand has attained to sufficient importance, both in regard to population and the magnitude of its resources, to warrant its being constituted into a distinct colony ; and this Council desires to express its opinion that every legitimate means should be resorted to by the Province of Otago to obtain this.result, di:e regard being had to the honorable discharge of existing liabilities." 3. "That to promote the separation of the two islands, the Province of Otago should endeavor to secure -the fo operation of the other Provinces, and for this purpose that the Speaker be requested to communicate these resolutions to the ■ several Councils of the Middle Island Provinces, accompanied by the request tliat they will assist towards forwarding the object desired."

We observe tint tenders are invited for the con veyance of the mail, overland, twice daily, between Port. Chalmers and Dunedin:

It will be seen in our advertising columns that the Provincial Government are open to receive applications from gentlemen qualified to fill the oflice of District road inspector. The salary is to be £250 per annum, and £50 allowance for horse expenses, . . . .

The necessity for steam communication between the various ports of the Province has received the definite attention of the Government, and we see that tenders for the steam coastsl 'service are called for in our columns of to-day.

The Omeo is advertised to sail at 3 o'clock on Friday. ;

"Bclphegor, the Mountebank," or ".a Mother's Love," wus the piece de r&iixlance at, the Princess .Theatre last night. This play, which is of the ' melodramatic school, has been a great fhvoritt 1 with the public in the old country, and had an extraordinary run when first produced; but it is • difficult't'o 'sac in what its peculiar merit consists, for the language is stiited and the sentiment forced.. Such as it is, however, it was made the most of last nighi'i and may be pronounced n success.. " Belphegor" was represented-by-Mr. J. M. Wolfe, and was played "with much case, but with, we were disposed to think, a too great straining after effect. ■' Madeline (the Mountebank's wife) was played with veal feeling by Miss Adn , Hart. Thisvy-oujig lady has, since .she has been in Dunedin, visibly'improved in her acting1, and lias developed talents for which we-hardly gave her credit. Henri (the son) was prettily played by Miss. K. Grant. The other characters were generally well sustained, and we may notice also, that the dresses were remarkably well seen to, the general effect.of the /«6/t'aK.v'wi'th which the piece abounds, being excellent. The screaming farce of '• Mr. and Mrs. Peter White finished 'the entertainment. In this, Miss St. Glair and Mr. John Dunn most amusingly sustained the" characters of the conjiiga-l pair; To night there is to be .a change of performance, the " Corsiean Brothers" being announced to be-played, for the benefit of th'a Machinist, Mr. Cooper, who seems to have chosen this piece as affording an unusual scope for.the display of his own peculiar talents ; the interest of the play depending, as is well known, upon the spectral illusions ■■ and other matters which fall especially within' the province of the Machinist. ■. ... ' Mr. Thomson, Harbor Master, with Mr. Thomson, engineer, is to proceed shortly to Cape Sounders, for the purpose of surveying- the situation -in connection with the projected-. new lighthouse, . It is understood to be at length settled that the Diinediii and Port-"Chalmers. Road Khali be widened sufficiently to admit of carriage traffic. If we are not misinformed, the present bridle track will be converted into a road 20 feet wide, and as ■ its construction is expected to ..be proceeded with immediately, it will likely be completed and open for traffic in about four months hence. The value of this improvement, both.to: Dunedin and the Port, can scarcely be! orerK estimated. ■• - ''.■ . ' '_. ' ",: The" more.regular conveyance of the inaiis.between Dunedin /jm'd-:.lie Port is a great;deside-' ratum, Hitherto thJU conveyance bag depended

