AUCKLAND.

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 4, Issue 218, 22 November 1860, Page 3

AUCKLAND.

CLOSE OF THE GEN EI|AL ApS;J|MBLY [From. the New Zealander

2’he sixth session of the Geyeral. Assembly of New Zealand, was. terminated by prorogation, on Monday .last, at ,2 . o’iijpqk, % -his Excellency 'in person, attended'by a'numerous suite of militaryfund naval officers.. ; The day was a regular ffQjjeen’s day,”— oiie of the most season, _ and the Legislative Council Chßmiibf was graced with the presence of a large number of ladies. The customary salute was fired as his Excellency and suite left Government house, and on arriving at the,;.Assembly IJonse he ; was received by a guard of hopo^r/cortnposed of the 65th,: under .Captj BulkeleyfaM Cafit.^puck. His Excellency lfßviiTg taken his seat oh the Speaker’s chair, the Speaker and members of the house of Representatives were summoned to hear the Speec.l),iwhich4vas as follows: — Honorable Gentlemen of the Legislative Council, and )Genlleipsn of the House of Representatives , ' , ’ X ;'Eh/? .period; offthe; ; gafitbe;> present Parliament having approached its completion, I now release you,from your,.legislative duties. I thankyotr for- the approval .and support which you have given to tjie measures which it has been my duty to adopt for the suppression of the insurrection of, a portion of her Majesty’s Native subjects; at the same time T recognise the earnest artention. you have devoted fo all questions connected with the improvement of our peaceful relations, with the A'ative race, and the generops solicitudewhich you have manifested for their sociara'ivancement. ■' ■ '

_ I trust that, withithe blessing of Providence, we .shall, at no distant time, succeed in suppressing rebellion, and in establishing a solid arid lasting peace on the secure foundation of

law and justice. Gentlemen of the House of Representatives, I thank you for :the supplies which you have so liberally voted for - the public service, and assure you tbat they shall Fe administeredwith a careful regard to economy; : I have much satisfaction in informing you that the Revenue is progressively increasing, and that there-is;;dveryprospect that this in crease will be steadily maintained.

Honorable Gentlemen and Gentlemen, The act for increasing the Representation will )ihs^e'a j jtull and fair expression of the voice of. tjhg . people in the General Assembly.' ' _ ' ■. >1 have assented with pleasure to the useful measures which you have passed oil many other subjects, which cannot/ail to conduce to the welfare of the country. 1 It is my intention immediately to dissolve this Parliament’, and tcF Caliban other without unnecessary delay. s . I declare this Assembly ’to stand prorogued to Monday, the 31st. day of December next. ~ 2’he Governor then shook hands with the lion. Speakers of- both houses, and the'ceremony was at am endi . Th&rsixth session ami the second of .the New Zealand Parliaments were virtually no more.,. ; ■ jWe can-hot! allow-.the late Assembly to pass away; without noticing with-.much gratification the.7graceful - -farewell;.-winch the house of Representatives took oft heir esteemed Speaker, Air Charles Clifford. This .was done in the

shape?of an address, mQV.ejJ £by: Mr.. Stafford (Colonial Secretary) in a very appropriate speech, and seconded by Mr. Fox, whose remarks, as an old friend and associate of Sir Charles Clifford’s, naturally assumed a somewhat warmer, tone.. The reply was worthy of the lion. Speaker, and. it was gratifying to hear him afterwards bear niarked testimony to the very able co-operation, he had received from the Clerk of the 1 " Assembly (Captain Campbell) and' the Assistant Clerk (Mr. Cur, uin), iu the'discharge of tihfe duties "which 1 devolved upon his- office.-* ‘'Hei'liad.alsb to thank Mr. Serjeaut-at-ArmS' (Mr-'.-Mayne) for his attention to himself and all 'jtlie members ; he trusted that gentleman might long Continue to hold his office. t ,-., BUS/NESS OF THE SESSION. . Duration of the Aession,. days'.. ... 99 Number of sitting days ... ... f»9j

THE. MINISTERIAL COMEDY.

On Saturday evening the amendments made by the Legislative Council iu the Native Council bill were taken into consideration by the house.

. In the bill, as passed, by the house, the appointments, as well as the salaries of the members “of the Native Board, were,terminable in seven years. ; The .Legislative Council made the-appointments permanent, but left the salaries terminable. On consideration of the amendment, some desire was manifested to get, rid of the bill altogether, by not agreeing to what the Council had, done. The course taken by the Government wus, remarkable. 7'hey stated their inteutipn, of voting for the bill, but cast, upon it as much dirt as they pould conveniently gather. The impres ion Upon, the house was, that they were bound, by some understanding to maintain the bill, but wished it to be thrown out in spite-of them-, selves.

