WELLINGTON.

Lyttelton Times, Volume V, Issue 228, 6 January 1855, Page 3

WELLINGTON.

Address of His Honor the Superintendent on opening the Provincial Council, on the 21st tilt^ (Concluded from our last.) Whether, therefore, regard be bad to the intentions of the authors of the Constitution—to the common origin of the two Legislatures—to the general power of Legislation conferred upon both, or to the terms in which it is conveyed— lo the provisions protecting the powers of the Provincial Councils, or to the fair purport and construction of the terms conferring the overriding jurisdiction. The conclusion to my mindjis irresistible—that Parliament, intended to establish two separate and independent Governments, independent each in its own sphere of action, one for local purposes over each province, the other for general purposes over the whole colony. And that the Constitution Act can only be successfully carried out on the system of a Federal Union, the action of the central legislature being restricted to the few matters of federal concern, and all which are enumerated amongst the 13 articles excepted from the Provincial Councils. Of the Acts passed by the General Assembly I need only refer to one or two. From the financial despatches of the Colonial Secretary, recently published, you will have learned that while the revenue of the whole colony—territorial and ordinary—is estimated at £200,000 ,• the expenditure (including a sum of £20,000 for native purchases) is stated at £122,567, leaving an unappropriated balance of only £77,413 to be divided amongst the six Provinces. If you deduct the New Zealand Company's debt, the cost of collection, management, and land purchases, you will find that the amount voted by the General Assembly Tor the expenses of the General Government, was £52,497. Under Sir George Grey's arrangement, the Provinces received two thirds of the net Customs' receipts, and the land fund remaining, after deducting the Company's proportion, cost of management, and native purchases. But in consequence of the increased expenditure sanctioned by the Assembly, the Provinces from the Ist of July will only be entitled to one-half of the net receipts of the Customs and Land Fund. To show the loss of income thus caused to this Province, I may mention that I have been obliged to refund to the Collector of. Customs the sum of £1950, being the difference between two-thirds and one-half of the net Customs receipts for the last four months and a half; and that I cannot estimate the total loss to this Province for the cm rent year at less than £10,000. In other Words, 'the Province will have to contribute under the new apportionment of the revenue, towards the expenses of the General Government, flaring the current year, fully £10,000 (if not «£ 15,000), more than it would hare done under Sir George Grey's arrangement. Such is the result of a centralizing policy, in a financial point of view. There are one or two points in the Colonial Secretary's statement winch requires explanation. In his financial message (No. 5) to the House of Representatives, His Excellency stated that there had accrued, under Sir G. Grey's arrangements on the 31st of July last, an available balance (after deducting all liabilities), of £50,000. Of this balance, which (considering that the land receipts in every Province were considerably understated, there is reason to believe must have been much greater), no notice whatever is taken by the Colonial Secretary. But it is clear that either the balance ought to have been distributed amongst the several Provinces, in conformity with the terms of the 08th clause of the Constitution Act, or if not so distributed, that it should have been brought to account, and treated and dealt with as part of tl{> revenue for the curvent year. In^tiiis latter case the financial statement would have been as follows : — Receipts. Available Balance on 21st July . . . 50,000 Customs' liccuipts, less' cost of collection . . 10,513 B<>,.JS7 Lunil Fund less— New Zealand Company's "25,000 I.iLiirl ParcliiiKcii . 20.000 Surveys, A-c. . . ]4,,">57—50,.i37 — 40,1-13 ■ Tot;\l estimated Euceipts . . ..M 79,930 ■

