POLITICAL MEETING IN DUNEDIN.

Lyttelton Times, Volume XXVI, Issue 1786, 7 September 1866, Page 3

POLITICAL MEETING IN DUNEDIN.

PROVINCIAL AND MUNICIPAL REVENUES. The following report of the public meeting held in Duuedin and alluded to iii a recent telegram, is abridged from the Otago Daily Times, of Sept. 5 :- A public meeting, convened by William Mason, Esq., Mayor, in compliance with a requisition presented late on Monday afternoon, was held yesterday afternoon, at the Princess Theatrs, to " take into consideration resolutions that will be submitted relative to the course contemplated by the General Government with respect to the provincial and municipal revenues." The meeting was very well attended; especially considering that it was held at the most incouveuient hour of two o'clock—a course which was perhaps unavoidable, as the Theatre could not be obtained during the evening, in consequence of the concert in aid of the Benevolent Instition.

The Mayor took the chair, and amongst those on the stage were Messrs. James Barr, J. Barnes, E. Bastings, J. Bathgate, T. Birch. O. Caldwell, E. B. Cargill, M.P.C,' J. Douglas, B. L. Farjeon, J. G. S. Grant, M.P.C., E. B. Martin, J. Maclean, P. J. Moss, M.P.C, P. Power, R. M. Robertson,- W. A. Tolmie, J. T. Wright, &c.'. . The Mayor (after reading the requisition and the notice convening the meeting) said that it was not his duty, as chairman, to enter into the details of the subject they were met to consider ; but he could not allow such important business to be commenced, without making one or two observations. Those present would be aware that, by the course proposed to be pursued in the Assembly, the Otago municipalities would be entirely deprived of that portion of their revenues which was appropriated to them by the 41st section of the Empowering Act. But • theeffectupon the Municipalities would be a small matter when compared with the effect upon the Provinces, aud more particularly upon Otago. For some time the provinces had enjoyed what was called their portion of the surplus revenue; but gradually this surplus revenue had been withdrawn from Otago, and the goldfields revenue was rapidly following in the same course. The latter revenue, for July, had not yet been received by Otago. To all this must be added the proposal to take away the three-eighths of the Customs Revenue; and he could only trust that the result ol the meeting would be to stay .the General Government in the course of spoliation which was certainly marked out as to be pursued towards the provinces, aud Otago in particular. Mr. Bathgate asked the indulgence of the meeting, as he had consented at very short notice to move the first resolution, in consequence of the gentleman who had been relied upon for the duty, and who was thoroughly acquainted with statistical and other details, having suddenly fallen unwell. He (Mr. Bathgate) had been told that he must stand forward; and he had consented. If he had consulted his own convenience, or, perhaps, if he had been prudent in a business point of view, he should not have been standing before the meeting; but he trusted that the days were passing away from Ctago when men were to be guided only by what he would call selfish considerations of business. (Applause) He hoped that, in future, every resident iu this fair province would be ready at all times to come forward and help on its prosperity, although doing so involved a little time and trouble, and even a little personal expense. If so, iu good time, they would receive a glorious reward. (Applause.) He could not go minutely into statistics as applicable to the subject of his resolution ; but he could try to set before his hearers one leading principle, which, if accepted, might be considered as involving all that was at issue. As a citizen, he claimed this right,—and he would surrender it to no man and to no Government—the right, if he was to contribute to the .revenue, of having local self-govern-ment for the expenditure ol his money. (Applause.) In past years we had heartily come forward, and, by taking large burdens upon ourselves, had supported an enormous expenditure in the Northern Island; we had been parties to the Three Million Loan, not a farthing of which had been expended in this province: we had taken our share of all this, without a murmur, because our representatives in the Assembly said that to do so was our duty, and because, apparently, there must be some attempt to bring about peace in j New Zealand. But now we had begun to think that the time had come when all such exactions, as regarded ourselves at least, should have an end.—(Applause.) The Loan had gone to enrich many of the residents iu the North Island. He had heard of men—aud he spoke advisedly here—who out of that Loan had realised fortunes of £15,000, and more, by supplying butchers' meat to the commissiarat; of enormous sums being paid to men tor timber, which probably cost them nothing but for cutting. In short in very many ways, our good money had gone to enrich parties in the North with whom we had no concern. A\ r e did not desire to opeu up the past; aud while we would bear our share of the necessary fiscal burdeuß, there must be no more of what had been to our cost.-(Hear, hear.) Therefore, he asked his hearers to express their approbation of this leading principle—the right of self government, and of looking after the expenditure of our own money .-(Loud applause.) This was a large and powerful province. He might speak with discretion and say that Otago was New Zealand. We had hitherto submitted patiently to exactions; but Government after Government was showing the cloven foot of determination to draw away our revenues to a more central spot, and there to disburse them, so that we should have no control over the disbursement, and no interest in the expenditure. In almost every ses-

