PARLIAMENTARY NOTES. [BY TELEGRAPH.-SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT].

Waikato Times, Volume XXI, Issue 1719, 12 July 1883, Page 2

PARLIAMENTARY NOTES. [BY TELEGRAPH.-SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT].

'Tii&;!Land\4<^ Athendnient Bill provides tha't 1 Government;* may r proclaim pastoral lands for leasing in'blocks not exceeding 5000 acres, one person not to own or occupy more than 5620 acres. Every lessee is bound within 12 months of the commencement of this term, and thereafter, for a period of six consecutive years, to reside on some portion of the lauds so leased to him, and during that time he must improve the land to the value of four year's rent. The Roads Through Private Lands Bill provides that roads through private lands in any municipality, or road district, shall lie under th< j supervision of the local authorities. The cost of forming and metalling such roads must be guaranteed to the local board by the owner of tlie pioperty desiring such road. The Auctioneers Act, 1883, now before Parliament provides that licenses shall be issued and fees paid to the local bodies, such license for so long a.s it remains in force to authorise the holder thereof to conduct auction sales in any part of the colony, sales to be conducted during daylight, and account sales to be rendered within seven days.

The West Coast Railway. Mr Fish has tabled the. following queries to Government for Thursday :—: — (I) Whether it is true that a large deputation of members representing Canterbury aud Westlancl recently waited upon the Government ; (2) whether in compliance with their demands Government promised that during the recess two of the proposed lines of railway to cdnnect Canterbury with the West Coast should be surveyed at a ptobable cost of £20,000, and tint 15 miles of land on each side of both routes should be reserved from sale, and that a sum of about £150,000 allocated by the Loan Act ot 1882 for the extension of the Middle Island main trunk line, should remain to be dealt with next session, or after the completion of both surveys ; (3) whether the Government are or are not of opinion that the reports of the various commissions appointed by themselves and now in their I ossession afford suificient information to enable them to state definitely aud at once which of the rival routes for the extension of the Middle Island main trunk line of railway should be adopted ; (4) whether the Government will inform the House of the nature of the demands made upon them by the aforesaid members, together with the leply givsn by the Government.

The Opposition Tactics. No-confidence motions have become a moat prolific crop. Although Parliament is not quite four weeks in session these havealready been made atthe rapid rate of one per week. The first has been already disposed of ; the second is just now under discussion, and the third was tabled yesterday by Sir G. Grey, and will in due course make its appearance. The subject matter of the debate last night on the no-confidence motion was not by any means startling. Mr Montgomery was as usual weak in argument and clumsy in expression. Major Atkinson was severe and happy, while Sir G. Grey was ghostly, discourteous and declamatoiy. These thiee speeches were the principal events of the evening, and by the time they had concluded, the Government, who had hung fiie on the point, announced that they would accept the situation as a no-confidence motion, and surrounded it with all the formal observances incidental to such a situation. In pursuance of that determination they refused to allow the debate to be adjourned to Thursday, so as to allow private members' business to proceed to-uight, their plea being that they couid not go on with any business until the motion was disposed of. Messrs Joyce and Levestam put the case very straight, but catna to widely dilleieut conclusions. They anrned that C.uiteihury collusion settled the point, and while the one contended that it was utterly u c eless to po fin ther, the other maintained that they were bound to go on. They had elicited fiom the Government the why and wherefoieofthe arrangement entered into re the Canterbury West Coast Railway.

Sir G. Grey on the Land Court. SirG. Grey, in his speech on the separation resolutions last nmhfc, made tlio precints of the House ring with a recital of the abuses alleged to have boon practised in connection with the admini.stiation of the Native Lands Court, Cambridge. According to his veision, the whole thing ■was anestof corruption, the judges having driven around with unscrupulous men and brazen unsexed women, whose sole aim waa to rob and demoralise the Maoris. In support of that contention he cited a most remarkable utterance by Chief Judge Macdonald, when he compared the court to a racecourse, and all connected therewith to a parcel of rogues and vagabonds. A more damaging catalogue could not have been put forward, and uttered, as it was, with all the ghostly unction of which Sir G. Grey is a practiced professor, it had a most telling effect. The "Native Minister was called upon to take immediate action, so as to put an end to such scandal, and as there was not one to say a word in explanation or palliation, 1 am afraid it told hard against the Native Lands Court proceedings in the Waikato.

The Contagious Diseases Act. This afternoon an animated debate took place on the Contagions Disease*. Act. Mi* Hutchinson introduced a bill for the repeal of that measure. There was a good deal of plain speaking on the point, and when it came to a division, the bill was thrown out by a large majority, showing thereby that the act as it stood was well thought of. Indeed, the most of the speakers advocated the necessity of making its provisions compulsory.

Rusden's Libels. The following appears on the Order Paper in the name of Mr Whyte :—: — " That this House resolve itself into a committee of the whole to consider an Address to the Governor to cause a sufficient sum to be placed on the Estimates for the purpose of prosecuting Mr Rusden, the author of a hook called "The History of New Zealand," for publishing what in the opinion of this House is a gross libel upon the character of the present Native Minister."

Ax almanac of the year 1686, the first work of W. Bradford, the first printer of Philadelphia, of which there are only two copies in existence, brought 520d015, the other day, at the sale of the library of David King, of Newport, Rhode Island. Gunter's Incarceration. — A gentleman while bathing at sea, saw his lawyer rise up at his side after a long dive. After exchanging salutations, says he, "By the way, how about Gunter ?" " He is in goal." replied the lawyer, and dived again. The gentleman thought no more ,of it, but on getting his account he found— " To consultation at sea about the incarceration of, Gunter, 3d01," An" American paper says :—": — " Not long ago Joseph Jefferson, while in a Southern city, entered, a, ,bauk to get a cheque cashed. Not knowing him or his signature, the teUe.r refused to pay over' the' amount. 'But, my, dear sir, expostulated the comedian, *I am Joseph ' 'Jefferson, the actor.' "I have no nieans of knowing 'that/ freplied the bank. l official J ' Can you not? brings somebody, to indentify ypu ?/!,.• That trouble], is jscarcely, neces- J sary',' y returned, /,Jeff6r|9p. ' You can surely'takemy word for it;' ' Thatjsn'tway ofjloing foisinpss— l 'don't khowj you. 1 ' ; 'If my dog vas /here, lie voulcl kpp-w 1 mje,^jex^cJaimed v 'thV .actor^, rTheS accent and,, manner In which these words jwereisaid rendered mistake jmpos^