The main argument used in support of the bill was, that it was a step iu advance, although a short one; that, it the Governor of a portion of his power in native affairs, transferring it to the responsible ministry. The Colonial Treasurer rose and informed the house that they were under a great misapprehension, and damaged the bill as much as lie reasonably could. This of course produced a great revulsion of feeling in the house, and the bill was getting into imminent danger.

But there was a second act to the comedy. It was supposed, by some of those who opposed the bill, that at midnight, bringing on Sunday morning, the Speaker would have ■ to leave the chair. And the Colonial Treasurer was very emphatic in reminding: lion, members, that anyone among them could get rid of the bill by speaking against time. It was the old story of “ Don’t nail that fellow’s ears to the pump,” whereupon they were so nailed incontinently. But Mr. Speaker stated that he could find no aufhoritjryfbr leaving the chair at midnight without a - regular motion for adjournment ; bgt oji thg,j contrary, there -were two or three mstanceslii the house uf Commons having, continued their sittings after midnight. /7nd we believe that lie was right—the commencement of Sunday at twelve o’clock being of comparatively modern date. ,

The end of it was, that Mr. Sewell drafted a resolution, for the purpose of ascertaining how his Excellency understood the* Bill. The debate was subsequently adjo urned until Monday.

To the great surprise of the House, which had been taken aback by the Colonial Treasurer’s description of his Excellency’s opinions, a message came down which was considered as quite satisfactory; and the Bill was accepted without further opposition. —Southern Cross, 6th November.

Holloway's Ointment. —-Blotches, pimples, dry eiuptions, and all irritations of skin, soon 3 pass away before the action of this extraoidinary Ointment, which produces its effects with a 1 rapidity and certainty never experienced in the case of any other medicine in the world. Many J of the ordinary eruptions are caused by sup- ’ pressed perspiration, and as this penetrating unguent at once opens the pores and invigorates the absorbents, it disperses the inflammation by a double process. Any lady who is disfigured by cutaneous diseases may quickly i' remove the blemishes and restore the skin to } its natural state. It requires no skill to use it right, and all that is required is that; it I should be well rubbed into the paits affected. - 8 » VICTORIA. 1 (From our own Correspondent.) , : Melbourne,.26th Oct.-1860. 1 Since the departure of the last mail nothing of importance has transpired in the colony. : As to politics, the Land bill has at length . passed, and the longest and .most fruitless session which has ever disgraced the records of ■ our Victorian Parliament is at an end. Although, the house has sat nearly,a year, nothing has been done beyond tlieqmssage of the Land, bill (a strange medley, after all), and amea- • sure affording greater facilities for divorce, partly based on the English act. but goin<* beyond it in many points, in consequence of whielu.it has been reserved for her Majesty’s assent. One of the clauses of this act provides, that if a husband is absent from his wife four years she shall be entitled to a divorce. lam quite surprised that the clergy

men of this colony have allowed such a bill to pass so quietly. They surely cannot conscientiously marry individuals thus divorced, if they attend to the Scripture rule on the subject. Numbers of useful measures have been rejected, and others have lapsed. In short, the whole extent of the session is strewn with the lifeless carcases of dead bills, many of which have sunk by the ;\vay from sheer exhaustion and the waut of energy iff their promoters. The bill for the abolition of State AU to Religion, after triumphantly passing the lower house, failed in securing the absolute majority in the upper required by the Constitution act; and a measure for the reform of the law of 72eal Property, nf;er passing the

Ujfper lu use, -was strangled immediately by its quasi friends in,,’.the flower. -N Several recent elections for vacancies iii tlie lower house-hero-show the great apathy which exists in political affairs. Two of the largest constituencies out of Melbourne have, during the last week, re-

turned two individuals notoriously, unfit for such honours. The- first, Castlemaine, has returned an uncertificated bankrupt hairdresser, whose certificate was .absolutely refused not three months ago by the Commissioner of Ins lvent Estates ;; and the other, Geelong,, has equally disgraced itself by returning to Parliament a l<nv red ribbon revolutionist —one o£ those ridiculous mortals who -can speak-on n<* subject without degenerating iuto hombastieul nonsense . l‘“ : , . . ,

The return of such men to parliament ans--gurs ill for the future. history of the colony.. Manhood suffrage, hitherto,.:has- proved failure here, and. many, of. its formerly:, most zealous advocates are- uow. frankly - admitting the fact. .