sioa, one after another of the leading statesmen were bringing in some proposition, to test how far they could go in squeezing the unfortunate orange they had got into their hands. When we saw the present Government attempting to rob us of the proportion of the revenue we had. hitherto received, and upon the faith of which we had undertaken heavy obligations, it was time for us to'take a stand, and to cry, "Thus far shalt thou go, but no farther! "—(Applause.) The official blue - book showed that the Customs Eeveuue of the Colony, for the year 1864-5, amounted to £6l-1,000, of which Otago contributed almost a third, or £202,000. Suppose the total Customs revenue to be represented by 6 : then Otago contributed 2; Auckland, 18-10; Canterbury, 1; and the rest of the provinces must be represented by decimals, thus—Taranaki, 2; .'Wellington, 5; Hawke's Bay, 2 ; Nelson, 3; Marlborough, 1; and Southland, 3. During 1865 a slight change took place, because that year saw the development of an enormous trade on the West Coast of Canterbury; but despite that, taking the authority of the latest published returns, Otago still retained her preeminent position of being the largest contributor to the Customs revenue of the colony. (Applause.) Taking these latest returns, and supposing 100 to represent the whole Customs revenue, the proportions would stand thus—Otago, 28; Auckland, 25 ; Canterbury, 22; Wellington, 11; Nelson, 6; Southland, 4; Hawke's Bay, 3 ; Taranaki, 1; and Marlborough, not a-half of one. (Laughter.) Was it fair to this great province that our revenues should be taken away and administered for the benefit of other parts of the colony that contributed but 1 in 100, as against Otago's 28 ? Taking the test of exports, and supposing the total for the year 1865 to be represented by 25, what were the proportions ? Otago and Canterbury stood upon a level; lor Canterbury had exported an enormous quantity of gold during the first year of the West Coast diggings. Neither

