THE GENERAL AS EMBEY.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 615, 7 December 1863, Page 9 (Supplement)

THE GENERAL AS EMBEY.

~5~SP#i.-??C> 'J '^i'S^^r1 (-1-031 OUlt SP£CIAL I-iEI'ORIEa.) 9%^& — p^HQXJRE OF REPRESENTATIVES. -"-_._'■-''■'' "'Thursday, No"ve_bs„ sth.. (Continued j REIUIESENTAT-'N OP SOUTH r. AN n AXI) OTAGO. Mr # DILLON BKLL naked ";; Y bether it is the intention of Government to introduce a measure during this Session for rocreasinKi the representut.iin, of-the Provinces of Southland and Otago, or of readjusting the representation of thes; different Provi_ca3 of the Colony.'" ) Mr FOX iegret-ted <o say that is was'not intended this session to introduce either of the measures. There were great difliculties in the way at- lhi3 moment. The subject was o; c which would involve grave consideration as to the basis- upon which tne increase was to be made, aud the claims of the several Provinces ; so that if a measure were to be introiluced, the session would be prolonged more than ~ was desire^. Neither did the present, seem a proper^ '"'-' time for this readjustment. Only last session, a great increase was made in the number-of the Otago members, to which the Province was no doubt fully entitled; anl- it would be a > matter -of considerable difficulty now --_f make a further increase, without fully consideringthe whole question. Under these circumstances, the ■Government di_ not think it-uroper that anything should now be done ; but it would be the duty of the House in the next session, which would probably be the last.of th.3 present Parliament,.-to make such a re-adjustmeut as vras considered advisable, so that constituencies nii'iht be.prepared before tlie next, ''i-B|t;ir.g of the Assembly. , /■-, -•-..... . ■ S '■- Z-\X}X\WIA. ACT AF-i> THE MIDDX.E ISLA.KU. '■_ ■ :'■ ■". "^_fajor It 10IIAED30N moved->'' That it is highly 'expedient that the provisions of tho Mi!iti-)Ai ct should be strictly carvici out in the Middle Island until such time as the who'e male population .beWeeii. the ages: of sixteen aid fifty five, with the..exception of that portion which v exempted by lav/,, are sufficiently organised and drilled to take an effective part in the ■-, 'defence of the colony.*'*.' '..-''■ It appeared to burs that the subject was of paramount importance. If lie were merely to broach ths subj ct, and to p quire a theoretical concurrence in the views he had uttered, he had no doubt that .beshould receive a ready acquiescence; but, nately, a theoreiical acjuic-ssance would not ihe^t -t__object in view. Could they defend themselves-from rebellious subjects aud from dangers that threatened from the out-i'le. He found that the Ooloiiia^Secretary in the statement which lie recently made" as to Ministerial poiicy. represented that the-number of volunteers and militia-men,- in. the Northern-Island ■amounted to about.lO,oo0 v i Those on thorolis of.the, Middle Island in Aug_stTa>t, amounted, to 22JJ1 pri^/ vates -of these, Nelson afforded about 2000.; and the • remainder wer- from the PrSvinets of Marl boroutrk, Canterbury and Otago—93* 101, and 73 respectively.,';., " all being volunteers. It w.t3 very evident "that, de--fended as the Northern Island might and should be, no*provision had'been m-i.de since 1853, for the defence of the Middle Island. It had been supposed, by some that the \olunteer movement would' be able, to meet all the exigencies of tho case;. but lie looked ; upon it that the^lunteer movement was peculiar to '• a highly-populated and ci.ilised community. The -Mlitia and Volunteers were d.- awn from two entirely different classes; and he believed it would be abso- . lutely impossible to form an efficientYolunteer. corps, unless it was br.sed on a compulsory militia law... He did not think that a man had a right to the privileges of a British subject, who was not prepared .to" undero-o the organisation and drill ;neces?ary to make him in the hour of trial, fit to come to the help of his . country "Various arguments had b; en urged against,, an alteration of the Militia "Act. -He did not think an alteration was necessary just now- but he believed that very soon, ihe experience of the present, . connected with that of the future would make it ■! desirable that there should be some alteratioa. One of the objections he had heard urged was that if a compulsory militia law was enacted and carried out, it would have a tendency to incline colonists to leave thxvßrovince He believed that that would scarcely be the cose if the measure was judiciously earned out, so that all t -at was insisted upon was that attendance should be given until tho men had been thoroughly organised and drilled, and that proper men should be provided for tho purpose. P>ut he con-dered that any delay in.carrying out the provisions which he indicate i would be extremsly injurious. Suppose:that the _ mi'itia of Auckland had _S__^fls[afi^^^ rebellious 'natives had: taken "place at an earlier pe-' riod • aid that 'Auckland had been invaded by those nomad _ hordes who 'ranged".;'to. the south of the province and who were said :tp. have an eye to premises »nd building sites in Queen Street. Had this hap , nened before the militia were drilled, and there was