OPENING OF THE PROVINCIAL COUNCIL OF WESTLAND.

Grey River Argus, Volume XIV, Issue 1736, 26 February 1874, Page 2

OPENING OF THE PROVINCIAL COUNCIL OF WESTLAND.

THE SUPERINTENDENT'S SPEECH.

The following is the text of his Honor the Superintendent's speech in opening the first session of the Provincial Council of Westland : — Gentlemen op the Provincial Council. In meeting you for the first time since the important change in our form of Government has taken place, by which instead of having only the minor powers which attach to a Municipality, we have been entrusted with the larger powers possessed by other divisions of the Colony, and are now called upon to exercise the high privilege of making laws which shall be binding on our fellow-colonists, I trust that you will pardon my reminding you of the grave responsibilities which now attach to all your deliberations, a responsibility shared in by myself, and one, the full weight and importance of which is deeply impressed on my own mind. Before referring to the duties we are about to enter on, I would wish to take this opportunity of stating that after six years experience of the working of the Oounty system, although under all the disadvantages of being the first experiment of such a form of Government in this Colony, and with the great financial difficulties by which we were surrounded, I think the result of the work done has been most satisfactory, and I believe will contrast most favorably with the progress that has been made by other parts of the Colony under the Provincial system. And now, gentlemen, let us at once proceed to

the consideration of our present position and our future course of action, and in order that we may work with that harmony which is so essential to good Government, it is well that at the outset our respective positions should be thoroughly well defined. This has already been pretty clearly laid down in the various Acts of the Imperial Government, which gave to New Zealand the liberal constitution it now possesses, and T have obtained copies of these various Acts, which I will lay on the table of the Council for the information of all members. A reference to these Acts will show you that very large powers are vested in the Superintendent, who is mainly responsible for the good government and administration of the affairs of the Province, but at the same time, it must be borne in mind, that without the co-operation of the Provincial Council, no person occupying the position of Superintendent can possibly carry on the government of the counntry satisfactorily. It' is the special duty of the Provincial Council to advise the Superintendent in the making of such laws as, to quote the words of the Constitution Act, may be required for the "peace, order, and good government of the Province," and it is the special duty of the Superintendent (either with or without the assistance of an Executive Council, as may be decided hereafter) to administer these laws when made. I feel, gentlemen, that it is of great importance that the legislative and executive functions should be well understood, and should be kept distinct and separate, and with this object in view it is my intention to submit for your consideration a measure to which I will more particularly allude hereafter. The Superintendent being unable to expend the funds of the Pro° vince except under appropriation by the Council, is thereby controlled by the Council, but the Council having once made such appropriations, should leave the administration to the responsible head to carry out. Before passing from this part of our subject, there is one provision in the Act constituting us a Province, which I believe will tena greatly to simplify the administration of our affairs. I refer to the clause which enables the Superintendent to sit with the Provincial Council and take part as a member. This provision, although it does not do away with any of the responsibilitiesoftheSuperintendent, affords him a much better opportunity of benefiting by the advice of his Council, and enables him to explain his own views on all subjects affecting the well-being of the Province with greater