The Star. WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 1, 1880.
THE COUNTY MEETING.
The adjourned meeting, in reference to forming a separate county, will be held on Saturday next, at the Town Hall, Hawera. It will be as well, therefore, if we direct attention to the clauses in the Gountieß Act, 1876, hearing on the subject to be dealt with. Before doing so, however, we cannot help adverting to the tone of the debate on Mr. Moss's motion in reference to self-government. Nearly every speaker — ai'dent Provincialist as well as those who voted for Abolition — condemned the hon. member for Parnell's resolution, in favor of a conference of delegates, as being impracticable ; but there was hardly one speaker who did not admit the necessity for some alteration in our present system of Local Government As might have been expected, the believers in Provincialism attributed all the evils to Abolition, and some of the speakers could see no possible hope for the colony unless the Provincial Councils were again resuscitated. The practical members of the House, however, took what, to our mind, was by far the more sensible course. They stated that the system of Local Government, which was passed after the abolition of the provinces, was only intended to be a tentative measure, and that it was the intention of its framers to revise it, in accordance with the wishes and wants of the people of the colony, as soon as an occasion off ered ; but that the political turmoil which succeeded rendered a revision almost an impossibility. They argued, therefore, that what was really needed was a modification of the present system, and not a revival of the ~s*ro-srmci&l Oonnctis. Sezzezkle men ouhside the House, in every part of the colony, will be inclined to agree with those who took the latter view; hut those who have "been looking forward to practical legislation have grown weary of waiting in many instances, and that is the reason why some of them are, so to speak, endeavoring to " take the bull by the horns," and by availing themselves of the powers contained in the present Act, trying to withdraw from the rather entangled web of taxation that at present surrounds them, as well as they can. So much of each Parliamentary session is devoted to fruitless talk, and wind-bag oratory has, to such an extent, usurped the place of practical work, in our House of Representatives, that shrewd, practical, common-sense men may reasonably doubt whether those whom they send to do the work of the country will ever settle down to the such a pure matter-of-fact thing as devising legislation suitable to the local requirements of the colony. This, then, will account for the meeting to be held on Saturday next. So $&r as wb Lave \>een. aUe ho gahher, the object of the promoters of the separate county scheme is to bave one body, instead of three or four, and to bave one tax levied instead of two. They are under the impression that one mode-rately-sized county would be able to do all the work at present done by the Road Boards and the County Council, and that, if they have one set of officers, and one set of books, they will be able to devote more of the rates to the purposes for which they are ostensibly raised — namely, for making and.keeping roads and bridges in order — than can be done under the present dual system of County Council and Road Boards. Clause 14, of the Counties Aot, 1876, provides that " the Governor in Council may, by proclamation, declare that any part of a county, or of two or more counties, not being less than 200,000 acres in extent, nor containing less than
100 county electors, shall constitute a new county, with such name and boundaries as he thinks fit," provided " that a petition is presented setting forth the boundaries of the proposed new county, signed by not less than three-fifths of the county electors for the districts comprised in the proposed new county, praying the Governor to constitute such new county"; and >" that such petition is publicly notified not less than one month before presentation to the Governor." It is further provided that "a copy of every such proclamation shall be laid before Parliament, within ten days after its next sitting, af tev the issue thereof. If a resolution is passed by both Houses of the General Assembly, to the effect that such new county should not be constituted, then such proclamation shall not come into force. If no such resolution is passed, the said proclamation shall come into force on the day after the conclusion of the then session of Parliament, and on and after such day the district described in the said proclamation shall * cease to form part of the county or counties in which it was theretofore included, and shall be a county within the meaning of this Act." It will be clear from what we have quoted above that, crude as the measure was, provision was made for effecting a change such as that proposed by the promoters of the meeting to be held on Saturday next. It is provided that signatures to the petition must be verified, and a penalty not exceeding £50 may be inflicted on any person found guilty of forging a name, or making a false declaration. If the petition is objected to, on the ground that the statements ai*e untrue, or that persons signing were not entitled to do so, power is given to the Governor to appoint one or more Commissioners to make an inquiry, with power to summon and examine upon oath, and to call for books and papers, &c. The new county shall be divided into any number of ridings, not exceeding nine, as the Governor may think fit.. As soon as the new county is constituted, an apportionment shall he made of the assets and liabilities j but If no agreement is made within two months after the first election of the council of the new county, the Commissioners of Audit shall, upon application, hold an inquiry, and shall make an award as to what part of the real and personal property shall become the property of the new council ; what part of the rates payable, on the date of the constitution of the new county, shall be deemed to be rates payable to the new county ; what part of the liabilities and engagements outstanding at such date shall be liabilities and engagements of the new county ; and what part of the interest and sinking fund of any loan that may have been raised shall be paid by the new county. The award of the Commissioners of Audit shall be deemed to be final; and all property awarded to a new county shall be vested in it on and after the date of the constitution of such new county. We have gone thus fully into the matter, in order that our readers may be able to study the question before the meeting takes place. It is to be hoped that the matter will be calmly discussed, and that the opponents of the scheme will receive the same amount of consideration as those who are in favor of it. " Audi alterani partem "is a wise old maxim, and in no instance is it more applicable than when an important change, like the present, is proposed.
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Bibliographic details
Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume I, Issue 41, 1 September 1880, Page 2
Word Count
1,235The Star. WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 1, 1880. THE COUNTY MEETING. Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume I, Issue 41, 1 September 1880, Page 2
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