THE New Zealand Herald AND DAILY SOUTH CROSS. THURSDAY, JUNE 27, 1901.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 11690, 27 June 1901, Page 4

THE New Zealand Herald AND DAILY SOUTH CROSS. THURSDAY, JUNE 27, 1901.

It can hardly be said that yesterday's conference between the .Auckland Chamber of Commerce and our provincial members of Parliament "was marked by the introduction of much new matter. The necessities of the North have been with us for many years. Some may even think that they will be with us always. For year after year we have the same tale of unopened land and unfinished railways, of bad roads and broken promises, of natural opportunities lying dormant at our very doorsteps and of unnatural opportunities being secured at our expense by the politically dominant South. This is undoubtedly discouraging. It does not inspire us with an unbounded confidence in the capacity of our- somewhat nebulous Parliamentary group nor with extravagant expectations of benefits to be secured through the sympathy of the Seddon Administration. As we have remarked before, Auckland is the Cinderella of the Mew Zealand provinces ; it acquired an unfortunate step-mother in the Wellington bureaucracy that fondles so unrestrainedly its less attractive stepsisters ; its only hope for success in life lies in its own inherent strength and character. Yet we may console ourselves with the certain knowledge that the North is steadily progressing in despite of official neglect and that the time must ultimately come when the sheer weight of population will win. for us the fair consideration which has hitherto been denied vs. This being so, there is a great value in such conferences as that of yesterday, for they keep constantly in the public view the requirements of our city and province and maintain an organised spirit as the basis of future action. None can say at what unexpected juncture the necessities of the North will receive attention, but we all know that when that moment comes we shall be all the better for having our needs commonly understood and our demands intelligently formulated.

When we sum the whole question up, Auckland Province has never asked any other consideration from the Government than fair opportunity for its people to take advantage of their unrivalled natural advantages. This we have every right and reason not simply to ask, but to imperatively demand. It lies at the very core of the existence of colonial governments, which occupy in relation to colonial society at large a very peculiar position. We do not necessarily rely upon the Wellington Administration for defence against invasion, that foundationstone of State authority, nor for various other social advantages which are essential to the existence of more primitive forms of national organisation. But we do necessarily rely upon it for opening up the land and building our raijhoads. since we have taken such powers from the hands of private individuals and provincial bodies and made them the prerogatives of our colonial Government. If it were otherwise it. is very certain that we should not now be clamouring continuously and unfailingly for the unlocking of the treasure-trove buried in our fertile soil. We do not question that the assumption by the central Government of these powers and prerogatives has been necessary and advantageous to the colony. But it is clear that when Government assumes a power it must reasonably discharge the duties which that power entails, and the ever-increasing, discontent of Auckland Province is due to the fact that the governmental power which has superseded and suppressed all other power for these purposes is generally content with suppression and is reluctantly exerted on our behalf. No Government has any right to keep land locked up from settlement when desirable settlers are eagerly seeking land. No Government has any right to refuse to build railways urgently and obviously needed when it has undertaken railway-building as a national function. In all new countries settlement and railway-build-ing are wedded together and cannot be divorced— the North of Auckland wo cannot even get cart-roads until a railway is available to carry up road-metal. The speech made yesterday by the lion. E. Mitchelson is especially worthy of notice. Auckland Province alone could absorb comfortably the whole population of the other provinces on its locked-up land, yet would-be settlers are turned away from our shores. Instead of boasting of its quinquennial increase, New Zealand should be ashamed of the dog-in-the-m&nger policy of the Administration. It is only an integral part of that policy that such surplus energies as are available for the North Island should mostly be expended, as Mr. S. Vaile never wearies or warning us, in gathering to Wellington the trade that geographically belongs to Auckland. It is well for us that we do not live in the Roman days or we might hear a less subtle declaration that Auckland must be destroyed. Were it not for this persistent administrative determination to handicap the development of Auckland, in so far as it competes with Southern cities, we should not have any discussion over the 'Frisco mail service and certainly should hear nothing of the absurd proposal that Wellington should be its port of call. As lias been repeatedly pointed out, a very considerable gain of time in delivering the London mails throughout the colony is got by landing them at Auckland instead of at Wellington. * When the Main Trunk Line is built this gain will be still more marked. There is absolutely nothing to be gained by forcing the

'Frisco steamers flown to Cook's Straits excepting an advantage to i Wellington at the cost of the whole j colony and to the intentional injury |of this natural port. It is as necessary that Auckland should bo the j port of the Frisco line, as it i-; necessary that we should employ on that line the fastest vessels available—this, of course, if we wish to secure to the whole colony an altogether incomparable Home-mail scr-

vice.