The Evening Post MONDAY, AUGUST 10, 1872.

Evening Post, Volume VIII, Issue 170, 19 August 1872, Page 2

The Evening Post MONDAY, AUGUST 10, 1872.

If the Independent, when it deals with importaut subjects, be, as is commonly believed, Ministerially inspired, its leading article on Saturday on Mr, Stafford's resolutions, would seem "to indicate that the Government have been taken bysurprise,areafi;hasfcafc the prospect of downfall now oppning before them, and. failing other means of defence, hava decided for the present on facing ifc out by sheer bravado.' Their orpin i« convinced that Mr. Stafford'/ motion " will be defeated by a majority which will leave the Government in a position to proceed energetically with the policy it has initiated." And it de'ights in the prospect of a Constitutional Opposition. But if the Government can so surely count their chickens before they are hatched, how is it that the first part of the Independent's article is so ridiculously contradictory in blaming Mr. Stafford for two quitp opposite portions of his proceeding* 1 ? It bpgins by sneering at the Opposition for having allowed more than a month of the session to lapse, before they " have at last mustered courage enough

to come down -.vitjj a ilin-i-t motion of want of confidence in tlif present Ministry."' Then ifc is Mirprwjd tliat the motion was not tsil»led i'ov, or postponed to, a luff'f pOl'iod. ft, onjeci-sh-ongly to t hiw particular pn-<-iit iiiije. it '■'■cannot uvdiri thinking Me, SfctfFoi'fi wuulii Jmvu \viUh\ inoi'c hi accordance with honorable prod-ii-(ire if he had waited till the M'mU tcritd StaU'ijjc-ijl.^ iv'g>mliug Fiiuuicc 'Did Public Works had foeen mad*/ Tijo motion evidently discomposes tiu* Govci'Minent in no ordinary degree. Mr. tStail'ord is •acciiKfd of bein^ timidly taidy antl dishonorably hasty in tho same breath. Then, again, wliy thr-.se sent s mental and piteous appeals to j\]r. Fitzlierberc, to j\li'. jj J «arce, to -Mr. Hunt or, and to tho other Wellington members, to " act upon bi-oad Colonial views/ and not to be " Kf)lely influenced by eonsidcrationK of a jiarrow local nature T Why so mournfully dread lest, "after receiving from the Government duritii.several successive years considerable aid iv the direction of placing the Province in a better position, our members are to desert one Ministry because they have failed to secure the absolutely full confession of their wishes ?' Why tell them that, if they do .so. they are a " marketable commodity 1 ?" How differently the Government look upon this motion aud upon that of Mr. Curtis ! The latter was .sure to have the support of the Provincial ists only lin mediately on its bchi<- brought before the House, the Government took the part of " injured innocence,"' and declared it would entertain no business of any kind until what they chose to treat as a vote of want of confidence should have been dealt with. Mr. Fitzheibert's sagacity, no doubt, led him Lo the conclusion fchat the possible defeat of Mi*. Curtis' motion by the agy rebate, although not combined or concerted, majority of both Government and Oppo-iti-in members who are r noL " ultra" Provincialists, would nave placed the Govern men t in the position of achieving a victory on a false issue ; and his cool presence of mind and astute perception enabled him to devise the only means of pre. jentinif such an occurrence. Mi 1 . Stafford has very appn>pi lately chosen the time when men's minds have bean putting all other mutters aside iv order to consider what rel'-itions between the General and Provincial authoiities are likely to prove most efficient for carrying out vigorously the administration of the Public Works aud Immigration policy which the Colony generally has frankly accepted. He bases his proposed reform on a declaration that the pteseut method "has been unsatisfactory." The. n>st resolution will probably be alarmed by a large majority ; and as ib contains a special charge against the Ministry on that branch of administration, the canning of it alone would constitute a vote of marked " want of confidence." The second resolution goes further. It attributes the ineffiI cient direction of public affairs generally, "either* Executive or Legislative/ to the want of "concert and unity of action between the several departments.." caused by the habitual absence of Ministers from the Seat of Government during the recess ;" and it also attributes to that cause "a large increase in the cost of Government." So numerous, and so well known in all parts of the Colony are the evils which can be adduced in support of this charge against every U ranch of the Government, separately and as a disunited whole — a badly constituted, crumbling concrete — that disproof is impossible. In fact, we I may confidently reckon that no as- | severations in defence with regard to I finance and departmental mal-admi-nistration, which the Government will now be forced into making in anticipation of their too long delayed official statements, will save them from a signal defeat on the second resolution also. The third resolution will, 110 doubt, be the crucial test as to how far the Piovincialist and non-Provincialist Opposition members can agree upon the degree aud method in which the ; Central Government shall "avail itself of any existing Provincial or other local machinery in the supervision or execution" of PuMic Works and Immigration "in the most efficient and economical manner." This allows of employing any local machinery, either as delegate, employee, or agent. The extent to which, and the instrument." by which, this shall be done, will no doubt be carefully considered by both thosH sections of the House which are so dissatisfied with the frightfully expensive and im potently inefficient conduct, of all public affairs ■ by the present "bundle of faggots" which is untied «t the close of every session. It is not for us to anticipate whrttpver explanations Mr. Stafford and those in his confidence may nive of what has been agreed to. Upon the distinct principle of making a large and confiding use of local machinery, of which probably the Superintendents and the Chairman of the Westland Council should certainly form a part, both these sections will readily agree. Nor is it our part to conjecture whether Mr. Fitzherbprt is likely to continue to act with those who have obstinately refused to make any concessions to Provincial demands for re. funned administration, or rather to row in the Mime boat with those who signify, through their leader, that