Expenditure. Civil List . . 16,000 Expenses provided by Appropriation Act . . 36,497 52,497 Lnaving instead of "ri.OOO/., aa stated by the Colonial Sucrotary, a Mirplus of • • 127,433 To be divided amongst the Provinces. To cover the expenditure of j£52,497, less than one-third of the net revenue (territorial and ordinary) would suffice •, and the Provinces would he entitled to receive rather more than two-thirds of the net receipts of the Customs and Land Fund, instead of one-half as under the Colonial Secretary's apportionment. The Colonial Secretary's statement is equally unsatisfactory in another respect. By the Constitution Act all sums expended in. extinguishing the Native title were roarle a first charge upon the Land Fund, not of the particular Province within which the land may be purchased, but of the whole colony. But although the monies which have been expended in purchasing lands within this Province during the last twelve or fifteen months have been provided out of its own Land Fund, (and I believe the same remark will apply equally to Taranaki and Auckland) no information is afforded with respect to the adjustment of the land accounts between the several Provinces. The result is that the Provinces in this Island have paid out of their net Customs' Pieceipts fully seven-ninths of the expenses of the General Government, and have also been called upon to hear the whole charge of extinguishing the Native Title; while the Provinces in the Middle Island have only defrayed two-ninths of the cost of the General Government, and having had the Native Title extinguished to all their lands, with some trifling exceptions, have had the whole of their Land Fund at their own disposal, instead of that Land Fund being made chargeable with the expenses of the General Government and the Native purchases. An Act having been passed to enable you to legislate upon the Waste Lands it remains for you to consider how far it is expedient to exercise this power. Believing myself that the regulations of the 4th of March, 1853, which gave the death blow to the sufficient or. high price system, under which the lands had long been locked up, have not merely met with universal acceptance, but they have acted most beneficially ; that while they have prevented the evils of undue monopoly and speculation, they have placed land within the reach and means of all classes, and have already attracted a very considerable population (o this Province, I have deemed it unwise in any way to alter them. I have therefore contented myself with proposing some additional regulations, with a view to facilitate the operations of the Small Farm Associations, and to encourage and promote the formation of agricultural settlements. By these additions it is rendered imperative in this Government to make ample reserves for the sites of Agricultural Small Farm Settlements in each district, and so to attach to each Small Farm Settlement a block of adjacent land as common land, over which the right of pasturage will be exclusively vested in the Association. It is also proposed that the Superintendent shall be empowered to vest the administration of the land within the Small Farm Re?erves in Commissioners elected by the members of the Association. Although the scheme of the Small Farm Association was ridiculed, and its failure confidently predicted by many who claim for themselves superior knowledge in such matters, yet the settlement of Greytown already presents such signs of vitality and progress, as not merely to falsify the predictions of its opponents, but to justify the Council in granting to all such associations whatever assistance, advantages, or privileges can be conferred without detriment to the public weal ; for if so much has already been accomplished by the small farmers in spite of difficulties arising partly from the impassable slate of the Himutaka road, and partly from the delay (owing to the Commissioner's absence) in adjusting Native claims, still greater and happier results may reasonably be anticipated, when all 'obstructions are removed, and such additional privileges as those proposed are granted. However desirably it might have been to have vested the entire administration of the lands of ihe province in the Provincial Executive, yet after mature consideration of the whole question I have been forced to the conclusion, that as lung ns the charges imposed by the Cons til miou

l Acton the land, remain, or until some equitable adjustment and distribution of the public burthens of the colony can be made between the Provinces, the General Government cannot well divest itself of the control over the Waste Lands; nor do I conceive that it would be for the interest of this Province to disturb the existing arrangements, until it is either relieved from contributions towards t he Company's debt, or the Native Title is'exlinguished to the whole of its hinds. Of the Pasturage, Regulations it is only necessary to observe, that by calling upou every applicant for a run to pay a deposit, by substituting for the present assessment on stock, acreage tax, and by making it imperative upon the holder of a run to place upon it a certain specifiad quantity of stock within twelve months after the issue of the license, it is hoped that mere speculation in runs will be prevented—■ that parties will be restrained by the strongest of all motives—those of self-interest —from taking a larger extent of country thnn they can profitably stock—and that thus the chief difficulties which have hitherto stood in the way of obtaining runs, and which have disgusted and lost the Province many a valuable settler, will be effectually remedied, while at the same time a very considerable/revenue will accrue. The Governor being authorised under the " Public Reserves' Act to convey to the Superintendent lands set apart as " Public Reserves" and also land below highwater maxk, I have already applied for a grant of such, land within, this harbour, and shall be prepared, on receiving it, to submit a bill enabling the Government to commence the work of reclaiming the.land on the plan originally proposed by Mr. Roberts, and also for making provision for the management and disposal of the property, for there is little doubt that the whole land may be reclaimed not only without loss, but at a considerable profit. . It may perhaps be well before indicating some of the measures intended to be submitted fox. your consideration, that I should explain the step: already taken to carry out your recommendations of last session relating to Steam anil Immigration. In referring to the arrangements made, shortly after the close of (the Session by the Superintendent of Nelson and myself, with the agents of Messrs. Willis & Co., by which the services of the steamer Nelson were secured, and Steam communication established between the several* settlements for at least a year, I merely do so, in order to express my conviction, that 'although the results from ca*u?es with which you are fully acquainted, have not been so satisfactory as we anticipated, yec that the amount of traffic in passengers and goods, already created, has so far exceeded the estimates of the most sanguine, as to render it extremely improbable that'steam will ever abandon our shores. I hoped at one time in opening the present Session I should have had to congratulate you upon the establishment of Steam communication not only between the several provinces, but als'> between Cook's Straits and Australia, fur during my recent visit at Auckland 1 had, in conjunction with the Superintendent of Nelson, ?o tar arranged lor the William Denny to run between Wellington, Nelson, and Melbourne, that the agreement was actually engrossed ready K»r sig-. nature, when the inhabitants of Auckland, wiui a spirit of enterprise as creditable to themselves as it is worthy of our imitation, purchased the vessel; the disappointment, however, need not be of lung duration, for the arrival of the Zuiffciri with its owner on board, will, 1 trust, enable you to make arrangements far move advantageous than tluse proposed with regard to tlte William Denny. As far as 1 could ascertain die views of the owner of the Zingari, I believe lam justified instating that be would, v.\ consideration of a bouus uf iXSOOO of which thf Superintendent of Nelson has already expressed his willingness to pay half, be prepared U> placo a steamer of ample tannage and power between Cook's Straits and Melbourne, ami also t» n:u the Zingari between Nelson, WVilingtuss, ami Canterbury. . t If such be tlte satisfactory portion in wl;:c:i we already stand in relation to steam commitnicatioi). I can refer, with feelings of <v<i" :t* satisfaction, to what has been done in ibe^uv of internal ci.mmunicatum. I am aware iu! '*--t'l» that many complain that the Government b«ltf not pushed the roads as they ought to have done, but when it i.s borne \n uiitsu that the Government bine ;;i-t utt-u-ly Lad to contend «ith l; c same se;m'hv vi kibrur wi'.h which private in"-"

