GENERAL ASSEMBLY.

Temuka Leader, Issue 2374, 25 June 1892, Page 4

GENERAL ASSEMBLY.

Wellington, June 23. The third session of the eleventh Parliament of New Zealand was opened at 2.50 p.m. by His Excellency the Governor. There was a largo attendance of the public, and the galleries and seats on the floor of the Legislative Council Chamber were crowded with ladies. The Countess of Glasgow and two of her daughters were present. Fifteen members of the Council attended in their seats, and, ii response to a summons from His Excellency, forty-four members of the Lower House, headed by the Speaker, put iu an appearance. The usual accompaniments, guard of honor, and the firing of a salute were observed. The weather, which had been threatening and slightly rainy in the morning, held up, and remained fine during the ceremony. His Excellency wore the uniform of a Post-Captain, and was attended by two A.D.C.'s and the Foreign Consuls.

LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL. The Speaker took the chair at 2.30. LEAVE OF ABSENCE. A message was received from the Governor intimating that he had given leave of absence for the session to Mr Boweu. ADDRESS-IN-REFLY. * Mr Bajjjnici >at gave notice to move the Address-in-iieply to-morrow. The Council at 2.55 adjourned till next day. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. The House met at 2.35 p.m. A message was received from the Legislative Council requiring the attendance of the members to hear the Governor's Speech. THFi GOVERNOR'S SPEECH. The Governor's Speech first dealt with the pleasure he felt at meeting them in Parliament assembled so soon after his arrival in the colony. It then referred t\> the loyalty displayed on the death of the Duke of Clarence, and continued:

—lt is my pleasant lot at this, the commencement of my term of office, to be able to congratulate you upon the continued and sustained improvement in the finance and private industries of the colony. New Zealand is now in a sou uder and more prosperous state than at any time during the last thirteen years. I

am happy to be able to state, as my predecessor stated twelve months ago, that the provision mado during last session for carrying on the public"services has proved more than suificient. The remarkable V ilume of our exports, still greatly in

excess of that of our imports, proves

clearly that the colony possesses both the power and the will to steadily reduce its liabilities. The relative increase of the imports, moreover, may be considered evidence that this process of reduction is now sufficiently far advanced to allow the people of the colony a wider margin for expenditure. It is with pleasure that I draw your attention to the fact that the exports of New Zealand produce for the financial year show an actual increase, despite the partial failure of the wheat harvest of 1891, and the comparatively low prices of our staple export —wool. On the occasion of your meeting together

ljiat year your attention was especially invited to that exodus of population from this to the neighboring colonies, which, after continuing for some years, had up

to that moment shown no sign of abatement. lam glad, however, to be able to inform you that since the prorogation of your House in September last statistics of arrivals and departures show a fair excess of the former over the latter. My Ministers are of opinion that this improved state of affairs is due in part, at least, to the efforts made by the Bureau of Industries to accelerate the circulation of labor throughout the colony. The change is the more gratifying in view of the fact that tli3 public works expenditure of some of the Australian colonics has for years so enormously exceeded our own. The disposal and settlement of the waste lands of the Crown have gone on apace during the last twelve months. The extraordinary stream of applications which has been flowing in from special settlement associations affords, in the opinion of My Advisers, a further convincing proof of the great and still increasing demand for 1 Hid among Ixmii fuk intending settlor!;

o i the soil. The returns to be laid before

you by the L;rnds Department will, so My Advisers think, prove- that the rate ,-f ssttlament in the colony is now chiefly limited by but three conditions—first, the amount of Crown land still available for occupation; secondly, the amount of money in hand for spending on surveys ; thirdly, the willingness of Parliament to amend and improve such parts of the land laws as form, in the opinion of my Ministers, a hindrance rather than a help to rapid and genuine settlement. The purchase of Native lands has been carried on as speedily as financial considerations hxve admitted, and the demeanor of the Native tribes at various conferences with * members of the Government has been e marked by a satisfactory inclination for fair discussion. The arrangement entered into with Tawhiao, by which he accepts a Government pension, marks, I trust, a removal of the last barrier to the peaceful development of that portion of the North

Island which has for a whole generation been more or less isolated by what has been known as the " King movement." A departmental rearrangement has broken up the Native Department, distributing its functions through the Departments of Land and Justice. It has, however, been considered very necessary not to leavethe Maori race to imagine that this means aiy lessened attention to their wants and i icerests. For this and other reasons it has been thought well to add to the Executive Council a member of the Native race in the manner provided by statute. On meeting you last year regret was expaessed by my predecessor at the continued and discouraging decline in the yield of our goldfields. I have, therefore, the greater pleasure in being able to congratulate you upon the distinct improvement shown by the mining returns of the financial year just ended. My Government have recently been invited to send representatives to the proposed Australian Conference to consider the further introduction of colored labor into the ( northern continental colonies, but the invitation has not been accepted.