such a force ia the province as we had now at command the result must have been most calamitous. Therefore I c said that de'ay would b° most danger-: \ ous But he hal another reason to urge why t'ne motion should be adopted. He believed that a state of preparedness for war was the very best argument we could use in favor of its being averted. It would be remembered that when there was a -change made in the construction of vessels of war, and it was found that one of the elements of Britain s supposed strength had departed from her, those who, on the continent, delighted in considering such qu<_.iionsmen who were professional engineers and others— thought that Biitain's real greatness had departed also Tho?e who looked to Brita'n's supremacy as a guerdon of liberty, were in a state of trepidation. They recoguised not that there was an i^itermcdhte class between the soldiers and ihe naval'powers that ~ _K_t at any time, under a new organisation, be ; ' devoted to selt-defence. But there was another force which sr-rano- readily inta the field -- Ihat of, 150,000 ■v-lu-teers-and th*n only wer. the threatening of her enemies averted, and the hones of her friends and of thoso who depended on her were revived. General Sir John Hurgoyne, one of the most eminent livin" authorities, had stated in a memorandum-laid before the Government of Victoria, that all land or marine batteries would be in a measure ineffective, unless supported by a local force. He (Major Richardson) considered that if anything should happen durinsc the present complicati.n of affairs in Europe—should unfortunately cause a war iv which Great Britain might be engaged-or if. war should occur between her and Americi- that the Middle Island would be at the mercy of almost any privateer that might choose to demand from the several ports a ransom. It was on those grounds that he. now askei the. House. to adopt the resolution whicu he had moved. ■_■■ >-; C-pt. BALDWIN seconded the motion. -■...' Mr FOX said that he regarded the motion rather; in the nature of a question to the Executive, as to whether it was their intention to take stepv to put the Militia AtSt in force in the . Middle. Island/, He understood the honorable member to say that he considered there wa* uo necessity for fur:her legislation: "'•'■ f , a _ o -there were apparently, two essentials needed, to - «nable the Government. to ■ -bring the , Militia system. ' . into operation in the Middle Island, if it was .vished. One of them was, that there"-should be a sufficientsupply of arms to enable the people to be trained and drilled which, at present, he was sorry to say jherewasnotin the hands of the Government/the whole; • of the arms'behis: lent to the "Northern popula ion-to; " - enable ib to defend itself; and he must tak» the op--portunity of expressing the strong sense'which/the Government entertained of tbe readiness with which the Middle Island denulcd itself of the small supply of arms thee, when they were required in the North, and sent them up. As would be seen frem papers on the table, a very la-ge supply of arm? was expected shortly to arrive from hng\?--d ; and when they did arrive, the Government would 'be in .a ; position to p-ace aj'large ''.:'" supply at'the disposal of the Middle I'slantfTTKhen ■•■ steps would be-at once taken "to..organise and t.j_ra^ the population of that Island for the purpose of self -■•■■defence. The other deficiency was that thelnoilitta staff had not been sufficiently organ! Ed; but the Government would speedily ad ir'ess itself to thit, and would establish ajSroper .staff iaeach. of the centres of population in tlie Mi die Island, and provide all .other necessary nip&ns for giving- effect to the motion. In this season of war, and of incessant rumors of sew wars there was no doubta certain ground of apprehension that the capital towns and seaports of any province mir-tt be laid under contribution—that eveu a well manned merchant vessel, provided wi h a couple of suns, might do (his, and might reduce the population of a place for a timo to an exceedingly unpleasant ■ dilemm • Under these circumstances,, it was highly .desirable that the population -of the Middle Island should be trained to the use of arms; and tho Government would in as little'time as possible, take every ! necesssry step for that purpose. Thci-fore, he _al very great nleasure in supporting the motion. Mr FITZGKIIALD said thit they must oe greatly indebted to the honorable member for. bringing' this subject forward. He had always supported the measure. Volunteers we had; but, as far as any national movement was concerned, it was mere boys' pay. He believed that befoie many ye;ra they would find the absolute necessity of aiming the population of this country ; and he'was sorry that the subject was not included in the resolution. The want of arms had been one principal leason why the Volunteer movement had broken down; for, however ardent might be the military feeling of a people, they did not like to go " out to drill with umbrellas and walking sticks. It .■wa^r even more important than that the population