viduals have often found themselves unable to cope—a dearth of labour which has almost acted as a bar to contracts—but that it has had to guard against the danger of raising wages to such an amount as would effectually have put a stop to all the operations—whether agricultural or pastoral—of the settlers, I think that the fact of eleven miles of road having been made during the last twelve months, is a sufficient answer to any charges that can be urged against the Government on this point. It most assuredly renders it unnecessary for me to pay any tribute to the services of Mr. Koy, to whose indefatigable exertions and zeal, the credit of having effected so much under such difficult and disheartening circumstances, is alone due. I doubt, indeed, whether in all the other Prorinces so great an extent of road has been made during the same period. Within the last few weeks contracts for more than a mile of the Remntaka road have been accepted ; aud at the present time some seventy natives are employed on it, so that should we be enabled to retain such force for the next few months, there is every prospect, nay, a certainty of the road being made passable for drays during the ensuing year, thus removing the great stumbling-block in the way of the Small Farm Settlements. I am happy also to inform you that arrangements have been made, provided Native labour can be obtained, for commencing operations on the Rangitikei, Wanganui line, on the sth of next mouth. With reference to Immigration, the results of the efforts of the Government are that under the "Loan System," explained in the published regulations, two hundred and sixty one persons have been scut for from England, and uuder the " Bounty System/ contracts have been made for the introduction of nearly three hundred from ■ Port'jPbilip, an agent having been despatched to make a proper selection, and to ascertain to what extent Port Philip may be relied upon as a market for the supply of labour. Judging, however, from the latest accounts of the sufferings and privations "of the labouring class in Melbourne, there seems little doubt, that if steam communication be established, and the passage money advanced by way of a loan, that almost any amount of population might be imported during the next twelve months. It is satisfactory also to know that already, without any assistance from Government, a tide of immigration has set in so steadily to this Province, that the excess of immigrants over emigrants during the past year amounted to four hundred and ninety seven persons. While I fully concur in your recommendation as to the expediency of increasing the number of the members of this Council, I yet do not feel that I am in a position to carry it out during the present ses&ion, fov it is not merely a question of the number of members, but of making a fair distribution of the representation. Now when you consider that in this Province, which is more or less settled throughout its whole extent, all claims to vote must be sent in to the Resident Magistrate, either at Wellington, the Hutt, or Wanganui, when you remember the imperfect state, or rather the jutter absence, of postal comrrunication, it must be evident to you, that the difficulties in the way of registering claims amount to a virtual disfranchisement of a very considerable portion of the population. I doubt myself whether the present Electoral 801 l comprises two-thirds of those who really possess the elective franchise ; to distribute the representation according to it would be a manifest injustice.