In- commercial affairs there, is,-if anything, a slight improvement, as 1 mentioned,in my last,, but it will be some time; before the colonyrecovers its wonted elasticity, Those individuals who, for the last fi\hhyeaihvlm-\:e been-, preaching a Laud hill as the grand panacea., for all the disorders of the state, will now -have an opportunity of exhibiting the practical'' effects of the cure. In my opinion,, it will, have little; if any effect, and I .must confess I, am much more disposed than formerly to give a fair system of protective duties a trial. /Yee trade may, and dots, answer' well in chi' countries rich as England ; but in a young country,, with all the disadvantages attendant upon erecting buildings, importing machinery,, and starting remunerative branches of industry, something is necessary to protect home manufactured goods for a time. For the next 'fiveyears I think protection iirght be safely introduced, and after that I would have free trade to the fullest extent. A proper system of assisted or free immigration is another great desideratum, and now that the lands a - o thrown open it is absolutely necessary to induce immigrants to come out and settle upon them.

A course of lectures has just been concluded, in our Mechanics’ Institute, in; favour of; the Denominational system of education over. the. National, but only three- denominations were, represented—the Episcopalian, the Presbyterian, and one solitary isolated Independent; who disagrees with his brethren oh tins, point mTthegreat ; of the Independents, out |here preferring a national, of instruction for the young. It -may, and ifc must,' be borne in mind, that a very largo proportion of the laity in both these bodies aroin favour of -the National system. . . It Is be--yond question, that.the denominational system has done great mischief: iir-this colony, in stirring’ up sectarian strife and animosity, and thereby damaging.the tiue interests of education. A large majority of the members of the egislature are'in -favour of- the National sys-- v tem, so that this agitation will.have iio effect..

l Dr. Wills, of Bal’aarat. In* received a letter - from his son, who is third in command of the. , Exploring. .Expedition. The .writer states. I that-the Exploration party have arrived on the l Lower Darling river, and that weather and , everything else has turned out most favourably. 'The writer expresses a hope, that they will very soon be on the other side of the , continent. —Melbourne Herald , 26th Oct. i The testimonial to Garibaldi lias progressed ■ favourably; no less a sum than from <£3oo to i ,£4OO having been subscribed. It is proposed i to present the Henyof Palermo with a sword. ■ —ld. ■ J The volunteer movement iti still, progressing, the colony being able to boast now of 5000 volunteers, the most of whom are well trained !and fit for active service: ' The coast defences are approaching completion.— ld. ■ ' ; J - The probability of the AIL England'Eleven i paying a visit, to Australia appears' to be on the increase. A meeting of • tbe committee was held yesterday—at which, we understand that, letters were read from the Governors of the adjoining colonies, and ' the secretaries of the various country cricket clubs, all of whom expressed themselves favourable to the move-, ment.— ld. Extract, from letter dated, “ Kiandra, 6th October, 1860. I hope you have given up all thought of coming to this goldfield, for

’ there'is nothing but starvation staring every one in the'face,'and there arc hundreds walking about with nothing to do. I have been > here ten days walking about the diggings, and lean see of no way of making.a pound, but on 'the other hand pounds go faster than oiie is able to account for them. '/Elour is Is a. lb., beef Bd, and everything else in proportion. I have been out two days With a- patty prospecting, aiid all that, we got was only tho colour of gold. You may find gold almost everywhere, but not to pay. '1 he weather is very' severe and the rivers are all flooded, so that the diggers are unable to work. : Many are rooting the ground over for a miserable subsistence, and they look like earthworms, 'covered with clay from head to foot. It is, indeed, the most miserable place tl at ever I put my foot in. It is pot tbe gold that is tbund'here that is supporting the people, but the money that is brought into the place. If I knew as much before 1 left Sydney as I do now I should .never have come to the siiowy river, and there are hundreds here that say ■he same.”- Id. The Taranaki Relief Fund—The officers,- non commissioned officers, and ...men (mounted and foot) of the police force, iii the Geelong district, have contributed the suin of .£34 17s. towards the fund for the relief of the sufferers by the Maori rebellion, in AY\y Zealand.— Cedong Advertr *r- . ■

Number of Select Committees appointed . Private Bills initiated .V. ... ... 11 Assented to ... ... ..... ... 7 Lapsed or withdrawn ■ ... „ 4 Public Bills initiated .... ... 59Assented to .... .... ... ... 36 Money.Bills ... . N . ... 4 Reserved (Native Council) ... ... 1 Lapsedqr Negatived in Council ... : 6 Ditto. ditto House ... ... 11 Private... .... ... ... . ... 11