•should, be:armed,.that-there should be a supply of ordnance-in: the ports of the colony. Over and over ajraiuffor these lea year?, he had been calling atten-tion-to. this-subject. There was no reason why a merchantman cf very small size, well armed, should mtlay a very severe contribution on any port; and no time should be lot ia obtaining an ample supply of guns from lingland. lie most finny believed tl at if the Militia-of the Middle ls'and had been in training, and had had to come up at the c.mmencemenfc of these troubles to serve against ths natives, fie war-would have been'i.ut a stop, to at a very much earlier psviod than it would now bf. Mr C_ItGILL wa3 glad that the subject was to ■receive serious consideration; He «'id not think they ought to have to do with details ; but there were two things that the.colonists ought to keep in mind. .One of-them was, that within a very short, period'-to a crtaintv, all the Imperial troops would be withdrawn from these Islands; and the other,was, that the probabilities were greatly in favor of our seeing Great Britain involved in a war with some maritime ppwer befe/ijjfiany years were passad. With Imperial troops "withdrawn, and no organisation within themselves, thsy would find themselves a pray to the first marauder of; the enemy who might please, to attack them. It would, indeed, be a most wholesome thing, to secure'that the male population of these Islandsjshould'be sufficiently trained to prot-ct themselves he thought that the carrying out cf that made too general. If it. was laid upon _(/JWJ^_jmlation, those hardships wliich arose out of a system of exceptions coui'l not bs fek; and it would in tiuia' ba taken as a national movement and enlist the spirit of the ptopl?. „:He quh_ agived that volunteering could not take any hold upon th? population here, unless there was a stringent Militia Law at the back of it. If th'sre wis .such a law, then a good \oiunte?r force wouid probably spring out of it—a body which would be tis -corps de liteM the Defence F„oros of the colony, ie would call attention; .to. the^n _es_ty, even, as t'io>volunteer forcj at present stood, of bringing it under soma general regulations. A. good many peo.>ie entered into it. ia the .different towns,-.as a r>:„,,-__•:_"■; and they.-spent a goqd dia!. ofdnie._.i o.m-- .acting uniforms and disaussing tlie question ot arms—the result 'being' th„fc> scarcely two corps could ba formed similarly avraod^ and ac-'out'red. Iv Otago, a considerable, sum h-uffi been voted fir rifle.?; whereupon the"-Volunteers-re : I solved to send home for Lancaster rifles—an arm said to be .very good, ..hub.differing, ia construction and ammunition, from anything else in ths colony.? Now, certainly, all the Volunteers in the colony should -u.=e , 'the same -.kind 'of. arms anl ammunition, v-; .:-■■ r'£. -J i/Mr YOGEL desired." to support the mofeav WTfclr •Hie distinct* understanding that, at. the same time, it :was designed to offer furiier ea-our.v>ehKn.t'"td the enrolment of a Volunteer force, which, at the present time, received but very inadequate encouragement, •especially isjshe Middle Island. He had it in rpcollec.ion thaqKry recently their arms were.withdrawn from' the Coi^3 in Dunedin, for use in the Worth ; and that they had. great difficulty in getting replies to , communications addressed ?ia tlie Gbnsral Government. He'concurred with the honorable member for' i Dunedin;(.ivlßjoi> Richardson) as to arming tjteyygujv /lation generally ; but'lie 1 Believed it. was;.f»rmore"-^ 'sirable insecure a large Volunteer force tliarito _Vy6■'ia force not distinguished by the Volunteer element. V •; Mr PATERSOrJ knew that there had been a very desire ia Dunedin to take part in the various .movements that had occurred for the defer-.ce of the /Community at large.. - Several different movements had been, introduce! there, and had met with a.very Jarge *:amp>unt of support from the population ; but ■ the waq!£of armSj-and,-perhaps of the means'of proper .organisation for efficient training, had proved.hitherto .insurmountable obstacles to anything effective being done.. He /vvas well'aware that the arms which the Dunedin Voluntsers had had, having been asked for for use' in :the -North, a, supply could not again be ■ given to them at a moment's notice ; but he was certain that--when ithere-was such a su:iply,:.theref; would =be no want bT'^arties able" 'and willing tVus'ethenf i efficiently when.their services were required. ! Mr CCltTlS.thought that in c_se of. an invasion the ihilitia would-'-be;of little use; andHihat in other cases a Vplunteer-'forca would be sufficient. \ Mr JO FIN WILLIAMSON" thought that "Middle Island should be substituted in the resolution for">JgJony." It had not been proved that a Militia .force*in the Middle Island would be available for the defence of the colony. He admitted that the Middle Island people had sympathised with those of the /North; but unless their .jseryjees would be obtainable fh'sreV"it • woul(t-.pnl^liet'^|t^|^,te'--oblony- to great expense to carry out"'t_e motion^;-He beiieved-that, if an- invasion wa_:c'6nfemphtedr:.the existence of a militia force would rather.in_.te-tlie attack-than ward it off. He thought the Militia"_'c¥did. require amend ;f_^C-_fhttaV^L„T;^ "years should lis called dvt vand^ent"tß*tfie'front commanders said that such Jadsjwere/better away from camps.: ;He ; ,thqught thatif;a'rlything.was done in the Middle Island, a change■ should certainly, be made in this respect';.