ESSENCE OF PARLIAMENT.

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume XXII, Issue 9198, 17 August 1880, Page 2

ESSENCE OF PARLIAMENT.

(Evening Post, 12fch August.) , Mr Whitaker, Attorney-General, 'yesterday introduced into the Legislative Council a bill to amend the Debtors and Creditors Act. He explained that full legislation on the bankruptcy law would be deferred until next session, but the measure int-oduced temporarily amended the law as recommended by the joint Bankruptcy Law Committee. A sort of free fight occurred over some notices to ask leave of absence for Messrs Ackland, Peters, and Reynolds. Colonel Whitmore opposed the granting leave of ahsenee to members who came late to the session and wanted to go away before it wns orer. If members had so much privale business to attend to they should resign. The time .was, come when the Coiiicil should put its foot down upon suoli an undignified practice. Colonel li'ctt would oppose everyone's going nway. IE illness was the cause, they should procure a medical certifica'e, as was done in the army. If a member's family was ill, he should telegraph to the dootor to send up a certificate to the Council. Sir V. D. Bell took a different view of the matter, and said, they should not discuss .members' reasons for going away. . If they wero refused leave, they would take it. M"r Whitaker replying to Colonel Brett's remarks about placing the Council on the same footing as the army, observed that in the army malingerini; was resorted to, and the word of a malingerer ■could not. be trusted. .After some further disonssion,- 'the motion was carried. Several bills were advanced a stage, and. the Council rose at 4,25 p.m. The House resumed at 11 o'clock tbis morning with the further consideration of the. Counties, Bill in! committee/ Mr Sutton endeavoured to have the bill thrown out, as it contained a number of usele.is clauses, and they would bo belter without the measure-as it stood at .present. | He,';therefdre, moved that the" chairman leave the "chair, but the motion was negatived. Mr Seddon pro^ posed several amendments, but they were all rejected, and the bill was reported with amendments.' The .bill was subsequently read a third time and passed. . Mr ßolleaton moved the-seriohd reading of the High School Reserves ißill. _ Several members objected to' it passing' ihis session. Ml 1 Bolleston pointed , put that if the bill w,as not passed this 'session it would throw back secondary education for years. A division was called for by Mr Hursthonse, who opposed the bill, with the following result :— Ayes, 40 ; Noes, 17. Second reading carried. The Joint Stock Companies Bill was passed, and the Dog Registration and Brands and Branding Bills were read a second time. On the second reading of the Fencing Bill, Mr Swanson moved as an amendment that it be, read a second time that day six month's, but the motion was" lost by 34 to 16, and the bill was read a second time. The Thames Water Supply Bill was then considered in committee, and the House rose at 2 p.m. The Government had hoped to be able to get well into the Public Works Estimates yesterday everting, but their hopes were doomed to disappointment. One of the constitutional principles of parliamentary procedure is, that when •Her Most Gracious Majesty asks the Commons to grant her supplies, members may air their grievances and desires to an unlimited extent, and as this privilege- is always largely taken advantage of by our colonial Commons, it is usually a difficult matter to get into Committee of Supply; Such was, Ihe case last night. ■ Squabbling over the loaves and. fishes intimately connected with public works prevented the consummation which Ministers devoutly wished. Mr.Pyke set the ball rolling, by moving the following :— " (1) That this House is of opinion that the report of the Royal Commission on Hallways, in so far as it deals with lines which have never been submitted to or sanctioned by Parliament, was unnecessary and uncalled for ; (2) that in so far'as it condemns railway lines the construclion of which has, after due consideration and careful inquiry, been sanctioned by this House, the said report has no sufficient foundation, and should be regarded as a mere expression of individual, opinion, hastily formed, without any special knowledge or experience on the subject ; (3) that it would therefore be unwise and highly detrimental to the bests interests of the oolony for the Government to shape its public works policy upon the opinions and recommendations embodied in the said report." He endeavoured to show that the report was not valuable, and was unworthy the consideration of the Bouse or the attention of the Government j that it was, in fuct, so much was,te paper,' fit only for the waste-paper.basket. Notwithstanding his assertion as to folly of considering it, Mr Pylte considered it for just sixty minute?, dealing with it clause by clause. A , number of other speakers followed, most of them objecting to the report of. the Commission on various grounds. Almost every opponent spoke from a parish' point of view, leaving its bearing qn the po].ony at; large gut of the question. It was surprising, too, to hear how many districts were " most entitled " to the , expenditure of -public money on ra'lways. Otago, Oamaru, Auckland, West Coast (Middle Island), Wellington, and other places were, according to the'views of one or more of the representatives fit e^cj) of these places, left out in th.c cqld. without rhyme or reason. Some speakers, including Sir William ¥ox, objected to the report, principally on the ground that it was.based on insufficient evidence. The Minister for Public Works, though not agreeing with all contained in the report, said he was quite sure the action of the Commissioners would ho generally endorsed by the eolpny, as .it was'high time to stop t%.a construction of lines which woula not pay. The debate went on till 12 30 a.m., when it was adjourned, and the House rose.