VICTORIA.

Lyttelton Times, Volume XVI, Issue 912, 7 August 1861, Page 3

VICTORIA.

[from our Own correspondent.] ; -■•"- Melbourne, July 18, 1861. DISSOLUTION OP PARLIAMENT. Rumours of an intention to oust the Heales Ministry have been in circulation for some time, and it was at length determined to move a vote of want of confidence, which, after a stormy debate, was carried by a majority of 19 against Ministers! On the representation of his responsible advisers, Sir Henry Barkley wasinducedtoconsenttoadissolution.a proceeding which was much against the wishes of the opposition, who calculated on placing their own men at the helm of the state, without the trouble of going back to consult their constituents at such an important crisis. The step taken by his Excellency being perfectly constitutional, there was nothing for it but to bend before the force of circumstances, which the opposition did with a very bad grace; and. Under pretence of guarding against any unnecessary delay in the re-assemblng of Parliament, resolved that no money should be paid ont of the public revenue for any purpose whatever after the 31st of August next, unless Parliament was sitting, any person disbursing mouey after that date to be liable to a fine of £100, and declared incapable for ever afterwards of holding an appointment under the Crown in the colony. This resolution was placed as an additional clause to the Appropriation Bill, and a copy forwarded to the Governor by the Speaker. His Excellency immediately sent a message to the House, requesting the withdrawal of the obnoxious clause, which the Assembly refused to do, expressing their determination to abide by the dcci! sion already come to; and thus is the foundation laid of a pretty little quarrel between the representative of Royalty and the Parliament of Victoria. It was thought the Governor would retaliate by refusing his assent to the passing of the bill, but his Excellency thought better to " bide his time, " and accordingly took occasion, when addressing the Parliament previous to dissolution, to administer a gentle castigation to the refractory opposition. On the 3rd instant the Governor went in state to the Legislative Council, for the purpose of proroguing Parliament with the usual forms and ceremonies. The Assembly having been summoned, Sir Henry Barkley addressed both chambers at length, when, after recapitulating the business disposed of during the session, and expressing his thanks on behalf of her Majesty, for the liberality with which the supplies were voted, he proceeded to say:—

"I am bound, however, as the" Queen's representative, to protest against the limitation you have imposed on the issue of the supplies after the close of next month unless Parliament be then sitting. " Conditions of this sort are totally at variance with the usages of the mother country, since the true principles of constitutional government were settled at the revolution nearly two centuries ago; and looking to the assurances you have received on the point in question, both from myself and my advisers, no pdlitical necessity can be pleaded for the introduction here of so obsolete and dangerous an expedient."

At the close of this passage, expressions of dissent were many from honorable members, which elicited loud cries of " order, order." His Excellency then resumed:—

" Mindful of the shock to the financial credit of the country; of the injury to its public establishments; and of the wide spread distress among the laboring classes, which the rejection of the Appropriation Act would entail, I have refrained from adopting an alternative, which the strict line of duty would have justified.

"But I confidently trust, that the good sense of this community will not suffer such an attempt to coerce the Executive to be drawn into a precedent, for disastrous as its failure might have been, as already pointed out, its success would ultimately prove not more fatal to the prerogative of the crown, than to the liberties of the people."

Several meetings have been held throughout the country, to take into consideration the steps proper to be taken at this important crisis. At one of these meetings held at Ballarat, resolutions were passed approving of the conduct of the ministry in providing the gold fields with water supply, and diminishing the public expenditure; disapproving of the want of confidence vote, and eulogising the Governor for consenting to a dissolution, as an act of justice to his present advisers, and thus defeating the tactics of faction. At a meeting held at the Beef Hotel, Stawell, the want of confidence vote of the Legislative Assembly was denounced as "uncalled for, and prompted by mercenary considerations." The

excitement attendant on general elections promises to be very great on this occasion. The 'Gazette' contains the proclamation dissolving the parliament Writs returnable on the 26th August. The revenue returns up to June last have been published, and show a decrease on the quarter as compared with the same quarter last year of £77 • and on tlie half-year a decrease, as compared With that of 1860, of £31,205. With a decreasing revenue failures ot every day occurrence, and dull markets' it cannot be denied that Melbourne is just now in a critical position. There are multitudes of idle people walking the streets in search of employment but unable to obtain it on any terms, and so helpless and destitute of subsistence are many that charity is publicly solicited. They are no "better off in the interior, and a writer in the • Geelong Advertiser' suggests the establishment of soup kitchens in that district. Who is to blame for this sad state of things in a colony possessing so many advantages as Victoria—a colony so bountifully endowed by Providence —who, but an inefficient Government, incompetent to develop the resources of the country. Protective duties are loudly called for, and there is but little doubt that the majority of the next Legislative Assembly will consist of Protectionists. Mr. Goodman Teale of Melbourne, appears in the insolvent list. The ' Argus ' supplies the following particulars of the late stoppages.-— °