| they an- n-adv ro .-s-tOe the ba-i - of a ,iUn ; by which -.hall be ihmly f^tab.i,hed iljp (•"•'in' nau^oi the r-.-^rmsiloV -tnd coii'i oiling power, which borrows -\\h inouf'V on '-ii-» — -curit^of the whole-, with tijc authoi iti* .-! who po^-.-s io<-;«! M^'ormnti")! nw\ the local couudcucv hi t)ii- inhabitants.

hi our Saturday's i^sae v.-c jrare a sammars ot ona «>.'' tinee bills aficctiug eleet:oi« uhieii have Wen iutroiu'.-e'l by ?.!;•. <Tiaborne. A SKComl of those billys is tk TL<f Provincial .Electoral Act, 1572," which is intended to eoiis-oiuiate and amend the kivs rcgulafcijijj the elections of Superintendent? of provinces and members of Provincial Councils. It is divided into three parts, referring to the CjuaUticatious of Superiutendtiiits and members of Councils ; registration of eleetois and proceedings at elections ; and miscellaneous. It proposetto repeal sections 4, G, and 7 of the Consti I tution Act, and the whole of the Disqualifications Act, ISSS, the Superintendent Election Signification Disallowance Act. ISuG, the Provincial Elections Act, ISSS, and the Provincial Elections Act Amendment Act, ISG9. The finst part providesfor the election of Superintendents l<y persons qualifi-jd to elect members of th Councils, for the disallowance of the elee tion by the Governor, and for the reinova of Superintendents '* by her Majesty ' from their office on receipt of an addres.signed by a majority of the Councilspraying for sucli removal. £t furthei provides for the election of member.--of Provincial Councils, and readers it unnecessary that a member's qualification sbal be in the district which he represents Persons holding any office of emolument 01 place of protiD in any department of th General Government are to be disqualifies trom holding either the otliee of Superin teudent or a seat in Provincial Cc uneils— members of the Executive, or responsibleMinisters of the Orown excepted. Tm penalty for any infringement of this claus< to be a fine of £20 for every day bucL should take xjlace. Part three piovi.ie> tbat all electors, duly registered acuonim. to the provisions of the Electoral Act — tlit new one which gives the extended frauehisi — t-hall be voteis at Provincial election^, the electoral roll of the House oi , Liepresentutives to be evidence as t» the right of votts. The Superintendents may, with the advice of their Ex ecutivts, divide their provinces into electoral districts. Several clauses referring to the conduct of elections are also in th bill Bribery and undue influence will lit punished under the regulation of Election.Act, 1572. Such are the main provisiou.of a bill, which, however useful and de sirable, it is probable would never hiv^ been heard of had Ministers not desired to legalise Mr. Ormond's at present unconstitutional position. The atmosphere in the neighborhood of the Government Buildings h*s lately been very much overcast. The fluctuatione of the barometer have engaged the attention of the most prominent weather prophets, ithaving veered from '"change" to '"set fair," and back again to "stormy" — where it now stands— in the most rapid and unaccountable manner. Storm signals were hoisted upon teveral occasions, but although a few itiif breeze 3 occurred, the gale pa3sed over, -and the atmosphere temporarily cleared, only to become more threatening stitL At present the air is highly charged with electricity, and the pullers of wires have their hands fully occupied. Mr. M'Glashan, the Government meteorologist, predicts that the storm will break on Wednesday next, cul mutating about that day week. He is riubiom as to the result, as the mercury is pretty equally balanced in the tubes. The furious gale which came from the direction of Nelson a few days ago has done no damage, but every preparation has beeu mads to weather the storm of Wednesda}'. Most unexpectedly, under present circumstances, it has been announced thai ; the Colonial Treasurer will deliver liisFinancial Sbatetnent to morrow evening Whatever trump card Mr. Vogel may havt ; discovered in his hand it is hard U> say, but one he evidently thiuks he J holds. The original Financial Statement, j which was in progress previous to | Mr. Stafford's motion, has been recast ami reprinted, and possibly the j House and the country may, as in 1870. be j electrified by another startling development ■ of the Treasurer's genius, in the form of an j entirely new policy. \ Not in vain the Yankee lesson — onward, i onward, let us range ; j Let New Zealand spin for ever down the i ringing grooves of chanu« ; Through the shadow of Vo gel we sweep mto th** newer style ; Better months of joyous revel than cycles frau&ht with honest toil. A return of "nominated immigration," presented to hoth. Houses of Parliament, itan unique specimen of the useJe&sness of such Government papers. It purports to give a monthly return of applications for nominated passages during the twelve months ending the 301" a June. 1872. but fts j to all not pnssppßpn 1 nf a koy. it conveys nothing but rnvsHficftHnn. its valoe to the colony mnsfc be nil. We would suggest in future that the Oovemmpnfc eh<Mjld explain its returns in the manner adopted in some old fasbionpd prints, in which case "This is a bull." would be found on any pecond edition of the one before us A few examples of its style will, snffice. It announces that from Greymf>uth there were nominated during the month of June last 144 adults, while '"to the 30th June" the same place is said only to nominate 8. Christchurcb. in "June." nominated 65, but "to June 30." only 84- Dunedin nomiDatprl. in the same mnntb. 53, but "to June 30th " is down for 10 only. Mr. Bath sate advanced, as one of his reasons for wishing a removal of the Parliament to Danedin, that he could not get

