COLONIAL.

Poverty Bay Standard, Volume 1, Issue 2, 12 October 1872, Page 3

COLONIAL.

(From the Hawke's Bau Herald, and Weekly Herald.)

AUCKLAND.

From Kawhia the news is to the effect that a notice has arrived from the King convening a meeting for the 21st of January. All Europeans and Natives are invited. The Kawhia Kingites propose throwing open their harbor and purchasing a schooner to convey their produce to market. The Mayor of Auckland has received a telegram from Mr. Stafford, declining to prosecute in the Green Harp case. Public indignation has been fairly roused by the refusal; and further enquiry demanded, not as a favor, but as a right. A protest has been drawn up, which says that the withdrawal of the case after the committal, is calculated to stamp with infamy, not only the city of Auckland, but the whole colony.

AVe understand that Mr. John Williamson is again a candidate for the office of Superintendent of this province. We arc informed that Mr. AVilliamson has, in answer to communications of . his friends, intimated his willingness to stand for the election. A rumour has been abroad for the past two days, to the effect (savs the Advertiser) that Mr. John AVilliamson is not likely to be a candidate for the Superintendency, on the retirement of Mr. Gillies. Mr. AVilliamson either has been, or is about to be offered an ■ appointment of a permanent nature, but whether he will accept the office is not known. There is certainly no man who has a greater claim upon the colony, or one who has worked harder or sacrificed more for its progress and pros■perity. Rumour asserts that should i Mr. AVilliamson accept a permanent ■ appointment, Mr. Lusk, Mr. O’Rorke, ; and Mr. Sheehan will contest the Super- . intendency. ■ The Thames Advertiser says:—-“We understand, on good authority, that it is almost certain Mr» Mackay will stand as a candidate for the Superintendency, ' as there is no probability of an arrangement being come to at Wellington by which he will take any part with the present Ministry.”

PARLIAMENTARY.

In reply to a question asked by Mr. Steward, Mr. Stafford said that the question of complying with the petitions for the extension of the jurisdiction of the District Court was under the consideration of the Government, and the request would probably be complied with, but not to the extent of £5OO.

AVi Parata asked when the Government would issue an Order in Council revoking the Order made during the administration of the late Government, under which certain lands in the Provinces, of Auckland and Wellington are excluded from sale to the Government. Ministers said it was intended as soon as possible to remove all restrictions, except in reference to auriferous land. In reply to another question from Parata, the Government said they did . not intend to act hastily in appointing •a Maori as member of the Executive.

Mr. Kelly asked, —AVhether it is the intention of the Government to hand over to the provincial authorities of Auckland, Taranaki, Hawke’s Bay, and Wellington, for their administration, all lands purchased from the natives within those provinces. Mr. Fitzherbert replied in the affirmative, with the exception of cases where the title was in dispute, and after making sufficient reserves for purposes of arterial communication.

The chief part of the afternoon was spent in «ommittee on the Electoral Bill. Mr. Dillon Bell was opposed to making Judges of the Supreme Court try Election petitions. The Miner’s Right Extension Bill was read a second time. After the delivery of the financial Statement, several Bills were advanced a stage. A Motion for the payment of £lOOO compensation to Mr. Smythies was carried by 23 to 10.

The Treasury benches can hardly prove a bed of roses to their new occupants ; and, indeed, if it were so, the thorns of fiscal difficulty should make it alarmingly unpleasant. The following caustic remarks were made by Mr. Vogel during the debate on the estimates, and will satisfy those, who are anxiously looking for a deposition of the Stafford Government, that their friends are watchful. “ He said honorable members on his side of th® House did not accuse the Government with having wasted time since they took office, but they did object to Ministers obtaining their seats upon false pretences. They said they were going to put on those seats more efficient administrators, but if their supporters had known who they were going to put in, would they have supported the resolutions ? If they had known that the department of Public Works was to be administered by an honorable member with such limited knowledge of the colony as the honorable member for Taieri possessed, would they have been willing to substitute him for the honorable member for Clive ? If it had been known that the office of Colonial Secretary, the occupant of which was in communication with all other departments, was to be filled by a discarded member of the late Government, would they have obtained support ? Since they had taken office the whole of their communications had been one chain of deceit, one chain of political chicanery, and it liad been attempted to make the House, by using certain words, believe what those words really did not mean. The honorable member at the head of the Government had given them to understand that it was not intended to any great extent to proceed with works not already contracted for ; but all answers given to questions respecting railways were deceitful: something was said about plans not being ready, and the answers conveyed a meaning very different from the statement made by the Premier. Then, again, they were told that the Government was formed upon the basis of “the unity of the colony, and the seat of Government at Wellington,” and considerable pressure had been brought to bear upon the Wellington members to support the only Government that had made such a declaration. He would tell the House what he had heard within the last few days from the lips of one of the most prominent members of the Ministry, and that was, that the Government was formed on the basis of “ the unity of the 1 colony, and the seat of Government at Welling- , ton for the session.” Was not that practising • vile deceit upon the House and on the Welling - . ton members ? The honorable gentleman at the head of the Government did his best to stimu- [ late the movement for the separation of the ■ colony, by having a single province for each ■ Island, and he threw himself into a violent rage, and used unseemly and most unbecoming language, because the Government did not, on a .particular night, give their opinions on the motion of the honorable member for Dunedin. The Premier encouraged that movement, and then made use of it to attempt to coerce the votes of the Wellington members by pretending . that the present Government was the only one that ever made a declaration that the unity of the colony, and the seat of Government at Wellington, were a portion of their policy.”