SINGING AND DANCING PERMITS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume V, Issue 1401, 14 May 1868, Page 5

SINGING AND DANCING PERMITS.

To the Editor of the Herald. Sir,—ln consequence of the action taken by Dr. Home, in his capacity of a J.P., to influence his Honor the Superintendent, and also their worships the Justices of the Peace for the Auckland District, "to permit hotels to have music in the evenings," it has been determined to bring an expresiion of opinion against thiit movement. To accomplish such object the following address has been prepared, and is now in course of signature :— " To' the Hesident Magistrate of Auckland—We, the undersigned inhabitants of the city and suburbs of Auckland, beg to express our warmest thanks to the Besident Magistrate, and also to Mr. Commissioner Naughton, for their strenuous efforts to restrain the granting of singing and dancing permits to the keepers of public houses in Auckland. " Wo have witnessed with the deepest regret, the many evidences of vice which have emanated from these singing and' dancing assemblies, and which cannot fail, if they are allowed to be continued, to have the most pernicious effect upon the moral oharacter of many of the iuhabitants of this city. '* We sincerely hope that the exertions now being made by you to restrict the issue of these permits may be successful, and that we may experience the benefit of that protection which a judicious administration of the law relative to them will secure.' A copy_of the above document has been forwurded to every minister of the Gospel in Auckland, with a request that it may be submitted to the members of their several congregations for signature. It ifi proposed to present this address by deputation on Wednesday next, the 20th inst., at noon. Copies of the address will lie for signature at Mr. S. Hague Smith's, Queen-street; Mr. J. M. French's, Victoria-Street; and Mr. Ooupland's, corner of Victoria and Queenstreets.—Yours, &c, May, 18th, 1868. Osmund Lswjj.

OUE WASTE LANDS AND CONFISCATED LAND 9 IN THIS PROVINCE. To the Editor of the Heraxd. Sib, —In the year 1863, and several time* since then, I have felt it to be my duty to write against confiscation. The prosperity of this, the Auckland Province, is truly my interest, and although I trust I have not lost the friendship of those who politically differ from mo, I do trust the public will tako up seriously the poiition we are in. in respect to our waste lands. _ I have always argued that all the lands within the boundaries of the Province of Auckland should be looked upon and called the Provincial lands, and I declare that they are truly so. I do not boastfully say that I own several thousand acres of unencumbered land, and I should never raise a voice against local rates being imposed wherever it is necessary to mako roads or necessary works of the Province, but I do objeot to native lands being taxed in any way until clothed with a Crown title. But while I consent and submit to being taxed for making roads that the Maoris enjoy, I do expect in common honesty, that when their lands are made as free as mine are, either for sale, occupation, &c, that then they should oontribute and bear their part towards the improvements necessary in the Province, or repairs to roads, &c. We are aware that in the early stage of _ the party Government—what wo falsely call free institutions, by which wb aro governed—an agreoment was entered into by the then representatives 8f the colony.a-.iditwas agreed that each of the six provinces then in existence and into which the colony was divided, should have full control over the whole of the waste lands within tho boundaries of each respective Province, and that any profit or prooeeds of the sale of such lands Bhould he Provincial revenue. At the time of that agreement, it was understood by tho contracting parties that large tracts of land belonged to the Maoris, over which the Crown had a pre-emptive right. And in consideration ofOtago and other Southern Provinces having full control over, and onjoving Provincially, tho proceeds accruing from the salo of their waste landc, it was agreed that the Crown's preemptive right should be waived in favour of this Province, and money was allowed to be borrowed to purchaße tho Native lands. The Genoral Government, for the benefit of the colony, deemed it advisable to oonfiscato about 1,200,000 acres of land, land from which the Province expected, of course, to derive a profit. Those lands so taken in the Auckland Province has been used for General Government purposes, and are being sold for the benefit of the whole colony. Not one shilling of the money obtained by the sale of theße waste lands within this Province goes into the Provincial chest. I maintain that Auckland has been wronged by this confiscation of at least three hundred thousand pounds, and seeing as I do that next Session there is likely to be a division with the representatives of this Provinoe, seeing that just at this time tho waste lands of this Province is meeting with some little attention, I again lay before your readers my views as I hare before done, on this subject. Iflandß were required by the Colony for military settlement, the Colony ought to have paid the Province for the pre-emptive right over the same. Otago and Canterbury have gained a profit of far moro than five shillings per acre from the Bale of their waste lands, but party spirit snffered one or two among us to raise the cry of confiscation, and with war the public was misled. Some of the same men now at the Thames are trying to divide the province, and disguising the fact that the General Government are taking the gold duty fo9s for General Government purposes. When the Province deemed it necessary to keep tho site of the old Court House in Queen-street, for public purposes, the Provincehadto pay some £25,000 for the same; the same year without a vote from the Assembly about the same amount was spent on the Lowry Bay estate, and in buildings, &c, in Wellington and we eee parties who would hand all our revenues over to a Ministry in Wellington to spend, and scarce one will venture to raise their voice over the gross injustice done to this ProTince by confiscating our waste lands. I trust your readers will take up this subject, and call upon all of their representatives to bring forward this subject before the next Assembly.—l am, &c,

Gsoksb Gbahxm. Cliff, Hobson-street. Auckland, 13th May, 18G8.