NELSON.

Lyttelton Times, Volume I, Issue 16, 26 April 1851, Page 6

NELSON.

The Nelson Examiner of the Ist'of March, gives-an account of a public dinner given by the inhabitants of Nelson to-his Excellency the Governor in Chief,, the Monday previous. It was attended by persons of all political parties. On Thursday the 20th of Feb., a public dinner was given to F. D. Bell, Esq.,.the Agent of the New Zealand Company at Nelson, at which nearly sixty gentlemen were present. D. Mbnro, Esq., was in the chair.

The Weather;— After* an unusually long drought of nearly, two* months, we are at lengthblessed with a most refreshing rain. In some instances however it has come too late, and we fear that the potato crop has suffered! Eaiii was also much; needed for- the pastures, which were dreadfully burnt up, although there seemed no scarcity of food for stock. Another inconvenience has been experienced by the dryness of the season. The flour mill' has not beenable to be worked-more than? a few-hours in the day from a scarcity of water, so that withour barns full of corn,, we have literally at times been without bread. The present abundant rain, and .the erection of a steam mill, which will be at work in a, few days, will soon make the supply of flour plentiful."

Markets.—The failure of the crops in the neighbouring colonies is already affecting prices here. Wheat is bringing ss. 6d. to 6s. a bushel, and meets with, ready sale. There is also a good demand for barley for exportation at 3s. 6d,, while our brewers continue to give 4s. Oats may be quoted at 3s. to 45.: flour 15J. a ton; potatoes 3/. 10s. Sawn timber 7s. 6.d. to 10s. per 100 feet, according to quality.

The inhabitants of Nelson have presented the following Memorial to the Governor respecting the Franchise. (From the Nelson Examiner.) May it please your Excellency—ln accordance'with your Excellency's suggestion at the interview at ■which we had the honour of laying before you the Resolution passed at the public meeting held in Nelson on the 3-Ist January last, we now beg to transmit for your Excellency's consideration a statement of the reasons which induced that meeting to adopt the resolution in question, so far as relates to their desire for an extension of the franchise provided by the Bill about to be proposed for the establishment of Provincial Councils in this colony. The meeting was led to believe that in'framing that Bill, it was your Excellency's intention to confer upon the colonists an extensive and liberal franchise, and that the practical exclusion of any considerable number of them from theprivilege of voting in the election of the representative members of the Councils, would materially defeat your Excellency's intentions in this important particular. Although, taken in the abstract, the qualification by the Bill might be, and indeed was, considered a low one, it was nevertheless found, that when applied to this settlement, it would have the effect of excluding a large proportion of the owners and occupiers of land and houses from the franchise.

It was ascertained that a considerable quantity of the suburban and rural land in the settlement was let in allotments of from five to thirty acres, at an average rent, the payment of which would not confer the proposed qualification.

It was; also ascertained that a <vieat W V tion of the houses both in the town S/ & rural districts, which are hastily andrudelvU stracted: of- the cheapest materS? ?Wp °n; the smallest dimensions, woulS t %TeW:; re °f sufficient to qualify the occupiers • and **** ing that the ame^riteria Ife dopted nytlus^ colony in deciding upon cH?'^ to the rights of votings obtain in Eniancit wpu dinentably ensiie,uhat a large mv }£'o f he industrious inhabitants of the colony woulJ be excluded-from' the franchise. We Wol ier your Excellency to the following I, es?poinr, which arose upon: the construction nfV 27th section, of the Act 2W4 c 45 ff S^ case of ColviUe, v. the Overset of Shatha™ i CoxandAtk,, 135, the Courtof ComnouS m.answer to reservedfor tle rcon? deration as a Court of Appeal, whether S he case of a person claiming the right to v 0 c for a borough- by reason of the occupation of a house-as a:tenant, the fair annual Jeni was he proper criterion of value without deductin! herefrom.the average annual expense of la n( f lords repairs; decided, that the fair annual rent was to be considered as the "clear yea h value» ; VW U Uil™™™S of that statute l&A Mi Justice Erie held, that the "cW yearly value" i s that for which aloe will let the tenant paying t h e U sual tenant's rate!' All these circumstances considered it was deemed essential that your Excellency's atten ion should without delay, be called Jthe sub-2lfjlf-tfine >hOUSes i» this settlement! 229 are built of earth, and 458 of wood, leaving the^ery small number of 79 constructed of other and more durable materials. From our own personal knowledge we are confidently able to state that not one in ten of the houses t ™ w lth °oUld be assessed at fi^perantw" • if + mT even §° f»vther, and assert, that eight-tenths of those houses were erected at an average cost considerably under 10*. VVe have every reason also to believe, that at least3s per cent of the wooden houses would no realize a rent of 51. per annum. We have indeed been informed, on the authority of Mr Baigent,of the Gleniti Saw-mill, that the average cost|of erecting the" wooden houses occupied by the labouring men and the smaller landholders in the settlement, is under 20/. in order to satisfy your Excellency that these statements'are not exaggerated, we beg, in the next place, to call your particular attention to the accompanying document*, the information contained in which was obtained in the majority ot instances from the persons named in it, and m all may fairly be relied upon. Your excellency, cannot: fair to observe, on considering tnat document, how very inadequate-a criterion ot the general prosperity and intelligence of the people of this settlement, and of their ntness for an extended measure of political liberty would be afforded by the mere annual value ot their houses. And we earnestly and respectfully beg your Excellency to adopt some less fallible test in determining the franchise. As the great majority of the houses both in the town and in the country are occupied in connexion with land, we conceive that your Excellency s intentions would be fully carried out i by the substitution of the word » tenement" for dwelling house," in the proposed Bill, provided the annual value of such tenement should not be required to exceed' 51. tvt i -n, We have, &c, Nelson, February, 1851.

