PARLIAMENT.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 5134, 16 October 1884, Page 3

PARLIAMENT.

House of Representatives. AFTERNOON SITTING. The House met at 2.30 p.m. NOTICE OF NEW BILL. Sir G . Grey gave notice lie would introduce a Bill to amend the Printing of Newspapers Regulations Act. new bill. On the motion of the Hon J. A. Tole, the Destitute Persons Act, 1877, Amendment Bill was introduced and read a first time. FURTHER DEBATE ON THE WEST COAST RAILWAY BILL. On the motion for going into Committee on the East and West Coast (Middle Island) and Nelson Railway Bill, Mr Rolleston objected to the Bill. After reiterating many of the objections already stated to the Bill, he made an attack upon the Treasurer. Sir J. Yogel, he knew, had taken advantage of his position years ago to get himself made AgentGeneral, and then, at a critical moment in the Colony's history, he had preferred a large claim for remuneration for duties discharged at the time he was so engaged as Agent-General. That was not the class of man they could trust implicitly to at a time like this. Sir J. Yogel had, after a lengthened absence from the Colony, again made his appearance in our midst. The first thing he tells them is that they have been losing ground in his absence, but now that he had returned they were to resume their former activity, and that the Colony was henceforth to progress, not by slow and. sure degrees, but by leaps and bounds. In this they could discern the old recklessness to which they owed their difficulties, and he hoped they would pause before they again gave themselves over to the influence of that same spirit. Mr Harper replied to the objections taken by the previous speaker, and expressed his deep regret that Mr Rolleston had been so indiscreet as to express so strong an opinion as he had done on [a matter altogether outside the question at issue. He did not believe that a single member who had taken part in the debate was influenced by selfish or personal motives in their advocacy of the line. The debate was interrupted by the • 5.30 adjournment.