PARLIAMENTARY NOTES. [BY TELEGRAPH -SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT.]

Waikato Times, Volume XXVII, Issue 2182, 3 July 1886, Page 2

PARLIAMENTARY NOTES. [BY TELEGRAPH -SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT.]

The Midland Railway WKM.IN(.roN, Wedne'-rl.'iy. Thk Huppurters of the Midland Railway scheme are very jiiliil.mt ;it thi> suceesnful pasis.ttfo of th»' fiiH la-^t night through committee, the l.irj»»* imjoiity that, prnnnunml iv favour of the. Uill having exceeded their most sanguine expectation-* Sn Julio- Vi>ff.>l »\i<ioiitlv o\ |>eoted :i hostile ([> bate aa his tone was, in the fir.st instance, decidedly ag^n -»tivi», so much mi thai .1 iiirmher applied to the chair on mote tli.iu one ncci-uii) ag.mist the threatening remsitks made by the Tie.i-uier. The feeling of the, m,i|onty of the House appealed to be that .»-> the colony was, t<> .i certain extent, committed to i.ulu.iy-, they could not honoui dvlv get out of it, and they decided to take the whole lopouMhilitv off the (io\ eminent. A gieit deal was «aid during the debate a-5 to the necessity for compelling the syndicate to give some guaiantee that they would com nleto the railway, but no condition of that nature has been incited in the bill. One thiiig .is evident, however, and that is that the disposal of this \e\ed question will more than anything else tend to a proper adjustment of p;utie>« in the House. Mr Ouuond \\u* very positive upon this point when speaking to his constituent-*, and stated that it would provn a .standing menace to any (Government till it was di-,-posed of. Looking at the question in that light, therefore, some think it may tend before long to tho discomtitnie of the Stout Vogel Cabinet, as it is well-known that many member* are at prosent supporting the Government solely for the purpose ot securing the construction of the Midland railway.

Railway Reform. A report iKcnrrentthatthe enquiry into Mr Vaile's proposed system of railway management will cost over £1000, an enormous quantity of evidence being taken by the committee, who are going into the whole question. The Member for Waikato intends m )ving for information aa to th°. number of first and aecond-clarfs family tickots issued on the railway and the sums received, together with other details, for the assistance of the committee.

Cost of Land Boards. It appears from a return laid on the table that the following is the amount of honoraria and travelling expenses paid to nienibeKs of th<* several lard boards in the c Jony from Ist June 1882 to ,31st May last :— Auckland, fcoS:>lo.s; Hawke's Bay, i'2(i!) 12s 10d ; 'i\u.i:iaki, L't(\Q Kis (id; Wellington, tS 10: Marlbrough, £2!)0 K.s lid ; Nelson, £204 ; Canterbury, £3KO lOd ; Otago, £IK.-)2 7- 4d ; Southland, &SIW Dd 4d ; Westland, £2i«l Is.

The Justices of the Peace Bill The Legislative Council struck out the clause, from the Justices of the Peaec Act Amendment Bill, providing that the chairmen of road boards shall be e\ officio Ju.stices of the Peace. It will be remembered that this clause elicited a long and stormy debate ' and it was defended by the Minister of Justice, who introduced the Bill.

Dr McGregors Appointment. Paj>er.s were laid on the table today including correspondence 1 elating to the appointment of Dr. McGregor to the position of Inspector-General of Lunatic Asylums and Hospitals-, together with the recommendation of Dr Grabham. With regatd to the appointment of a successor, the late, inspector, wrote in October List that it was possible for a healthy and active man do the whole work of inspection himself, provided that he be not required to remain iv Wellington during the whole of the hession. This re quirement he had found to be deter mental, both to frequency and efficiency of his inspection, and also to his health, as it had compelled him to perform a whole year's work in about eight months. He recommended the appointment of two inspectors, Dr. Xeill to have the. control of the whole of the Middle I-land at t'Boo a year, and Di Lev inge to receive £\SOXi year for the North Inland. Th:-> seem-, to "have been ignored by tho I'AOoutne, for almost immediately alter the 0 »lonia! Secretary communicated \v itli Professor McGregor, of the Otago Umveisity, offei ing him tluee. yearV engagement -it £1000 a year as Inspector of Lunatic Asylums, mid £'LOO as Inspector of Hospital-, and Charitable Institutions, with a tiavelling allowance of 2."»s a day when absent from Wellington. This offer was at once accepted.

How Time is Wasted. Wki.i.im. ro\, Friday. The evening sitting yesteulay was almost entirely wasted over a \isele>s and aibitrary mea»<ire, namely, one to increase the dog'tav to tl. This is I believe the only Bill introduced by the member for Coletidge. and a lively time he had "i ie for about four hour*. It ]■* stionglv suspected it v.is realh a Government measure fostered bv Mr McMillan, and the warm siippmt •men to it by the Piemier strengthened that idea. One of the Maori membeis taunted the Government with having kept office by the v otes of the native member-, and yet Ministers supported a P>ill of thi^ kind, which would pre^s so hardly on them. Wi IVic also thto.ite.neri to stonewall the Bill, oven if he had to sit .ip all night to do it, to which the Premier replied that that was not the mean-> by which the Bill could be killed, as theie were many other members who weie prepared to cany it through an all night sitting. The Maori members eventually succeeded in getting Mr McMillan to teport progress, .so that some compromise might be arranged.

Retrenchment. It is now fully understood that if any proposal is made in the House for a reduction of the. number of members it will not receive much encouragement, as membeis who intend seeking reelection will naturally not support any motion which would wipe their districts out altogether. I gather that the mont pronounced .supporters of reduction are Sir R. Stout, Major Atkinson, Messrs Bryce, Mitchelson and Barron.

The Lords. It is rumoured that appointments to the Legislative Council are still exercising th« minds of many hon. members. Mr Taylor this afternoon gave notice to ask whether the Government intend to make any appointment to the Upper House at a time when the strictest economy is necessary, and also when the Council is so much out of proportion to the number of members of tho House of Representatives.