Auckland Provincial Government Gazette.

235

This right is essential to the inhabitants of this Province, for they have suffered great financial wrongs which they can only hope to get fairly adjusted by making terms with the General Assembly before assenting to their own abolition, if they do assent to that, upon a full consideration of the whole question.

I, with my advisers, and many of the most able and distinguished men of this Province, are satisfied that, in law, the General Assembly has no lawful or constitutional right or power, even if there is a small majority in favour of the present Colonial Ministry, counting the members of all parts of New Zealand, to carry out the high-handed measures in regard to the Province which are contemplated.

The very great majority of the members returned by the inhabitants of this Province to the General Assembly are opposed to its Executive Government and Representative Legislature being abolished, until an appeal is made to its constituencies. The same fact holds good in the great Province of Otago.

The population of the Province of Auckland is about one-fourth of the population of all New Zealand; that of Otago is about one-third of the whole population of the Colony. The number of the inhabitants of these two Provinces thus exceed one-half of the whole population of New Zealand.

For the reasons I have stated to Your Lordship, it is my intention, as Superintendent of the Province of Auckland, if the present Government of New Zealand persevere in the course they have entered upon, to appeal to the Courts of this country, to ascertain if the General Assembly, constituted as it is, and deriving its existence and its powers, as the Provincial Legislatures also do, from an Act of the Imperial Parliament, can, under that Act, lawfully exercise the power of abolishing the Provincial Executives and Legislatures without the consent of such Legislatures having been previously obtained.

Her Majesty’s loyal and dutiful subjects here conceive that they are doing no wrong in thus resorting to the Queen’s Judges and Courts in this country, to protect, if possible, rights which they highly value, and which are conferred upon them by an Act of the Imperial Parliament. They are unwilling to abandon these rights until the Courts have decided the legal questions I have alluded to, because they believe such rights cannot be lawfully taken from them without their own consent; and they are entirely satisfied that this cannot be constitutionally done.

Upon the 3rd instant, to my great regret, I heard that there was a probability of our not being allowed to pursue the peaceful and proper course we proposed to adopt. I heard that in two parts of the Colony reports had been circulated, that Her Majesty’s seamen and marines are to be used to put down, by armed force, all opposition to the Ministry; and I find it stated in a local newspaper of this morning—“That within the last few weeks the people of Auckland have been warned by the supporters of the Ministry in Auckland that opposition to the Ministry might involve the city being cannonaded by the men-of-war in the harbour.”

I am so entirely satisfied of the honour and good faith of the paper from which I quote, that I feel sure there are substantial grounds for the statement it contains.

Such allegations of the intentions of the Imperial Authorities, circulated as they are here, do much harm. The people are so loyal, that no resistance would be made to any force clothed in the British uniform. The mere apprehension of such events damps their energies in defence of rights which they value; and I earnestly request Your Lordship, in a spirit of justice and fair play which I am confident animates you, to send a telegraphic message to the Governor, which will dispel all apprehension of Her Majesty’s forces being used for such a purpose. This message will reach New Zealand during the approaching Session of the General Assembly, and will satisfy the public mind in this Province that its inhabitants will be fairly left to protect their rights by all lawful and constitutional means.

In compliance with the instructions of Your Lordship’s Department, I transmit this letter through the Governor.

I have the honour to be,

My Lord,
Your Lordship’s most obedient humble servant,

The Right Honourable
The Earl of Carnarvon,
Colonial Office, Downing Street,
London.

G. Grey.

Government House,
Auckland, 5th June, 1876.

SIR,—

I have to acknowledge the receipt of your Honor’s letter of this day’s date enclosing one to be forwarded to Lord Carnarvon.

2. As your Honor’s letter is one which could not of course be forwarded without comment from me, and it was not received till after my despatch-bag was closed, and forwarded to the Post Office, I regret that I am unable to forward it by this mail, but will do so by the next.

3. As, however, your Honor states that you have forwarded a copy direct to Lord Carnarvon, this will not cause any delay in the receipt of the information you wish to convey.

I have the honor to be,
Sir,
Your most obedient servant,

NORMANBY.

To His Honor
The Superintendent of Auckland.

PUBLIC NOTIFICATION.

Superintendent’s Office,
Auckland, 9th June, 1876.

THE following correspondence is published by the direction of His Honour the Superintendent.

Reader Wood,
Provincial Secretary.

Auckland, 20th May, 1876.

Sir D. McLean,
Chief Land Purchase Commissioner,
Waikato.

In a letter from Mr H. Alley, published in this morning’s New Zealand Herald, the following statement is made:—

“The Hungahunga and other blocks were to come on for hearing after I left. Mr William Nicholl received money to assist with his influence to put some blocks through. I know for a fact he received £150 from a Native Land Commissioner to assist to put through the Hungahunga block.”

I request, as Superintendent of this Province, that I may be informed if it is true that Mr William Nicholl received £150, or any sum of money, from a Native Land Commissioner to assist to put the Hungahunga block through, and if so that I may be informed of the name of that Land Purchase Commissioner.

G. Grey.