CORRESPONDENCE.

Lyttelton Times, Volume V, Issue 252, 31 March 1855, Page 4

CORRESPONDENCE.

To the Editor of the LyUelion Times. Sib,—l'm a carter. ; I see that they-talk of starting1 a corpoiation at Lyttelton. The corporation is to have the right to fix what carters' and boatmen's charges shall be. The corporation as any fool can fortell will pass into the hands of one or two merchants, a doctor, a publican or two, a.couple of storekeepers, a lawyer, and a few retailers to make up the compliment. By what rule of justice, or of political economy, is the power to he confided to these men to fix by law what; my profits shall be ? I don't mind reciprocity, if they will let a committee of carters rule the price of nobblers, flour, physic, and bring: down six-and-eigliiperiny advice to reasonable limits. That's fair and 'free "trade, the other is free robbery. I suppose any man has a

right to ask for his services as much as he can get. : Most people- do/ it here. I see"they propose; taxes"; to burn my poof candle at both ends with a vengeauce;l to; take offmy profits, and then tax mefor their enjoyment of the power to do so. If this is what you call popular government and free institutions, I prefer the Colonial office. Tliey let me-aloneatLanjr-rate. Can't we hnd another tunnel; to bcciipy the Provincial Executive mindj and keejV it f^ chievous pranks, in thei'Legislative linei. What's theiuse of all these.''new lavvsjjwhen weldojiLt even work well those we've got. - ! should Think there's spmethinginore practicai than jokes for the Government ;td i einployHheirtiihe ion just now. Perhaps you could suggest it. - •>/ ■';'.■;"■/ •• / ;-■?}■:■. :X:'J ry:: 1 amj Sir;:-.yours,-!&c.,.:^-.;^:v- :- ---'■- :■'..:' ■■■■ :'■■■■-.'. ■■'.' -:'-; -V; S \ :'V ?;\ ;v:.-. ■ : '■& Cakteb. k-

w To tHe Editor cf the Lytieltoh Times; '„ '.S.iEj'rr;-The Gaiiterbury pilgrims -011; landing raised a-greatjoutery for:what;''theyicallv local sel^government.:li rather liked- Uieridea;too myself, and joined the; rest in thecry; I did'nt Understand much;;abotit;wliat itinVeanti-and^ never could get:a fellow shouter to explain it to me; It spundediwell^to- thec ear, you see, and one like^to zapnear an-fignoraihus when every one around you sets up to be t»o knowing. It don?t- dq 7l\)r a pevsou;in my station of life; to be consi defed i h " the' rear of ih c enligh ten men t of the age/\ So I bawled away along with the loudestof them. v.-'-Well,"^soonalter out came the " ConstitutionfAct," and we all mude a great noise about that^ ?;As every body said we had got just -what we wanted, how that it was a very fine things and going to do I don't know what all for us';:■!;felt'-bpund to think" as every body else thought;- -But, Sivj getting well to do in the world; now, Sir, andrtbjegjnnhig'tovfcincyrl am rich enough to think for myself, -—anyways, Sir, growiug-;tired of alvvays agreeiiigwiih those two or three nice clever gentleme'n,'whp have been all along paiticular kind, 1 must say, in trying to think for me;; :Yoursee, Sir, it 'don- i. look- independent like quite;;>And, besides^ I;go to the Colonists' Society, and read all the reviews, and those kind of things regular, and I've got a whole lot ofj voteswhich makes me of consequence, you see. But as nobody ever gives me anything for them, I don't see what good they" are doing for me exactly, and now^l jheair; they; want to : give me a lot^^ more, and I so uncomnionly bo- ' thered of late, first by one chajiaudrthen" by ■ t'othjer^ about giving>Ujein^!t4^imiPri,t6,spme other party, (very nice party too his making out) thatl don't feeijlif&^gi^e happy now, Mr. Editor; and; then anplher5 fellow comesi and talks to me. that property has its fights as well as its duties, and how my voteis property of'my own, and.my'duty isvtp give it -right,, andJhe's the one that knows vvhal's right* and won't I let him give it for me ? so '-'that it will bring in no end of a lot, more of 'era for somiEr other great concern they've just now got in the wind, about sanitary regulations, and convenience of pedlars; and regulating; carters, aiidniaking Burgesses (which is a new kind of daiiiper; no doubt, thinks I, while he was rattlipg away).. But davri the fellow, saving yourv presence, he never said a word about more taxes to pay, arid how the new votes would cost me a lot to get 'em, instead of bringing me in anything ; and next week out comes a Bill they call it, which I suppose was too.much.for your wea-k stomach; to suck in ail in a hurry, seeing you took two papers to stick it out in, and don't seem to have digested it yet. Any how it flabbergasted me just out and put, when I came to get to thje bottom ofit all, and heard how it was all got up, to let those three nice gentlemen I've meiitioned, and six others of their choosing, to look after me and my chums a little closer, and take care of pur health, and do a whole lots of small jobs for us, Which they think—and very kind of 'em it is top-—we can't dp.for ourselves, and I want to know all this time where that darned local self-government can be got to, and what it's doing, and why it don't come over here sometimes, just for the look of the thing, and as much as to shew that what we were all singing but for so precious loud three years ago ain't all gone to pot, before we've got a stroke of good out of it. Tell you what it is, Mr. Editoivmy opinion is that local self*government's just grown too grand for its work, and wants screwing down a peg or two. You'll excuse my way of writing a letter, Sif,¥L hope ; you see I don't know much about these things, let alone writing. But perhaps you'd let us know;-a:■little■ about local self-government now we've got it. I used to think it was the Superintendent and the four-and-twenty council men