Otago nor Canterbury got any share of the loan expenditure; and both, to his mind, would be simply consulting their own interests, if they were more closely united than they had been hitherto. (Applause.) Of j the 25 parts of the exports, Otago ' aud Canterbury contributed 10 each; I and all the other provinces together contributed but 5, thus—Wellington, 1; Auckland, 2; Wellington, 8-10ths; Marlborough, 7-10ths; Southland 9-10ths; Hawke's Bay, 3-10tlis; Taranaki, just nothing. All that was exported from that province was a few parcels of hides and a few pounds of wool, the whole value being £500; that was all the exports of Taranaki, which province was maintained aud kept up at the expense of the South. Those simple facts justified him in say - iug that Otigo was a large, powerful, and wealthy province, deserving of every consideration at the hands of the General Government. But we had been plundered; aud the attempt was made to plunder us still more. We had to thank ourselves for it; for, had we been true to ourselves, no Government would have dared to put its hands so deeply into our pockets as has been done, and much less would the Government dare to try to plunge its hands still deeper, as was now being done. Apparently, we had all been engaged in what he would call the mad pursuit of wealth—though some might say that they had pursued a loss instead—during the last three years, without taking time to consider our position in regard to the General Government. In addition there had been throughout the province little petty jealousies; the goldfields running down Dunedin, and little Oamaru cocking up its beaver—(laughter)—and running at Dunedin for having, as was said, too much public money spent on it. This great province has thus been like Gulliver tied do,vn by numerous threads by the Lilliputims, and uuable to move; and so those little petty but disabling jealousies had left us a prey to the General Government. Those sent to represent us in the Assembly, instead of showing a powerful front, which any Government would respect, had exhibited the same miserable jealousies to be found among ourselves. (Hear, hear, and applause.) He spoke the words of truth aud soberness when he said that his face tingled with shame to see that, in the division upon an important question, this province, instead of being felt at headquarters as a mighty mass, corresponding to its real power and importance, had its representatives divided, eight against seven. (Hear, hear.) We might quarrel amongst ourselves, and perhaps there should be a healthy political excitement amongst us; like man and wife,'we might have little bickerings; but like them we should be ready to exclaim, " Woe to the man who comes betwixt us." (Laughter,) He wanted to see this fair and beautiful province assume, in the councils of the colony, the position to which it was legitimately entitled. To do so was in the hands of ourselves and of tho people of the province generally. We must send to the Assembly only men who would look after our interests, who would take care of our revenue, who would make a searching inquiry into the expenditure of every shilling, aud who would prevent everything Binacking of jobbery. The blots of colonial institutions were selfishness and jobbery ; and as those things affected our interests, we should take care to soud to the Assembly men who would be banded together for commou objects, aud who would show us no mere divisions of eight against seven, He wished that the different parts of the province would realise that the interests of all were identical; and that those interests were to be maintained by enforcing the principle which he had before advocated-and which he was willing to see carried to the greatest possible extent—self-government. (Applause.) On some parts of the Goldfields, as he saw, there was talk in favour of the whole government of the Goldfields being fixed in Wellington; but such a

change would no sooner bo made than those who had advocated it would repent. If there was mis-government now, it would be tenfold worse when centrediu a quiet bureau in Wellington. The tendency to division amongst ourselves had been well known and duly appreciated. Let it not be supposed that the representatives of other provinces—those contributors of decimal parts to the revenue and exportswere either hood-winked or asleep. They were able, astute, clever men. They saw dissension amongst us, and they used that dissension for the benefit of their own provinces. When Otago's 15 members were divided so as to represent but the power of a single vote, Mr. Stafford saw the opportunity for advancing with his centralising schemes. We must let Mr. Stafford and others know that we were no longer to be trilled with.—(Applause.) Who was the proposer of the motion for taking away revenue from the municipalities ? A gentleman who had been pitchforked into the Government, and who enjoyed, for a brief period, the dignity of having " a handle to his name"—the Hon. John Hall. What right had he to interfere with us or our municipalities? He seemed to have " a down" upon Otago. There had been too much of that sort of feeling ; and he (Mr. Bathgate) regretted it. When he was in Auckland, endeavouring to get passed a bill of great social importance to Duuedin—the Water Works Company's Bill—he had more trouble with the Hon. John Hall, who was then a member of the Legislative Council, than with any other man in the Assembly, excepting another Canterbury man, Mr. Sewell. The Hon John Hall insisted upon this clause and that alteration, until he (Mr. Bathgate) began to be something more than annoyed: and at last he said to the Hon. John Hall, "If you choose to take the responsibility of burking a measure of so much social importance to Duuedin, do it. I wash my hands of your interference.."—(Applause,) Why did the Hon. John Hall come annoying aud worrying us when we were looking after our own interests ? AVe were not going, with our hats in our hands, to the Hon. John Hall, to ask for a share of revenue that was being doled out to the other Provinces. We. were independent; we would yet, under God, be prosperous ; we wanted to manage our own affairs: and why should the Hon. John Hall, with a pertness that seemed extraordinary, take every opportunity of interfering with Dunedin and its interests? —(Applause.) At the time to which he (Mr. Bathgate) was referring, the Hon. John Hall was trying to get two railway bills passed—one for a line North, and the other for a line South, of Christchurch; and he (Mr. Bathgate) saw enough to qee that Canterbury measures were not dealt with in the same spirit as those coming from Otago. It was high time that we should let the General Government feel the strength that Otago really possessed. Could any man doubt of the future of a province that was now producing two millions sterling a-year, with a population of 45,000 ? Such a thing was scarcely known in the history of the world. Then let us not bo afraid; but, acting together, let us do all that in us lay to vindicate the great principle of the power of local government, and the control of our own revenue, Look at the late Treasurer's financial statement. The war with the Maoris was at an end; but out of a total expenditure of £974,ooo—including, be it remembered, interest on the Three Million Loan-£309,000 was set down for defence purposes, and£29,ooo for native purposes, making £338,000, or more than a third of tho total proposed expenditure, to be applied to things with which, literally and substantially, we had no concern. He thought he had said enough to ensure unanimous support for his motion, which was— That this meeting, considering the large proportion of the public revenue drawn from this province, and that of late a centralising tendency lias been exhibited by the General Government, whereby the revenue of this province is abstracted, as well as additional burdens created for the purpose of expenditure elsewhere, desire to express a strong opinion against every measure having the effect of diminishing the amount of the proportion of the revenue at present locally ap-propriated-on the faith of which large obligations have been undertaken, and their belief that finiincbil reform, whereby the expenditure of the Government be curtailed and more equitably distributed amongst the provinces, is imperatively required. Mr. R. B. Martin seconded the motion; and it was unauimously adopted. Mr. E. B. Cargill said that those present were assembled in the exercise of the great and glorious privilegeone which it was easy and common to undervalue—of expressing their opinions upon the doings of their legislators and rulers. He wished they had amongst them a larger proportion of those who, in the early days, took part in the struggle for Constitutional rights 'which was so gallantly fought in the'colony. It was well to let it be known that, however much engrossed, as we might have been, in our own pursuits, we were not altogether dead to political matters—that we still watched what was going on iu the Legislature—and that we were prepared to insist upon our legislators fulfilling their duties in a way that should be a true reflex of the popular opinion of the colony. AVe had seen the manifestation of a tendency lately, in the Government now in power, to adopt that system of centralisation which wa* an old scheme of Mr. Stafford's, and which had for its object breakitig down the power of the pro"r vinces. Whatever opinion might be entertained as to the form of Government most suited for this colony, there was one thing about which we could have no doubt that under the Provincial system, as settled by the general concurrence of the representatives of the whole colony—a system which had been a subject of understanding and agreement for a good many years the colony had grown to its present position of power and wealth. And it should not be tolerated for a moment, that any set of men who happened to get into power, should be allowed, by insidious move-

