The Nelson Evening Mail. MONDAY, AUGUST 26, 1867

Southland Times, Issue 715, 26 August 1867, Page 2

The Nelson Evening Mail. MONDAY, AUGUST 26, 1867

The elections may now be said to be virtually over, tbere being only two districts remaining-^-tiie Oreti and the "Waiau^ta complete /jbhe full list. The , majority of those elected, are in favor of railways, but we believe it is questionable whether the^-liberal-offer of-tbe-G-eneral-#overn^-ment will be again repeated— indeed there is a strong probability, in consequence of the delay that has taken place, for supposing that the whole subject will be indefinitely postponed, if not altogether abandoned. Under such circumstances" >ery^ grave responsibility rests upon those gentlemen who. were • atoni*.""*-^ :^- av/A3o.nng the resolutions of the Blacklock Ministry, because the position of this province is suchi. that unless reproductive public works are commenced, its future prospects will not wear the jmost cheerful aspect. Inmost youngcountries-the-element-conducive-to prosperity: is ,the inducement offered. to capital and labor to invest. It was the vigorous prosecutionof useful works that made Victoria pre-eminent amongst the sister colonies as a field for immigration, and it is the absence of this element that places Southland in such an inferior position to other more thriving localities. Our Otago neighbors see the truth of this argument, and are using every endeavor to raise funds to prosecute railways, harbors, roads, <fee. ' Mr Macandbew primarily owes his return as Superintendent to the views he enunciated in reference to these subjects. He publicly" "stated that the decline of the prosperity of Otago was mainly attributable to the absence of the expenditure on public works that were likely to become reproductive at some future time, and as soon as he obtained office his first act was in this direction. Situated as Southland is, without any available land fund to enable her to engage in public works — depending sdlely^upoirlier ordinary revenue , which does ndffmuch exceed £12,000 per annum — it is clearly obvious that unless some aid is obtained from the only source now open to us— the General Government — this Province will gradually but surely retrograde until it reaches the unenviable distinction of an outlying district without capital or resources. The result of the Invercargill election is not at all satisfactory, and we very much mistake if it will not lead to endless trouble and petty squabbles in the new Council. It was a great mistake to return Mr Lttmsdenv Our opinion of him as a politician is simply that he is very narrow-minded and obstinate, and imbued with such strong party feelings, as felinds his judgment. Even Dr Menzies — who, by-the-bye, we would much prefer to have seen returned in his place- — h dd to reprove him for the intemperate manner he. behaved at the close of the last session of Council. So far then as the, election resulted in the return of Mr. Lumsden, it was a mistake. Mr Macdokald, on the other hand, has been defeated* and his loss to the Council will be severely felt. He is a gentleman that possesses not only liberal and progressive views far beyond the average of Provincial politicians, but •he has the , rare „ facility of expressing those views in clear and forcible language, and as a debater, his qualities are of the most promising order. His absence from the Conncil is a. great loss to the Province." The duties of the new Gotihcil will be most important. It will -have to legislate upon the present depressed condition* of the Province ; it will have to find funds for such important measures as immigration, public works, education, and other subjects of social progress ; and it will likewise be called upon to furnish men of-ability and- integrity tocarry those schemes into ■=•'• execution. But the most important of all -its functions will be the election of a Superintendent. It must carefully weigh the merits of each candidate, and select the most fitting and eligible. ,. It must . see beforehand that "no' one is elected who does not possess the confidence of the

people at large— who is not identified • with party tactics— who will fearlessly | initiate subjects of .Provincial import- j ance, and who will support by his influence the General Government in its desire to place New Zealand in the position she is entitled to assume as a leading colony in' the Southern hemisphere. He must be a gentleman of education, of ability, and sociai posi? tion These are no light responsibilities, and we would suggest that no time should be lost in calling the Council together. Thefe might be a private meeting, at which the various candidates could be proposed, and the successful one definitely fixed upon. By the adoption of fhis^course, the Vcandal ot a former occasion would be svoided, ~ when such unseemly bickering and wrangling occupied so large a portion of time that might otherwise lave been devoted to the public benefit. It is to be Loped that the. choice of a Superintendent wi3i be a wise one, as no greater calamity could befall this Province tlan to elect a . person . who will not command the confidence and the respect of the community. "We learn that Mr Dillon Bell has ex-' pressed an intention of retiring for the remainder of the session of the General Assembly. The cause assigned is ill health. It is to be regretted that his services should be lost to the country at this important juncture. There is, however, one subject that we desire to call to the hon gentleman's recollection. When he addressed his constituents at the Theatre it was distinctly understood that he was to advocate the cause of Separation, or failing that, the next best thing — Centralism. But when the Stajpoed Ministry lately introduced the Local Government Bill — which professedly gave to the country most liberal terms for self-government — instead of supporting it as might naturally be expected, he strongly opposed it, thus contradicting his previous statements. It is a subject of regret that he contributed" to defeat what may be considered one of the best mesures introduced into the Assembly this session. I .■- — -.-.-■-.-■■