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Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume IX, Issue 1816, 29 December 1887, Page 2

The Star.

CHE WORK OF THE SESSION.

(FOBLI6HID DAILY.) THURSDAY, DECEMBER 29, 1887.

[t will be seen by the schedule, punished in another column, of the Acts >assed by the General Assembly durng its recent session, that the list of >üblic genera] Acts is shorter than isual. Prima facie this in itself might ie a cause for congratulation, for if Pariament would give us fewer laws, and lestow a little mote care upon those tagged, the public interest would be nromotal. But the whole system of 'arliamentarr procedure muit be

reformed before a higher class of work can be expected. So long as it is possible for a few men of infinite talking power and infinitessimal practical good sense to monopolise a full half the time with their useless oratory, driving off the real work of the session to the last few weeks, so long will it be impossible for legislation to be deliberate and well considered. But if the Acts be less numerous than usual, many of them deal with subjects of first importance. The first group are those which have reduction of public expenditure for their object, reducing the salaries of the Governor and Ministers, the honorarium of members of the Assembly and the numbers of the House of Representatives. By the passage of these Acts, Parliament has made an honest attempt, commencing at the top of the tree, to pitch the whole expenditure of the country on a lower scale. As we remarked months ago, there is not much political difficultym making these reductions, nor is there in cutting down the civil servants' salaries. It is only individuals, and comparatively very few of them, who suffer by these reductions. But, also, it may be said that after all the reductions in this direction will not. amount to much, and the success and popularity of tha retrenchment policy will not be put to the test until its effects more nearly touch the general body of the public — until, in fact, conveniences now enjoyed &re curlai)ecl ancL requesbs for expenditure, reasonable m itself, are met with refusal. Closely allied with this subject is that of a change in the management of the railways. To some extent this may be regarded as a retrenchment measure, but its mam purpose undoubtedly is to divorce railway management from political action. Of the result we are by no means sanguine. Notwithstanding all the complaints that are made> we hold that on the whole the railways of New Zealand have not been badly managed, and that for those who suppose the impending change will give better financial results and more popular management there is great disappointment in store. The railways were made for a political purpose — to open up the country, encourage settlement, and attract population. To a large extent they have achieved the object in view, and they are to-day indirectly worth to the colony every penny that has been spent on them. But ifc is, in our opinion, idle to suppose that railways made for a political purpose, the high political purpose which we have alluded to (and we do not refer to lines made to purchase party support at certain junctures), can be -wisely or profitably turned into commercial speculations. The new Act may not be without advantage, but it is not going to make the railways pay much better than at present, nor is it going to shut the mouths of the free and independent people who make a point of grumbling at everything done or left undone by the Government. The Midland Eailway Act cencedes everything necessary to the working of the greatest swindle ever attempted zn New Zealand. The Government and the company are playing a game of " diamond cut diamond ;" each is trying to swindle the other, but we fear the people will have to pay in this case aa they have m ot&m. The LasuL Act fttifi f uxther liberalises the land law, and, we hope, will promote settlement ; while such measures as the West Coast Settlement Act, South Island Native Reserves Act, and Public Bodies Powers Act introduce the important principle that contracts to pay impossible rents may be varied — a principle which we hope to see so extended as to secure justice to tenants and licensees wherever the circumstances will at all admit of variation in. contracts unwisely entered into. The Naval Defence Act marks a step in advance in our national life. It is a recognition of our duties and responsibilities to the Empire, as well as of the value of our commerce and the necessity, in self-interest, of «xpenctiture aa a, measare of iasacaaca against attack. The Loan Act, -with the clause which pledges the Legislature to pass no more such Acts for three years, is a very tangible evidence of the determination to "taper off,-" vrhiie the yuhliG works finance has been mapped out on the principle of working up to the " vanishing point," so far as the loan money is concerned by 1891, certainly the most important departure taken since 1870. At the same time there have been given greater facilities for local bodies obtaining assistance under the Government Loans to Local Bodies Act and the Local Bodies Loans Act, by enacting that a certain majority of the voting ratepayers shall enable the local body to get an advance. So far as this part of the colony is concerned, ithas little reason to be displeased with the session. With a resumption of cash land sales and the relief to the West Coast Settlement lesßeea and the admission of a principle Tcnich muab be also applied to Crowu tenants before long, we may hope to see the work of settlement and improvement continue ; and the special grievance of the harbor rate is, we hope, in a fair way of being met. The worst feature of the session to this district is the proposed and inevitable Tepeal of the Crown and Native Lands Eating Act, and we trust that the force of that blow will be broken by the provision which the Government intend to make for the payment of rates by natives.