THE New Zealand Herald. SPECTEMUR AGENDO. SATURDAY, AUGUST 21, 1875.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XII, Issue 4297, 21 August 1875, Page 2

THE New Zealand Herald. SPECTEMUR AGENDO. SATURDAY, AUGUST 21, 1875.

Thk historic and heroic veins are still being worked in the Assembly in the discussion on the Abolition Bill. Mr. Bowen carried us back to the Heptarchy and the times of our grandfathers. Mr." Stafford goes a step further, and lands us in the Isles of Greece which Byron and Sir Gcorgo Bowen have done so much to mako immortal. Really, if this kind of tliingisto last muchlonger, the Centralists will earn for themselves the unenviable reputation of an old fogey party, behind the times and anxious only to re-cast New Zealand Institutions on the worn-out models of a past age. The plain issue is this. Every one desires change, and feels that somo change is necessary. Two rival schemes are before the people. The one proposes to concentrate all power in the present Assembly. Tho other proposes to consolidate the provinces of the North Island into one r witli the seat of Government in Auckland, and the provinces of the Middle Island in tho same way with the seat of Government in Christcliurcli or Dunedin. These provinces to govern themselves entirely in all internal affairs, and to bo kept together by a Fedoral Assembly in Wellington. The Upper House in tho Federal Legislature to be elected by the two Provincial Councils instead of being nominated by the Ministry. The Lower House to bo olected by tho people. Tho Government prefer the first project, and they have at their back a decided majority in the Assembly. Can it bo maintained for one moment that this majority represents a similar majority among the people ? A very cursory glance at the representation of the Lower House shews that this need not bo by any means the case. There are 74 members (European), and of these, 10 1 are from the Province of Auckland, with 15,483 electors, or nearly one thousand to each member. The remaining 58 members represent only 3G,0i0 electors, <.'V ■' 1 iit C.O to u.'ch. !!"t if bo

' divided again into two equal parts, 29 can bo picked out representing only 12,003, while the other 29 represent 24,317 electors. _ While these anomalies are suffered to exist—while such pocket boroughs as Wallace wiih its 103 electors, and Totara with its 167, and numbers like them remain on the list, it is impossible the Assembly can either properly represent or hayo the confidence of the country. The Government are urged by their supporters to push the bill into operation. They are warned by tho Opposition and by largo and enthusiastic meetings of the people that they cannot bring it into operation and shall not do so without determined resistance in the Courts and at tho hustings, unless theyremit the bill to tho constituenciesand leavo them time to think well over what is to be done. The objection is too reasonable to bo gainsaid and no ono has attempted to gainsay it. Mr. Stafl'ord quotes the Isles of Greece, but one may well ask what on earth have they to do with this matter I Their rival republics did not in tho least resemble our provinces. They had no representative Government, ownod great crowds of slaves, and had powerful enemies to defend themselves againßt on every sido. Mr. Stafford's reading is probably more in the historical than tho Scriptural lino, or lie would have found a better analogy in tho high-handed llehoboam egged on by reckless advisers to a policy of Centralism that ended in tho secession of the ten tribes of Israel and broke the power of tho Jews for evermoro. Nor can wo regard Mr. Stafford as more happy in his reference to France. Had ho turned to Montesqieu ho would have found that great writer attributing the loss of the old liberties of Franco to tho suppression of hor Provincial Parliaments, and to the concentration of the wholo power and authority of tho nation in tho Government at Paris. As to the United States " shedding their be3t blood to provent their nation being destroyed," what on earth, wo ask again, has that to tlo with the proposal to centralise all power in an Assembly sitting in an out-of-tho-way corner of Now Zealand, known as Wellington I If it prove anything, it proves the strength of the Federal tie in binding together a people of diverse interests and diverse habits as a great and united nation—a feat which ■ Centralism never has, in tho world's wholo Jiistory, performed, and never can porform unless it tako tho guise of Russian or French despotism. Why not liavo referred to Austria, flourishing now as a free federation after proving tho failure of the Central principle by years of civil war and suffering i Why not give a passing glanco at the great German Federation—the principles on which that of tho United States is based— or oven at the wonderfnlly various and varied Swiss Cantons I We fear that Mr. Stafford, liko Mr. Bowen, must have put a bridle on his wit and come down to what he deemed tho general level of Ilia hearers. Failing this, wo can only regard these highly intellectual and classical statesmen as