WELLINGTON.

Lyttelton Times, Volume XXIV, Issue 1469, 26 August 1865, Page 3

WELLINGTON.

[FKOM OVll OWN CORRESPONDENT.] Wellington, Aug. 24. The amendments moved by Mr. Jollie to the " New Provinces llegulation Bill/' introduced by Mr. Macandrew, were last night discussed and rejected without a division by the House of Representatives. The amendments proposed by Mr. Jollie were as follows : — Resolved—That it is expedient to make provision by law for securing to the inhabitants of outlying and other districts of any province the expenditure of an adequate proportion of the territorial revenue raised within such districts, upon roads, bridges, and other objects of special utility to the inhabitants thereof ; and that provision be made to that effect by a Bill, to be introduced in the present session, containing the clauses following, that is to say—

! 1. Upon notification being made in the New Zealand Gazelle that this Act has received the Governor's assent, the revenue arising from the sale, letting, occupation, and disposal of the waste lands of the Crown within the several provinces of New Zealand shall become charged with the payment of twentyfive per cent, thereof for the purposes and in the manner hereinafter declared. 2. It shall be lawful for the receiver of land revenue in each province, and he is hereby required to carry to a separate account a clear twenty-five per cent, of the gross revenue, which may from time to time accrue, as aforesaid, within such province, and such moneys shall thenceforth be reserved and dealt with for the purposes and iu the manner hereinafter provided.

[ 3. Whenever the Superintendent and Provincial Council of any Province shall, by any Act or Ordinance duly made in that behalf, have constituted local or district boards within such province, with powers to construct and maintain district roads and bridges, and to undertake such other works or improvements as may be or appear necessary or expedient for the special convenience and advantage of the inhabitants, or the better development of the resources of the several districts and localities within the same, then and in that case the receiver of land revenue, upon receiving a certificate from the Provincial Treasurer, specifying the sum which is payable to any particular district as its proportion of the territorial revenue which has accrued and been reserved as aforesaid, shall pay over to such district road board so constituted as aforesaid, or to the chairman or other members thereof authorised to receive it, the sum which may, for the first time, be payable accordingly. Provided always, that the Receiver of Land Revenue shall not be liable to make, nor the Road Board entitled to demand, such payments oftener than once a quarter, at dates corresponding with the financial year of the province as such financial year may have been, or may hereafter be determined by law. 4. If at anytime after notification shall have been made in the New Zealand Gazette that this Act has received the assent of the Governor, not less than twelve inhabitants of any district within a province which shall not have constituted local or district boards for effecting the special local purposes hereinbe-fore-mentioned, or objects similar thereto (such inhabitants being owners of land within the same, and registered electors), shall, by petition to the Superintendent of such province, pray that such district may be constituted a road district, within the meaning and intent of this Act, entitled to receive and expend on district roads, bridges, and other works of special utility to the inhabitants thereof, twenty-five per cent, of the entire revenue arising from the sale, letting, occupation, and disposal of the wast# lands of the Crown within such district which the receiver of land revenue shall have reserved and carried to a separate account, as hereinbefore provided, the Superintendent shall forthwith by proclamation, declare that such district is constituted accordingly, and in such proclamation shall prescribe the boundaries of such district, make regulations for the election of a road board Mithin the same, and generally define the powers, functions, and liabilities, of such board, subject, nevertheless, to futurelegislation by the Provincial Council and Suf perintendent, or by the General Assembly oe New Zealand, and from and after a day to be named in such proclamation not being mor than months from the date therof, the road board so elected, or the chairman thereof, shall be entitled to apply to the receiver of land revenue for payment of the sum which may be due to such district out of the moneys which shall have been by him from time to time reserved and carried to a separate account as aforesaid, and such payment shall be made accordingly. . 5. Upon this Act coming into force it shall be the duty of the Commissioner of Crown Lands, or the clerk to the Waste Lands Board in each province, to furnish the receiver of land revenue, at least once every month, with a return, showing the districts from which the territorial revenue of the province for that period has been derived, and the proportions in which such districts shall have contributed to the same; and until other districts shall have been duly constituted for the purposes of this Act by the Supenni tendent and Provincial Council of each province, or by the General Assembly of Wew Zealand, the provincial electoral districts shall be the districts to be named m such returns, and in the proclamation of districts by the Superintendent as hereinbefore proVid 6 ed No district or district board constituted under or for the purposes of this Act, or heretofore constituted for similar pnrposes by any Provincial Council and Superintendent, shall be held liable to construct repair, or maintain, out of the proportion of nto " al revenue hereinbefore reserved to the oame » or out of any rate or rates levied, or to be levied in aid thereof, any mam or trunk line or lines of road which may pass by or through ,U 7 h So much of the provisions of" The Land Revenue Appropriation Act, 1858, as may KSnant to' tW. Act i. hereby repealed After Mr. Jollie had concluded his speech, in which he intimated that it wax but too frequently the case that outlying dintricts were entirely ted, whilst the home district took the lion's share of the land revenue, the question was put that the above amendments be adopted, and on division, was rejected.—Ayes. IS; Noes, 22. Mr. Maeaudrew is to move the second reading of his Bill, for preventing the creation of new provinces, on Minister moved the Police Bill, and said he was most anxious that the expedition about sailing to Opotiki should authority of the to BjL Government, he fl aia, , . t u afc ■ $?-&&& understand that none but great enm nals would be pumshed tor the* ""After much discussion, , Messrs. Colenso, Brod e, Mantel, , Jollie, B. Graham, Bell, the ™ i master-General, and others

and after a motion for adjourning the debate because the attendance of membeis was so thin, the Bill was read a second time without division.

Things keep very quiet. Mr. ITitzGerald'a popularity as Native Minister has certainly increased since it became apparent that these essentially Utopian ideas once promulgated by the Press are to find no footing in the ministerial bureau. It appears that nil those sharply-defined outlines and rugged edges of a once-thought-of policy for governing the natives have been rubbed off, and the lion, member for Ellesmere seems now to be disposed to adopt a really rational mode of wiping away the sting from the past wound of natives and Europeans. If that be possible, it is an end of our troubles devoutly to be wished. The Panama Bill has passed the Legislative Council without one word of comment.