THE Thames Advertiser. MONDAY, OCT, 30, 1876.

Thames Advertiser, Volume IX, Issue 2457, 30 October 1876, Page 2

THE Thames Advertiser. MONDAY, OCT, 30, 1876.

Parliament sat, with only a few hours intermission, from Friday afternoon until midnight on Saturday, in order to clear off the arrears of work and enable his Excellency to prorogue the Assembly to : day. The principal business of local importance during this long sitting "was introduced by the lion, member for the Thames (Sir Geo. Grey), who redeemed the pledge he made to his electors in reference to the Thames Valley Railway, The Petitions Ommittee, to whom the memorial of Thames residents on the subject was referred, had not reported unfavourably of the scheme, but intimated that it was a request which the Government should themselves deal with. Sir George's bill would, 110 doubt, have met with considerable support in the House, but the Speaker ruled it was out of order, because it imposed a charge upon the consolidated revenue, and must, therefore, receive the consent of his Excellency before introduction. The mover was anxious even to expunge the objectionable clauses, but was informed that this would render the bill valueless, and it had necessarily to be laid aside. Sir George Grey has, however, put the matter in such a light that Ave have no doubt another session will enable us to press the request with a much greater probability of. success than.we could have hoped for this session. .The "Waikato line will have been extended in the meantime, and the settlers there will be sufficiently convinced of the importance of the connection with the Upper Thames or Waiheti river as to strengthen the hands of the Thames petitioners, instead of remaining passive, as heretofore. We trust the

lands around To Aroha will be opened for settlement in the meantime; and if it should also turn out tbat there are quartz reefs in abundance in the neighbourhood of the mountain, tho Waikato will see the necessity of a connection to open up a market for their producc and promote their general prosperity. A short line connecting Hamilton with the Waihou river is all that is needed. The Assembly have agreed to adhere to Auckland as the port of call for New Zealand, instead of accepting the alteration to the Bay of Islands suggested by New South Wales. Honolulu is to be omitted from the route, if Sydney desires it, but a _ further reduction of £5,000 k to be made on the contract agreement, and the two colonies are jointly to contribute towards the cost of distributing the mails along the coasts of New Zealand, in consequence of the discontinuance of the coastal service by the present line of steamers. We think ..the arrangement satisfactory, and trust New South Wales will not remain obstinate in the matter. There can be no doubt passengers for New Zealand ports would be subject to much inconvenience if the port of call'was fixed at Russell, and only some small coasting steamer substituted to continue the voyage to and from Auckland.

The amendments made in the Counties Bill by the Legislative Council were a hone of contention between the two Houses, and a conference of members of both Legislatures was fixed upon in consequence The Legislative Council insisted that their amendment in the Rating Bill should : be allowed.. : The - first conference could "not agree, and a new one was appointed. The result was that the election of a chairman is to be made by the Council, and lie is not to be disqualified' from sitting in Parliament. The ordinary loan clauses were struck out of the bill, and power given to raise special loans, amounting only to four times the rateable property in the county, leaving any increase an overdraft. A vote of £50,000 has been passed for the erection ot school buildings throughout the colony., The immigration and public works appropriations have been passed without alterations, and a clause was inserted in committee to enable the Government to hand over to. the Thames Comity the mortgages held on account of the Pumping Association and over the plant of the same.

Tlie Estimates have been gone through and . the appropriations completed, so that little remains.but to put the finishing touches upon some' measure's remitted back from the Legislative Council, and to prorogue.' We cannot say that the passing of the. Estimates was- altogether nor can we congratulate .the Opposition upon the result of any efforts they may have made to retrench. Eetrenchment seems, in fact, to have been a failure,' so for as the actual reduction of appropriations is concerned. Take, for instance, the Native Department, the ne plus ultra, of' colonial extravagance. It might well have borne the'reduction of £5,000 proposed.: Posibly the indisposition of Sir Donald McLean saved the appropriation that reduction. The suspension of the publication of Waka Maori, the special organ of the department, is the only outcome of all the denunciation which has,-not unjustly in, many instances, been levelled against this obnoxious branch of New Zealand administration. -It is true the Government promised to make great reductions in ' this and other, departments during the recess, and, we. are to have a new chief for the Native. Office; but, .after all that was said about retrenchment, we are scarcely prepared frankly to accept the decision arrived at, of leaving it in the hands of Ministers to work out during the recess. The whole thing seems too much like an adoption of the idea that retrenchment is only carried out when financial pressure makes it imperative, and we regret to think that perhaps next session it will be forced upon the Legislature.... It will not then be pos sible even to make a virtue of necessity and members will then see the mistake they inade this session in not carrying out' their election vows with greater faithfulness and pertinacity.