THE COLONIAL TROOPS FOR THE SOUDAN.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXII, Issue 7269, 6 March 1885, Page 5

THE COLONIAL TROOPS FOR THE SOUDAN.

[by. telegraph—own correspondents.] Ddnkdin, Thursday. The Daily Times of this morning deplores the action of the New South Wales Government in despatching a colonial contingent to the Soudan, and especially blames them for not calling Parliament together immediately, to ratify the offer. The Times says :—" The breach of constitutional usage ie the worse because no Australian Parliament has ever yet sanctioned any military expenditure for Imperial purposes, or for an offensive war without the boundaries of the colony. The military forces of New South Wales are raised and maintained exclusively for the purpose* of defence, and for service within the colony. There could be but one justification for the policy, and that is altogether wanting. If tho mother country wore hard put to it, we should be less than Englishmen if we did not freely spend oar blood and money in her defence. But there is no call upon us to be more English than the English. The truth is, that the Government of New South Wales is risking the livea of its citizens, embarking upon a vast expenditure, and breaking through the fundamental principle of the conditions of the constitution, not on account of any Imperial emergencies, nor for the benefit of the mother country, but purely out of sentiment, from Quixotic and somewhat theatrical patriotism run wild." In regard to the proposal for sending a New Zealand contingent, the article says : —"The Government have dealt with both sense and tact. So far as policy and patriotism are concerned, New South Wales has done all that is possible, and an offer from New Zealand would be a work of supererogation, a mere tardy copy, without the grace of prompt spontaneousness, and with all the faults of the original. Military expenditure, like charity, should begin at home, and it is neither patriotic nor sensible to lavish money upon aiding England in a petty war whiht we refuse to expend the £400,U00 which ia urgently required for the defence of the colony. Our firsD duty as loyal subjects is to maintain the honour and integrity of the Empire in the country." Ohkistchurch, Thursday. Touching a JSew Zealand contingent for the Soudan, the Lyttelton Times thinks the Government wise to do nothing hastily. It eayts : — "Tho New Zealand Government is in a different position to that of New South Wales, being bound by the acceptance of the offer of immediate service. The Government of New South Wales has no choice. It must go ou with the expedition ; oure is at liberty to consider the position. The safety of Lord Wolseleys army is vouched for by the Imperial Government. If all we learn is true, Ministers are not themselves at one in this matter. They are not to be blamed for deferring action. The only thing to justify them hi an unconstitutional* course of acting without Parliamentary sanction would be the necessity of acting ab once, but in the abseuce of that necessity they must wait for that sanction. It is, moreover, very doubtful what the verdict of Parliament would be, because the verdict of public opinion, which Parliament would be sure to re-echo, is not by any means such as at present is to be depended upon. That opinion must be left to the course of eyents, Jf there was a pressure of vital necessity, if it were a case of rescue of British soldiers from imminent peril, or of the prestige.of. the flag which we all honour and revet u, we should be the first to condemn a Government which, acknowledging the necessity, should wait for publio opinion to declare ibsclf; but as there is no acknowledgment of necessity by Government, the Ministers must be said to have acted properly in determining, in view of the course adopted by the Imperial Government, to wait for the decision of Parliament.