THE Marlborough Times. PUBLISHED EVERY MORNING. MONDAY, MAY 23, 1887.

Marlborough Daily Times, Volume IX, Issue 20902, 23 May 1887, Page 2

THE Marlborough Times. PUBLISHED EVERY MORNING. MONDAY, MAY 23, 1887.

The Representation Bill Iras passed thorough the House of Representatives, and it is unlikely that the Legislative. Cou .• r will do more than rectify any obvious errors and oversights in the bill. Ho doubt it will pass quickly through the Council and will becoino law in essentially the form in which it left the House of Representatives. There is no reason why it should not receive the Governor’s assent in the course of a few days and come into operation without delay. Possibly the Legislative Council will be none the less ready to pass the bill quickly that it is exceedingly likely to place the Government in an extremely awkward position. So far as appearances go at present there is every prospect that the House of Representatives will do as it did two years ago, and refuse to accept Sir Julius Vogel’s proposed alterations in the Customs tariff. The session before last a number of the members of the House, while disliking the proposals placed before them, were very unwilling that there should be a change of Ministry. The phrase of the day was “ keep the Government in, but keep their measures out.” The Government then behaved with a truly Christian humility and forbearance. The ministers had their schemes thrown in their faces and remained in office. Times, however, and the sentiments of members have changed in the two years. Many of those who were most opposed to Sir Juluis Yogel’s proposals had less than a year before been elected as opponents of the previous governmeut, and did not then care to incur the reproach of inconsistency which would have been hurled at them if by a vote of theirs Major Atkinson • and his friends had been brought back to office. Now things are in a different position. The Government has been long enough in office to show that the Ministers do not possess tlio magic art of restoring prosperity. Whatever sins or supposed sins they may have committed are fresh before the public, whereas those of their predecessors are being forgotten. Moreover, economy is now fashionable, and the leader of tho Opposition has always posed as the apostle of economy. Though the feeling of the majority of the House of Representatives is probably against the increase of protection duties, it is not quite fresh in their recollection that Major Atkinson two years ago made an extremely protectionist speech, and since then he lias seen that he made a mistake in strategy and has not been so outspoken on the matter. For these reasons it is not at all unlikely that a number of the younger members of the House will now vote directly against the increased duties, without taking the trouble to assure themselves that the Government will remain in office even though defeated. Our Wellington correspondent states that it is commonly believed that on a direct vote of want of confidence the Government will be left in a minority. If this turn out to be true Sir Julius Vogel and his friends will find themselves in a position of .grave difficulty. Under ordinary circumstances in such a case they could a ppeal with certainty of success to ihe Governor for a dissolution, but it is unlikely that, as things are, Sir William Jervois would grant it. It will take tho Commissioners to be appointed under the Representation Bill several months at least to re-divide the colony into electoral districts, and after that the rolls have to be made up. If the present Ministry were defeated within the next few weeks and a dissolution were granted, a j Parliament, whose legal term of existence. would be three years, woulddbe elected ancler the old law, and the legislation, with respect to the representation, of the present session would be defeated. Surely a Governor wonlcl be guilty of a breach of duty who lent himself to suoh a proceeding. The chances are that the Governor, in case his advisers are defeated, will refuse a dissolution on the ground that no general election ought to take place till the new law is fairly in force, and will insist that r: Cm meantime a Government must be formed of members of the existing Parliament. No doubt the awkwardness of the position has been beforethe eyes of the Ministers, and hence the evident dislike of some of them to the Representation Bill, and the haste of Sir Julius Vogel in bringing down his Financial Statement. If lie exoxpoeted that tho excitement caused by his budget would be so great that the House would let the vexed question of representation drop, his tactics have been singularly unsuccessful.