facility than by the mere foimal method of message sent down through an Executive to the Council as adopted in nearly all the other Provinces. Of course there are certain cases in which the form of message will still be necessary, as it cannot be expected, nor would it, I think you will agree, be desirable that the S uperintendent should at a moment's notice in the Council be obliged to express his approval or disapproval of any matter that may have been just passed, perhaps after a warm discussion, and when calm consideration might be desirable before a decision was come to. Having dwelt at somewhat greater length than I originally intended on this subject, let us look first, what is the present position of affairs in the Province, and then what are our prospects for the future. In looking at our present position financially, I may say, without entering on any detailed statement of figures, as these will come under your notice more particularly when I submit the statement of the finances of the Province to you hereaftei, that during the past half-year the estimated receipts have, for the first time, been exceeded by the actual receipts by nearly L 450, to which may be added an amount due by Nelson for maintenance of prisoners, L9BO, still outstanding, showing an actual surplus of receipts to be Ll4lO. This refers merely to our ordinary revenue, and does not include any portion of the L 50,000 which the General Assembly authorised last session for the payment of our liabilities. Of this sum of L 50,000 the Province has not yet received any portion, but arrangements were made by the late County Chairman, by which an advance was made by the Bank of New Zealand, sufficient to cover the greater portion of our local liabilities, and by this means very considerable relief was afforded to our numerous creditors. By the arrangement made we were not only able to pay oar debts, but also to affect a saving in the rate of interest we were paying on overdue accounts. I regret to say that this led to some technical difficulties, owing to the wording of the Act, but at my interview with the Colonial Treasurer at Christchurch, he referred the settlement of the difficulty to the Commissioner of Audit, Mr FitzGerald, who is now here investigating the matter, and with whom I have every prospect of being able in a day or two to come to a satisfactory settlement. I desire here to express my indebtedness to that gentleman for his valuable assistance in overcoming the difficulty which has arisen, and it will be i mainly owing to the facilities he has kindly afforded us by his remaining here that I look to the speedy settlement of the question, and consequently relief from the payment of interest at present incurred by the advance from the bank, instead of under the Loan Act, which provides foe payment by the Colony of interest and sinking fund for the first ten years. With refereuce to our expenditure, I must defer full details pending the final settlement just referred to. In general terms, however, I feel fully justified in saying that we will commence our career as a Province free from any burden of debt as far as our ordinary accounts go, which we are able to meet, and this I think must be a source of considerable satisfaction to you all. Full statements of all these matters will belaid before you as early as practicable, when I will be able to enter more fully into this subject. Reports from the wardens of the different districts, and the heads of the different departments will be laid before you for your information. It is satisfactory to know that the arrangements made for the more economical working of the different districts by only two wardens have resulted satisfactorily, and although a very considerable amount of additional work has been placed on the gentlemen performing those duties, no pnblic inconvenience has been experienced by the alteration. The system of employing the police in the capacity of gold receivers has also resulted very satisfactorily. It was found necessary by the late County Chairman to make some provision for the Southern District, owing to the removal by the General Government of Mr Tizard,

