SEPARATION.

Lyttelton Times, Volume XXX, Issue 2469, 20 November 1868, Page 3

SEPARATION.

At the recent public meeting in Dunedin, convened by the Mayor for the purpoße of allowing the representatives of the city to give an account of their stewardship during last session of the Assembly, Mr Vogel ia reported to have spoken as follows: I hare referred to an alternative which ia before the people of the Middle Island; but I would say that the time ia come when we should ask absolutely for nothing more nor less than Separation. (Hear, hear). But we must not be blind to the fact, that the legislation of the dominant party for a few years past has had prominently in view, in everything that has been done with the Mother Country, to throw obstacles in the way of Separation. "We must bear in mind, too, that the Government, to place a further bar in the way of Separation, has always sedulously endeavoured to cause divisions in the Middle Island itself. There are parts of this island so completely under the Government that it can do what it likes with them. There ia Southland, for example, which does not care in the least for the ruin which is threatening the other provinces: all ifc looks for is, whether it can arrange to get from the Colonial Government a few thousands, so as to be enabled to go on with its railway. It is a fact, that at the very time when the Government was declaring that Southland could not pay the interest on its debt, and that the colony must relieve it in that respect, the Superintendent of Southland was stating to the Provincial Council that he was in negociation with the General Government to enable him to provide funds to construct another section of the railway. Then, you have Westland, and Marlborough, and Timaru—all places oyer which the Government has great control, and all obstacles in the way of that unanimity of the Middle Island which would enable us to obtain Separation. But put those obstacles aside, and you will not then obtain Separation from the Imperial Legislature unless it is demanded in a very positive manner. Whenever the Middle _ Island shall have become more unanimous on the subject, it may have a chance of succeeding, if it goes to the Imperial Government as Nova Scotia went, and says, "If you do not relieve us from an uncongenial companionship, we shall take the management of affairs into our own hands." I should be opposed to anything like disaffection j but it is understood that the _ Imperial Government will allow, if it does not encourage, the formation of independent states; and therefore, if the Middle Island asked, "If you will not grant us Separation, have you any objection to our becoming an independent State?" The Middle Island might get Separation or the alternative. But I am certain that what we have now to do, must be done through the Assembly—that we must obtain that Financial Separation from the Northern Island which the Assembly can alone give us. And

we should have liad it now, if the nine members from this Province who uniformly voted against the interests of could have seen and acted otherwise than they have; and thus we , sll o«ld have had security against those unlimited and undefined calls upon its resources under which the Middle Island groans, (Applause.)