Ihe several mercantile failures of the past week will, it is feared, prove rather disastrous. At the adjourned meeting of the creditors of Mr W H Nicholson an amended balance sheet, prepared by Mr. W. H. Mackenzie, was produced. This document gave the direct liabilities at £19,592. inclusive of £5981 secured. The contingent liabilities on bills under discount were stated at £10,586. The assets available for unsecured creditors were valued at about £5000. The opinion of those present was that the estate should be wound up in the Insolvent Court, and a resolution to that effect was carried Messrs. Bergin Brothers have issued circulars' calling a meeting of their creditors, for Thursday next, at two p.m. The direct liabilities of this firm "ear £30* 0U0 '' contingent liabilities, £20 000. rhe assets consist of landed property with stock. Excepting as regards some securities held by tlie Bank ot Victoria, and a recent purchase of goods still in the hands of the vendor, there are no secured creditors in this estate. The losses in bad debts since the commencement of 1860 are said to be £9000. The causes of suspension have been losses and the injury done to the credit of the firm by the failures of Messrs. Miller Brothers, Turnbull and others, in whose estates Messrs. Bergin were 'more or less interested."

The 'Herald' says:—"An adjourned meeting of tlie creditors of Messrs. Baxter and Walker, grocers Brunswick-street, Collingwood, took place to-day at Jones's Fomily Hotel,.William-street,—Mr Spowers (Westgarth, Ross, and Co.) in the chair. A balance sheet was produced, setting forth the debts of the firm at £13,500, and assets £4,570. Some of the transactions of the firm appear to have been highly irregular, and elicited strong expressions of disapprobation from the meeting. It was resolved to put the estate into the Insolvent Court."

At the Levee recently held by the Governor in honour of her Majesty's birthday, it was remarked that the Roman Catholic clergy were absent, and the circumstance being unprecedented was freely commented upon in the Melbourne .papers.

THE EXPLORING EXPEDITION.—DEATH OP DR. BECKER AND THREE OTHERS. We are in receipt of most appalling intelligence from the exploring expedition. Four men of the party have died, and there is good reason to fear that Mr. Burke, Mr. Wills, and two others had shared the same fate. It will be remembered that Mr. Howitt was dispatched about ten days ago by the Royal Society on an expedition to "Cooper's Creek, with the view of gaining information, and affording succour to Mr. Burke. On the Loddon he met Mr. Brahe, a member of the expedition, who had returned from Cooper's Creek, and was the bearer of despatches from Mr. Wright, the second in command.' Mr. Burke, it appears, arrived at Cooper's Creek about the end of November, having travelled from Menindie, a distance of 480 miles, in twenty days. He then endeavoured to find a practicable route across the desert, and with that view despatched Mr. Wills and another with three camels They penetrated about 90 miles without finding water. Unfortunately they lost their camels and were compelled to return on foot. On the 16th December Mr. Burke, accompanied by Messrs. Wills, Gray, and King, started for Lake Eyre, the furthest point reached by Sturt, leaving Mr. Brahe and four men in charge of the Cooper's Creek depot. He had with him three months' provisions, six camels, and one horse, and his final instructions to Mr.' Brahe were, that if the party were not heard from in three months, he was to return to Menindie. We now turn to Mr. Wright, whom Mr. Burke left at Menindie, with instructions to follow him. That gentleman left Menindie on the 26th of January, with a large quantity of stores, ten camels, and thirteen horses. His party consisted of Drs. Beckler and Becker, Mr. Hodgkinson, and three men. He found in the interval since Mr. Burke traversed the same region that the water had dried up, and that the whole face of the country was parched and arid. It is also mentioned that a marsupial rat infested the whole district, to the destruction of the party's stores. They made their way to Lake Bullo, which we may observe is ascertained to have been the farthest point reached by Macpherson and Lyons. This point is three days' journey from Cooper's Creek. Here several of the men fell sick, and Mr. Wright could proceed no further. He was attacked by considerable parties of natives, and had to entrench his camp. Dr. Becker. Purcell and Stone fell ill from Scurvy, and Mr. Wright determined to return. By a singular coincidence, on the very morning that that resolution was taken, Mr. Brahe and his companion arrived. Both parties had been encamped close to each other during the night, and when morning broke, they mutually discovered each other. The disabled member of Mr. Brahe's party — Patten — died so in after the junctiou, and Dr. Becker, Stone, and Purcell, within a few days of each other. The remnant then made their way back to Menindie. It thus appears that Mr. Burke has been in the interior for about seven months with only three months' provisions, and that the arrangements he made for the purpose of establishing depots available on his return have failed, the only aid he can by any possibility receive from the multiplied and elaborate arragements being a quantity of provisions buried at Cooper's Creek. The Royal Society have taken prompt measures to forward succour. Messrs. Howitt and Brahe, together with Mr. Wheeler, surgeon, and a party of twelve are on their way to Cooper's Creek. The Victoria steam sloop is to be put in commission, and will proceed to Rockhampton with a land party, which will endeavour to fall in with Mr. Burkes tracks in the neighbourhood of Carpentaria, if he should have proceeded so far. The only possible supposition consistent with Mr. Burkes safety is that he has succeeded in reaching the fertile regions of the northern coast and is not able to return. His party, if all alive, is sufficiently strong to maintain itself against the incursions of the blacks, and would probably be able to procure game and fish sufficient for subsistance. However forlorn the hope may be, every effort ought to be put forth for the rescue of the remaining members of this most unfortunate expedition. Those efforts must be continued until their fate is clearly ascertained. Great confidence appears to be felt in Mr, Howitt, who gained in his Gipps Land excursion the reputation of being a first-rate bushman. Beyond the quality of endurance. added to energy and perseverance, little else is required in the leader of an expedition of this kind. The worst of the matter is that we are condemned to several months of suspense. All possible communication with Mr. Burke is completely broken up, and we find, after all the expenditure which has been incurred, that the expedition—unless it turns out that Mr. Burke has been successful—is a failure. Under any circumstances, it is proved that the expedition was most ill-suited to its work, both as regards the men chosen and the plans adopted. We find that Mr. Burke dropped one portion of his party after another, and eventually faced the desert with three men.— Melbourne Leader.