HONORABLE GENTLEMEN OF THE LEGISLATIVE Assembly.

I deeply regret that your already diminished, numbers have still fur-

ther been reduced by the death of three much-esteemed members, by the resignation of a fourth, and by the temporary departure from the colony of others of your number. Gentlemen of the House of Representatives.

The Estimates of revenue and expenditure will be laid before you. The estimates of expenditure has been framed with a strict regard to economy. You will doubtless be gratified to hear that information carefully gathered points to the conclusion that the important reform in the direction of taxation made by you last session, will be carried into effect without any loss to the revenue whatever. Honourable Gentlemen of the Legistalive Council and Gentlemen of the House of Representativf,s. Returns will be laid before you showing ing the result of the tariff on all the railways. You will be asked to give your attention to the question of the future management of these large and valuable parts of the national property. The prosecution of public works during the last year has been marked by one or two features calling for special notice. The encouragement of an association of workmen on the co-operative system has led to results equally satisfactory to the state and workmen concerned. The same may bo said for the abolition ef the system known as " sub-contracting." You will be asked again to consider Bills dealing with the land laws, the acquisition of private lands for settlement in small blocks, and for the relief of certain hard-pressed tenants of the Crown. The Electoral Bill as introduced last year will be again laid before you with one very noticeable addition. The Juries Bill will this year contain further reform, and you will be asked to pass a Bill amending the law of bankruptcy, and another providing for the payment of members. There are also ready for your consideration Bills dealing with the Civil Servants and other employes of the State; several measures relating to agriculture ; Bills for amending the law relating to insurance companies and policies; for dealing with unclaimed lands, moneys for aiding the acquisition of Native Lands, for dealing with the Native Land Court, with the West Coast reserves, with technical education, with the transfer of land, with testamentary restriction of property ; as well as other Bills relating to matters of public interest. In the opinion of My Advisers the time has now arrived for placing on the Statute Book a measure providing for the establishment of boards of conciliation and a court of abitratiou to cope with industrial disputes. Other measures designed to improve the condition of the wage-earners and workmen of the colony will be laid before you. These matters I commend to your attention, assuring you of my earnest wish to aid your labour in the interests of the colony, and praying that your efforts may with God's blessing tend to the happiness and well-being of the people of New Zealand. miscellaneous. The Speaker briefly referred to the death of vacancy for Rangitikei caused by Mr Macarthur's death. The Lions. Mr Rolle.iton, and the Premier on behalf of the Government, expressed the loss the country had sustained by Mr Macarthur's death.

Mr McLean, Mr Allen, and Mr Sandford, members for Wellington, Bruce, and Ohristchurch, respectively, took the oath and their seats.

Mr Hutchison gave notice that he would present a petition from Mr Bryce asking for the reconsideration of the resolution of cetnure passed on him, and that Mr Bryce be heard at the bar of the House. Mr McGuire gave notice to move for the expunging of the resolution re Mr Bryce from the records of the House,

Notice of Sessional Committees were given by Ministers, and a largo number of petitions were presented and motions given notice of; also a number of Bills, mostly by the Government. The Speaker read a letter he had sent to the Czar of Russia's aide-de-camp, enclosing a petition in favor of the Russian Jews. The reply seated that the official mentioned had no power to receive petitions affecting the interests of the Government of Russia, and politely returning the petition. Mr McLean gave notice to move next day the Address in Reply to the Governor's Speech. The Premier said if the debate on the Address in Reply were finished next day lie should bring down the Financial Statement on Tuesday. The Hon. Mr Rolleston gave notice to ask the Premier whether it was correct that Ministers had on two occasions tendered important advice to the Governor which advice had not been accepted, and, if the report were correct, what course the Government proposed to take in the matter.