menta, to undermine tint provincial . system to which we owed so much—(Applause). Let anyone remember what had been done in the history of this colony —let any one go through that history, and mark what evidences there were of advancement mi civilisation, as contrasted with a tew years ago —let any one ascertain how all that had been worked out—and then let him say whether we did not owe to the provincial system nearly all that had been done hi the way of advancement. —(Applause). We are apt to talk—and the idea seemed to crop out in the views of the present Government —of the General Government as something foreign to ourselves, some overruling, and opposed power. Who were the General Government? Were they not our very selves, in fact ? And was it not for Otago and the other parts of the colony to see that the General Government properly represented the people of the colony. AVe were not to have such vital alterations in the whole system of things as were involved in the propositions of Mr. Stafford and Mr. Jollie, effected at the mere caprice of a few Ministers. We must let it be known that there was a public opinion here, and a determination to make that opinion heard. (Applause.) The resolution placed in his hands referred to a comparatively small matter; but it was important as an exemplification of that system which was threatened to be introduced amongst us, of centralising to the utmost possible extent. The resolution was— That tills meeting is of opinion that repealing the 41st clause of the Municipal Kmpotvcring Act will greatly diminish the usefulness of Municipal institutions, ami a large portion of the Corporation receipts will be destroyed, without benefit to the General Government to any extent. The effect of the clause referred to was that the fines and fees received at the Mayor's Court, under the Town and Country Police Ordinance, the Dunedin Building Ordinance, and the Common Lodging Houses Ordinance, should go to the city funds. Ho understood that the whole amount so received from the beginning of the year to the end of August, was £714, of which £228 went to the Government, and £485 to the city. When it was considered that the public had hud the benefit of a Court sitting daily—but for which, probably, a second Resident Magistrate would have had to be appointed—it would be seen that the amount received by the city was but a partial return for the value actually given. As he had said, he considered the proposal to repeal the clause to be comparatively unimportant, save as another exhibition of the tendency to curb the local application of moneys, and to centralise everything in Wellington. He read with absolute astonishment—and no doubt many of his fellow colonists had the same feeling—the remarks of Mr. Jollie, in concluding his financial statement. Mr. Jollie said—- " I would strongly recommend the provinces henceforth to rely more upon themselves and their own local revenue, and less upon the fluctuating and precarious surplus which it may be in the power of the General Government still to continue."