The following Memorial respecting tfl]^roads' of the settlement at Nelson, has alss« been forwarded to His Excellency. To his Excellency SirG. Grey, X.C.8., &c. The Memorial of the undersigned residents in the settlement of Nelson, sheweth, That in many parts of this settlement there is a great want of roads, so that communication

• The document here referred to furnished a list of a considerable number of-cases where respectable individuals in the .Town of Nelson would bo disfranchised by the prosent proposed qualification.

ween different districts is very imperfect, .. 1 only accomplished at a great and wasteful \ .penditure of labour. The very progress of ink settlement, its increase of agriculture, and the much greater number of wheeled carriages now in use in it, cause its wants in this respect to be more sensibly felt than before. In several places the tracks which hitherto have been made use of have been shut up by the gradual enclosing of the country, and transit consequently is limited to the roads originally laid down on the plan, which, passing through swampy ground, or encountering other obstacles, require an outlay of money to render them available.

Owing to the increased traffic upon them, .several of the roads already constructed have fallen into disrepair, and many of the bridges are in an insecure and unserviceable condition.

Tv the town of Nelson .there is no bridge across the Maitai, so that when this stream is flooded, the town is cut into two halves, between which there is no communication. The road which leads to the district north of Nelson is so bad, that in winter it is barely passable. The main line which runs along the Waimea Plain and Valleo, in the direction of Wakefield, will require some outlay for repairs to make it available during the winter months. The line branching off from this at right angles, and connecting the Waimea and Motueka districts, is at present impassable, travellers being obliged to turn off into the surveyed lands, where in a very short time they will be shut out by fencing. In the Motueka district, hardly any thinghas been done for roads, and the fertile valley of the Rewaka may be said to be almost entirely isolated.

Your memorialists respectfully submit, that from the agricultural character of this settlement, nothing is of greater importance to their well-doing and progress than good roads. The products of their industry are heavy and bulky, and as several of the districts are a considerable distance from town, it is of the greatest consequence to them to be able to carry a full load to the market.

They are happy to acknowledge that the small sums hitherto laid out by the Government upon roads in Nelson, have been productive of great benefit, and in order that the works already constructed may be maintained in a useful condition, and others undertaken which are of absolute necessity, they venture to solicit from your Excellency the application of a still further sum, either out of the surplus revenue of the settlement, or out of the Parliamentary -Grant, which the generosity of the people of England .furnishes in aid of objects of public utility to the.colony. They have the honour to be, Your Excellency's most obedient,humble servants. Nelson, March, 1851.

Downing Street, Aug. 13, 1850. StR, —With reference to my Despatch, No. 48, of the sth instant, I herewith transmit to you additional instructions, which the Queen has been pleased to issue under Her Royal Sign Manual and Signet, for the purpose of exempting from the operation of the regulations relative to sales by auction, all the lands comprised in the settlements of the New Zealand Company. I have, &c, (Signed) Gret. VICTORIA R. (L.S.) ADDITIONAL INSTRUCTIONS to our Governor-in-Chief of New Zealand, or to, x~ the officer exercising the said office of Go-vernor-in-Chief for the time being1: To «pr Governor and Commander-in-Chief in and over the province of New Ulster, or to V'he officer exercising the said office of Gof^ernor and Commander-in-Chief for the \° aame being: To our Governor and Comin and over the Province of New Minister, or to the officer exercising the said officer of.Governor and Comman-der-in-Chief for the time being, or to our Lieutenant-Governor of the Province of New Ulster, or to the officer exercising the said office of Lieutenant-Governor for the time being: or to ouv Lieutenant-Gover-nor of the province of New Munster, or to the officer exercising the said office ...of

Lieutenant-Governor for the time being. Given at our court at Osborne House, Isle of Wight, this Twelfth day of August, 1850, in the Fourteenth Year of our Reign.