not having tin own aside tho lessons of tho old school books in which most of us were taught false history and crude politics thirty or forty years ago. Happily the old " Pin nock" of that day has been superseded by teachers of wider range and deeper knowledge. However well the historical parallels of Mr. Stafford and Mr. Bowen may go down in tho House of our assembled wisdom, they would assuredly not do before any ordinary assemblage of our common schoolmasters or common school lads in the present day. Wo aro sure we give expression to tho public feeling in saying that we are all heartily tired of this debate. Carry the bill through with a high hand against the wishes of a powerful majority, and ve shall have a long and bitter political agitation before us. Trust to the inherent merits claimed for the bill, give reasonable time forits consideration, and theminority, on whichover sido it may ultimately be, will be obliged to give way. If the Government fwill not see this and be content with tho second reading, they may depend on it, petitions for this reasonable delay, and if necessary for the Governor to withhold his assent, will pour in from overy large centre of population, where the paralysis of trade and credit that any long-continued political agitation must cause, will be most immediately felt. The abolition debate in the House of Representatives is, to most people, becoming tiresoino. The tirst oratorical discharges were very exciting; afterwards a few were considered interesting. Hut presently, as one speech followed upon another, it was found that nil which could be said in favour of the bills had been said—and rice rcr*a. At last listeners and readers have become wearied and impatient, and are looking for something new. This will probably be furnished when the estimates come before the House. Then will it be seen with how much care and forethought the Colonial Treasurer has increased the salaries of the members of the upper crust of the civil service, and has lowered the "screws" of clerks in the third and fourth degree ; of messengers, door-keepers, and the like. Ministers have resolved to follow tho geueral rule and order of things in this world, lo him that hath much more shall be given ; while to him that hath little even some of tilc little he hath shall bo taken away. Referring to the debate now going on upon the abolition question, the Wellington Post says: —" Wo never knew anything in the House moro uninteresting. The very importance of the subject under discussion, the greatness of tho occasion, as every speaker puts it, seems to exercise a most depressing effect. Members evidently feel themselves unequal to a great occasion. They cannot rise to the level demanded of them, aud so they apeak under a strong sense of depression. This was apparent in Major Atkinson's first speech, and has become more apparent with the advent of each successive speaker. To say that the debate drags is but very faintly to represent the dreadful dulness wliieh pervades it, tho utter want of interest shewn in it. Never has our House of Representatives shewn to such little advantage as in the discussion of this subject of abolition. Ministers seem not to quite understand their own proposals, or the effect of them, and therefore it is scarcely to be wondered at that the House does not show much aptitude in discussing them. It is very much easier for a popular stump orator at a public meeting to declare his intense admiration for bills which he has never read, and could not understand if ho did read them, than it is for a member in the House to speak on the same subject." As abolition meeting was held at Papakura yesterday afternoon, and lasted about four nours and ahalf, nearly four of which were occupied by Messrs. Lusk, Dargaville, and Rees. We can scarcely compliment the " city talent" upon the way in which they conducted themselves one towards another, nor on tho manner in which they strung out their addresses to such a length as to weary the patience of the Papakura electors, and by which means they reduced the original numbers of attendants from forty-four to twenty. It was no doubt very kind of the three gentlemen named to take such trouble to explain matters to tho benighted dwellers of Papakura, but their disinterestedness would have been more patent had their covert sneers at ono another been less apparent. Ono local speaker remarked that they could have settled the matter very comfortably for themselves without the issistance of politicians from the city, and probably that gentleman interpreted correctly the feeling of Papakura when he made that remark. We scarcely see the utility of -•c-itlei:i<':i tlm country thr-'iTgh