we all voted for, and gave our pursestrings to to go and do our business for us, and if tliey be too proud for their places I think we 'd better get a fresh lot but not more of them :—anythiug but that. There's the Governor at Auckland, and there's the Superintendent and Mr. Hall here, and I've got a kind of notion that with them, and the House of Representatives—shocking drunken lot people do say they are —and the Legislative Council, and the Provincial Council, and one government inside of another like the nests of coffins the Yankees sent out on spec to » Melbourne (clever in conception but not over agreeable to look on), I'm a deuced deal too much governed, and ain't going to pay for. any more, not if I can help it. Hoping you .won't take offence at my freedom in writing to you, and will excuse the fashion of it ° I am, Sir, humbly yours, Blue Shirt. P.S. Did'nt Sir John Pakingion say to Parliament, and they all liked,it very much, that the Provincial Council was to be called a Municipal institution ? What's that ? And you'll please just dress up my style a little shipshape like, and don't shew up my mistakes, because I ain't going to stand for Lyttelton, for I like to see every man in his place.

To the Editor: of the Lytteltort Times. .■ Sib,—As a subscriber to your newspaper I think I am fully entitled to remonstrate if I do not get value for my money. " I am not a rich man, and I pay tny subscription^ for my own amusement -and'• instructionj and/not for the'purpose of •puhyen'ng''-'"taV-your7love;fq^;bad;jqkes.': Jokes, Sir, in a newspaper 'aregenerally'rubbish . inserted to supply the want of common 'sense on: matters '■o'f:^iiterest-''andr:ihformatioV^butAwh"eri'; you fill your columns with "such; rubbish5 as y onr two last papers have contained, it becomes simply disgusting ; I forget what it is about, some-, thing about a corporation, I believe,; for I only just looked at the beginning; arid! then gavethe " paper to some of the children to make'kite tails of. :Sir, \J[ think it very bad"taste tq;do altyoucan to make game of the government, for what with this hoax about the^ Bill, which iffnorant;.people have taken for Gospel, and the rubbishing letters; which it has called forth, our ministers^ get no peace day '.night...;-.-"-'Our; poor Provincial Secretary has I am told gone about looking as pale as a gbosti and I consider^ it extremely liard to trifle with a.jnan's; feelings in the way you "are doiug ; remember the fable of, the crane and the frogs, Sir, and think how you would like it if people were to do the same thing to you. Besides, Sir, you spoilt my own temper for- a whole day ;t did, nothing but growl at my wife, and cuff the children all yesterday. If I had burnt the paper it,would not have mattered, but wherever I went I found the confounded thingcut up in slips and scattered all over the place., all day long.; I'll tell you ■what it is, Sir. The Canterbury Standard can't make any jokes at all j at least all the numbers I have seen have been as dull as ditchwater, tilt iC you aggravate me any more ? take, my word for it, I will cut you, and subscribe to it out of spite, and I'll get all my friends to join me! So look out. ' ■ Yours as you please, .•■■..':•- ..; Ami Joe Milier.