MR. ROLLESTON AND HIS CONSTITUENTS.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXII, Issue 5015, 20 April 1877, Page 2

MR. ROLLESTON AND HIS CONSTITUENTS.

(per press agencv.) Christchurch, Thursday, Mr. W. Rolleston, M.H.R. for the Avon district, addressed his constituents last night. After briefly reviewing the past session, he proceeded to refer to "the Ministry. He said one of the greatest evils of late years had been that Ministers wandered about the colony. The Ministry has thus been made responsible for the acts of any one of its members, which led to serious trouble and difficulties. The Ministry was unhappily constituted. Members of the House elected to oppose the Ministry had joined it, and now it represented every kind of principle. The colony had been badly treated by public men changing their opinions after election. The run question had been unfairly made a political matter; it was purely local. His opinion was that the tenure of pastoral tenants was merely one for grazing, and the State was bound to get the utmost value, but hot to do that at the expense of shutting the country up in any way. If they go in for extreme rental they are bound to give extreme privileges of tenure. With regard to the Government proposal of deferred payments for land, he thought it would not be advisable to adopt it generally, but believed Government would do widely in connection with the immigration system to set apart a block of land for the purpose of settlement on the system of deferred payments. It would be well to adopt the village system, similar to what was formerly proposed by Stafford. As to the land fund, he did not believe the argument regarding the compact of 1856 was anything like so strong as that of the old Wakefield system—that the colony should have the land fund itself. There should be an appropriation of at least some part of the land fund to the locality where it has arisen. He was glad to see that Mr. Pox agreed with this principle. He believed that Mr. Stafford’s idea that up to a certain price per acre the whole receipts of the land fund should be made colonial revenue, but above that price the receipts should go to the district in which they were raised, would meet with the general approval of the public. The present system of finance with regard to the land fund was a perfect jumble. It leaves us without any means whatever for making roads, bridges, &c. It was also bad in other ways. Take the case of Auckland. £BO,OOO was charged against its land fund this year, and £62,000 would have to be found by Treasury bills, for which the colony will have to pay. He feared we should have to meet a considerable deficiency this year in the Customs revenue. -As to charges on the land fund for railways and education, Canterbury and Otago were the only two provinces able to pay them. The whole system of finance, therefore, wanted remodelling. The county system as already worked out was a failure. He agreed that there shoud be some body intervening between the road boards and the Government, but the counties should be much larger and include the boroughs, as the County Councils would then represent the interests of all. One, or at most two, counties in Canterbury would be sufficient, and very much better than the number already existing, and this would have been agreed to by the members last session, but for the interference of the Government. It was a mistake to create counties having powers concurrent with road boards. This was probably done with the idea thatthe countieswouldabsorb the road boards ; but ho did not think that would ever be the case. The Civil Service was not as efficient as it should be. Central, instead of local, management of railways was a matter of great difficulty, and would tax all the energies of the Government to do it satisfactorily. The imposition of school fees in the colonial education system was a mistake ; he hoped soon to see it rectified. The question of representation was very important; but he was not prepared to say what steps he would take in the matter. With the present state of the finances, we cannot go on with the present system of paying current expenditure by Treasury bills. The question then comes where to get funds from 2 Many taxes have been proposed ; but he thought the country generally would prefer very much to have the subsidies cut off before going in for direct taxation of property, a tax which he believed would be detrimental to our interests, not only here but in the old country. The system of subsidies, necessitating the issue of Treasury bills, was a most pernicious one, The establishment of

Harbor Boards last session would force itself on public attention again ore long. One thing which should bo dealt with by the colony at large should bo that of Harbor Boards. At the conclusion of his address, a vote of confidence was unanimously passed.