NEW ZEALAND

OTAGO

PROVINCIAL GOVERNMENT GAZETTE.

Published by Authority

Vol. XII. DUNEDIN, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 8, 1868. No. 536.

[WITH SUPPLEMENT.]

ADDRESS OF HIS HONOR THE SUPERINTENDENT,

ON OPENING THE XXIIIth SESSION OF THE PROVINCIAL COUNCIL OF THE PROVINCE OF OTAGO, APRIL 8, 1868.

Mr. SPEAKER AND GENTLEMEN OF THE PROVINCIAL COUNCIL,—

When last I had the pleasure of addressing you, we were engaged in a conflict for the right to manage our own Provincial affairs, and I have now to congratulate you upon the fact that this privilege has been so far conceded, and the administration of the Goldfields has been resumed by the Provincial Executive. Although the concession which has been made is by no means so ample as you in many ways, last session, showed you desired it to be; still, a great deal has been gained in getting rid of the mischievous system of political interference, and the exercise of political patronage, which the General Government evince the desire to fasten on the Province.

It was not until nearly the close of last year that the delegation was completed; it will therefore be seen that the Government has had but little time to devote its attention to Goldfields matters. Short as the time has been, however, it has not been wasted, and from the action which has been taken, beneficial results may be anticipated.

A considerable reduction is about to be made in the official staff on the Goldfields, and the saving thus effected will be devoted to their material development. From papers which will be laid before you, it will be seen that the Otago Goldfields are yielding a larger return of the precious metal per man than perhaps any other gold-producing country in the world.

Without seeking to give any undue preponderance to the mining interest, I feel that it is one which will specially repay the best attention of the Government. There is every reason to believe that the golden resources of the Province have, as yet, been scarcely touched, and I trust that a judicious and liberal policy on the part of the Council cannot fail to produce results which will throw the past altogether in the shade. One great desideratum towards this end is the construction of Water Reservoirs upon a scale which can only be undertaken by the Government.

A report and plans will be submitted to you upon this subject which, I trust, will commend themselves to your approval.

Feeling that I should be acting in accordance with your wishes, I invited H.R.H. the Duke of Edinburgh to visit this Province, and had his health permitted, I have no doubt we should have been honored with his presence. I am sure you will lose no time in preparing an Address both to Her Majesty the Queen, and to H.R.H. the Duke of Edinburgh, expressive of your abhorrence of the late attack upon the Prince, and your fervent congratulation at his wonderful escape and rapid recovery.

Since you last met, a new Governor has been appointed to the Colony. You will no doubt feel it your duty to present His Excellency with an address of welcome, and also to express to him the hope that he will visit, as speedily as possible, this important portion of the Colony under his charge.

You will have observed, from the public prints, that an interesting shipment of salmon ova is now on its way to the Province, and that breeding ponds for their reception have been constructed upon the banks of the Waiwera River. Should the same success attend the experiment to its termination, as has characterised its commencement, we may fairly hope to congratulate ourselves upon having acquired a new and valuable source of wealth at a comparatively trifling cost. I am certain you will accord to Mr. Youl especially, and to Mr. Young, Mr. Buckland, and others, through whose exertions the shipment has been made, your warm and cordial thanks.

I propose to ask you to refer to a Select Committee, the consideration of the subject of the Proclamation of Hundreds.

It will be recollected that some time ago I addressed a circular to you individually with regard to the New Post Office building. Although a large proportion