-; As.to.'-arms'^-'iie/.'couVd /only say that, ; years ago, the Provincial; Council /of Aucklandvoted 'money ■for a, supply of rifles. ,\^_ Ci^^SSS&fe't $}*" Mr WILSON said that there^was npwfaVvote on the estimates of a sum for arms tc^e^mfrfor./-. - '■■; Mv STAFFORD said that NelsonT^anterbury, and Otago had all voted money for arms; therefore the stigma, implied-hy the honorable memberWft-r-Williamson) was not deserved. He (Mr Staff >rd) looked upon the spirit in which this motion had been received, rather than to the ,spirit of it, as ■ indicative ;'that the time hid come when it behoved • those representing the colony to encourage by every means in its power the growth of that spirit within it which would induce each young man to believe, .as he arrived at manhood, that one part-of his duties-of citizenship was to be. prepared, when dagger theateaed, to take some fair share in the defence of the hearths and homes ofthe country ; a'ndno.t to cherish the"belief that when so threatened, he was to call upon some big brother-without for assistance. He .hoped the resolution' would lead to direct action ; .for ."when the inhabitants of a country exporting wealth that must be most'tempting'to any power, at war with the b] others-country, showed, in juxtaposition with that wealth; a-. to jdoing anything in defence;- ot their property and their lives,-they would deserve any of those losses which their conduct would be sure, sooner qrjUater^ to bring upon there. . There should b^ean alteration in the law. He had seen boys g'oiog out to the front who were utterly unfit; to be asked merely to carry a musket to PVipakura. Young lads should be trained; but they should not be called into active service unless by tli_r own^co'nsent or'that of their legal guardians. He cert_nny thought ihe House ought to consider the. propriety of providing some ; heavy - ordnance1 for *ha defence ; of the commercial .ports'-of- the colony.' So long ago as 1859 or 1860, tlie question occupied afe%--' tion and a very valuable 'statement as' to cost: was obt'ainedj.as eoiild be seen from the\jourhals of the House..- 'There had been very greafc^discusion at'iipme sihee then; and it was"just now a moot question as to "the relative merits/of defence and at-' tack. But,' although • eminent '"h_?n.. had not;' decided what was the most destructive . mode of; makihk' or repelling, an attack, that/Avas no reason' why this colony should be left altogether unprepared;. He hoped that, in any large loan there wouKf he'au appropriation for the erection of bafP teriss and obtaining .ordnance for the de-; ,-eir<e of at least some of the commercialv *pdrts of the eo'oriy. If we came forward liberally to-' , assist; ourselves, he believed that we should get assist-; ance from the mother- country.j./so far as giving us~ some hsjay-y guns. It bad been dpn'fi at the Gape, in Barmudaandotherplaces. Hewasnot i'without' hope;that the large sacrifices" we were now making would impress themselves1 upon the Home Government, so that they wou'd favorably, entertainany respectful deraan 1 for largd ordnance. A.ny iarg-e hostile, fleet could hardly reach us, without being; met'by one of .our own ; but we were notoriously open- to the fava^esof a few privateers, and the fir-t notice we might get of, awar with' America, —which plight come at any -moment;'-wi'ng to th le r: jinhappy feeling towards ' v's existiiig in the >so-called United • States--might be ..the appearance of an armed .; privateer from'the Western Coast of North: America, some fast steamer, with perhaps one large gun on .a;transverse slide; would be able to lay t my port' under contribu- I tion. It we defended;oursalyes against such, a thing as that,,.he believed it'was' as much a3 we could do. .'• .Mr KTOSSELL said that the", Government bad fait tliat the provision of the.' Militia. A it: requiring tha service'of lads above the" age of sixteen years, was a very hard one—that lads not capable of military service were, under it called upon to-take.their share of service in town and also to go out to the field. The Goverrimeat,- -however, . felt .'that such lads ought not to,have" to undergo the hardships and privations of "elder men; and it had been arranged that, except in cases whereat was clear that the hardships could be borne, the:lads should only do duty in: Auckland. This, "so far as" he knew, had been strictly carried out, and a medical examination had been hail in every case.... Any;•'remodelling of the - law wouldnot be -possible-this session ; but he thought it wouldbe well for the Hous^to. give. the Government power to do legally that which they had taken upon them-0 selves to do. .... ;Mr EENALL thought that the Militia - should have the same privilege of appointing officers which was enjoyed by'volunteers'.,. { . Cv fl^t //;:. ; '..." ; Major;RlCHAßDSOl^eplled-^tfW&rvices of ah engineer -were- not immediately available to the Governihent, he' thought the maifter.co.uld:bear'rai)ged. by!an application to the; Government"'of -Victoria; so"; that, if the necessity arose, there would be nothing to do but to throw up the defences which the Engineer -

