THE COLONIST. NELSON, TUESDAY, JUNE 21, 1859.

Colonist, Volume II, Issue 174, 21 June 1859, Page 2

THE COLONIST. NELSON, TUESDAY, JUNE 21, 1859.

A -comparatively speaking great political conteat has received a quietus, and yet' even now, when the death wail of the Opposition is being feebly murmured, a Phoenix seems likely to arise from the ashes of the mouldering fire. To use the expression of a speaker in the last memorable .debate, they would follow the example of Samson, who valued not his own existence, if, by self-dcs: ruction, he could involve bis enemies in'his fate. The attempt to overthrow and supplant our present Executive Government has failed, ,and a tentative brochure has issued from the acknowleged organ of .those members who were anxious to obtain such a result. A gentle intimation is. now given .that all Provincial Governments are badly constructed, and require revision- ( by,a,; higher authority.'" They" have not besri^bViuVtb' work well-it is averred,' and, as instances of mismanagement are far .easier to find than any of perfect success, a recapitulation of the ills attendant upon a divi-: sioa .of feeling between a Superintendent and the elected members of the province are carefully paraded before us. The history of legis-

lation in any. free country would furnish material for similar complaints, but on this account a return to a, Colonial Autocracy is furtively advocated. It has been the privilege of-Englishmen since the, days of Alfred, that they have been allowed a great, share iv administering to the special wants of their own district. The subdivision of a kiugdom. for the purpose of*an efficient rule of the same, received the authority of those who governed our forefathers, and has become hereditary.in the minds of our countrymen. The woid " hundreds "is of frequent occurrence in the description of English counties, and although the use of the terjn has gradually died away, the word itself has survived. In one large portion of the British empire, viz., India, the system itself is in operation. There every village and small hamlet has a local government, and the effect has this advantage, that those in office are weli known to all ihe inhabitants. In their cities also are dis : tricts and incorporated members. Amongst the earlier nations of the earth, the .Romans, the Greeks, and even the Jews, was the system of. Jocal self-government recognised, and the-Scotch to\a late date, obeyed the heads of clans only;'

From this ruling idea arose various crafts and guilds, the Livery companies of London, and the organisation of municipal towns. In the reign of Alfred so effectually was this system oarried put, that theft was next to impossible, as each district being accountable for the crimes committed in it, the stranger was watched as well as themselves, and it was the boast of the monarch that his subjects could leave their purse on the highway untouched. Originally our parishes had much Ihe same function, they maintained and regulated their own poor; they made and mended their own roads and bridges," they regulated their mutual common rights, and had their own pound, stocks, and round-house, their justice and his officers. By this system they were trained to habits of business and of judgment, by this, did they learn the philosophy, and inspire the pride and independence of self government;; they respected the authority of laws handed over to themselves for administration, and by this they became trained for the representative economy of the Constitution, arid came to know the arcana of the elective system*

By the children* of those thus educated a colony Las been formed, and it was not unreasonable to expect that, trained to estimate the value of such a system, they should, as soon as progress had been sufficiently.developed, seek to ensure in their new homes, the benefits ,they had enjoyed at. home. From this feeling arose the separation of the provinces of New Zealand, and "they received that which brought might and right to every man's door—viz., thakone's friends and neighbors, elected by their fellow settlers, and assisted by a skilled public officer (the cheapest functionary to a■; State, though even, receiving a high salary),' should^ have inecessary powers, to deal substantial justice in the ordinary iucidente* of provincial life^to draw and register documents of value,—to make authoritative contracts where parties were agreed,—to settle all matters of tenancy, occupation, trespass, boundary, and the endless daily collisions of interest, security, or right. Even if the action of such a system is not always satisfactory, it is at least cheap, speedy, and free from quirk or technicality. Matters interesting to private individuals or to the province generally, need now only to be referred to the authorities here, and the vexatious loss of time and expense in referiug to the General Government greatly avoided.

With au extended suffrage, such as we have here, a public meeting place for each district should be appointed, where public business .can be carried on; and we may make it our boast that such to a great measure has been accomplished by means of our school-houses, Courthouses, and, in one or two instances, Literary Institutions. If the people are to have power, it.is essential that they should be taught how to use it—that they should be instructed in the bearings of all the great questions which are to be settled by their representatives. If society is to carry on a successful war against effeie and abandoned crudities, it must have its public schools, lecturers, and meeting halls for each division of country. Prefectures and departments in Fiance do locally and cheaply that which has been given us here, and in which we form so favorable a contrast to the mother country. Syndicates, tribunals of commerce, and minor offices do on the continent, as a matter of course, that which our Executive and Provincial Council do here. We have, we think, sufficiently proved that local self-government is one of the greatest blessings which has been granted to us,'and we should therefore be prepared to resist any attempt that would" seek to deprive us of the advantage we" have gained, and propose a. recurrence to the older and more expensive mode of government adopted in New Zealand. We must remember that our taxes are.chiefly redistributed amongst ourselves, we bearing only a share, fixed upon equitable principles, towards the expenses of the General Government. We have-not to supply the one favored province with all our means, to be doled out to us according to the wishes and judgment of strangers to our localities ; and in spite of petty jealousies, which f we must, expect to arise between local boards, great and permanent, benefits are accruing.to.tis. ~ ; .; ■, • "-"• : , Rooking forward to the future political bias of one party in Nelson, we cannot help fearing 'that this subject will be' prominently brought forward. • It offers some advantages to the disappoiuted on a late occassion, and if we may judge of the feeler already put out, will be the next question of "importance which we shall, have to .watch. Fortuuately for ourselves, the; qualifications for a voter are on so liberal a scale,

. that the good sense of the many will be able to defeat any such attack.. ■ . '" ■ The Provincial Council, which meets this day, will no doubt receive some intimation as to the future line of policy to be adopted by the supporters of Mr. Elliott's motion, and we may be perhaps enabled to gather more clearly some intelligence of their intended proceedings. Leaving the matter; then; in abeyance, until more decided hostilities have commenced/we close our remarks for the present.