Page 5 Advertisements Column 1

Lyttelton Times, Volume IV, Issue 171, 15 April 1854, Page 5

[advertisement/] To the Electors of the Christdmrch. Country District. Wellington, 4lh April, 1854. Gentlemen, YOU are aware that the General Assembly of New Zealand has been convened, at Auckland, for the 24th May next. This has been done, not by Sir George Grey, who is gone to England, but by the Officer administering the Government of New Zealand in Sir Q. Grey's absence, Colonel Wynyswd ; who is the Officer commanding Her Majesty's Forces in .this colony, and who is also the elected Superintendent of the Province of Auckland. Whether this combination of offices may be inconvenient or not to the Province of AucVland especially, it is for the inhabitants of that Province to determine. A majority of them deliberately chose for their Superintendent the Officer commanding the Forces, knowing that in the absence of the Governor that officer steps into His Excellency's shoes. They were therefore content to expose themselves to have a Superintendent who can, as Governor, dissolve his own Provincial Council, and who issure to refuse to remove himself from the Superintendency, should a majority of the Council petition him, as Governor, to do so. It would be possible, however, for this combination of offices to exercise a very mischievous influence over the Executive Government of the .whole colony, of which the Governor is the head, and over the proceedings of the General Assembly, of which the Governor forms a part. This would happen if the Governor were, in either .capacity, to display partiality towards that particular Province, of which he is Superintendent. One member, indeed, of the Provincial Council of Auckland, a Mr. Powditch, has gone so far as to avow exultation in the belief that such will be the case. He said, on moving the second reading of the Superintendent's Salary Bill in the Council,—" we ought to be thankful that our Superintendent is placed in authority over the other five Provinces. We should be thankful that we are able to control the General Assembly through our Superintendent and to overrule their acts." If it could be believed for a .moment that Mr. Powditch, in those words, represented the opinions of Colonel Wynyard or of his confidential advisers, great indignation might reasonably be excited throughout the other five Provinces, and serious alarm might arise for the future of a Government proposed to be conducted on such principles. A few weeks ago, the Secretary of this Province, Mr. Fitzherbert, asserted from his place in Council that Mr. Powditch was in the same position towards the Superintendent of Auckland as he himself was .towards the Superintendent of Wellington ; that is to say, that he was one of Colonel Wynyard's confidential advisers. But I am happy to assure you that, upon careful inquiry, Mr. Fitzherbert's supposition appears to be quite unjustified. The sentiments, therefore, of Mr. Powditch, must only be treated as those of.one extremely injudicious member of the Auckland Provincial Council. Let us fairly assume, then, that Colonel Wynyard intends, as Governor, carefully to avoid partiality towards the Province of which he isSuperintemlent. Apavtfrom any such consideration, what policy is the officer administering the Government about to adopt for the government of the colony ? It is most usual for persons in His Excellency's position to remain strictly within the limits of a mere locum tenens, doing nothing but what is absolutely necessary to keep things going as they are until the return of the absent Governor or the arrival of his successor. But Colonel Wynyard is evidently not going to follow that course, which consists in having no policy at all. No sooner lias the Governor sailed for England, than his substitute gazettes thirteen members of the Legislative Council, and an Executive Council, consisting of the Attorney-General, Secretary, and Treasurer, of the defunct government of New Ulster; convenes the General Assembly at no longer notice than is necessary to get the members together ; sends to each a special summons to attend ; and makes arrangements for the conveyance to the scene of action of those living at a distance. Some policy His Excellency, or his advisers, must surely intend to submit to the General Assembly of New Zealand when convened. I purposely refrain from assuming the policy, whatever it may be, to be one originated by responsible advisers of the Head of the Government | because the Constitution Act has not