LORD DERBY ON THE COLONIES.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume 5, Issue 1325, 12 March 1883, Page 2

LORD DERBY ON THE COLONIES.

The Eiivl of Derby on January IGtli received,''at' the, Colonial office, the High Commissioner ot Canada and the Agents-general for Australian Colonies, New Zealand, and the Cape of Good Hope. 'Sir Alexander .Gait,-in adressing'Lord Derby, congratulating him upon his acceptance of the Secretaryship of the Colonies, and welcomed the present interview as an evidence of his appreciation of the growing importance of the constitutional' Colonies, He trusted that the personal usefulness of himself and his collaegues in serving their respective Governments would be promoted by a more formal recognition than had hitherto beeiV found advisable, of the deeper interest, felt by the Colonies: in all .that concerned the ' welfare of the nation Of which they, regarded themselves as part. Lord Derby in reply, expressed his thanks for the address, and said that the growing importance of the great selfgoverning Colonies is -recognized by every Englishman, of whatever party or class. We rejoice, he said, in. their strength and prosperity and have the right to expect results such as the world has not often seen where the energies and experiences of ancient civilisation are applied to boundless territory and an unexhausted soil. The position which our country will hold in the history of the future will, in my judgement at least, depend far more on our achievements intlie way of colonisation, and on the diffusion of our race over so many of the choice regions of the earth, than on the part we have played, or may still play in Europe. It is difficult to avoid the language of exaggeration in speaking of the possible future of such countries as Canada and Australia.; We fully recognize and duly value the attachment of our Colonial kinsman, to the constitution under which we live to the Mother Country whence they have sprung, and to the Empire of which, though divided by distance, they continue to form a part. It 'will be my duty and my wish,'and.lt will.be equally that of any Minister who may hereafter stand in my place, to take care that the deep interest felt by the people of these islands in the'welfare of the Colonies shall find adequate expression in the language and in the actions of the official representee of the Crown;. . The Times, discussing thje interview, says that the claims made by the Agents-general mark a stage in the inevitable development of the relations of the Mother Country and tlieColonies. It is now felt to be ;time that the Agents-general should enjoy the status of accredited representatives of their Governments. ■ They have come to be the only channels through which the Imperial Government can obtain authentic knowledge of; the wishes of the Colonial Governments. A Governor nominated hyjhe Crown is'no longer capable of conveying what a Colony has to say to us. •