PROVINCIAL COUNCIL.

Wellington Independent, Volume XV, Issue 1396, 13 January 1860, Page 3

PROVINCIAL COUNCIL.

Wednesday, 9th Dkoembeb, 1859. The Council met pursuant to adjournment. Present — MessM. Allen, Barry, Bowler, Brandon, Carpenter, Carter, Fitzhcrbert, Fox, Hunter, King, McLaggan, Phillips, Schultze, Toomath, Varnham, Waken" eld, Warburton, and Woodward. The Speaker took the Chair at five o'clock. The minutes of last meeting were read and confirmed. NOTICE OF MOTION. Mit. Wakefield, gave notice that on the next sitting day he should move: — That an a Idr'ess be presented to the Superintendent, informing him that since the Municipal Corporation Bill was passed, a Bill has been introduced into this Council for confirming a grant, alleged to have been promised by the Superintendent, of a portion of the Harbor Reserves to the Odd Fellow's Society ; and that as it is possible that that Bill has been brought in the- form of a Private Bill, without complying with the Standing Orders relating thereto, the Superintendent be requested to send back the Municipal Corporation Bill to the Couucil for suoh amendment as may except the land in question from being vested in the proposed Corporation, and thus laave the land open to be dealt with more formally in the ensuing Session."

The House then proceeded to the Orders 0/ the Day. ' ODD FELLOW'S HAtT>. The Speaker expressed a doubt whethev the above Bill was not to be treated as a private Bill, and if so the Standing Orders had not been complied with, as it should be accompanied by a petition. r The Provincial Solicitor, thought whatever objections could he raised thatitnow wastoo I late to entertain them, and moreorer, the Municipal Corportaion was identical in its nature as the Bill under consideration, and that had been allowed to pass unquestioned. Mr. Wakepield said a few words regarding an interview he had had with the Building' Committee of the Odd Fellows, and his regret that they would not act oh certain suggestions "that he" (Mr. W.) t'irew out, and he urged oh the hon. gentleman opposite the advisability of allowing the Bill to lapse and not insist in pushing it through at the fag end of the session, whereas it might hereafter receive every attention, besides which the forms of the" House should not be trifbd with. The Provincial Secretary congratulated Mi". Wakefield, that the great regard he had for popularity had induced such a change in the manner and tone of his opposition. The Odd Fellows doubtless had given Mr. 'Wakefield a cool reception, as was natural after the antaganism he had displayed towards this measure. The Odd Fellows need not much fear eventually of securing 1 a piece of land, without any restrict . tions being imposed upon them, aji das; it washe could not see what reasonable objections there could be to granting them a bit of land reclaim- , ed at their own expense, and for the erection of a hall there on at their owmxeost. It was not less their money because partly- raised by dona-- - .tioiiM. " '. ■ •• — After a few words from Messrs. 'Allen and Toomath in opposition to the measure. Mb Fox was sorry to see this attempt to . burke;ihiis measure tie quite agreed with his colleague Mr. Brandon, that the Municipal Corporation was quite as much to all intents and jpftrfjoses a privalt Bill as this was, as ac Cording to the definition of the term, a private Bill was one that was for the par.icular benefit' of certain person or persons, and was not the Municipal Corporation Bill one that sought to certain place and power for parties who wWKall their strategy had not been nble by that to secure a seat in the Executive P The conditions alluded to by Mr. Wakefield, he thought were extremely hard, after the Odd Fellows had reclaimed land— erected a building thereon with their owu money— for it was their own money' however, members opposite might deny the fact —there might be a different conception entertained as to .the words ineum afidfeum, as indeed at times he was sorry to say was the case ; for in- . stance, a party holding money .in ttfust, might refuse when demanded to yield up that trust money, and when legal proceedings are had resort to, lie might shelter himselfunder the Statue of Limitations ; but this was not the case with the Odd Fellows, the money was their own, and they might spend it as they pleased. After a few other remarks relative to the Corporation Bill, Mr. Fox contended that