D.—lo

6

Clearly, if it were permitted, by the payment of a small sum, to induce the General Government to contribute the major portion of the cost of the passages of a number of immigrants in excess of the number that otherwise would be assigned to Canterbury, an injustice would be done to the rest of the Colony. Therefore, the Government have come to the conclusion that they can only concur and sanction any expenditure on the part of Canterbury for immigration in one of two ways. Ist. As indicated in your letter, by such amount of money assistance as the Province may desire to render through its agents at home, to secure for Canterbury the number of immigrants within the year, not exceeding the limit determined on by the General Government. 2nd. If the Province desired a larger number of immigrants than the General Government considered it fair to the rest of the Colony to bring to Canterbury at the cost of the Colony, the Government could only concur in the number being increased by .the Province paying the total cost of such increase. From various causes, which it is not necessary here to refer to, there has been difficulty in speedily procuring the required number of immigrants, and very large discretion has been given to the AgentGeneral, with the view of overcoming this difficulty. It is possible that the representative of the Province in Great Britain might, with funds at his command, be able to judiciously give assistance to immigrants otherwise desirable, but who may be unable to make the contribution to the cost of passages, or the provision for outfit, &c, required by the regulations under which the emigration business is for the time being conducted by the Agent-General. In regard to nominated immigrants, two questions have been raised —namely, whether the Government would grant free passages to nominated immigrants, or whether they would do so on the condition of the Provincial Government paying the deposit ordinarily charged to nominators? The Government gave very careful consideration to the recommendations of the Provincial Council that free passages should be given to nominated immigrants, and have come to the determination that it is not expedient to make any alteration in the present regulations for nominated immigration in the direction of reducing the contribution to the cost of passages required from the nominator. The object of the system of nomination is to enable persons resident and established in the Colony to bring out their relatives or friends upon easy terms. It is true that the persons nominated are not invariably of the class of immigrants best suited to the wants of the Colony, but the counterbalancing advantages of the system as at present established are great, and the Government desire to give it every reasonable encouragement. The rule with regard to nomination has been occasionally relaxed, at the discretion of Immigration Officers, to the extent of permitting persons resident who required servants or artisans of a particular class to designate them by vocation, leaving the task of selection to friends in Great Britain, or to the A gent-General. Such cases were exceptional. The general unfairness and possible abuse of such a privilege, if it were unrestricted, need not be insisted on. There remains to be considered the proposal to allow the Government of Canterbury to pay the deposit. To do so would be open to the objection that it would virtually infringe on the two conditions under which, as already stated, the Government consider it would alone be right to allow the Province of Canterbury to contribute towards immigration. It would not be a payment to assist in procuring the number of immigrants allotted to Canterbury, nor would it be a payment in full for extra immigrants desired. It would, on the contrary, be a very small payment in proportion to the cost it would entail on the Colony. I regret to have to inform you that the Government therefore cannot concur in the Provincial Government, directly or indirectly, paying the deposits for nominated immigrants. You will permit me, in conclusion, to thank you for your exertions on the subject, and to express the hope that the money you expend in the United Kingdom will assist in securing for the Province immigrants suitable to its wants. The Government recognize that the interest which the Government of Canterbury manifests in immigration proves their sympathy with tho policy of colonization which it is the anxious desire of the General Government to give effect to, with a proper recognition of the claims of all parts of the Colony. I have, &c, Messrs. AY. Kennaway and J. Beswick, Daniel Pollen. Members of the Executive Council of Canterbury.

No. 21. His Honor AY. Bolleston to the Hon. the Colonial Secretary. Christchurch, 10th July, 1873. Re immigrants, thanks for yesterday's telegram. Executive have met to-day; awaiting your reply, I have summoned them again for to-morrow. Have just travelled through the south of the Province, where crops and settlements will be seriously retarded unless there is good hope of hands for next harvest. The next mail is the last which will avail, and due notice will be required of intended return. The Hon. tho Colonial Secretary, Wellington. W. Bolleston. By Authority : Geobge Didsbuet, Government Printer, Wellington. [Price 6d.]