The Hawke's Bay Herald. NAPIER, MARCH 17, 1860.

Hawke's Bay Herald, Volume 3, Issue 130, 17 March 1860, Page 5

The Hawke's Bay Herald. NAPIER, MARCH 17, 1860.

Our readers will observe from our report of Council proceedings, that the " Local Improvements Bill" has been quashed under circumstances -which must excite very general astonishment. The Bill passed its second reading with scarcely a word of comment — a tacit admission, according to all usage and wont, that the principle upon which it was based met with general approval. The Council went into committee upon it ; and a debate immediately arose upon taxation in general, and the mode of taxation aimed at by the government measure, in particular — upon everything, in short, except what came legitimately under the notice of the committee. However, after three days of deliberation and discussion, the committee arrived at the end of the first clause. It had been debated almost line by line, and very materially altered. The greatest pains had been taken to make the clause a perfect one. The chairman, after all this>i proceeded to put the question that the clause do stand part of the bill ; when 1 / hey presto ! the work of the past three days was swept away as with the wand of the' r magician. The clause, after occupying so much time in its discussion, was, in less time than we take to write 'it, quietly quashed, and the bill, as a natural consequence, shelved for the session. The , proximate origin of such a catastrophe was; simply this. The country mem- ■ bers, on three or four different /occasions, |

endeavoured, by means of an amendment, to confine the operation of the bill to the Town of Napier. This the town members sturdily resisted, evidently considering that " what was sauce for the goose was sauce for the gander." Each amendment to this effect was negatived ; and the country members were to all appearance resigned to their adverse fate — although, as the event proved, they only watched an opportunity to save themselves at any risk from what they obviously considered an infliction. But whatever the cause, the fact of three days having been thus wasted — for scarcely any other business was done — cannot be otherwise than a source of deep regret. It is a waste of public money, and, what is of more consequence, of valuable time. Speaking generally, we should say that the fate of the bill is to be regretted ; for the demand upon the public treasury promises to be quite equal to the supply, and it will be found that money can ill be spared for the numerous applications that will be poured from time to time into the office of the Superintendent. And, were it otherwise, we can conceive of no more unkind cut to the comparatively sparse population of the province than to be obliged in selfdefence to pay for works and repairs which have the effect of improving the property of those who, from being absentees, are exempt from all contribution towards the expense so incurred. Speaking as resident in Napier, we do not see that the fact of the bill having been thrown out will place the town in a worse position comparatively than any other portion of the province ; for it now has a claim which cannot sorely be resisted, for a grant of public money to improve its wretchedly neglected thoroughfares. We believe it was in this hope that one of the members for the town voted for the shelving of the bill; and we do trust that the hope will be realised.