inasmuch that it was notorious, how unpopular that little Corporation Bill was to the community at large, the inserting a clause therein to secure this' land to the Odd Fellows, was a miserable transparent dodge to secure popularity with an important and influential body. ' » Mr. Cartbb stated that his instructions had been that if any schedule of prices was insisted on by the Council, he was to allow the measure t-j lapse. He would remiud Mr. Toomath that in the deputation from the Odd Fellows that waited on the Superintendent, that in the prospectus then laid before His Honor, nothing, had been said about prices. The funds cf that Society were applied to the benefifof tbeir'siok. . and needy members, 'and therefore they were carefully husbanded andjudiciously distributed — and bearing this in mind he was quite sure wberc such great competition existed as in Wellington — they never would be so impolitic as to fix a high scale of charges. He had no doubt but that ultimately they wonld be enabled to purchase the fee simple of the land, which was not worth more than from £150. t0 £200. The. building itself would be a great and additional ornament to a town so destitute of public buildings as Wellington. He would detain the house no longer, but would suffer the Bill to lapse. ESTIMATES FOR 1860., , The house then went into ' Committee oif Supply on the above,, .when the items under Executive, Legislative, Audit, Surrey, Immi. gration, and Roads department were postponed other items were voted for three months only,; and the subsidy to the Wonga increased from £150 to £250. During committee some personal and angry altercations took place, but totally devoid of any public interest. The house then adjourned at a late hour to Friday, the 16th instant. Fbiday, 16th December, 1859. Council met pursuant to adjournment. . Present — Fourteen members. The Speaker took the Chair at five o'clock. The minutes of last meeting; were read and confirmed. * '• ' . A Message, No. 1 1, from bis Honor the Superintendent withholding his consent pn the t behalf ef the Governor, to the Municipal Cor- ' poration Bill, and referring to a certain Memorial he had received signed b/%12 electors against the measure; this memorial was laid on the table by the Pio*. Secretary, and on the motion of Mr. Wakeb'eld (after these' documents had been read,)they were ordered to b# printed Notices of motion were given by Messrs. Hun terand Fitzherbert. Mr. Wakefield, after some slight discussion, obtaiued leave fio withdraw his motion for an address to his Honor the Superintendent, relative to the Municipal Corporation Bill and the Odd Fellows seeing the Corporation Bill, bad been refused assent to. Mr. Wakefield then moved for an address to the Governor, praying that His' Excellency would be ple-aed;. to: instruct' the ■ Attorney-General to vindicate 'the law by instiv tuting proceedings t> recover to the Treasury of this Piovince the sum of £3350 13s. 5d 4 V which had been spent without appropriation by that Council. A long debute ensued, in the course of which Mr. Fox stigmatised the motion as a bit of colonial bounce, and severely censuring the conduct of the Attorney-Geaeral in a previous matter, in which a certain JP.ef this Province bad been dismissed from the Commission without having any enquiry instituted as to the merits of his ease, although 'he dared Mr. Whitaker to make that enquiry, and that in that transaction, the conduct of the : Attorney- General did not appear taj him (Mr. Fox) in the most favourable ltgbtr "'"Mr.'Fox. . also went on to allude to oerfain "statements which had been made with regard to Captain Kreeft of the Marckiofiess and the Superiuteir dent, , while conducting the • Mail Serviceable* tween here and Melbourne* and made fefe'reiuce to two letters receiv d by his .Honor from that gentleman, which eettainly refuted the state-

ments alluded to. Being private letters, he could not lay them on the table of the. house, but offered them for inspection to any member. Eventually Mr. Wakefield's motion was agreed to, and after some minor business, the house adjourned to Tuesday, the 20th instant. This ends our ieport of the Council proceedings, having given already a summary of the thiee remaining days. We only hope that the result of future provincial legislation may be of more interest to our readers, and of greater benefit to all than has the last Sitting of the Provincial Council.