j •>! Wellington an mTc-lH^il>!e digest of liie i .-revious day's proceedings, in the papers | -|*s opinion dres not seem tobeuniver&al'\ ! ie!d, as we imd tlie correspondent of the New Zealand HeraM. also an M.H.l*., sayn^ in a recent Ictu-r :—": — " As the repOt of ': Ur K'-iijrd's leiiiirksiu ji>e- P'—i vii?^rs { j/jiae-Altut from that in the Independent. 1 ! ,'iv'e in tuid place, lor iLe iuiuriu^.riQn 01 Auckland readers, tl>*± Fo<r*^ veri-iou. mereiv retuarkiE^ thar borh pipers re-^rt 'v the wLoIe with accuracy tviid neatii&s*.** V»"e received s som^v/hat- seu=-j.?i*ual elegram from Otevili^'s "Wan^auui ageut '4xis momiiiij, aniiounciuir tLat Ta I^tJOti •as.6 at the White OiitiV, with a folicivisg of no less than SOU men ! that he had sent a letter to Titokowaru ; that the survey on the other side of the Waingocgoro was stopped, " the chain" cut, and the surveyor's whare burned- Knowing something of the said a«ent, and our knowledge not being conducive to faith in his reliability, we took the precaution, of enquiring whether the Government had received any information concerning this .^(arming advance of the enemy. Through the courtesy of Mr. Cooper, the UnderSecretary, we are enabled to say that ill the information possessed by the Government respecting 'Ie K««oti is that he is ai; present at jl«>kau, living vciih che Xsjatiinaniapoto ; thut he has beta invited to attend a meeting to be held at Pa-rihika, near Cape E^tnonfc, in September, tnd has promised tc accept the invitation, out he is not at the White Cliffs, nor likely ro be there for some time, if at aIL Mr. Parris himself stoppitd the survey at Vaiu- ; no chain haa been cut, or "vvhare ournC, so far at least as authentic iuforuiai>n has been received. The special jury ease betvreen the City Council and Mr Miceaell will be heart! ia ihtj .Resident Magistrate's Court on Fridaj' next, before a special jury of six. The I facts of the ease are that the City Council ' require for the water works scheme 60 acres. If, 9y of land in the upper Kaiwarra discriet, and 12 acres, 2r, 22p in the Ohir« iistrict. For this they are willing to pay £ 1.200, but the owners of the land demami £4,010 The case for the jary to decide »vitl be the amount of compensation to be granted. The contract for the railway commenced co day is called the *• Wellington ami tiutt," not the " Weilitigton and Masteron," as authorised by the House last session. amount to be paid Mr. B?«««leu for formation of " eight miles or ther*rbj\ •vith half a mile of sidings," is £29.010rhe Government has to deliver the mm rails and fastening* and rolling stock at the ship's side ; but we presume they will be still treated as Government stores, free of wharfage. There is no information as to how much they ate to ensfc the Government A meeting of St Paul's parishioners wilt be held this evening, ia the school room, when the question as to the enlargement ot -St. Paul's Cathedral will be ventilated. The City Council have had a fence erected along the breastwork, at the font of Mulgrave-street. but we would invite their attention to the fact that the objaet sought to be gained is very imparfeeth effected, as for fully fifteen