THE Evening Star. PUBLISHED DAILY AT FOUR O'CLOCK P.M. Resurrexi. FRIDAY, OCTOBER 17, 1879.

Thames Star, Volume X, Issue 3376, 17 October 1879, Page 2

THE Evening Star. PUBLISHED DAILY AT FOUR O'CLOCK P.M. Resurrexi. FRIDAY, OCTOBER 17, 1879.

Some months ago, shortly after Sir Julius Vogel had represented to the Imperial Government the desirability of colonial representation in the British Legislature, we took occasion to comment on the, matter, and then wrote:—" If the Home people wish the Empire to stand without fear of future dismemberment colonists must hare a voice in the chief Council of j the State, and of this fact there cam be no doubt entertained. . . . Our Governor is simply the.first subject in the Colony, and a "Viceroy in no other sense than a social one, and our Agent-General ; could exercise far more influence in the House of Commons for the weal of the colony than any Governor we could possess. The Agent-General is the servant of the New Zealand people, while our. Governors are too apt to consider themselves the servants of the Crown,! ignoring or forgetting the fact that our j present, dynasty was placed in the position it has long occupied by the representatives of the people. And it is of the more im-' portance that this view of our position should be earnestly and zealously advocated from the new creed of Imperialism that is now so popular and fashionable in Great Britain. 1' At the time of writing the article from which the above extracts are taken we were greatly impressed with the importance of the question at issue, and feel surprised that so little interest has been taken in the matter by other leaders of public opinion in the colony. We now hold, as we did then—that if the glorious British Empire on which the suu never sets, v to be preserved in its integrity, provision must be made for the representation of the colonies in the British House of Commons. And tho reasons aro obvious. The Colonies aro integral portions of the Empire ; every throb of its heart is felt in the utmost confines ; financial pressure at jjofljesisSnaooialpressuroin the southern hemisphere;' Britain's declaration of war carries with it a <k«Uw* tio° of war by the colonies, which are as 1 {™h{a *«» suffer thereby as the mother country J »"d last, but not least, laws approved of by the Imperial Government rule us. Aud if this is true, is it right, is it just, that the fair colonial possessions of England should be deprived of a voice in the deliberations of the representatives of the nation ? The cogency of this reasoning is so apparent that we consider further comment is unnecessary. There is a feeling growing throughout the dependencies of the Crown that some such arrangement as the one alluded to is very desirable, and cirqumstances will bring the question more strongly before the people of some colonies than others. The subject is receiving considerable attention at the hands of the legislatures of the South African Colonies, in whose hiitory there aro numerous instances of maladministration and disaster, through the ineffectual representation of their wants and circumstances to the Imperial Parliament.

We havn before us tie speech of Mr Orpen, delivered iv the Cap.' Parliament in June last in speaking to a resolution, " Tha«. if is desirable that Her Majesty's Government be moyed to take into curly consideration a measure for giving the Colonies representation in the Imperial GoTcrnment." His proposition umounts merely to a declaration thai the principles of responsible Gorernment, being as they aro, the very foundation of the British Constitution, must throughout the Empire be carried out in their integrity to their legitimate conclusions, and that the Empire is not mere congeries of soniiindependent states, but a united whole, "one and iuderisible." Mr Orpen'B speech is a rery excellent one and re-echoes our own convictions on the question. The whole subject is gone into most logically, and is handled in a manner that bears evidence that the South African statesman thoroughly understands his subject. A South African journal with praiseworth patriotism haa sent a copy of Mr Orpen's speech to every paper of importance in the British Empire, and we trust that an agitation iv support of the principle, wo and a few other journals have sought to advocate, will soon arise and compel colonial legislatures to seriously consider the advisability of obtaining representation for the colonies in the Imperial Parliament.