Government Reform Proposal




113

posed of members nominated by the Crown,
a very general feeling I believe existing, that
the inhabitants of the colony generally would
rather be governed by a Governor and Ex-
ective Council alone, than by a Nominated
Council; until Representative Institutions
are introduced, as they think that they
are to be bound by laws made by their fel-
low colonists who are not Government
Officers; they should themselves choose
what of their fellow colonists should make
the laws which they are to obey. On this
latter point I had clearly no choice but to
adopt the course I did, because Parliament
had already created a Nominated Council for
the whole of New Zealand, the members
of which being composed of Auckland gen-
tlemen, had no knowledge of the require-
ments or wishes of the inhabitants of other
portions of New Zealand, and I was there-
fore, from the necessity of my position,
compelled to govern by a Nominated Coun-
cill of this kind; and I cannot but think that I
have substituted a less objectionable one in
its place, and I have no doubt that it will
shortly be generally admitted that I have
done so—for I know that I, in this respect,
carry with me the feelings of a large number
of most intelligent persons.

The other point—namely, the objections
which exist to the delay I propose in the
introduction of a complete form of Repres-
entative Government into New Zealand,
appears to require more lengthened remarks
from me than I have yet given.

Your Lordship will remember that all my
previous recommendations to Her Majesty’s
Government for the introduction of Repre-
sentative Institutions into New Zealand
have been of a partial kind, being restricted
chiefly to the Southern Province,
which embraces the district immediately
surrounding the town of Wellington and
the Middle Island; and that looking to the
want of native inhabitants in the
Middle Island of New Zealand I have always ex-
pressed great doubts as to the period when
Representative Institutions might safely be
introduced there.

But the state of continued tranquillity
and prosperity which the whole of these
Islands have now for some time enjoyed,
has led me to think that within the rea-
sonable period of time I have stated to your
Lordship it might now be possible to intro-
duce throughout the whole of New Zealand
a Representative Government of the form
which I have recommended, and the great
advantage which would result to the whole of
these Islands from a uniform system of
Government continuing to prevail through-
out their entire extent, is one reason which
makes me think that the plan I have recom-
mended of adoption would be preferable to
any attempt that might be made immedi-
ately to introduce Representative Assem-
blies into the South of New Zealand, con-
fining the Province in which Wellington is
situated to the district immediately round
the town, and leaving the North of the Is-
land under the same form of Government
as now exists, a proceeding which would
undoubtedly defeat the whole of that portion
of my much more extended plan, which
contemplates the carrying out those recom-
endations which Lord John Russell has made,
that New Zealand should be divided into
four Provinces of nearly equal extent, each
master which the legislative and executive
administration of colonisation about to be pursued in re-
ference to this country appear to render
necessary.

Another reason which makes me think
that the introduction of Representative In-
stitutions even into the South of New
Zealand should for the present be delayed,
is, that from causes over which I had no
control, my plans in reference to the com-
pletion of military roads, barracks, and the
amalgamation of the interests of the native
population with those of the European have
not been completed within the period of
time at which I had calculated, and cannot
be so for a further period of three or
perhaps four years.

These plans have up to the present
period been so far successful that I am
enabled to submit to you, completely suc-
cessful.

Any sudden stoppage in them would ren-
der useless all that has been done, and
would certainly entail a greatly increased
military expenditure; upon the present British
besides again arising the progress of the
colony, and throwing it back into the state
of difficulty from which it has emerged.

Measures when these plans are completed,
which will be no future elaborate if this ex-
traordinary military expenditure being ren-
dered necessary, by the Government being re-
quired to undertake offensive or defensive
operations against the natives, and even the
ordinary military expenditure may then be
much reduced by the withdrawal of a con-
siderable portion of the troops now stationed
in the country.

The completion of these plans involves,
however, the necessity of the expenditure
for a short time of the sum which has hith-
erto been received from Parliament in
order that the requisite expenditure may be
defrayed; a considerable reduction in which
expenditure can be made during the years 1850
and subsequent in the outlay to be carried on in each year
subsequent to that date. It is always,
however, difficult to make such reductions
in the expenditure of a colony, particularly
when it is defrayed by the Home Govern-
ment, without creating great discontent.
And this would be, I fear, especially the
case if the legislature of the country were
a representative one, which had been habi-
tuated for several years to see a great
proportion of the Civil expenses of the



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Online Sources for this page:

VUW Te Waharoa PDF New Munster Gazette 1849, No 19





✨ LLM interpretation of page content

🏛️ Proposal for Government Reform in New Zealand (continued from previous page)

🏛️ Governance & Central Administration
Government reform, Legislative Councils, Municipal Corporations, Representative Institutions, Provincial Legislative Councils, General Assembly, House of Representatives