THE STANDARD. SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 1873.

Poverty Bay Standard, Volume II, Issue 107, 22 November 1873, Page 2

THE STANDARD.

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 1873.

“ We shall sell to no man justice or right: We shall deny to no man justice or right: We shall defer to no man justice or right.”

A free discussion on local matters is necessary to a perfect knowledge of the wants and requirements of the district. The Electoral District of Turanganui, of which Poverty Bay forms a part, has a Member now to whom the constituency may look with some confidence that the wrongs which have affleted us in the past will be redressed at the hands of the new Government. Mr. Johnson, in his address to the Electors last Wednesday, expressed a hope that “ any wants with which he “ mat/ be unacquainted, should be com- “ muuicated to him without either delay “ or reserve.”

It would hardly be complimentary to suggest that our new Member, being an old "resident, is unacquainted with the subject of Harbor Improvements, the necessitv for which we drew attention in our last issue ; but a kindred subject has just cropped up, and we purpose responding to Mr. Johnson’s invitation by pointing out another instance of gross injustice which must be rectified at once. We allude again to the requirement of ■either a Pilot or Harbor Master at this port. As anounced in our last, we were authorized by Messrs. Graham & Co., to state that the ship Woodville fell through her engagement to come on to this port and load wool for London, simply because there was no such officer

to take charge of her, so as to relieve the Captain of responsibility and the insurers of extra risk. We are now in a position to state that it was entirely owing to that fact that the agents refused to accept any risk whatever, and the agreement made with the ship had to be cancelled as the natural consequence of that refusal. We believe it is asserted that the question of risk was not entertained on account of the unseaworthirfess of the ship itself, but whichever view may be the correct one in this instance, we can well understand how the absence of a properly authorised port official to take charge of vessels on arrival and departure, may operate in the future to the great detriment of the commercial interests of the place. We do not stand forward as apologists of Messrs. Graham & Co. The engagements they may have made with the wool-growers of the Bay to ship direct in the Woodville, upon the faith of her coming on here, will have to be kept according to the equities of commerce ; and it may not be unreasonably stated that any pecuniary loss sustained by them through the non-fulfilment of their part of the contract, has nothing whatever to do with the public. This, no doubt is true ; but it is nevertheless a matter for public notice and reproof if, as is alleged, the state of the Government departments at this port is such as to be a hindrance, rather than a help, to industry and settlement. What has happened this year may be repeated next year, if the constituency do not raise its voice and claim to have the benefits which political representation is supposed to confer. Poverty Bay already has a Customs Revenue sufficient to entitle it to claim special notice in the governmental programme, and we doubt not that under the new regime an improvement will be soon perceptible; but unless we accept and use the constitutional means at our command to urge our necessities we shall have to put up with just what we can get. We are not at all anticipating a return of the evil days. We do not for a moment believe that-a full measure of justice will not be given to us. We are not attacking the present; we are blaming the past, which has been so redolent of misrule and neglect, the fruits of which we are now reaping.

The advantages in both a commercial and political aspect, which this port would receive from the fact of a ship loading with wool at our own anchorage, can hardly be summed up in the disappointment the AVoodville not loading has caused. Such a fact would have tended more to allay apprehension and restore confidence in the minds of people in England and in the colonies, as to the desirability of making this their future home, than a standing army, or the planting of military settlements from one end of the island to the other. Therefore we repeat that the energy and patient pluck evinced by the settlers are deserving of something more encouraging; and we earnestly hope that in the coming session of the Council that part of the duty which falls within the scope of the Provincial Government, will be exercised for our behoof in such a way as will give us that proper status to which we may now legitimately lay claim.