the Collector of Customs at Okarito, who was performing the duties of warden as well, and Mr Price has been appointed to that district, an arrangement which I feel assured will meet with your approval. The arrangement by which the maintenance of the Christchurch road was placed under the control of the Provincial Engineer has proved satisfactory in every way. I recommend a perusal of this report on the subject. Fall reports on all other roads in the Province will also be found in his general report. Arrangements have also been concluded for the purchase of the Arahura bridge, and in the course of a few days I expect the necessary deeds will be completed, by which possession of the bridge will be given to the Province. It is my intention to ask the Province to throw this bridge open to the public, as other heavy tolls already exist on this line of road. I shall be glad when the Council finds itself in a position to make arrangements for taking all the bridges now in private hands under its own control. The various works recommended by the County Council to the General Government, to be constructed out of the money voted by the General Assembly for roads in Westland, are making fair progress, and I regard with much satisfaction, the prospect of soon having road communication \ from Greymouth to Okarito. Notwithstanding the facilities that now exist for communication with our various diggings by means of good roads and tracks, it would be idle for us to conceal the iact that in Westland we are not sharing in the measure of prosperity which abounds in the other parts of the Colony, and I would invite your careful consideration, if not during the present session of the Council, in the succeedingone, which I propose shall be held before the next sitting of the General Assembly, as to what steps should be taken to improve the condition of affairs, and, having this object in view, 1 will briefly state what appears to me to be essential to the future prosperity of the Province, and what I think we are fairly entitled to claim from the General Assembly as holding the interests of the whole Colony in their hands, and seeing that all parts of it are equitably dealt with, so that each shall be able to bear the burden of taxation that must inevitably follow the large expenditure which is now going on in connection with the carrying out of Ihe great scheme of immigration and public works that was initiated in 1870, and which 1 believe will be the means, if prudently carried out, of raising this Colony to a high position, and advancing it to an extent but little contemplated a few years ago. In order to the success of this scheme, as 1 have just said, all parts of the Colony must be equitably dealt with, and looking at the small share which has as yet qeen appropriated to Westland, I feel that we have not received that measure of consideration to which I think we are entitled. The circumstances of our position have perhaps contributed to this, being shut oft from the re3t of the Colony by a range of hills generally supposed to present such difficulties as would preclude the construction of a line of railway to the eastern side, but I have good reason for saying that I believe the result of the surveys authorised by the General Government will show that no great engineering difficulties exist for the construction of a line across the island, and I regard tl^e carrying out of that project as calculated more than anything else to the permanent prosperity and settlement of this I Coast. Pending the examination of the different routes by the engineers, I would ask you to affirm the necessity which exists for connecting the important towns of Greymouth and Hokitika by rail without delay, as whatever line might be chosen for crossing the hills would in no way affect the question of connecting the two principal towns. This line has been surveyed now for years, it will be an inexpensive line to construct, and, viewing the prospect of the speedy completion of the line from the coal pits to Greymouth, I feel assured that you will recegnise the importance of getting this work put in hand with as little delay as possible. The valuable coal deposits up the Grey river would alone be sufficient to warrant the construction of this line, independently of the impetus that trade would receive by the close connection of these towns. The works now in progress for the improvement of the entrance to the Grey River, I look upon with great interest, and I am glad that the General Government are favorably disposed to the carrying out of these works. I also recognise the energy and pnblic spirit displayed by the inhabitants themselves in their endeavors to obtain the besfa available advice as to the works to be carried on, and it has given me pleasure to assist their endeavors by giving all the information at our disposal to the gentleman they have selected to report from the great experience I understand he has had in connection with bar harbors. The establishment of a good port to which vessels of large size could come for coal, will be of immense benefit to the whole Coast, and although it will doubtless be a work of time involve considerable expense, still, if the result be a success, these will be but small items. To the completion of the Waimea Water-race by the Government, and the Kanieri Lake Race, by private enterprise and the Government conjointly, I look for the means of contributing largely to the settlement of a large population, and I would ask you to strongly recommend the undertaking of the Ross and Mikonui Race as a work upon which depends the future development of a moat important known gold-mining district. The absence of settlement of the large extent of country in our southern districts has been to me for a long time a source of great regret, as I feel convinced that we have those resources which only require some assistance and fostering to be of great value to the Province, and with a view to utilising this large tract of unoccupied country, 1 placed myself in communication with the Hon. the Premier, who at once intimated his willingness to assist in giving effect to my proposal, and at a short interview I had with him, the outline of a scheme for combining the settlement of immigrants, the construction of a further portion of the main line of road to the southern boundary of the Province, and the proper treatment of our timber was sketched over, a copy of which I will lay before ; the details are not yet arranged, but I expect shortly to be able to do this. • The following proposals were submitted to the Premier by myself : — " Special settlement of 100,000 acres, of which about 50,000 acres will be act apart for

