PARLIAMENTARY GOSSIP.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXII, Issue 169, 30 July 1901, Page 5

PARLIAMENTARY GOSSIP.

(By Telegraph—Parliamentary Reporter.)

WELLINGTON, Monday.

FINANCIAL STATEMENT

Despite the attack of sore throat from which the Colonial Treasurer lias been suffering for some days past, he is not likely to depart from his j.roniise to bring down the Financial Statement next week. Since Saturday the Premier has been carrying on the work of his Department at the Ministerial residence, nursing his health for the coining ordeal in connection with the delivery of the budget speech, but it is hoped that he will be in good fettle on that oeca-, sion. SHOPS AND OFFICES BILL. The Labour Bills Committee of the Legislative Council has concluded the taking of evidence on the Shops and Offices Bill, and will commence its labours on the Bill itself to-morrow. The chief interest, of course, centres around the clause dealing with banks, mercantile offices and warehouses. So far as it is possible to obtain any information 011 the subject, the general feeling of the committee is that those clauses should be struck out of the measure. The Bill will not be reported from committee till towards the end of the week. THI] LARGEST BOROUGHS. Mr.yon Dadelsen has supplied the following information for publication: The ten largest boroughs In the colony are the following, in their order, according to numbers of population: Wellington, 43,536; Auckland, 34,219; Dunedin, 24,8'8G; Christchurch, 17.5J7; Napier, 8775; Wanganui, 7331; j Nelson, 7000; Palmerston North, G514; -Timaru, G421; and Invercargill. 021.'!. But the inclusion of their suburbs places the position of the five chief towns as follows: Greater Auckland, 67,232 (i.e., borough and suburbs); Greater Christchurch, 57,037; Greater Dunedin, 52,303; Greater Wellington, 49,292; Greater Invercargill, .10,629. In other cases suburbs are not recognised in dealing with figures affecting the population. CONSOLIDATION OF STATUTES. Mr. W. Jollife, the law draughtsman, formerly of A.shburton, has just received from tbe Government printer a draft copy of the first volume of his Consolidation of the Statute Law, which is a perfect monument of industry, accuracy and thoroughness. He is an English barrister by profession, and has beeu many years resident in the colony. The work started as a labour of love, a pastime to while away his leisure, but it grew, until he has now all but completed the classification and consolidation of the whole of the statute law of the colony. Since the General Assembly first set about law-making in 1854 it has passed "no less than 780 statutes, contained in 47 volumes, on ali kinds of subjects, many of them amending or repealing, either wholly or in part, statutes passed in previous years, and the law was further complicated by the fact that one Act would frequently contain a section repealing or amending a portion of another Act which bore an entirely different title. The volume consists of 20 acts, covering the provisions of 143 existing statutes, and reaches to the Constitution. The work will be completed in five volumes, that is to say, the whole of the statute law of New Zealand. The idea is that Parliament, on being satisfied after taking such action as it deems proper, that these five volumes contain the law, the whole law, and nothing but the law of New Zealand, may fairly be asked to repeal all its former acts embodied in this consolidation, and substitute the consolidated Acts in their place. This proposal will probably not come up till next year.