j mi?;ht/re-ommc_d. .In'the"'meanti__p' tho ordnance d l'tquijfed-could be'--procured. It "was one of the t. greatest fallacies pos-iblc, to say that there was volun- \ tier spirit euough-to do what wis ncled ;he was a satisfied that there must be a compulsory luiiitu to r h-:s.in with. O.re do tha-., and there w- ill isoon be •,: a satisfactory vp'unteer fo cc. H* qui'e agreed that- c I rids of 1G vvars s-h-juld notbissnt to the front; and i ha would transfer fietn to the thirUrcla*?, which re- t mained as a reserve... Some observations had been f made with respsct'to the gohTfie!d_ He had noticed t their progress since ths "fir>t miner landed on the t shores of Otago,; and he'dec'sred .that there was no f body of men he had evtr me*, in any country, or i under any circumstances, in whom he could place i greater confidence than in tbe diggers of Otago, as a : body. They were a peculiar class. They were stipe- \ riov to any one of the kiud to be found elsewhere; -1 and he had heard the conviction ofien expres-ed, that they were the very elite of the diggers of Vie- ; toria. it would, however be for the Government to ' decide whether they should ba brought under the • •Mi^.'Act.. motion was adopted. .>4' MAK'-iIAGE OP THE PRINCE OF WALES. ""i ''Mr FOX briefly-moved.-an address of congratulation to Pier Majesty, ou thp marriage-of of His Royal Highness the Prince .of-Wales, the same to be for warded through Sis Excellency the Governor for. presentation. '-..- -." The address was unanimously adopted. C*i.f^|f POSTAL ST-SAM SERVICE.■'•'"•'.-' ."' _LQ movel— ■•' ?:Z.?\?Z.. " That a Committee, • consisting-of Mr Reynolds, M'" Vogel.-Mr Curtis,-Mr Rhodes, Hon. Mr Reader Wood. Mr J. Williamson, aud Mr Fitzgerald, be appointed to enquire into and -report-upon the Postal Steam Service-'of the colony, with power to call for .persons and paper?. The Report to:bVbrought up o_f" Monday, November 16th." ;.; ~ .■;^: : ?r:: ""-'" Hs was; glad to know that tbe Government approved of theinotion. / Tocy were deeply indebted-to -the late Postmaster-General for his.; ample repors^rbut there was one contract not entered into in it^-He^wfas ' •not one who would attempt-to thvo.w. any blame upon Mr Crosbie W-nKfqr what hs r ;had recently ddhe— -f.hey. "had not to w-arrant. any such"'proceed--.-ing.."" But, whether through ac-illeator want of foresight, the fact ■ was-;.unqu'e^iionaMe, that nothing could be more unsatisfactory than arraageaienjs. wliich Mr Via*- hid recently inade—nothing hadeahed'fo t'ue more general condemnation from tlio public, press ;of the colony hi all parti. This alone was a sufficient -reason- for his. .asking the House to consent to the motion. ' -.. ;'\l M^-'-j-WWOD sjfid that the Government were very ghidthafcfchemoiion had bsen proposed ( 'by the honorable member. He had had a motion of*the.sa,m.e_:ind/ drawn out, with the intention of'-moviiigiitrjo-Jsyie'' first day of the session; and he did not dp'saibniy because of tlie small number of members tn*i_ .present. Subsequently, there-were Miaisteviil changes .which rehdereojit impossible for him to make sucu/aniofcion. . Hebelieved it hal been the intention Of'thevf to ask .the House to acquiesce'in? ig,& motion -land he "would mw suggest thatS tlie' name of 'that lion, gentleman (Mr Gillies) shouldtbe; substituted for his CMr Wood's), or added, whichever the House mi ;,ht please. As to the contract said hot to be mentioned in the report.of the late PostmasterGeneral, it was not made when the report was written. He endeavored tD introduce the subject when the report was printed • but hs found it impossible unless the whole was rewritten. Mr FITZGERALD would be happy to add the name of the Postmaster-General. He^.had thought that as tlie hon. member :(?'■■*■& Wood) had.had charge of the department, lis was .the best to be placed ou the Committee. *■';.; Notice was given to move: at the next sitting; that' the name of Mr-X3r"dlies bemadded ; and the appbint- ; mtjn.£.,o.f the Committee was < agreed to. : ■ ■ "_NATIVE MINISTER AND COLONIAL SECRETARY. VOSEL moved-.-■_L f-That it- is inexpedient to combine the/offices of Native Minister and Colonial/ Secretaryy in /one person.*". ..' ' \ ?..-. ":'.■■■? It was hardly necessary to say that the motion did hot cover any hostilities to the present Ministry. He was fully conscious, as a very young and inexpe-. rienced member, that it would ill become him to take exception to a 'Vlinistry that hal been-received with such hearty applause on all sides lof the House. When he heard, the reception whicfe.the announcement of the Ministry received the""', other day, it seemed to him that it was scarcaly/;possible for an I honorable member to come before a legislative body under higher auspices : bub the honorable member i^-rfe-tJ''-Minisjry^^heretoi'^lre'''(MFYogel)' hoped j,honorable raernbsr's"would not think that'in-suggest-' 'ing that the Ministry .might be improved, he was taking.exception to the Ministry as a whole. It might be said .that rhe. was hurrying on matters ; but he would.explain why he was taking the present course.. .