upon the steamers plying, between-the two places, biitrecently several parties have madeovertures to the Postmaster to carry them overland. As that route would be infinitely preferable, both for the regularity and expedition which it would ensure, it is to be hoped that it will be immediately adopted, and that the mails will be cdrricd in a m.inner more satisfactory to the officials and the public. The coal-fields of the Province promise soon to yield a coal of sufficiently good quality to make it of the utmost-value to the commercial interests of this port. Last week the Samson steamer made the'run from Port Chalmers to Waikouaiti in iiii. hour and forty minutes, using Molyneux coals, and the Pride of the Yarra has, on one or two occasions, been steamed with coals obtained from Shag river, and with the most satisfactory results. The Lyttclton has made another trip to Waikouaiti, carrying some timber for the erection of stores, aiid a number of passengers intending to proceed to the Highlay diggings. Notwithstanding the unfavorable weather there is a pretty constant traffic going on between Dunedin and Waikouaiti, in consequence of the recent discovery of the auriferous character of the neighboring country. Three ships, which discharged cargoes of coals, here sailed to-day, proceeding to Newcastle under fresh charters, to convey coals to this port for the supply of the recently increased fleet of steamships. We arc authorised to mention j;hat his Honor the Superintendent has received a letter, of the 30th ult., from the private secretary to his Excellency the Governor, expressive of his Kxcellency's regret at being compelled to forego for the present the pleasure he had anticipated from visiting a province in which, from* his bavins; been one of those principally concerned in selecting and obtaining it for European settlement, he naturally feels a great interest. Sir George Gray feels that the public interest, connected with late difficulties which have ai isen in the north, requires him to return without delay to Auckland, and tc forego the pleasure of visiting Otago until aftei the meeting of the General Assembly at Wellington, and he is well assured his Honor and the inhabitants of Otago will feel that he ought, sacrificing all other considerations, to repair at onct to that spot, where his duty requires him to be. Mr. Chapman, of Auckland, the enterprising publisher of the New Zealand almanac, is aboul to bring out a magazine, devoted to topics connected with the interests of New Zealand, and has enlisted in its service contributors' of known talent and ability. Ten or twelve years ago i similar periodical under the title of the New Zealand Magazine was started, but although it wa; conducted with some ability, yet its character wa* not sufficiently adapted to the social peculini-itie; of a new community, and it ultimately expired The social condition of New Zealand has a'tarec considerably since the days of the old New Zealand Magazine ; and we have no doubt that Mr Chapman will make his new magazine sufficient]** attractive to secure for'it the liberal patronage o; his fellow colonists. The subject of the Postal Service will b< brought before the Provincial Council tills even ing by Mr. Walker, who has given notice of hif intention to ask, what steps the Government an taking in anticipation of the expiration of th< contract entered into by Mr. Crosbio Ward. We have so often advocated the formation of t Fire Brigade, that we have much pleasure in directing attention to the fact that Mr. Walker wi! to-day -move .that, the Government be authorized to loan a: sum of £1000 to the Dunedin Towi Board for the special purpose of a Fire Brigade. A short time since we drew attention to tin dangerous state of the beach path that leads t( the Court House. Nothing has, however, yet beei done to fill the dangerous- holes or to repair thi wall which should protect it from the wash of th< tide. If it be left much longer it will become im •passable, and will require almost remaking. A reference was made in the Southern Cros six months ago to the discovery of guano 01 Coral Queen Island. The New Zealander of Jfai 2t, referring to this question quotes the following from the Polynesian Honolulu papers :— " We learn from the agents of tho Phoenix Guam Company, in Honolulu, that the island abuve refem-i *o is not a new islnml ' not laid down in any chart, hut is identically the srnno as StarbuckV Islam) Starve Island, or Hero Island, under all which name, it is known, and is comprised within the charter o protectorate grant given by the United States Go. vernment to said' Company* The island was visitei by the ''ompnny's agent lust fall, and if* idcutitv i jjravcn here by reference to the wreck of tho whale ship Hero, which was found by the Company whei they first, took possession of it. The Company liar* not yet taken any guano from this isiaul themselves, haying found too heavy a surf running whenever the.** visited it . The New sJ'.*ala*i;l entrepreneurs may liavi 'joinrait.tpil a trespass unwittingly, although "a Unit i S ares' fl-ig and other emblem.*! <>f previous-po?sessior must have- been s..rrn liy them ; but it i.-j to be hope, thatthny will not. apraki help themselves to this island's guauo without first calling upon the agent." At Auckland a person named Charles Davij was lately brought up before the Resident M.igis trate, charged with using a defaced postage stamp. It was'proved by a post-office cierk thai the stamp had been previously cancelled. It wa< proved by the evidence of the stoieman of the da fendiint that the stamp had been pinned againsi the wall in his office, and that lie ha-i taken it tc use, believing it to be a good one. The magistrate dismissed the case, believing that there ]uu, been no, intention to defraud, but observed thai '■it would be a good thing for the public to be aware that there were argus eyed people at the post-office keeping a good look-out." A special'meeting of the shareholders of the New Zealand Insurance Company was held at le Company's head-office in Auckland, on 12th May, when the report and statement of accounts for half-year ending November 30, 1801, werepre--ented by the secretary. The results that have attended the operations of the Company are of the most favorable character—the accumulated f.jnds amount to LI2,OCQ, with the further probability of an immediate large extension of capital. It.speaks wellfor the success of colonial institutions in New Zealand that this Company, which was established'only aiout three years ago should have effected such encouraging results. :■■/... • i. :...'.. T.: "I'm No Dead."—Our junior imp was sent the other day to a house, to ascertain the correct date of death and ajfe of an-old ..woman, who was reported to ba dea.l. He met a. woman at the door of the house, whom he asked when Widow died, and how old ahewas 1 "Oh my tsill," said the poor woman, • I m no dead, but I'm- seventy-six past."— Fcrres Gazette. ■ ',:...

A somewhat remarkable circumstance occurred 'iere a few uay.s since, at the OllSnds-house, the resi" den,:e of 11 r. \Via. Bireham. A'thrush,* pursued it is supposed by_ a hawk', flew, '.with sucji violence asainst the thick plate-glass" of thp drawing ro'Orn window, as to smash it into frnjjuieutVthe Wrd itself filling dead in the room, killfd, no doulit, by the force of the blow. The pieces of were scattered some distance in the room.— JVor/ulk A'ews. During the pi-esenea of Jlai)ders' meuiigerie of wild b3a>ts lit 'tynn; a few, days ago, the ljon f W«}l:ic(j" a.jaoked a.lioness as she was entering his den;'seising hsrby the tliroat. Arfearful scene ensued but it was of short duration, for " Wallace" was assisted by anolh-jr lioness, and combined they succeeded iii kii(ing tic lioness very quickly. The roaring of the will beasts during this (struggle was.fearful. It is s^.id that the lioness which was killed was worth uwrly£2oo.— lbed