The Inbercargill Times. FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 1862.

Southland Times, Volume 1, Issue 4, 21 November 1862, Page 2

The Inbercargill Times. FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 1862.

We have before us a copy of the Acts of { the General Assembly of New Zealand, the result of its labors during the year 1862. There are in all forty-two, some of them amendments of previously existing acts, and others again altogether new. It will be interesting to most of our readers briefly to notice some of the more important ones. No. 4, intituled the " Election Petitions' Act Amendment Act, 1862,'' contains a clause to the effect that " on the delivery of an election petition to the Returni lg Officer or Resident Magistrate, the petitioners shall enter into a bond to the Queen, with a penalty of 2001., with two sureties in 1001. each, to prosecute the petition in a bona fide manner at the next session of the General Assemb'y, and to pay all such costs and penalties as may be specified in this behalf in a resolution of the House of Representatives," such sureties to be approved of by such Returning Officer or Resident Magistrate. A copy of the petition must be served by ihe petitioner or his agent on the person petitioned against, or left at his residence, within fourteen days after its delivery to the Returning Officer or Resident Magistrate. No. 6, " The Summary Procedure on Bills Act, 1862," is intended to give greater facilities than before existed for the recovery of the amount of Dishonored Bills of Exchange, Promissory Notes, and Cheques on Bankers. It is a short act, and appears admirably calculated to effect the purpose for which it is intended. No. 8 provides for the admission to practice as Solicitors or Attorneys, in the Supreme Court, certain persons who were disqualified under the * l Law Practitioners' Act, 1861." No. 9 is an act to alter and extend certain provisions of the " Protection of Certain Animals' Act, 1861, " it is called the " Birds' Protection Act, 1862." By the third clause we learn that April, May, June and July are the only months in the year in which pheasants or quails may be " hunted, taken, or killed," and by clause 4, no wild duck or wild goose of any imported species maybe "hunted, taken, or killed at any time whatever before the first day of March, 1870." By this act it is provided that a license, under the hand of the Governor, must be obtained for catching wild animals or birds of any imported species, for the purpose of turning themout in other parts of the colony, the license not to extend over a longer period than twelve months. No. 10 provides for the representation of "the goldrmining population of New Zealand, Most of our resd©x 3 are probably aware that the Miners'

Bight sgives its 1 possessor a vote, at the election of Goldfields' Members for the House of Representatives, and also of members of the Provincial Council of the Province in which such Miners' Right was issued. The holder of the Miners' Right, however, must hare held it and resided in the Province in which it was issued, for " not less than six months consecutively, and immediately preceding the first day of October in any year," otherwise he is not entitled to vote. No., 21 is ." The Goldfields' Act, 1862," containing clauses for the proclamation by the Governor of any part of the colony as a gold field, for the issuing of various kinds of licenses, for the establishing Mining Boards and Wardens' Courts, and issuing leases, &c. v This law has not worked as well as was expected. The miners appear to have taken but little interest in' the' proceedings of the Mining Boards, and on one of the older goldfields [Tuapeka] the Mining Board has been suspended by the Governor, in accordance with the powers given him under Clause 18. No. 22 is an act to regulate steam vessels and the boats and lights to be carried by sea-going vessels. It contamsclauses, empowering the Governor to appoint Inspectors of Steam Vessels, and also for their proper survey. The owner of every iron steamer, the building of which shall have been commenced on or after the first of January, 1863, is required to have her divided by transverse watertight partitions, so that the engine-room shall be completely separated from the other parts of the vessel, and proceeding to sea in an iron steamer without such partitions will involve a penalty not exceeding lOOl. ; from the same date steam vessels will be required to have a safety valve on each boiler free from the care of the Engineer, and out of his control and interference. There are various other clauses in this act providing for a certain number of boats and life-buoys, things which have been hitherto very much neglected. No. 30 is "The Appropriation Act, 1862-3." Southland has 3,830/. allotted to her in the following proportion" : — Judicial .... JES2O Registration . . . . 700 Electoral .... 75 Customs .... 1,385 Postal .... SOO New Buildings . , . 350 No. 31 is the "Loan Act, 1862," and is an act for raising a loan of 500.000J. for the public service of New Zealand. Lawfully appointed agents shall have full power and authority to "borrow and raise in Great Britain, by bond, debentures, or otherwise, such sums, not exceeding in the whole the sura of five hundred thousand pounds sterling as the Lords Commissioners of Her Majesty's Treasury, or any three of them, shall, at the request of the Governor, or officer administering the Government of the Colony of New Zealand, from timfi to time determine and direct." The debentures to bear interest at a rate not exceeding four per cent. All sums of money raised under the authoiity of this act, and the interest thereon, shall be made a first charge upon the general revenue of the Colony of New Zealand. The principal sums are to be repaid thirty years from the days on which they shall be respectively raised. The schedule referred to in Clause 7 of this act is as follows : — ( 'l. To assist in the execution of such measures as the Governor, acting with advice of his Executive Council, may adopt for the permanent reinstatement of the settlement and inhabitants of Taranaki, a sum not exceeding two hundred thousand pounds. (i 2. To repay advances made from the Imperial Treasury, for the service of the colony on account of militia and volunteers and other military expenditure, incurred in the late native insurrection, and to defray the contribution of the colony towards the expenses of the Queen's forces supplied for its defence [from April, 1858, to the 30th June, 1862,] and for the construction of roads and other public works in the Northern Island of New Zealand, and for objects connected therewith, a sum not exceeding three hundred thousand pouads." These are some of the principal acts of the General Assembly during the past year. We shall have occasion to refer again to the last one quoted [No. 31].