The Westport Times. FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 1872

Westport Times, Volume VI, Issue 1020, 8 November 1872, Page 2

The Westport Times. FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 1872

The Legislative Council of New Zea--1 md is not a body which can be supposed, even by the most extreme amongst that still callow brood, the colonial Tories, likely to .augment largely Our fame for legislative wisdom, or to contribute much towards civic zeal for the public good through any competition for public honors which the hope of being raised to this Chamber is likely to stimulate. ~We are by no means blind to the good pTjcta which a second chamber in the Legislature might under favorable cil eumstances produce; most assuredly wo shall not deny that of good service rendered it is fitting that the State should mark its appreciation by honorary rewards bestowed. But then what does that word " honorary" mean ? If it has still iu it any of the old virtue of its derivation, if it signified something, bo it a political position, a military badge, even a lady's favor, which is worth having ; not for itself, not for any money consideration which attaches to it, but solely becau >e it was bestowed by whom it was bestowed, then by all means let such honors be distributed by the State in the form of seats in the Legislative Council. But suppose even this question satisfactorily answered, and that t is shown that never in the course cf •oionial history has this little dignity been draggled in the mud for political pui poses, thas every member who has reached a seat iu our Council, even if

hobo not particularly intellectual, nay may be, oven if he is something of a dunce or a dotard—we apeak politically—has vindicated his right to the position by the " good Bervice rendered," even then we have to seek who was the judge of that service, and wherein had he proved himself a fit arbiter on so momentous a point. We confess ourselves very much averse s to becoming personal in these matters, and on that account we have in a measure to avoid drawing too tightly tho conclusions to which we should come were the above questions to bo etraitly applied to the Legislative Council of this Colony. Candour, however, compels tis to observe this much, that it is impossible to glance at the very meagre reports of the Council debates to be found in Hansard without remarking that brief as those reports are, they are for the most part entirely free of any, save the merest school-boy views, of public affairs. Now it may be fairly assumed that on account of the short space allotted to them in Hansard these reports represent the concenlrated wisdom of the councillors, that portion in fact of their oratorical displays, which a skilled reporter was able to fix and abstractNow, knowing tho many hours which the Council sits, and the never failing fluency of many of its members, some vague idea of the superabundant grs evolved in that chamber, but which it was not found possible to condense for public use, may be reached. The proverbial clap-trap reply to the question " "What use is a second chamber in the Legislature?" is "to prevent hasty legislation, and, where necessary, compel reconsideration, on the part of tho lower chamber." Without referring to the English House of Peers, although the continued utility even of this body is now called in question, we would certainly take leave to doubt whether the above answer is by any means conclusive, and again inviting the attention of our readers to the legion of legislative puerilities recorded against the Council in Hansard, wo would observe that to our mind the evidence is in a precisely opposite direction. Apart from this question, however, there is the converse proposition to be considered, and that is that in holding the power to negative the measures of the Assembly, the Council does not ouly act as a check upon hasty legislation, but it may stand as an obstruction and barrier against all salutary reform. Thus far w T e have spokeu of colonial Councils generally, but as if to reach the same climax of absurdity iu this which it does in so many other portion of its governmental machinery, the members of the second chamber in New Zealand are nominated by the Grovernor for the time being, and selected by the Ministry. To special instances we object to allude, but we have no doubt that most of our readers will fit once recall one or two instances of persons called to the Council who were notoriously unfitted for the position : One in particular received this honor—so it was said—on account of the superior excellence of a luncheon which he had the honor of laying before Sir George Bowen upon one of his gubernatorial tours. Whether this rumour be true or not, its currency is sufficient to show how much value the people attach to the honor in question, and how much they believe in the nominations being made on account of public services rendered. Doubtless the refection to his Excellency on the occasion referred to, might have been a high public service, many, however, will hold that if so the benefit seems to have been restricted to the possible stoppage of that pompous and very rapid flow of wordiness for which Sir George has become chiefly famous—such a signal public benefaction as this, however, we fear he would be the last to recognise. The fact is that most colonial Governors have po very recently attained any position of honor or eminence—if eminence it is—themselves, that they are totally unfit to confer such, because such as they attempt to confer become from such donors rather o

inptter of jest than of honor. There is, however, another and even more serious objection to the New Zealand Council aa at present constituted, and that is the power which the Ministry has, though the creation of an unlimited number of new peers of the realm, of overbearing any resistance which the Council might oppose to a Ministerial measure. This utterly destroys all possible good which the Council could subserve as a safeguard against legislative follies. The only instance we have yet seen of Buch reeistam e being made in real earnest I

was in the matter of the Consolidation of Loans, ING 7, when Ministerial influence was instrumeutal in swamping the opposition of tho Upper House, and by this means tho colony was mulcted iu a very considerable sum. To conclude briefly, instead of this folly of pretending to believe a thing honorable which has no honor in it, of placing our legislature in the hands of a Governor or a Ministry, we think it would be far more for the benefit of the Colony if tho peoplo elected their Council, as they elect their Assembly. Let the franchise be higher, the constituencies richer, if desired, the term of membership longer, but at least let those best competent to judge say who it is that the people consider their benefactors, and entitled to such reward as this very barren distinction represents.