ORANGE RIVER COLONY

New Zealand Times, Volume XXIX, Issue 6269, 24 July 1907, Page 9

ORANGE RIVER COLONY

(From Ouv Own Correspondent.) JOHAbTN’KSBO’fiG, June U. This Constitution nas now been promulgated. It is wry much, on the some liuea as that of the Transvaal and has unready been forecasted by statements made in the House of Commons, and i luup already sent you com© of the details, It contains two Chambers, the Council consisting of eleven and the Assembly of thirty-eight members. The members cf • tho Council are appointed by the Governor, three retire at the end of three years, four at the end of five years, and lour at the end of ooven years, all are eligible for reappointment, the retiring members ace to bo decided by ballot. Should the Legislature pass a ’measure for an Elective Council, such measnro not to take effect lof ore the present Council has boon in existence for four years?. The members of tho Assembly will he elected for single constituencies, of which five have been apportioned to Bloemfontein. The Letters Patent provide for automatic redistribution cn the basis of population, tne Qualification being white manhood suffrage. Provision has been mode, as with tho Transvaal, for the retention of tho land settlement l ; constituted under- Crown colony government; these will still b© under the direct control of the Governor, the administration being left tc a Land Board appointed by him very much on the same lines as the . provision mad© in respect of similar settlements in the Transvaal. # It will be pome months before tho elections can be held owing to the work entailed upon the Commissioners appointed to delimit the boundaries of the various constituencies. The constitution has not excited much comment nor is it likely to do go, its provisions having been anticipated by statements made by Imperial Ministers. On tho'whole the feeling is one of satisfaction, and the two political parties are already preparing for the election campaign-

I have already informed you of. the scope and intentions of these two parties. The Constitutional party, led bv Sir John Fraser, will probably gain the support of tho majority of the British voters, whilst the Unic will receive the votes of the bulk of the electors. There is very little difference between the plat-

forms of the two parties, they both breathe a spirit of goodwill and conciliation, and the constructive policies are very cirnilar. As I remarked in previous letters tho real diiVcrenc** between the parties is one of individual. They have not, m the 0.K.C., two distinct secticuns, as is the caw* with the Transvaal, although they profess to ho anxious to guard tho country against th-* foreign financial, magnate, in this corn notion I may cay that Johannesburg is the financial centre ot South Africa, and that nearly all the mineral propo tiit ions exploiter in the other colonies have their directed from thb. town. Dus appliee in respect of the diamond and other mini's in the 0.R.G., and both parties in tliat colony will probably use their utmost endeavours prevent the interests of tho State being subordinated to those of Ur* Rand capitalists. Tho political conflict luu*> already given evu'onee of a tendency to revert to prewar antageuism-*, and so Jar ms I can tioo tho real distinctions will be between, the "ins" and the outs." That the TTnio will have a big majority and wait form the Government almost goes without saying, rind Sir John Frasei 1 end his in- ad i v.iU have an oprxn riuiity of enfi* citing their policy, but there t-ecirns ro product whaUver for yoare of their being able to do anything else.