> The mail which would leave on Friday ,would take south, and also take\ome, the announcement of th'?: hew Ministry and it was of the highest importance if they could do so, thst they__hu_ld give the assurance that the Ministry which AS->ived thi support ot-the; House would be one t_aW«mm__dei the confidence of the colony generally. H^conceivcd that, as at present constituted the Ministry had *one serious defect. It had, in fact, no Native Minister in name,- and no Colonial Secretary in reality. It was perfectly impossible that any one gentleman, no matter what his*ability or his power of work, could give proner attention tb those two separate departments. They would be told, perhaps, that it was not right to have a Native Ministerthat the natives were equally subjects of the Crown as. Europeans—and that there ought..not .to-beany special distinctions. Rut he did not think that this wa3 at all a lime ta indulge ia any such sentimentalities. There were Bills, before the' House -.showin? that thera was, in fact, a very great distinction between the txo ra&=s. They had the fact that this Native race required special legislation—that the itative question occupied almost exclusively the attention of the Ministers and.of his Excellency the Governor. -He thought there- was, in the various despatches, very clear indications that his Excellency hal not, since he had been ;in the colony, time to pay attention to any other matters than "native affairs. They knew that _,is Exceileucy had not yet found time to visit the Middle Island ; and that he had never once, in his despatches, referred to the Otago or other gold fields in that island. Tliey were a^aSi, perhaps, to accept the responsibility in \n3ve affairs offered" to the colony, by the i>uke of Newcastle; and it seemed to him *"a very glaring; anomaly . that, in accepting it, they should .take pains to. do away with the department which,- although indirectly, -had the re-^ sppnsibility of directing those affairs. When tho responsibiilty was-^ assumed 'directly, the attention of ; .-native Minister 'would be almost exclusively de-fvot'e'd-t'o'Snatiye affairs: -He conceived that it w_s the duty.of thrt.Hous>, at all events for ihe ifirst.session, tofplace at..command ofthecolohy the.servicss of a gehtl-hi'an vvho would be" able, to devote attention exclusively to-native affairs. li was not for him to lay what had been, the reasons that had induced the ■^amalgamation of these two offices. He did not know whether the honorable" member for Ragitekei.■ V M_ 37,ox^^was so enamoured of both, thaths'could not decide b-tween thsiii.. He ilid not in the,least wish to reflect up3n the honorable member for taking office.;^ To di so was a legitimate objr'ct. to which public men should aspire ; and he.had no sympathy with those who fo frequently declared that they had no desire for office. But the question with him v£jjj| whether it was for tho interest of the colony that those two offices should be amalgamated: He considered the honorable member tadiava been .in the situation of Gay's hero, warbliriz,'"' | , 'f*l How happy: could Ibe with either , *-' ■ r .;- . Were t'other dear]ciiarmsr away j'-'V-'": Jfoit -thei honorable member seemed have'been unabh % add; :-Z V ■";-. j \ ■] ;-. ..-.,'/*\But while they botll teass me together, i.,^,j| : -l: To neither a word will I S3,jJ.'i_ZlS^f^. j (Laughter.) ;outhe contrary the honorabll'meiTi. •be'r-committed an act of political bigamy, aud married both charmers.— (-Irbud-laughter.) He (Mi •Vo_el;)'did not think it possible. The late Nativ* Minister was iiotsd for his power of work; an !^i was riot known'tbat'he had not had enough to^B He (Mr Vo^el) maintanad that the duties of Colonfa Secretary were to the full „s important, as those o; Native Minister. To hirnj all the duties of domestii administration fell; and at a time when so muca de pended upon that department— when they were con scious that the progress of the last two yea _ enable;; them to lake a stand, and.to assume a responsibilitj which theySnev^r bsforej possessed— he did thin'l thafc&fc waStmostimporta-t to ignore in any way.thi deve'opemen|~pf (Jomestid resources. He had seei ihariy instances.in which distant/parts- of the colonl hadisuffered by'the absence of tsi-Golonial Secretary or-by the fact that he hadf-ther besiness to attend to :and<- he did not believol that -it would be at all ap proved, of by the colony,- ;i .hat the Secretary shoult nd.wr4^ve a legitimate excuse, which, perhaps, before Hefhad not, for neglecting)' thosa matters that fell es p'etoraily to his department. But while he claimei fo^rthe, duties ofr'^Sticretary equal importanc with ■ those" of the. Native Minister, he could no disguise' this:'fact—that toative affairs wer tlie,more urgent—and of a more absorbing nature,that;the demands made upon the Native Ministe .wefeot'such a nature, that hs would hot be able t put?'then_' off. , rj_happily the demands upon th rtfeerietary could; be almost indefinitely postponed b hot answering letters, or by not sppJng_thexa__.Qr__