250 families, say 1000 adults ; the balance to be made a Forest Reserve to be retained by the Government. Each adult to purchase 50 acres, at 33 per acre per annum, for seven years. The Government to offer employment to male adult's for two years ; three days a week, or alternate weeks, at — per day (the current rate of wages) either in making roads or cutting down trees on the Government Reserve ; but the Government not to be bound to employ more than 200 adults at any one time, and no adult to be so employed for more than one year. The Government, after the cutting down of suitable trees on a portion of the reserve, to offer sites to persons on which to erect sawmills, on condition of their purchasing the logs supplied by Government at an agreed price. The General Government to advance for roads, &c, not exceeding £ , to be refunded out of the proceeds of the sale of land, and the receipts from the Forest Reserves. The cost of" sending the immigrants to the settlement to be defrayed by the Immigration Department. The Provincial Government to guarantee to refund in seven years, unless the land be taken under the immigration and Public Works Act." It was further arranged on my suggestion, that persona already resident on the Coast should be permitted to avail themselves of the privileges offered in connection with the settlement, at all events in the first instance, and in order that no unnecessary delay might take place in forming the settlement, it was agreed that when the terms were fully agreed to, opportunity should be given to any of the immigrants now arriving from home to come and settle at once. Should the first settlement of this kind prove a success, as I confidently belie\ c it will, I have very little doubt that but few years will elapse before we have a flourishing population occupying the whole Coast, our valuable forests utilised, fresh discoveries taking place, and the Province of Westland occupying a prominent position in the Colony. The works that I have indicated, I propose to be carried out by the assistance of the General Government as being Colonial works, but I cannot overlook the fact that there is still much to be done which would properly come out of own local revenue had we the means to carry them out. The state of our finances at the present time is such, that having once provided for our ordinary departmental expenses, the erection and maintenance of the necessary public buildings, and the keeping in repair roads already constructed, we will leave but little, if any funds for the construction of new works and the question at once arises how are means to be found to carry out further roads and bridges and other public works, which are absolutely indispensable to the present progress of the Province. There is but one course open, and that is to borrow such a sum as we may be able to expend on works which I would term reproductive ; by that I do mean that we should look for the works themselves directly to pay back the cost of their construction, but works that will so benefit the Province, that by the expenditure incurred on them, the Province will derive a proportionate benefit to the amount expended, and although I most thoroughly agree with the action taken by the Legislative Council during last session in 'declining to sanction any alteration in the law which precluded the Provinces from borrowing themselves, I believe that a well considered proposal for such purposes as I have already indicated would meet vvith the approval of the Assembly, particularly in the case of a young Province such as ours, where so much requires to be done, and where we have already accomplished so much, though weighted with a debt from which wo derived°little or no benefit, and that they would authorise the raising a loan on the security of the Colony for any reasonable amount, provided we can show that good will result from it. I would, therefore, urge upon your careful consideration this question, and T would ask you, in bringing forward any proposals for works to be constructed, to merge any local feeling, and join as a whole in deciding on such necessary works as may be for the interests of the whole Province. I need hardly say that any proposal of this kind would be deprived of much of its value unless passed unanimously by the Council. It is not my intention during this session to ask you to decide this matter, but I have thought it desirable to indicate ray, views on the matter to you, so that* before the sitting of the Assembly, we may be able to bring up a thoroughly well-digested scheme which will benefit the Province. As you will have gathered from my previous remarks, it is not my intention to ask you to remain in session for any prolonged period at the present time. I thought I would be consulting your own wishes by convening you at the earliest time after your election was gazetted, in order that you might do what was necessary for the initiation of the new system of Government, and make provision for the necessary supplies for carrying on the Government, as the last appropriations were or>ly made to the end of December, 1873, and having done this, that you would then be able to take a little time to consider what measured it would be necessary to legislateon, and meet again in +iaie to get effect given to any legislation which it miaht be necessary to ask the General Assembly to deal with. The only measures I propose asking you to deal with during the present session 1 are, after electing your Speaker, and deciding on your standing orders, to pass an Ordinance, making provision for the administration of the Government, and anoiher making such appropriations for the public service as you may be pleased to grant. As to the first of these, I have had, after careful perusal of those Executive Council Ordinances in operation in other Provinces, a draft of a bill prepared, which provides for the administration of the affairs of the Province without the assistance of an Executive, seeing that the Superintendent is enabled to advise directly with his Council, by being constituted a member of the Council, and sitting i i Council ; it also provides for creating a Public Seal and Gazette for the Province ; for the appointment of a Secretary, Treasurer, and Solicitor to be appointed with the advice of the Council, and for the appointment and removal of such other officers as may be necessary for carrying on the Government. Provision is also made that the Superintendent shall not have the power of appointing any member of the Council to a positon of emolument, until after a certain time after resignation from the Council,

thereby precluding him from using any undue influence in the Couucil. As the Bill will be circulated to-morrow, I will not detain you now by discussing its proviaions. I have refrained from referring to the other important measures that you will probably desire at your next sitting to bring forward, and I would merely name — An Education Act, A Cattle Trespass and Fencing Act, A Public-house Act, A Toll-gates Act, A Road Board Act, as requiring your consideration. It may have been expected that I would allude to one important matter which is still a subject of litigation, but I can only state that, at the present time, a verdict has been given against the Province in the case of one tramway for L 15,000, but, as the matter is likely still to go to a higher Court for final decision, I have not deemed it expedient to express my opinion officially regarding it. In conclusion, gentlemen, I feel assured that in you I have a Council that will devote themselves earnestly to the consideration of measures for the good government of the country we live in, and that feeling the importance of the duties which devolve on us all, we may, with the assistance and guiding hand of the Almighty maker of the Universe, be enabled so to perform the responsibilities which attach to our position as may be for the benefit of the people we represent and the country we have chosen as our adopted home. I have great pleasure in declaring the Council to be open for the despatch of business.