HARVEST PROSPECTS FOR NEXT YEAR. To the Editor of the Lijbtcllon Times. Sru—Our export trade in grain being nearly over lor this season, we beg a apace in your paper to shew what has been done in this much neglected district :— wi * . r BiiKhols. Value. Whcnt and fiour exported.. 19,013 ..^5 23* 11 3 ""'^ » •• 610 .. '198 5 0 °'lts » •• 4,548 .. 682 4 0 Xotill 24,171 £(„\\. 0~3 With regard to our prospects for the next year we report as follow:— J On the Island, towards the southwest end, where the land is dry and the crops put in early, the plant looks very healthy and strong; on the heavy land towards Kaiapoi, from the continued rain the sowing is very much behind, and most of what has been got m looks weak and thin. In floundering through this district—for you can call it nothing else—we found good homesteads, the land well cultivated, fenced, and all sold, but the roads in a state almost impassable, not a culvert put in or a gully filled up—surely these men have not had their share ot the public money. Passing through Kaiapoi, we next come to Woodend. The wheat here looks well; and we find some very good farming, the custom being to sow early. Rangiora to lows : a large portion of this district is very fine wheat land, rather hard to break up with a stron* loam, having a sort of bird lime consistency, after a shower, resembling much the best wheat lands m North Wilts and Hants in tbe old country. A large breadth of land is here under cultivation tor wheat, and where put in in proper time has a very promising appearance; the blades of a dark green, and curling close to the ground—the almost certain sign of a good yield. We cannot speak of the north side of the Ashley from personal observation, but hear on good authority that the new settlers here, with the usual energy of the Saxon race, are making rapid strides, one man having as much as one hundred and seventy acres in wheat, all the first crop. When the railway is brought to the Kowai this land will be very valuable.

We consider the prospect of a crop of wheat north of the Waimakiriri on the whole to be bad, as a very large average of wheat land is thrown out by the long continuance of wet weather. Of the late sown wheat much has perished before sprouting. Eine dry weather may do something for it, but nothing can make a good crop. There is still time, should the weather allow, to sow spring wheat; and we hope the farmers will not put in an acre less, from the fear of not getting hands at harvest time. These diggings at Otago 3, if they go on, will be the best thing that ever happened for the farming interest of Canterbury, though perhaps a little inconvenience may be felt at first. RICKMAN, BROTHERS. Kaiapoi, July 22th, 1861.