lelegating the dutks to other gentlemen—he could iut- on one side the work , f the department. Thu=, vhile the offices were united, there would simply be l Uo'o-dal.Secretary in n^.ne, a. Native Minister in ealiry. As no one c puld hav_ physical or mental a ibility to attend to .both 'odi.-es attsniion would be , levoted to the more absorbi g one—that cf the Vative Minister. He mi,ht be told that the Minis- * ,ry was a new one; aid that, possioly, after the ' ;ession was over they would take steps to increase dieir numbers, and to make efficient .arrangements as i ;o this matter But there was no disguising the fact matitwa^a tjoalition Ministry that, its'members £ svere of eminent ability, but hid in-d,he past, enjoyed < liflFerent opinions. Hs took it/that a "_oa"lition s Ministry me int just this—a combination cf men with ' plenty of ability and pleotv of diversity. It was in ' Ihe very nature of such a Ministry that there should < be a certain'balance of power, and that when ' you destroyed that balance you overthrew ' the Ministry.. if one link was broken the whole chiin was destroyed. Allow the session ' to terminate, and the Ministry then to add to it. ' numbers—and the Houso would have no sort of . guarantee vyhats^-'of opinions would be predomi- ,j nant.- The Ministry at present consisted of five^ " members. /The head of it, he thought he m'ushtsay, ' enjoyed th§"support and confidence of a large minority of tho. _lou.se, and also had the .respect of that small minoritv'whoi still hekl ,to ancient opinions ; bat did not think the present a-viproper time to^assert them. The honorable member for Rangitikei tte> head of the double'dep n-tment, was also. a^gen_eman who commar,doii a Lirge amount' of c'onrr^ence, from his known ability, his known integrity of' character, and his known of work But/he thought there was some-question aiuongst membra wh Ether the antecsdent_*.of the-'honorable gontlemkil'-the opinions he was known to hold '-did not to a srreat extent, place hiinJ, in some measure, in conflict with the honorable membes^at the head of the Government. In fact, he. need nob go further back than the occurrences of a.few days ago, to learn thab such was the tact; for while the honorable member for Ilansdtikei was . explaining the policy of the Ministry in that. House, the '-'honorable gentlemiii at the uead of the ..-Ministry was explaining- tLat . pol'cv in very different terms in. the other House. —(Cries . of-*'-Nor""no.") In that H'uj^;, they were tokl that the Ministry could not listen to anything like a making of peace with the Natives—that if the ldght to moke peace was recognised,.ihey were bound to grant belligereot rights, which they were nob prepared to do; while in the other House,.the head of the Govemmaot was; talking abont "the Native war," and of makingpeace, If;t hey accepted the theories of one honor•nble -arentlemin and the terms of .the-other,' they would be in _ position of having,to send ambassadors' to Potatau.-y As to1 Taranaki, in. that House they -v/ere -invited.-to legislate as they' pleased — a carte blanche was giyen. But in the otherHouse,the head ot. theGovernhient announced that he hadstiongopinions on/ the matter-whichh'e was not going to .-relinquish. Kven. wheii they camV to the"_<and he f mad vtlie honorrible member for Itangitikei saying that, he She^wa? not inclined, to interefere with the privileges of iihe Rrovincss • while in the other House, the hpnor,able gentlenian* at the head of the <_;overntu?.hfc-said "that propositions had been sent up vvhich would- command his inflexible opposition. To procoed'with the examination of the Ministry. The presence 4n : : the Ministry of the honorable member who presided" overf: the i. Post Office, sugested the : attempt to 4?ive/ to" it a Middle Island flivor —• very, desirable,-jbut very sliaht. He believed there was ho member of the Middle Island- who would ;be more desired iv (the Cabinet; but it was a question whether the honorable member directly represented that Island; apd bearing in mind that he was supposed to some extent to-coincide with/the:, head of the Government, it might bs taken that he would be a supporter, generally,*, of the policy of that honorable gentleman. He:(Mr Vogel) thought' he had now. noticed a_ the political elements, of the Cabinet. In the other mem-, bers, 'he. Found simply d"epavtm'e¥tal hsads/''-'hehonf member who presided over the Treasury was himself an institution.—t_"buigbr) He was a kind of inevitable institution. No matter wh it different Ministerial'dishcs might be presented to the House—no matter whit the rechauffe—the honorable member was considered a necessary ingredient. He (Mr Vogel) wais not there to deny "that the honorable member lent to th's_di -h a very delightful flavor,; but he could not recognise in the honorable gentleman a political element. -, When he (Mr Vogel) came to the last member of the Minist yhe thought he was not wrong in saying that that honorable gentleman was tin pet darling of the House. He was persuaded to ioin the. .Ministry, evidently with ye y great reluctance. When, -he (Mr .Vogeli thought of the undoubted claims of fra late Ministry upon the country, for the /.esperiafvf;■-;se_ejng-_th'a ! t ,the_ _rotTora'me-"me^ Ttangiti^tfi announce(that he would follow generally-' the ..policy of his predecessors—it struck him (Mr Vogel) as ye y singular that the youngest member of that Ministry, after three months' service only, should-be. singled out tor unqualified praise. He thought it, if he might so s_y7a peculiar distinction to be accorded; and he thought it possible that, in the. enconiums passed, honorable members forgot that they might/leave, in the history of the colony, .records that other members of the late "ministry, holding more prominent positions, had beon almost ■'•passed-5 o\er without notice. The dramatist spoke b{LTV^ \.