146

18. You will observe that the powers of legislation conferred upon the Council are subject to the limitation that no bye-law made by them shall be repugnant to any law or Ordinance of the General legislature, or of the Legislature of the Province. As some misapprehension may possibly exist as to the precise meaning of these words, I think it right to state that, as used in the enclosed Charter, they mean no more than this—that although the power of legislating on certain subjects has been given to the Municipal Council, yet that to such Council the exclusive power of legislating on those subjects has not been given, and that in ease of, or rather to avoid, a conflict of laws, the authority of the superior legislative body must prevail: for example, the Council of the Borough will have the power of making bye-laws for establishing and maintaining schools; if the General Legislature of New Zealand should at some future time enact a law that in every district of the Colony a public school should be established, it would not be competent for the Council of the Borough afterwards to enact by a bye-law that the Borough of Auckland should be exempt from the operation of such a law; or that no public school should be established in the district, because such a bye-law would be “repugnant” to a law of the General Legislature, and consequently, under the provisions of the Charter, such bye-law would for that reason be null and void.

19. According to the terms of the Royal Instructions, no bye-law is to take effect until it shall have been approved by the Governor-in-Chief; but the frequent unavoidable absence of the Governor-in-Chief, and the difficulty of communication between the different parts of the Colony would, if this rule were enforced, often necessitate a lengthened delay before a bye-law could come into operation. To obviate this inconvenience, the Charter provides, for the purpose of carrying its provisions into effect, that the term “Governor-in-Chief” shall be taken to include the Governor and Lieutenant-Governor of the Province.

20. In order that full effect may at the earliest practicable period be given to the intentions with which the enclosed Charter was drawn, I have to direct that, in compliance with the terms of the Ordinance herewith transmitted, the Colonial Treasurer should be instructed to keep a separate account, showing the proportion of the land fund raised within the Borough to which the Corporation may be entitled; and the amount which may be so due upon the first day of every month, must be, upon demand, paid over to the Treasurer of the Corporation. The only exception to this rule will be in the case of the land recovered from the sea by the wharf at Auckland; it will in that instance be necessary to repay, from the first proceeds of the sale of that land, the sums which have been advanced for the erection of the wharf. When this debt shall have been liquidated, the proceeds which will be realised from the sale of the remaining portion of this land will, of course, be treated as the ordinary land fund, and one-third of the gross proceeds of such sales will be paid over to the Corporation. It is only upon this understanding that it is in my power to sanction the issue of the advances which are necessary for the completion of the wharf.

21. It being probable that not only in the town of Auckland, but in other parts of the Borough also, considerable portions of land can be recovered from the sea at a comparatively trifling cost, which can then be disposed of to considerable advantage, it will be desirable, whenever it is practicable—as the Government is itself so largely interested in the sale of public lands within the Borough—that it should make advances to the Corporation for the purpose of reclaiming such lands from the sea, upon the above stated condition of such advances being repaid from the first proceeds of the sale of any lands which may have been so reclaimed.

22. The sums named in the margin having also been voted by the Legislature, for the year 1852, for the making and repair of public roads in the vicinity of Auckland, and for the support of other Institutions which are to be handed over to the Corporation, it will be proper until any difference and further appropriation of the revenue may have been made by the Provincial Council, that the amounts due each quarter from the Colonial revenue for these purposes should be paid over to the Corporation, upon their undertaking to appropriate them to the purposes for which they were voted. And I cannot but hope that the Provincial Council, when it assembles, will, upon account of the important duties devolved upon the Corporation, and its great weight in the Province, both as regards population and amount of property, continue to provide from the revenue such sums as may be really requisite to enable the Corporation efficiently to support the works and institutions for which the above mentioned amounts have been voted.

23. Having thus stated the various objects to meet which the enclosed Charter was drawn, I should now point out that the advantages to be derived by the inhabitants of the Borough from the powers of self-government conferred upon them, will in no slight degree be influenced by the degree of active interest which they may individually take in the result of the first election. For the first Council will, in the appointment of Corporate officers, in fixing the nature and amount of their remuneration, in the enactment of the first code of bye laws, and in other similar respects, both directly and indirectly enjoy much greater practical power, during their term of office, than any succeeding Council; and the conduct and mode of proceeding of the first Council will probably give a tone to, and stamp for years to come, the character of the governing body of the Borough; and exert a considerable influence upon their proceedings.

24. When, therefore, it is borne in mind what extensive powers are to be confided to