with the view of airing their eloquence in districts in which they have no stake, and to the residents of which they are entire strangers. Papakura might well have been spared the infliction, and her voice would have come with a more certain sound had it been more spontaneous. The good feeling of the meeting was somewhat marred by this intrusion, although the Papakura people did their best to make believe that such was not the case. The O'Connell Centenary was celebrated in Dunedin in a most enthusiastic manner.' A public banquet was held for which the committee of management forwarded invitations to their Lordships Dr. Moran and Neville, and Dr. Stuart, all of whom sent letters of apology. These letters were characteristic of the three learned divines. Dr. Mo ran'a apology was couched in the following terms : —" I regret exceedingly that it will not be in my power to avail myself of your invitation to the pnblic dinner on the sth August. I am sorry that I cannot on this occasion take part in the commemoration of the birthday of the great O'Connell, to whom every lover of justice and well-ordered liberty ie so much indebted. Will you be so good as to convey to the dinner committee my best thanks for their very flattering invitation." Bishop Neville wrote : —"ln thanking yon for the invitation forwarded by you from the committee of management of the O'Connell Centenary, to the dinner to be given on the sth of August next, I have to say that I must decline the honor of being present. To my mind, the commemoration of names, however great, and the perpetuation of party cries, of whatever party, and I will add the maintenance of national peculiarities, however interesting to the natives of the particular country concerned, —is little short of a calamity to a young State, the population of which is composed of the most various elements. In proportion to the gratification experienced by one party in such exclusive celebrations, is the irritation felt by others ; whereas the great desideratum of Colonial society is the fusion of the mass into a united and harmonious community. Trusting that you will at least pardon this free expression of my individual opinion on such matters, and again thanking you for the compliment which I am sure was intended." Dr. Smart wrote :—"The dinner in celebration of the birthday of O'Connell is a little out of my way. In thanking the committeefor their invitation, allow me tosay that from my youth I have admired the many splendid services rendered to liberty and reform—services which hare benetited our nation irrespective of its religious connection." The several speeches were very good, and some of them marked for their eloquence and moderation. The JVciO Zealand Tablet seldom devotes much space to politics, but in its last issue, under the heading of " Loss and Gain," it comes out upon the Abolition question. It asks what does the Abolition of Provinces Bill amount to should it become law ? What shall be our loss and gain ? This is an important question, yet one of which the answer is not difficult. The bill itself is miscallod ; its name should be " a Bill for abolishing the control of the people over their own aiiairs, and for transferring the land fund of Otago and Canterbury to the general revenue." The provinces are in reality not to be abolished, but the Superintendents are to be appointed by Ministers'at Wellington, and no longer responsible to the people over whom they preside. There are to be no more Provincial Councils. These are in reality the only changes contemplated by the proposed most unconstitutional bill. Are these a los 3 or a gain ? Is it for the good of Otago, for example, that her Superintendent shall for the future regard the cffect produced by liis administration on the General Government, more than the interests of the people of the province 1 Under ihis bill the care of the Superintendent will be to please his masters in the North Island, and not the inhabitants of the province. Should this bill become law, we shall lose local self-govern-ment and independence ; and a greater loss, politically and socially, can scarcely be imagined. The Act intituled "An Act to promote the establishment of Public Libraries," was passed in the General Assembly in ISG9. Clause .'i of this Act runs as follows : —" It shall be lawful for the Mayor or Chairman of any governing body, on the request of the governing bodies over whom such Mayor or Chairman respectively presides, or on the request, in writing, of ten ratepayers residing in the city, town, or district, to ascertain whether the provisions of this Act shall be adopted for such city, town, or district in manner following, that is to say, by causing a notice to be inserted in some newspaper published in such city, town, or district, or if there be none such, in some newspaper published in the province in which such city, town, or district is situate, specifying on what day, not earlier than ten days after the publication of such notice, and at what place within thesaid city, town, or districtthe ratepayers are required to signify their votes for or against the adoption of this Act, which votes shall be received on such day, commencing at nine of the clock in the forenoon, and ending at four of the clock in the afternoon of each day." In accordance with the above clause, upon a requisition to the Major, a meeting is convened for Wednesday evening next, at the Mechanics' Institute. We fear that in the present state of political excitement, there will not be found many to give their attention