POLITICAL INTELLIGENCE.

Oamaru Mail, Volume IV, Issue 1319, 9 July 1880, Page 2

POLITICAL INTELLIGENCE.

. (FEQM OUR OWN"' COERKsi'ONDEITT). v | ,-«) WEi^pfaioSj-July-9.' g Business progresses slowly. The Gfof vernmonfc'are afraid .to-foroS .their xriea. j sures, and resort to caucuses in order to feel the pulse of members." There are rumors of differences .in, the Cabinet on, 1 minor poinds.' '--'i'he ''Opposition* are t quiescent,! and will probably leave the e government' pst't^J'tq'-frjll tq piepps from g internal ;di|fereuces jj.nd inability to grapple 'with • the' 'situation.They are ' con vinged'that fhe Qppositio.n * from the shade 4htd'sunshitie if a'J)ppuli,r • leader arise. The Government app'ear to Ibe accepted' ( the' i: res3er of two evils. 1 Besides there is a general feeling amongst 3 the Opposition: that this'is ! an inopportune time to obtain Jpo'w.erK . Major iAtkihsoir and his party have brought the Colony to I its present: a'p4 #isforr f tune, and the Qpposition are unwilling; to j deprive them q£ ; tlifivhonqr.of bringing . about an j improvement. Whilst they think the Colony, in ,bad hands, they are 1 pursuing a" course more of a defensive 5 than an offensive character, because, they - believe it possible that even they can find i a popular leader.. By taking office they j would be relieving ihe Qbyefmnpnt of the : share o|.the opprobriup} that legitimately attaches..to:them, ; ■ ■ ' Mr.' de 'Lautour spoke, well yesterday afternoon, on-' the "question' of; "rendering '■ the railway workshops museums ■available for pupils of public ill order that ,tiiey,jmight receive technical education. . Hg -received well-deserved ■ compliments frori? all sides, of the. House for having introduced a subject tfyat ha,d hitherto escaped although of suph imi portance. A warm opposition was manifested to the Oamaru Harbor Board Bill last night. The Minister for Jjands, Megsrs- M'ljean, •Murray, Fulton, Midi Hurst all ispoke. against it, land urged that it would be to remove-the;controltof jthe'.revj serve fromi the Waste Lands Board, but ~ ;pn;e/else was able to 'say. There was the fact that ' ;the L Waste Xands;Board :Hadyl prehepsible, been . content jto realise .pm ■■behalf of t'he Harbor Bpard Lf§Q onlyf 'per J an_4, thp, never have gone beyond this upset price because of the limited number 'of buyers,' who .. would, have arranged matters amongst not the Board stepped in. mr.' Mfteap matter wha|. the upset prfpe wasi, it' Tfould nqt affect the price Jealbeidj M inpt.by,> , J viewing that they had not received full value for the lease of the land in the past, had induced tlie Waste Lands Board to fix the upspfc rental at over L3OOO, at "which" price! it was leased" by! those 'who knew its real value for 14 years. Then apparently for the sake of pare opposition, it was urged by the opponents of the measure that as the, land .was.dis- . posed of for so long a period the Bill was unnecessary and even useless, They apparently lost'sight of the possibi- ' lity that the; laqd might fyave to be dealt with before the expiration of the period of the lease, but experience teaches that , in any case it is desirable that the' ' Hapbor Board should haye full con : 1 trol. This is another in- 1 the - coffin' 1 of nominee Waste Lands Boards. The ] discussion on the Bill was interrupted : by j the 12.30 adjournment. It will now bo t hung up for k wejjfeftis?.?/ r • r! j The telegraph offices at Maheno and Awamoko Junction will be opened -to the ( public in a few days. -t . v \ Mr. Jones to-day gave notice that he 1 would on Tuesday, next introduce a Bill i entitled the' Qamaru' - Waterworks Act, 6 1878, Amendment Act, 1880. This mea- { sure is designed to empower the Munici- ] pal Council to levy a special rate and £ borrow to finish the waterworks. r On the strength of this the Government s will assist in passing the Bill. i