The Lyttelton Times. FRIDAY, MAY 29, 1885.

Lyttelton Times, Volume LXIII, Issue 7562, 29 May 1885, Page 4

The Lyttelton Times. FRIDAY, MAY 29, 1885.

In addressing Ms constituents, Mr M'Millan had no especially difficult task to perform, nor did he go out of his way to make his easy task difficult. "He belongs to a group of members with whose action last year most people in Canterbury are tolerably well satisfied. Messrs M'Millan, Pearson and O’Callaghan were fortunate enough to perform ah uncomfortable strategic movement at exactly the right moment. They lost confidence in the Atkinson Government just when their exasperated Province had lost patience with that Government’s supporters. It was not a mere case of timely ratting, for Messrs M'Millan and Co. could pldad that their Government had broken faith with them. Therefore the three members could thank the good fortune and conjunction of circumstances which enabled or forced them to join the winning side, not only at the right minute, but without loss of credit. This being so, and Sir Julius Vogel being still popular in Canterbury, the section to which Mr M'Millah belongs finds itself in smooth water. In the account of his stewardship which Mr M'Millan has just given there was no need for him to anticipate opposition or to give rise to it. He was called upon to do nothing more than give a rational account of his share in the proceedings of a session of which his constituents were pretty sure to approve. This he did. His speech makes no claim to originality, and contains nothing perhaps which any sensible and intelligent student of the day’s politics did not know before. 5n the other hand, it contains nothing of which any sensible man need be ashamed. If there is no originality in it, there is no nonsense. Mr M'Millan still clings to his old love, the Property tax, and thinks that it was vanity in Sir Julius Vogel to believe that he might be able to do something to restore prosperity to a depressed Colony* On the other hand, he admits'that a good Government can do something for even so depressed a community as ours, and he appears to think the present Cabinet a good one. Therefore, he does not, perhaps, dissent from the belief of the vain Sir Julius after all. Moreover, he overlooked what is true, that the depression which is still so great in Canterbury and Otago does not prevail to anything like the same extent in luckier parts of New Zealand, where wheat and oats, and money borrowed at ten per cent, have not been the characteristic features of the process of settlement. Finally, his faith in the West Coast Railway is strong enough to outlive even the possible failure of a London syndicate to become the modus opemndi. Such robust faith may become useful in the future, though for the present we trust there may be no need for it. Mr M'Millan naturally, claims more attention where he lays aside the. task of : a mere narration of past events, and sets to work to discuss the details of a proposed reform of great importance, and to give his opinions thereon. It was to be expected that one who had taken for a long time past a personal share in the administration of local government should be worth listening to on the subject. Mr M'Millan was,worth listening to. He differed from Major Atkinson in having somethingdefinite and practical to propose, and in this he improved on the late Treasurer. He differed from the same gentleman in retaining his faith in the County system, and hero we are not so certain that he improved upon him. However, he is not a blind believer in Counties as they, are, but would like to see them improved and expanded. His suggested .improvements are all in the right direction, and. their chief fault is that they do not go nearly far enough. Like Major Atkinson, Mr M'Millan would- keep the road districts and their Boards, only enlarging their size and altering their boundaries where necessary. This is exactly what ought to be done, but to an extent greater than the member for Coleridge appeared to hint. The Road Boards ought to be for, the country districts, what Borough Councils and City Councils are for town districts. There is no more need for the Road Boards to have an intermediate bodv between them and the, Central Government, than for Boroughs to have such an intermediary,—and no less. Both want a strong and effective buffer between them and Centralism, and the same buffer will do for both. Enlarged and carefully delimited afresh (in certain cases) road districts could get on perfectly well without Counties at all. Two of a trade never agree, and Road Boards and County Councils are a great deal too like one another to thrive side by side in one district. Large Road Boards, with power to _ unite together to carry out public works in which they have a common interest, would work extremely well. This has been proved, for in several places in the Colony where the Counties have been realities, and have done good work, they have been nothing more than large Road Boards. This expansion of Road Boards carried out, ,Sie amalgamation of the Counties •. tould be taken in hand. They would be grouped in districts, not as large and cumbrous as the old Provincial .districts, nor as small and shifting as; the present Counties. Into their hands would be given not only the management of Hospitals and CharitableVAid, but, with few exceptions, all ;such other functions of

local government as could not be' better discharged by Road Boards and Municipalities. The axe would be laid to the root of the tree the branches of which are the thousand and one little peddling, muddling, impecunious, neglected Boards, which at present do as much of New Zealand’s local work as want of money, power and ability Will let them attempt, and as much as careless clerks, permanent heads of departments and bureaucratic red =tape will allow them to perform. For the country we should have the Road ■ Boards ; for , the towns the Municipal Councils ; over both town and country, including both and protecting both, we should have the large District Councils. The fewer Boards outside these the better. If by his enlarged and powerful County Councils Mr M‘Millan meant anything of this sort, then we cordially agree with him. If his scheme does not go so far as ours, we commend our proposed further advance to his consideration. We notice that he does not consider it at all impossible for town and country to work together on one Council. Nor does he believe in permissive constitutions like that of the Counties Act. On this one point we ai’e at one with him. A reformer should • have the courage of his opinions. If the Minister who,is to introduce the coming Local Government Reform Bill thinks that it will benefit the Colony as a whole, and if, 'Parliament agrees with him, recalcitrant local Councils should have to submit. Otherwise, we should simply have such a confusion worse confounded, and such a perpetual chopping and changing as has resulted from the Counties Act.-