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THE COMING SESSION.
I t h a s been definitely decided th a t
P a rlia m e n t ab all m eot fo r th e desp
atch of business o n the first Toesday
in n ext m onth, and M inisters no
donbt are bneily preparin g th e ir prog
ram m e fo r th e consideration of
m em bers. B n t w hatever th e ir in ten ­
tions are i t is to be sincerely hoped*
th a t they w ill a tte m p t nothing w hioh
ib n o t req u ired , and w hich m ay h e
regarded os p u rely experim ental.
T here a re tw o m easures w hich dem
an d first place a fte r the finances—
one is in re g a rd to electoral reform
end th e oth er centralisation of police.
If m em bers w ill devote th e ir a tte n ­
tio n to th e w o rk in hand an d avoid
all sem blance of p a rty w arfare and
bitterness th ey w ill find th a t to
pass necessary rem edial legislation
w ill occupy all th e ir best energies,
leaving no tim e fo r useless
bickerings a n d tb « airio g of
fads or fancied grievances. M inister*,
if thoy ore to continue to deserve the
confidence of th e people, should place
th e E lectoral R egistration R ill as the
very first to be disposed of, and every
effort should be p u t fo rth to secare
its passage, in o rd e r th at all w ho are
n o t a t p resent on th e roll shall have
th e m eans of d oing so p rio r to the
vote being taken on the Federation
[nestion I t w ill b e m anifestly nna
ir if. a v erd ict should bo obtained
on this m om entous m atter w ith half
th e male population, to say nothing
of tbe female p ortion thereof, being
unable to record th eir opinion. An
actual m inority under existing conditions
can aDBolptely biod tbe
m ajority— to a n undertak in g which
m ay be rep u g n an t to m ost of tyem ,
and th a t too w ithout being able to
m ake th e ir infiuence fejt. I f
M inisters aro so assured of w hat tbe
decision will be then they can
have no reason fo r n ot facilitating the
takin g of a com plete vote ot the
people on th e federal question. If
th ey am honest believers in th e dootrin
e th ey have so o ften enunciated of
notaxation w ith o u t representation they
will not sh u t out thousands from recording
tb e ir votes od a su b ject which
will vitally affect, for good or ill,
eyery individual At present living and
th e nnborn generation. T he A tto e n e t-
G e n e ra l has prom ised to am end th e
Electoral A ct in regard to re g istra ­
tion. L e t h im keep it in the sp irit
a s well a s Id w ord by losing bo tim e
a fte r th e opening of P arliam en t to
p ash tb e little B ill thro u g h both
C ham bers, and although th e tim e for
registration w ill be sh o rt before the
tak in g of th e poll on F ederation, y e t
th e re can b e m ade sufficient fo r
bondceos to *beir nam es on
th e roll a n d ta& s pfijrt in coming
to fi decision which svtJJ inevitably
cause g re a t feeling, aod if
Federation is resolved upon, there is
little d o n b t g re a t h eartburnings and
todigpatioo, w hich will be intensified
if any la rg e num ber, a s w ill be tb e
case unless to© ^m ending B ill is
passed in tim e, have p,o opportunity
of vo ting a g a in s t it. Gefitr^lisaUon
of th e police cannot be p u t off any
longer, a n d m onthly th ere is evidence
reBented of tbe utter uselessness of
Saving a defending force under’ two
heeds. Whatever arguments are
brought forward against having Iho
police of the colony under one head
arc $bo** which &Te not appropriate
to the present djay. Those who nub
them are living in fiubygpoe »g*. and
have failed to keep abretot o f the
times. The tnunicipslitiea^od town
boards, if they attend to the dsties
whioh are imposed upon theD1i
quite enough to do without haring
the worry of -toe management
of the police forco. No sound
and-valid argument has jo t been
pnt forth against centralisation of
the poll** .; w bat have been put ftjrth
have either fa$n b&ld and nnBnbstaSitiated
assertions or bear erihence qf
the great objection to the relaxing of
any power some country tpagnat'df1
now jiCW H' Even in the oase of jtbe
two cities tkdT* is nothing advanced
of material wmgbf. ASfi how -utterly
indifferent the people are itesiW lfti
fs shown by to e want of enthusiasm
which characterised toe regent
in g a t Boos L ik e th e ta ilo rs of
T ooley filreot, th e doxen gentlem en
w ho w ere p resen t, a n d w h o .jb y tb e
***' -totfcpftod in
T p iin g s ,
sprig- , a
Lpetffhs t h i y comd
> tlii& e o p ^ B l^ t& -
a h a u b e m ^ in tr a lisation.”
T h is stan d ard , eb soon as it
flattered b u t o n th e h rse z e becam e th e
subjeot of R idicule, to . th o se w ho
paused to lo o k a t it, h o t j h o jh a jo rity
passed i t by in contom ptnous silence.
jFheso tw o m easures, co a p le d ^ rith the
S uprem o C o u rt B ill, axe of p tim ary
im portance, a n d should b e d e a lt with
a t th e e a rlie st possible m o m ent, -As
to t o e judicially, i t isJto e ^ b d u n d c n
d u ty to m ak e ^it a s a s a t r o t ^ vas.possible,
an d a t to e n a m e to m e t o m ak e
one o r tw o alteratio n s w hioh the
g ro w th of th e Isla n d re n d e rs necesa
ry . F o r exam ple it' w ould h o t be
amisB -if tb e prom ise, S t w h a t was
tak en a n d .understood o s sn ch , made
in 1886, th a t a ^ a d g e should resid e iu
o e n orth sh o u ld be im plem ented, and
lso th a t a ju d g e o f th e Suprem e
C o u rt should a t least m ake fo u r visits
to th e W est C o ast in £ a o h twelve
m onths. T h e m eans o f comm
unication a re b y no . msatiB
in d iffe re n t; and a re likely w ithin a
v e ry few years to b e still b e tte r ; tbe
a rg e population a n d t h e . grow ing
im portance of th e W est C oast dem
and th a t th e facilities of th e la w
sh all bo b ro u g h t w ith in th e reach of
every individual, w hich is fa r from
being th e case so w . T h e expense
re c lu d e an y b u t .the w ealthy from
seeking th e p rotection of th e higher
C ourt. I n crim in al oases, too, th e
c o untry is p u t to a very g re a t cost,
■sometimes fo r a com paratively triflin
g affair. T he o ld bogey o f tbe F u ll
C o u rt has fio force w hatever, as th ere
is n o th in g to p rev en t tb e sittin g
o f th e F u ll C o u rt d a rin g T erm
tim e and the judges going on
c irc u it in th e ir respective districts.
A s well sa y th a t tb e School Inspectors,
can n o t do (their d u ty , and occasionally
com e to to e C a p ita l-e s to a tte m p t'to
p rove th a t th e Judges w ould be
u nable to d o so. .M em bers of P a rlia ­
m e n t have these th ree m easures d e­
m anding th e ir m ost careful consideration^
“a n d w iih th e finances^ Bnd
m inor m a tte rs should have sufficient
to keep th e m em ployed fo r a while,
a o d th a t to o w ith o u t m uch talk in g to
th e g allery. O ae y ear of th e p resen t
P arliam en t w as practically w asted,
le t m em ber* do th e ir duty , cu rb th eir
flow of eloqaence, and w ork only.
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