feet, in about the centre of the line of fence, the edgre of the bauk is inside the fence about five feet, and the railing is therefore no protection at that spot against persons falling into the sea. Mr. Hoskins and Miss Colville may be expected iv Wellington shortly. They will play several pieces in conjunction with our local amateurs. Signor Donato. the celebrated one-legged dancer, will appear at the Odd Fellow's tlali this evening. Much apprehension is felfc ia Auckland for the safety of the missionary schoonti Southern Cross She left KOlK 01 folk Jslantt in April last to return scholars to thei» respective homes on the 5v r ew Hebridts and other islands, and since then she has not been heard of. It was reported iv Auckland that the schooner Success will he despatched by Mr. H. S. McKellar, Collector of Customs, to look for the missing vessel. On Friday Mr Penney's Royal Hotel had a narrow escape from destruction by fire Early in the afternoon the housemaid gave the alaim that one of the bedrooms was mi tire ; Mr. Greenlaw who was staying in the house instantly ran to the spot, and fortunately succeeded in arresting tl c progress of the flames until further aiil secured their tinal extinction. The fire is said to have originated through a match dropped on th^ floor, which became ignited l>y the servant pushing the bedstead, the leg of -which bruised the match Some bedding and the lining of the ro'«n. if we believe all that is n« jured, but had the discovery been a few moments later the honse would have bet»B ■ ihtnmed^ as f'iur or five fett t»f the wall has been burned. — Marlbnmgh Express. A Hawke's Bay paper alludes to Mr. Disraeli as the "great congener*' of Mr. Vogel ! The Colonist of the 16th inst. has the following : — The Tararua has not been fortunate rhis trip, for in addition to exCFedinelv tempestuons -weather thr/m«fh/>ufc.. and the shipping of water, which nn one occasion floated a passenger about the deck like an animated cork- fender, another passenger hart a narrow escape of his life at the wbarf yesterday. There wa 5*5 * more than one stage fr« m the -wharf to the steamer, and one of these intended for cargo and pUced at a sharp angle, was chosen by a passenger to get on board by. -while an easier one from the poop to the -wharf -was overlooked. The con^eqn^nce -sfas a fall overhnard. a cut face and th^muab drenching in ice-cold -water. Another passenger, the same mornine. narrowly escaped Wins shot hy the accident discharge of a pistol, which was being handled by its owner, who was unaware of it being loaded.

The volant eers v.i'l assemble to-mori ow tvenliiiT, at half-past seven, at the Artillery Drill Shed, for a ma: eh out. A newspaper, to be called the Bay of Plenty TIocS, is to be starred shortly at r^uracira- We Mieve taar Mr. Can«nridge. former!}* of this cix\'. 1^ one of tlit urt>niofcers. The Tarcnaki Herald, Ia apoinzislncrzta irs subscribrrs for some Ifj^gulari'y iv tlie Ifcliven* of p:tu&rs. explains tfttit It was nvr•r\^ to the ruuner beie^ taken suddenly ill. a ni:s?orr.ue eaonot happen in* the b-*y a^a.'.n, for the Herald has £i made suoli arrangeineats us uili prevean a siuiiktr occurrence happening/