The Invercargill Times. FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 1864.

Southland Times, Volume III, Issue 42, 12 February 1864, Page 6

The Invercargill Times. FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 1864.

Doktcies are considered . tKe ; inpst" obstinate of created animals. Whether the name is the result of an exuberant possession of a certain quality or not, we- cannot say. 3]he • animal - gets' thrashed for displaying his obstinacy, but this affects merely his hide, and nature has- adapted it .to eircum-' stances. Man it affects morally. "When an obstinate man takes up a false position, he seeks to retain it by every means in his power — whether those means are justifiable or not. The memorandum referred to -in 1 the Superintendent's speech 'on the opening of the Provincial. ; Council last Wednesday, and laid on the table '

0:1: the liou&S, is a i'emarlcable instance] of this. < , ' i Of- His IjConpr'i' speech there is not much, to lie saicLi: it says little for itself. The* pieaaaiit information is afforded th© Council that the overdraft at the Bank is about £100,000 ' : which it is ' proposed to liquidate by ii ldarti The. -future expenditure, it is anticipated^ will -be met<by ; the ! Cus-< toms "Eevenuej which k-keepmg tip; well ; the' 'Land !Pun|d ;; is;;; alsolikely to increase,, largely, "from the quantity and" quality which will be shortly in the market. A further loan of £40,000 is< asked to complete the the Bluff and fliiyercar'gill Eailway. Pleu>?o-pneumpnia ! ; is mentioned,* Intimation is giVeW that the Government has agreed touring forward a Bill- to, enable the Town Board to borrow £20,000, but we are left in ignorance of ' whom the Government is composed. The speech is concluded with a slight allusion to the subject which of i all others must have been the most prominently present to the minds of every member of the Council— we mean, of course,' the absence of any member in the House to represent the Government, and the recent action of nine of : the Council with respect to the way in which Government had been conducted. " I have also to lay before you copies of a note presented to me on returning from Auckland by a gentleman who was lately a member of the Executive of this Province, and of a memorandum upon the subject" — nothing further is deemed necessary, and so the speech closes. In another part of the present issue we give the "note" and memorandum alluded to by His Honor. ; Referring to the note signed by the nine members of Council, His Honor states — "this note raises an abstract question on the constitution of a Provincial Government, which opens out a wide issue." It does nothing of the sort. It merely asks the Superintendent to do that which he had consented to do " by accepting the ■' Provincial Government Ordinance. " 1862"— namely, to act with the " advice and consent of an Executive " Council." The whole tone and spirit of His Honor's memorandum is calculated to mislead — to create a false impression of the position assumed by the members. The note of the nine members does not, in so many words, say, ""We request you to act with the advice and consent of an Executive Council, in purely Provincial matters ; we do not wish to interfere with those powers delegated to you by the Governor, for which you are solely responsible to him " — yet no one knows better than His Honor, that such was the real meaning of it. The very occasion on which the Executive resigned, Avas sufficient evidence of this. The Superintendent appointed a purely Provincial officer, not only without the advice of his Executive, but against then 1 consent. The 14th clause of the Provincial Government Ordinance states — " The Superintendent, with the advice and consent of the Executive Council, shall appoint all such officers, &c." The 15th clause aays, " The Superintendent may remove any such officers." The first defines distinctly that an appointment must be made jointly by the Superintendent and his Executive ; the second that a man may be dismissed by the Superintendent alone. In defiance of this law His Honor made an appointment which in reality is illegal, and the nine members of the Provincial Council, objecting to such a course of procedure, have the audacity to. tell him so. Had these gentlemen interfered in the appointment of a pilot, they would have been wrong and His Honor right. The Marine Board Ordinance, 1863, provides for such an appointment. A special act provides for its creation, and rests the appointment in the Superintendent alone. But the appointment on which His Honor and the Executive split is a purely Provincial one, and a special act provides that it shall be made, by the .Superintendent and the Executive. Council— not by the Superintendent alone. The ■ Superintendent has. .no more power to appoint ,,,, a Uoads Engineer, without the. advice and consent of his Executive Council, than, he had to appoint a pilot previous to the passing of the Marine . Board. -, Act. The " note " does not' "raise an : ab r stract question oil ihe . Constitution." ' The question it merely asfos*is, whether, the Superintendent will act' legally; or whether he will not ?. V ' . . . . - \- »> In the next clause His Honor assumes that' the meaning of : Me, " note "is -that tlie " admuiistratiy empowers of jfjhe'Super* intendent are derived fr ; omtVe legislation of, the Provincial' Cpunpilj''- ! and that consequently they c§.n be exercised cmiy : under, the condition^., prescribed ' in' the" Ordinance refer.re'(i r ''it;o." (No: 3j) ; Jle states— "lt would appear' that Buch. ; ,' ail; opinion . , is erronepus. " ■< >■■ «To whom wpuld it *apj^ar , so. ?.; ,Not .e'er-' Jainly io tl^enine members signed ' "iihe Wpte;"-not certainly to ;us,m>t eer^: aaiyp3ae ; ; who ' reads-, the':;Constitutfen.! '.Act ' and : 'tne' !explaaiatofy despafeh pjf-'^'S^^phn. Packington, Jfttf "]pSfag^aph,; r sJpv 9,; page 67, S,ir >J"ohii 'wrties^fJXxyc jiafts , ;been* , inserted !.giying} eiecuti^aiauthorityjof any, kinditoithe Superintendents.' '^Thisi is a -Jjoint on" which^^er^Majesty's' Government* did not ffeel'.that tliey. 'liad M|Ecie^;^Mp -any: .'^ennite!^^cb|nsse, ,^ ; whileitlie. general' pre'-*; . iogative of the -Grown,;- and sHie -poweri 'of the -.general 'titifclocak- Le^isMturesJ iseemed ( ? a|nply ■■' ; s^cieui^ t6 ; provide ; -wbateye^migJit ;'.,^ ) M^w^^, deenied; ' ,;^he^nerajii|[e^^ature; parses an Ora%ancej,cW;hic& Superintendent shall appoint Pilots."