This was taking it for granted that handing over a portion of the revenues to be disbursed by the provinces, was in the nature of a concession or a grant—an assumption that could not be too strongly reprobated (Applause.) He did not advocate an exceeding extention of the existing provincial powers. He believed that the Constitution of the colony was ail exceedingly wise one in all its parts; that so far as concerned the legislating power, we could not have the advantage of too much wisdom; and that legislation for the whole colony by the General Assembly was a very desirable thing. But as regarded the appropriation of fuuds for all the main purposes of colonising —at any rate, in the present stage of •development of the provinces —no man could look round, without admitting that to interfere with the existing system of appropriating moneys would be to impede immigration, to take from the value of property, to dam enterprise, and, in tact, to cause a general retrograde movement. (Applause.) And more than that. Not only was it necessary that those funds should be continued at the disposal of the provinces, in accordance with the understanding formerly come to, but the provinces had incurred special debts upon the faith of having those funds, which they •never could pay, and continue the good Government of the couutry, if they were to have swept away from them all the ordinary revenue. What would be left? Simply the land revenue, a large portion of which was absorbed in the administration of the land department, and which, as to the remainder must be considered of a very precarious character. Besides, the appropriation of Land Revenue to any of the purposes now served by the ordinary revenue, might fairly be held to be a departure from those purposes for which the Lmd revenue had been given to the provinces. He was glad to think that the large majority by which the late Government was turned out, might be taken as a direct censure upon the sentiments contained in the financial statement. It did not appear directly to be so; but he was glad to think that that was the feeliug which was prevalent, and which caused Mr. Stafford to be turned out by such a majority as had seldom been known against a Government in this colony. It behoves us to watch carefully. This scheme of centralisation Avas no new one of Mr. Stafford's. Mr. Stafford originated and succeeded in passing the celebrated New Provinces Act, which had the especial design of breaking down Provincial Governments and bringing them into contempt. He (Mr. Cargill) thought that any proceeding in that direction on the part of the Assembly, would be contrary to the firm convictions of the whole of the people of the colony. (Applause,) What had been the reason put forward for this interference with provincial revenues ? Of course, it was the payment of the bill for the Maori war. And here there was to be noted something which he thought re-

fleeted discreditably upon the colony. At a time when our leading men should have been united to lift the colony out of its present depression, we saw them pulling in different directions—one set wishing to separate Auckland from the rest of the colony; another set wishing some such thing for the Middle Island, or for some of its provinces. We saw Constitution-mongers rising on all sides, with all kinds of nostrums of their own; and, meanwhile, the main business of legislation was neglected. To see Mr. Whitaker—a man of standing, and of political wisdom and sagacity—introducing such a set of miserable, crude, imperfect proposals, as those which he submitted to the Assembly, was, indeed, a pitiable spectacle. (Applause.) Mr. Douglas seconded the motion; and it was adopted unanimously.

Mr. Tolmie moved " That a memorial to both Houses of Assembly bo prepared, and signed by the Mayor in name of this meeting, and transmitted by him to tho members for the city, for presentation." Mr. Barr seconded the motion, which was adopted. _ Mr. Webb moved, " That further, in order to give effect to the views of this meeting, a Committee be formed to forward such organisation as may be deemed advisable for securing that attention to the wishes of the inhabitants of the province to which, looking at their position, wealjh, and resources they are legitimately entitled." The motion was seconded and carried.