WHEREAS, by our instructions under our signet and sign-manual, accompanying our'letters patent under the great seal of our United Kingdom, bearing date the twenty-third day of December, one thousand eight hundred and forty-six, We did, among other things, make certain rules and regulations respecting the settlement of the waste lands of the .crown, which are comprised in the thirteenth chapter of-the said instructions :

And whereas, by an Act of Parliament passed in the Eleventh Year of our Reign, entitled "An Act to promote colonization in New Zealand, and to authorize a Loan to the New Zealand Company," it was amongst other things enacted, " that the several provisions, relating to the waste lands of the Grown contained in the thirteenth chapter of the said instructions, under Her Majesty's Sign Manual,and Signet, except such as relate to the registration of titles .to land, the means of ascertaining the demesne lands of the Crown, the claims of the aboriginal inhabitants ;to land, and the restrictions on the conveyance of lands belonging to any of the aboriginal natives, unless to Her Majesty, Her Heirs, and Successors, shall be suspended, and of no force and effect within the Province of New Munster, in the said colony of New Zealand, until the fifth day of July, in the Year one thousand eight hundred andfifty, and during such further time as shall be directed by parliament:"

And whereas Parliament has made no such further direction as aforesaid, and the said recited instructions are therefore now in force in the province of New Munster.

And whereas it is by the said act further provided," That if the Directors of the said Company shall give notice to one of Her Majesty's Principal Secretaries of State within three calendar months next after .the said fifth of April, one thousand eight hundred and fifty, by any instrument under the seal of the company, that they are ready to surrender the Charters of the said Company to Her Majesty, and all claim and title to the lands granted or awarded to them in the.said colony, all the powers and privileges of the said Company, except such as shall be necessary for enabling the Directors to receive the several sums of money hereinafter mentioned, and to distribute-the same among the shareholders and other persons entitled thereunto, and for enabling the Directors to adjust and clos.e,the affairs of the Company, shall cease and determine, and all the lands, tenements, and hereditaments, of the said Company, in the said colony, shall thereupon revert to, arid become vested in Her Majesty, as part of the Demesne Lands of the Crown in New Zealand, subject, nevertheless, to any contracts which shall be then subsisting in regard to any of the said Lands:

And whereas the Directors of the New Zealand Company did on the .fifth day of Julylast past, give to the Eight Honourable Earl Grey, our principal Secretary of State for the colonies, such notice as aforesaid, in pursuance of the above recited provisions: And whereas on the giving of such notice as aforesaid all the lauds, tenements, and hereditaments, of the said Company in New Zealand reverted to,and became vested in us as part of the demesne lands of the crown in New Zealand, subject, nevertheless, as aforesaid, to any contracts which were then subsisting in regard to any of the said lands.

And whereas certain contracts have been entered into between the New Zealand Company and certain bodies of-settlers, and others, in regard to Lands in New Munster aforesaid, namely, with the settlers at Wellington, Nelson, New Plymouth, and the Associations of Otago and Canterbury. And whereas it is apprehended that the provisions contained in the thirteenth chapter of the said instructions are, in certain respects, inconsistent with the said contracts between the said New Zealand Company and the said respective settlers and associations : and it is expedient that the said instructions should be repealed, so far as regards the lands comprised in, or affected by, the said contracts, as far as the same may be inconsistent with the said contracts respectively, or any part thereof: Now therefore know you that we have revoked

and determined, and do by these our instructions under our Sign Manual and Signet, revoke and determine so much and such part only of the thirteenth chapter of,the said instructions'.as relates to the lands comprised in, or affected by, the aforesaid contracts between the New Zealand Company and the settlers at Wellington, Nelson, and New Plymouth, and the associations of Ota go and Canterbury, and so far as the same may be inconsistent with the said contracts respectively or any part thereof. And we do hereby declare that the said contracts respectively, or any amendments in such contracts which may hereafter be made by and between us, our heirs and successors, or parties on our or their behalf, lawfully authorised, and the said bodies respectively, are and shall be in iorce as regards the lands comprised in, or affected by, the.said contracts. Proyided always that on the expiration, or sooner determination of any such contract, the regulations comprised in the said thirteenth, chapter of the said recited instructions, shall again become and remain in force as regards the .lands comprised in, or affected by, such contract. V.R.