to the matter of a public library, more especially when it involves additional local taxation, even although the amount be no more than one penny on the annual assessment. There is no public library under the Libraries Act in the colony, notwithstanding the many attempts made to bring it into operation. The Amended Stamp Act, introduced by the Hon. Mr. Bowen, comprises 128 clauses and three schedules. We cannot undertake to give even a baro digest of the contents ; but we may heartily complimenttlie Minister of Justice for the possession of a wonderfully inventive faculty that has enabled him to discover the number of instruments that can lie subjected to an impost. We may mention one case in illustration, as shewing Jiow a Government proposes to raise a revenue. A man dies, and he leaves an old and faithful servant, or a long-tried friend the sum of one hundred pounds. How much of this will it be thought the Government appropriates to itself ? Well, ten pounds. Xo a distaut relation the bill is a little more merciful. It only appropriates from £G to £S for every hundred pounds willed away to such relation. Among persons to be subjected to the Stamp Act are officers appointed to places nf emolument under the General or any Provincial Government, or to any Municipal Corporation in New Zealand. If the salary is £200 the employee is to pay £2 ; if £500, he must pay to the revenue, £10. If above this ho must pay £3 for every £100 of income. Bank notes, issued by any Bank in New Zealand, are to pay a stamp tax of ten shillings per cent. There are, in all, between seventy and eighty instruments which are to be subjected to the Stamp Act. It is tolerably certain that many of these clauses will be made to suffer the indignity of a pen being drawn through them, when the bill goes into Committee. riiE agriculturists of England ore in great alarm. They fear the total loss of the potato crops. A new disease has shewn itself, and how it has come or when it is likely to disappear is a subject of very great mxiety. The editors of the Jot mat of Horticulture have received many communications on the subject to show that this disease is so widely spread as to call for the greatest vigilance on the part of cultivators to prevent it becoming general. It ippears as yet to be confined to the new rarietics which have within the last few [rears been introduced from America, but ;'nere is reason to fear that it will not be :onfined to them. The disease, which is a 'ungus, affects the haulm when it is about lix inches high; the leaves become curled, ind the growth ceases, the tubers never jxceeding the size of large peas, &c. It will >e observed, therefore (says the journal from vhich the information is drawn), "that

■while with the old disease thero was the chance of at least a partial crop, with this one there is 110 chance of any. As the nation is threatened with such a scourge as this promises to be, it may not be unreasonable to hope that Her Majesty's Government will take the matter up, and adopt the necessary measures to ' Btamp it out' while there ia yet time, and avert what may prove to be a great calamity to the poor of theae Kingdoms. " We trust the infection will not extend to New Zealand; but to guard t against anything so serious, farmers and growers should carefully watch the grow- - ing crops, and give immediate publicity to s any symptom of disease which may show L itself in this valuable esculcut. E s The Thunderer of Printing-house Square— : the great Times—feels itself compelled to ; bow down aHd offer submission to the titled . aristocracy of Britain. In its advertising columns (paid for before insertion) are found i numerous appeals for pecuniary aid to many . institutions of a charitable nature, not a few r of the appeals being of the most urgent cha--3 racter; but then the names are only those 3 of commoners, and not of titled personages, t In the reading columns of the Times we have • the names of the Duchess of Roxburghe, l Lady Susan Leslie Melville, Lady Temple- , more, Lady Kditli Ashley, and Mrs. Tait, i Lambeth Palace (wife of the Archbishop of Canterbury). And these ennobled ladies > make a cheap appeal to the country for £300, r required by August, for the purposes of i maintaining a Home for Governesses, and say L that, unless this sum is obtained, the institu. I tion must close. And these ladies, whose husbands' united annual incomes probably does . not fall far short of a quarter of a million ■ sterling, make an appeal to tho public, who are told that if £300, less £-10 promised, is ; not raised in a month, an excellent institution, intended to provide lady governesses (not nursery governesses or governesses ; of the common order) with cheap meals, must be closed. Truly the name of the Duchess of Roxburghe, as figuring at the head and an Archbishop's wife, and at tho foot of such an appeal, to be followed by such serious consequences if not responded to, must succeed. This sort of thing does seem a reflection, not to say a slur, upon the members of the upper crust of homo society, and is greatly calculated to bring them into derision.