The Evening Mail. THURSDAY, SEPT. 28, 1876. THE WORK OF THE SESSION.

Oamaru Mail, Volume I, Issue 137, 28 September 1876, Page 2

The Evening Mail.

THURSDAY, SEPT. 28, 1876. THE WORK OF THE SESSION.

—— " Words aro things, and a drop of ink falling upon a thought mav produce that which makes thousands think."

It will be admitted on all hands that the present Session of Parliament has. without doubt, been the most eventful one in the history of New Zealand legislation. It will long be remembered, not only for the length of time it has occupied, nor the terrific amount of talking which has been indulged in, but also for the extraordinary conduct which has characterised th« career of some of our leading representative men. Last year the long speeches and debate's on the Abolition Bill drew out the Session to an unusual length, but at the end "of all the talking there was really something to show for it. Something had been attempted, and something done. The Abo'ition of the Provinces was, to all intents and purposes, accomplished so that there really were some results to show that the time of members had not been entirely wasted. But let us turn to the present Session, and see if we can point to any one definite step which has been taken since the House first met. Only one, and that satisfactory to but one person, and he the party interested. We allude, of course, to the appointment of Sir Julius Vogei, as Agent-General. The late Premier, we have no doubt, will look upon the present Session as the most agreeable one since he first entered political life in New Zealand, but there are very few, we fear, who will si;are in this opinion with him. Even many of his warmest admirers do not hesitate to admit that the step he took was a very unwise one, and not calculated to further the best interests of those having the welfare of this fair la.rifl at heart. If, however, we accept this discreditable piece of hole-and-comer legislation, we cannot but look at the four months spent by members m the General Assembly as a blank in our Parliamentary records. The dogged perseverance of some members, the factious opposition of others, and the senseless twaddle of the remainder has sei'ved to drag out the Session'to its present weary length. And members are beginning to realise the fact that they have been wasting tune, and that nothing really has been done towards legislating for the country. In the House the other evening, when Mr. Laknach's motion was brought forward for the payment of members, the Premier himself stated that he would be in favour of increasing the honorarium of members to £2OO for the present Session, on account of its unprecedented length. We are decidedly opposed to members being paid at all; but if they are to receive an emolument forthe amount of twaddle they indulge in, by all means let it be systematically apportioned. The sum of £2OO for four months' talking is little enough when there is something to show for it, but up to the present time we fail to see that anything has been -done to entitle our representatives to £2OO. When we say "our" representatives, we, of course, speak of all the M.JELR.s, and do not refer individually to our local members, for, as a matter of fact, we think it will be freely admitted by the elebtorate that Messrs. Sebemski and H-istor have carried out the duties entrusted to them with unflinching zeal. It is somg; satisfaction to kH|g|that wc are not scalar in our opinitl|§'egardmg the present. jffor, in Dnneffin, the electors have actually

j IxecalTed their members, considering it use- * iess for them to' stay any longer in Wel- , -lington. Here we Lave one of the most §|ktraordinary courses ever adopted by any *Bedy of electors. Just in the heat of the battle, in -the. most critical part of the Session,, two of Oiago's most prominent men have been requested to return to their homes, andexplain their conduct to

the constituency whicll; retirffted them. According to our own correspondent; in Dunedin, Messrs. Macandkew and Stotjt met the electors last evening, and both ! gentlemen replied to the challenge which had been thrown, down regarding their action in'the House. It would appear, from the amount of enthusiasm evinced, and. the cheers which followed at the conclusion of each of the speeches, that the line of conduct adopted, by the two members for Dnnedin had met with the approval of the electors. Clipping an extract from our contemporary's report of the proceedings, it seems that Mr. Macandrew stated that it was the jealousy and prejudices of the smaller Provinces which was retarding the progress of Otago. There ! maybe some truth in this, but there is very little satisfaction in . it. Then the Superintendent makes known the important fact that up to the present time the result of the present Session' has cost the country £45,000, and that it was possible the Session would last for three month s longer, and the expense involved would be thrown away in a vain endeavour to manage the affairs of the Colony from Wellington. Mr. Stout followed in a similar strain, and pointed out that the effect of the memorial sent up asking Mr. MacandPv's.'w and himself to return Wellington had weakened their position in the Assembly. The meeting all through seems to have been very enthusiastic, and the action of the Dunedin members was warmly approved of. We presume now they will return and continue to talk with increased fervour. When the whole thing is going to end it is diihcult to foresee —in fact, up to the present time nothing has really been clone. Of course funds were wanted, and an Imprest Supply Bill for£2:0,000 was. rushed through its three, readings and committed, and this is about all. ' .