Page 1 Advertisements Column 4

Lyttelton Times, Volume XXIX, Issue 2292, 28 April 1868, Page 1

I Election oticesI TO WILLIAM ROLLESTON, ESQ. •ITE the Undersigned Electors of the Pro- '' vince of Canterbury, hereby request that you will allow yourself to be put in nomination as a candidate for the offi e of Superintendent of Canterbury; and in the event of your doing so, pledge ourselves to use our best endeavours to secure your return. [Here follow 362 signatures.] TO W.MONTGOMERY, ESQ, And the other Gentlemen signing the Requisition. C\ ENTLEMEN,-The numerously signed requisition which has been presented to me from men of all parties and classes of the community leaves j me no alternative but to accede to what I believe to be the general wish of the Province at the present time, and I shall accordingly ■ have great pleasure in offering my services to the Electors of Canterbury, so soon as the f vacancy in the office of Superintendent shall occur. It is peculiarly gratifying to me that my previous connection with the Province, and I the course that was taken by me in the public administration of its affairs, should render me an acceptable candidate for the position at the present time; and though I cannot - conceal from myself the fact that the condition of the Province is such as will render B the duty especially arduous, I shall, if elected, f feel no hesitation in cheerfully and hopefully i entering upon the attempt to guide its affairs ' to a prosperous issue. This, I believe, will be effected, not by, the adoption of any speculative theory or elaborate policy, but by a j steady course of patient economy, active ad- . ministration, and unflinching retrenchment. The difficulties which encompass us as a community are the same in kind as those ] which attend speculation and extrava- , t gance in the case of individuals, and can r only be met and overcome by similar means. Great portion of the present embarrassment has no doubt been occasioned by the undertaking of the Great Southern Railway, a work which I consider that the Province ' should not have entered upon in justice to the interests of the outlying districts, and which would not for many years be other than an extravagant and unreraunerative exB penditure of the resources of the country, i, With regard to the question of ProvinciatII ism, as commonly contrasted with Centralism, I believe that considerable changes must and ought to take place, which will materially modify the institutions both of the Colony and the Provinces. lam not of opinion that j any hasty or revolutionary change would be - productive of any good. There is a certain amount of local administration which must be continued, whatever name or form it may ultimately assume. The machinery by which this has hitherto been carried out, has, I e think, been unnecessarily large, and may, - with advantage, be reduced; but I would not, '• therefore, advocate its sudden abandonment, when no sufficient guarantee exists that the General Assembly and the Government of the Colony would be in a position to carry on the work more efficiently . and satisfactorily. It will not be by rash destruction, but by patient and careful working out of political problems as they arise, with the aid of a better-instructed public opinion, that good government will be ultimately secured. ; , The difficulties which have arisen, and n which have preveuted the Provincial and Colonial institutions from working in harmony, have, I think, been in some measure the result of a confusion of General and Pro--7 vincial revenues, the manner in which the revenue has been raised and distributed having been such that neither the Colony nor the Provinces have been kept aware of their liabilities and real position; and extravagance 0 having been encouraged by the fact that one i. body has been raising funds which the other t has been lavishly distributing, A modification of institutions will spring naturally from a change of finanoe, which must be the work ._ of the General Assembly. The work which remains to be done locally is, the development s of the natural resources of the country by roads, bridges, and other public works, of a - character proportioned to the means of the country, and as funds accrue; the judicious introduction of population as the requirements of the country call for it, and the general . administration connected with the harbours, t gaols, pjlice, and hospitals. ' lam strongly in favour of securing to the several Road Boards in the outlying districts the largest possible proportion of the land i. revenue, any surrender of which I would , earnestly resist. I disapprove of the payment for public works in land to a greater extent than is dearly the intention of the Waste Lands Re--7 gulations, and should view with serious - concern any legislation or course of action reducing or indirectly tending to % reduce the price of the Crown Lands, so . long as even the remotest probability exists ) that we can find a market for them at exist- [ ing rates. I am decidedly opposed to the system of large overdrafts at the Banks, as being an unauthorised, if not illegal form of loan ; and I should deprecate any action by which : the resources of the Province, already overburdened with debt, would be further pledged. I have been unable, within the limits of this address, to touch on many points on which I should wish to state my views, _ and though I have carefully watched the course of events in the Province, from a distance, there are subjects which would require a greater knowledge of detail than I at preseut possess, to enable me to express an opinion upon them. In conclusion, I must express my confidence - that with good management the resources of ' the Province are such that we may look for a return of a considerable measure of prosperity within no long distant period, and, if elected, I shall devote myself patiently and earnestly to promoting the best interests 1 of all classes of the community. 1 (6372 WM. ROLLESTON.