The Invercargill Times. WEDNESDAY. JANUARY 20, 1864.

Southland Times, Volume III, Issue 32, 20 January 1864, Page 2

The Invercargill Times. WEDNESDAY. JANUARY 20, 1864.

Tub Provincial Council is called toether, for the despatch' of business on the 10th day of February" next ; how, in the present. st>Vfe df things, than business is to be despatched, is rather a puazle. At the present moment tliere js no ■ ExecuHVe"' 'Council, or medium of communication between Mis Honor and tire Council, or, in other words, no responsible Government. We use the word responsible advisedly, tor under the New Provinces' Act it is difficult to determine to whom the Superintendent is responsible ; — certainly not to- the people, for tlu:y did not elect him., and, so fur as we are concerned, he can hardly b considered their choice, because, at the time of His Honor's election, he was probably, wither justly or not, the most Unpopular man in the Province ; and had he presented himself for election before the people he would have had uo chance of filling his present position. He is hardly responsible to the Council which elected him ; for responsibility argues the power of punishment ior misconduct on tlte |»-ire "i' the persou or persons to wtiom one is responsible. His Honor — it would appear — is under the impiession he can govern without an lixecutive, and we presume he wiil set the Council at defiance. Yet they cannot dismiss him ; and although — under the Constitution Act — :he Governor can remove him -on receiving an address signed by a majority of I lie members of the Provincial Council, prasing for his removal, we question much whether he would exercise that power, simply because liis Honor declined to govern constitutionally. We fancy he would be more inclined to treat the matter as a squabble between them, and recommend them to shake hands and be good boys in future, lie is not responsible to the Governor any further than as regards any special powers which may be delegated to him under "The De.egations Continuance Act, 18G2. 1 ' Although a Superintendent's election may be disallowed, once acknowledged' Superintendent ali direc' power over him ceases; he is not appointed by the Governor and ia noi responsible to him. It would appear, I therefore, at first sight, that a Superintendent elected under the New Provinces Act, is, during his term of office, a more omnipotent being than the Czar of Russia. On looking closely into the matter, • however, we find certain checks and restrictions imposed. The Constitution Act provides in clause S, that there shall be: a Superintendent and a .Provincial Council in each Pro vince established, or to be established ; no mention is made'in the Act itself of an Executive Government, but ia Sir Geo. Grey's despatch <o the Colonial Secretary, No. 12 I, bound up with nnd explanatory of the Constitution Act, in paragraph 63, page .37, we find — " and then to leave it to the Superintendent and the Provincial Council of each Province to regulate, by laws, subject to the approval or disallowance of the Governor-i n-Chief, the extent of the Executive Government which is to be constituted tor such Province." Again, in paragraph GG, page 58, speaking of th : powers to be conferred on Superintendents, Sir George writes: "He should nlao bo empowered, with the advice of his Executive Council, and in conformity with the regu'ations required by law, to proclaim Crown Lands as open for purchase, &c." In Sir John Pakington's despatch, No 32, transmitting the Constitution Act, paragraph 9, page 67, he writes, " Nor have provisions betn inserted giving Executive authority of any kind to the Superintendents. This is a point on which Her Majesty's Government did not. feel that they had sufficient infor mation to adopt any definite course, which the general prerogative of the Crown and the power of the general and locai legislatures seemed amply sufficient to provide, whatever might be ultimately deemed advisable " Paragraph 10. " It is, however, my wish that any such Executive powers as may be fouud necessary in order to carry on the functions of Government in the respective settlements, may be entrust d to these officers. This may be done by your own authority, as representing the Crown, or by Act of the Central Legislature, as the case may require; "At the first Session of the Provincial Council of Southland, they immediately proceeded to adopt the course pointed out by Sir J. Pakington, and passed the Provincial Government Ordinance, giving those executive powers to the Superintendent which he previously did not possess, and prov ding also an Executive Council to assist him." Clause 2 of this Act states the administration of the Provincial Executive Government is .hereby vested in the Superintendent; who shall act with the advice and consent of an Executive Council.'' Clause 14 states, " The Superintendent, with' the advice and consent of the Executive Council, shall appoint all sttch officers as he may consider necessary for the effectual discharge of the public business of the Province." The course to be pursued by the Superintendent is, we think clearly indicated ; the Constitution Act leaves him without executive powers; he obtains them from the Local Legislature, whieb. at the same time directs how he shall exercise them ; he " shall act with the advice and consent of an Executive Council." Superintendents of Provinces, created , Under the. New Provinces Act, have a lesser degree, of power entrusted io" them

than similar officers in the -qlder provinces ; their power of vetoing is'trifling 1 n comparison; . The A c t-' was eyideTitly' intended to pave" ttterway^ towards abolishing the Provinces, and creating municipalities*- instead. Tuiis, ;by the II th clause, the Siiperintehdent*' shall t>e capable-! of' - b.sing elected and sitting us a member of the -Provincial Council, and, as »he speaker thereof, .and accordingly, if a member of any such Council shall ha elected Superintendent, and his seat in the Council tdiall be hereby vacated, ho shall, nevertheless, be ele^ible for re-elec-tion." Their position 1 being" similar to that of a Ma>or, elected by Aldermen,, and sitting- at the Council Board. Clanse 12 states — "It shall not be lawful for Ihe Superintendent of any Province established under this Act to assent on behalf of the Governors, but only to declare, according to his discretion and subject to sueli instructions as may from time to time be given him by the Governor, either that he withholds the assent of the Governor, or that lie reserves such Bill for the signification of the Governor's pleasure thereon;' 1 and should the Superintendent exercise the power of vetoing in contradiction to the majority of the Provincial Council, on any ma ter of great moment, the Council by refusing to pass an Appropriation Ordinance, renders powerless the Superintendent. For the 14'h clause of the New Provinces Act provides that all Revenues howsoever arising within any Province shall be subject to the appropriation of the Provincial Council of that Province. Jt is true that Dr. Feathers tone — a Superintendent ol' one of the old Provinces, and consequently possessed of much larger powers than the same officers under the New Provinces' Aci — curried on the (Jovernmeut without an Executive for two jears, expending upwards of £'200, 000 without an Appropriation Act. To prevent this in future, however, the General Assembly passed, in 1861, the Provincial Audit Act, under which a Provincial Auditor is appointed by the Provincial Council, and is responsible to them alone. His chief duty is to see that the money appropriated by the Council is expended as authorised ; to report to them within a week after the commencement of the Silting of the Council if it has been mis-spent, and to prosecute, by direction of the Council, " any person expending public money on the public service without authority of law, '"who "shall be liable for every such offence to a penalty not exceeding £ 100.*' Thus for every cheque drawn by a Superintendent for unauthorised expenditure, he is liable to a heavy penalty which cumulated would prove a sufficient check to the pleasure of exercising arbitrary power. Taking everything into consideration, therefore, we are of opi .ion that Superintendents elected under the New Provinces' Act, if ret-ponsible to anyone, are directly responsible to the Provinc:al Council. Elected by then), having —if they choose — a seat in the Council, they can. also be punished for misappropriating the pubiic funds by an officer specia'-iy appointed by tliat body.