306

about to take such a step; nor did he, after
arriving at the Seat of Government, even
adopt the formality of intimating to me what
had been done. I regret the absence, on the
present occasion, of that official courtesy which
in a circular from the General Government, I
was requested to encourage, and had attempted
to promote, between the officers of the two
Governments.

On the receipt of the communication above
referred to, the Commissioner of Crown Lands
tendered his resignation, which I conditionally
accepted, under the provisions of the Executive
Council Ordinance. On the recommendation
of the remaining members, I lost no time
in applying to a gentleman who, I thought,
would probably join the Government; but he
declined, being unwilling to join alone, and
he tendered me the names of three gentlemen,
who, with himself, were prepared to unite in
an Executive Council. It appeared to me that
I could not, consistently with my duty to you,
and the constituency who elected me, accept of
their services. I therefore referred back to
the Executive, who endeavoured to complete
their number by the addition of a country
member, whose engagements, unfortunately,
did not admit of a residence in town. In the
meantime the gentleman who proposed the re-
construction of the Government, on learning
from me that other suggestions were under
consideration, withdrew his proposal.

Possessing co-extensive Executive powers,
under the Executive Council Ordinance, with
that portion of your body which represents
you, and having also concurrent legislative
powers under the Constitution Act with your-
selves, I deemed it advisable to test if there
done, before accepting the services of certain
gentlemen whose presence in the Executive
Council Chamber I cannot regard at the pre-
sent moment, as in harmony with the interests
of the Province. I have no alternative but to
speak freely and frankly. Of the other gentle-
men whose names have been submitted by Mr.
Dick, as members of the Executive Council,
you are aware that there is a suit pending
against one of them for the recovery of a
certain sum of money paid on his receipt from
the Provincial Treasury without any value
having been received. Another, who was
lately removed from the office of Provincial
Treasurer, was proposed to me as Provincial
Solicitor, and would, had the arrangements
been carried out, have had to sue his colleague;
and moreover, if the threatened action against
the Government for the recovery of monies in-
formally paid by him in the case of the ship
"Gala," when in charge of the Treasury de-
partment, were persevered in, he would be
both prosecutor and principal witness; and
further, if the action was decided against the
Government he would have had to recover the
amount from himself and his security. The
third gentleman is a material witness in the
same case. This, Gentlemen, in connection
with another cause which I will shortly men-
tion, is the reason that induced me on the pre-
sent occasion to exercise my constitutional
privilege of calling you together at such times
and places as I may think necessary.

You are aware how readily, at the first ses-
sion of the Provincial Council after taking
office, I initiated a measure for the fuller
development of Responsible Government,
even though it curtailed my own power; the
spirit that then actuated me would, had I deemed
it necessary, have induced me to encourage
the extension of the same principle, but a
sense of duty to the people that elected me
obliged me to pause before handing over the
Executive powers to a number of gentlemen
who, as a whole, do not possess my confidence.
For the furtherance of the public interests, I
would waive all personal considerations; but
you will see the expediency of my being aided
by an Executive who, if not agreeing with me in
the broader political questions, are at least free
to advise me in the charge of the public reve-
nues. The position of the Government at the
present moment is doubtless one of difficulty,
and may, if not amended, have a tendency to
damage the character of Provincial institu-
tions; but I have every hope that in meeting
together you will be able by mutual conces-
sion to form such an Executive Council as may
assist me in carrying on the Government until
such time as the interests of the public will
again admit of an appeal to the people. Failing
this, there is a solution of the difficulty,
which was proposed and rejected by you at
the last session, and which may be renewed on
the present occasion—a dissolution of the
Provincial Council by His Excellency the
Governor, on the authority of the Constitu-
tion Act, the exercise of which power has
hitherto been confined to those cases in which
the Superintendent and Council agreed in
praying for the same. That such an agree-
ment is necessary, arises from the circumstance
that a dissolution involves in it the vacancy
of the office I hold. Should the Superinten-
dent not coincide in the view taken by the
Provincial Council, the Governor has the
power to remove him from his office on the
application of a majority of its members, and
he then again can appeal to the general body
of electors for re-election. As it is only rea-
sonable to suppose that at the election of re-
presentatives which took place scarcely two
years since, the electors returned the gentle-
men who possessed their confidence, and four
of your number were only lately elected, the pro-
bability is that there would not be such a
change in the representation as would justify
so extreme a measure as a dissolution. Be
that as it may, it is expedient that we should
bear in mind the position of the mining popu-
lation, who are invested with the electoral
franchise under The Miners’ Franchise Act
of 1860, and which they cannot become pos-
sessed of before next March, and cannot exer-
cise until after the revision of the Electoral
Roll, probably in August next. The opera-
tions of this population have most materially
affected the position of this Province, which
now takes the foremost place in New Zea-
land, and have, besides, introduced an increase
of population into all the electoral districts,
pervading the professions, and entering into
all the departments of trade and commerce.
All of whom will be unjustly debarred from
their legitimate and beneficial electoral in-
fluence by a premature dissolution.

Whether the class legislation introduced by
the Act of the General Assembly is desirable
or not, it is not the present purpose to ascer-
tain; we have merely to recognise the fact that
it exists, and has been acted upon in our
"Provincial Council Ordinance, 1861," which