Ike- tfoc&l J«i Ordinance, which 1 f |k^|^'i||>. ,'pf the'!Bsec3U^^ounoiljjHiitl^ppoiiit .a Eoads ingmeer-'^tHfethei^GJa^e 2 of .the Provincial ' fOi-dmaiwe^^pii n '^o,~ l Tjie aiiiiinmistratidii' 1 :of ; '. [Provincial Executive ■ Gt>vernmenti vJsa ktygfoj vested in the Superintendent, who ■shall act with the advice* aiid'|consent of an Executive just what the note*"'^i^j^; would appear, therefore, that the^opihion expressed in the note.is.nptve.rrpniep^aj; hut that His Honor's is'when'she says j that " the ConstMtMA'etJjprovid®! I for the conduct of th&''AMiikist7'aMbn hy the SupeH^endeM'^t^^ l^ l^ than providing "for the^^^P^i pf lam by the, . ..concurrent;^action; of the Superintendent .;u ancb/--Council," the Gonstitiiiion^llct s.ays nothing on this point; >;H H ' » ."■<,„. "We cannot say that ; it.appear.s;;to us that the members^of^the .Provincial Council signing the " Note," hbl&th&t the. duty of the Superintendent 'is "simply to give" effect. -fb r their decisions," as his Honor infers. But we can easily understand that <"^from ; ; the opinion that"; their relatioiis should b.e of this; chai v a^r;'the Superintendent ali;oge£her<\ dissent's.'' ;" , ' A' tendent would immediately Icease "to be a Cza,r— what becomes of "legitimate right."' ; ; ' '■' ' ■ : ' : ■■' : His Honor says, "it .is. not borne out by the spirit either- of; Imperial. or Colonial Legislature."- We' have already shown what ; the : Constitution Act says as to Local Administration. As regards Colonial Legislature, in the new Land Act for- -this . .Province,in Clause 5, we find,* "'but: it shall be lawful for the Superintendent wttli the advice and consent of the Executive Gowicil to reserve, &c". : . The Superintendent undoubtedly has > a power of veto, but as we explained in our last issue, if that power' is carried too far it must lead to a .dissolution. His Honor is light in, assuming tnat "when a Superintendent and Executive Council act heartilytogether to promote the public service, questions of relative powers should rarely arise.'.' "Whose fault is it in this instance that the Executive has not acted heartily with him ? His ..Honor usurped a power which he did ' not possess. If the Executive Were to acknowledge his ri^ht to do so, they would, cease to have the confidence o-f the Provincial Council, and wort oily so. Members of the Provincial Council are responsible to their constituents that matters of local administration, entrusted by the G-eneral Government to the management of the Superintendent and Executive Council conjointly, should be so managed. They would be unworthy of holding their seats, were they to tolerate or support au Executive which would consent to part with their powers, and be the tools of an individual who is legally bound to act. with' I ' them/ and not in contradiction t6 'their wishes.. His Honor concludes by stating that the Provincial Council can memorialise the Governor for 'his removal. The 1 Council, we fancy, are too " smart" to do anything of the kind.' The' Superintendent knows well enougli the Grovernor would treat the matter-as a Provincial squabble,' and do -"nothing. If the Superintendent will continue to hold such exaggerated notions of Ms office, the only course left to the Provincial (Council will be to pray for a ' dissolution. His Honor will be solely responsible for this step. The whole tenor of the memorandum, is. : one calculated to mislead the public— to. throw 1 the responsibility, of; any, stoppage to the public business ron -the. Council. "We are sorry His. Honor has, descended to such a subterfuge. Had Ije i really wished "to promote the public service," he could .easily have ; ascertained whether the meaning of the " Note" was that; as Superintendent he should act with the advice;, and .consent, of the Executive Council, ,npt merely in local matters, butalso inthose delegated to him by the Governor, and for which he .was alone responsible to liira-— <>r whether , it referred merely, to; the former. . Had, he 4 0U^ so ' &# Uiatter could have.; beeii : easily .arranged^ and no , v dead lock ; taken pkce— instead, of this '. he i-W'taJcen , a,h'igh ; and illegal; stand. JFurther, : :?he .has tried to, : throw the responsibility of his, .own, obstinacy and • illegality on. others.;; A ! ; . ,- n J 1 : ; i ;The reaimeaning of.'- the Note " is — : 4';iWiU you govern.; in localmatters eon- ■ iStitutionallyior.nQt'? _ Mill; .you fulfil i .the pr,omis;e you. made. by;«,signin!; the Government ijQrdinance, or ; jiQt ?"-■> ./His;^Honor's reply, : strrpped of ; ,the ; ;v.ei*biage f assumed^ to><>deeeive., is ;i i jsimply,-fjl;will'not.'! ./r y.-^i] ■ t •>•: t -His? Honor! started but ia ;few| months ; with. a first-rate ■ haud.u |He had tfour iby; honors \ and the= odd tripk. He > hasi played ;ibadly^.andr-willvyl;ose the I game.; ? The' memorandum -is \ his last cardf-'andrlif^the-- Obuncih Mil take a : proper and- dignified position! tliey will • 'beat « him.*-' '"'Starting? with;/fa jCouiicil ': which elected him ■j.with but> bne dis- :. sentient;* voiee^which-i supported .his i aneasures f with s ianl^>;6versvpielming ■ maiority—heihas: cleyerLy^managed to liturir^them.oagaiiisti him:» almost to a