*-.-H ' v --'■- \j,km _~ .- ■■.-1 wst Deeds of great emprise, - For statesmen fnck'd and dan J led into power."* 1 He could hardly think of a ca cc in which a statesman hadjbeerimore truly "rocked and dandled into /power," than in. that of the honorable gentleman the Minister for\Golonial Defence. The honorable f member-for Nelsori^Mr -bafford) did the work in the most impressive manner— he who was not tor tlie first time the father of a Ministry. Thus placed upon his legs, ths honorable member (Mr Riissell)car_3 forward in the most candid and frank manner, and told the House that he w.is willing to accept ths responsibility thrust upon him—that he was willing to undertake departmental duties afthe sac; ific? of ooliticai principles. (-Noi'iio")" ' At all. events, that he joined the Ministry mo-jr. as a ■ departmental'-than as a political member. For the present lie (Mr Vogel) must take leavo to think that they had a Ministry composed of three political and nog-polifical members. At any rat? they hid a certain bnlanca of power, however it might be m-najjed, and the addition of anyone member after the end of the session, would assuredly alter._that ;balanco He wanted to know distinctly'what was intended. If toe . Ministry intended to rc.-o"„anise during the ree-s, he thought it-was due to ihe House that it should be placed in possession -*k\ the information. H ; knew that it was perfectly impo sible for the five members . "to-perform all th? dutiestof the Execu'ive. Hitherto - .there had been six me«be vs, and it had been found that they had not too '^jll got through their work.--■lndeed, one member: whoaijjdutv- _ .were .iio't'p.revio'.isly , reeoghised 'havins: been bold^aff for^tlvi^lapav-tm-iit .of , tlefencpj there might be said I^3 o' ~,ly four members . /instead Of the six, and it was im^rly impossible that they could, do the work. Daring^, th?; serei.on. by sitting; .riiMht and day, the Executive, mightr get' throiiEch ; but when the recess came, t_ey"couM.notdo it.: -He repeated, therefore",, /that %c Ho-isc ought, tojbetoldhow.it was intended to Tnake tbe ■Ministry.-a working'Ministry'.; He repeated ?that" he' had not a shadow; of "hostility, to the Ministry^ He by giving them an opportuiiity^or ■ full explanation, to assist them ; for he did fear tlnjt when tnii news reached-^lmme, it would not be token} as a proof of sagacity, th "it while accepting responsibility in/i/native hff_irs, the House was doing'away with the department that had been specially, .created 5 for the *admuii'atrati(>Q of tho.sa affair?. If it was f- mado a Slinisterial gijfstioa. of course the opinion of : the House could not'be arrived .-at—if it was not he took it that his motion would receive the unanimous ! approvalfof the House. *=,/?'■- t MrTrJaTON, seconded the motion. He thought ; the Ministry should be strengthened, so as to make ' an impression on the "native mind, and thus b'dnff the i war to almore speedy conclus:on. He knew that the natives id_;.Wellington had a filial respect for the ho- _. norable uyembei- for Rangitikei and for the Supe in-"-te'ndent (.'Di- Featherston)} but he was that the I. duties qf Colonial Secretary and- Native Minister - were incpmpatable, and that it was perfectly impossi- - hie for tlio honorable member to parform both. Fie, • considered that there was an honorable member (Mr j'. Belli who had made himself, a political necessity ;' •j. and.;, that, though 'A,\_ honorable member for f SanKitikei miaht try to do without him, he 1 .coula not.help himself. He beiieved that the hono--f able member {-ll^ellf -was too kind, and generous 3 and facile, that] he did not know when to say '■' no," - and thaj; he hhd done too much for the money.— - (-^u^J-terr)?- But a stronger Ministry was necesI sary; ; and' while the honorable member for Rangi- '. .tikei.had given up his rightful presidency in the c Ministry for tin. sake of the colony, hi (Mr Turton) B did not {.see; ._wl'ry the honorable member (Mr™BellV l snould not humble himse.'f and come down from a , \ . j , -^Sme debate was_ adjourned in accordance with the ; Standing Ordei_,Lto allow the Orders of the day to be - proceeded with/**] / :, Com^uerijj-gJ Difficulties. --Myra's diffii- culties were conver^d_i_to 'blessings. Under more A favorable circu-n_Btances she might have leaned upon c others (for-the bent of her mind was to lean arid be t guided ).-imd have lost power and originality. / But, c left alone., without symyathy, in the midst of temptation, anjj witli her own strong hatural faults struggling r incessantly to regain. their former dominion, tlie 0 whole eiaerg.y of her will was roused; and the will of c man, wl ie n it is one with the will of God, has » y strengtli -which none on earth, or "under tlie earth. Ljemwi|Si S mnd___.A.GhM_se at the World.' 1 -