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I am unable to render any more satisfactory account of the progress of another attempt to form special settlements, known as the Feilding contract. The correspondence which is appended will place you in possession of the circumstances of the case (Appendix N). You will see that the payment of £5000 in the month of February last was made sine qua non in the proposed modification. The official intimation contained in the correspondence referred to, to the effect that no advice has been received in the Colony of the remittance of this sum is very unsatisfactory.

I have had no opportunity of conferring with the General Government on the subject since the receipt of the last communication; and it would therefore be premature for me now to indicate to you any particular course of action.

It is however, satisfactory, to be able to record a case where land has been set apart under the Special Settlements Act which promises to be successfully carried out. The block contains 8000 acres and is known as the Morea block. The object proposed is the promotion of the growth and manufacture of phormium tenax, and an instalment of one-half of the purchase money has been paid and the conditions for the occupation and purchase of the block are set forth in the Provincial Gazette of 2nd December, 1872.

In order to complete the retrospect of the past year’s administration it is only necessary for me to inform you of the extent to which your intentions, as expressed in last year’s appropriation act, have been carried out by the Provincial Executive. The return prepared by the Assistant Treasurer, and appended to my speech (Appendix O) will exhibit for each vote the sum appropriated in contrast with the sum actually expended, the balance unexpended, and the expenditure in excess. The power to expend in excess of votes authorized by law to the extent of one-twentieth of the preceding year’s revenue has only been exercised to the extent of £1303. The items on which the largest amount of expenditure in excess of votes has occurred are “Miscellaneous” and “Native land purchase.” The votes for both these services were quite inadequate; and you will accordingly be asked to make a more ample provision for them in this year’s estimates.

I now invite your attention to the proposals for the future, which the Executive is prepared to submit for your consideration during the present session.

The following Bills and Resolutions will be introduced, viz:-

1. A Bill intituled “An Act to amend The Diseased Sheep Act, 1872.”
2. A Bill intituled “An Act to further amend The Act of the Superintendent and Provincial Council relating to Toll Gates.”
3. A Bill intituled “An Act to amend the Highways Act, 1871.”
4. A Bill intituled “An Act to amend the Wellington Education Act, 1871.”
5. A Bill intituled “An Act to establish Local Boards in the Province of Wellington.”
6. A resolution in favor of a Bill intituled “An Act to authorize the raising of a loan of two hundred and ten thousand pounds for the purpose of constructing certain works of public utility in the Province of Wellington, and for charging the sum so borrowed against the said Province.”

The two first Bills are of a technical character and require no particular comment from me.

The Highways Bill is also chiefly of a technical character; but it also confers additional power on the Boards; which I think is desirable.

With reference to the Education Bill I would only observe that clause 13 is in accordance with the spirit in which the original act was framed and introduced. I venture to say that the Central Board of Education for this Province has a noble opportunity afforded to it of laying the foundation of a Common School Education throughout the Province on an acceptable and secure basis.

I regard the Bill to establish Local Boards throughout the Province as one of very great interest and importance. It goes entirely in a direction consonant with the views of the Provincial Executive, viz:—That of decentralizing the exercise of power, and offering to groups of people, if they desire to be governed satisfactorily, to assume the privileges and the responsibilities of managing their local affairs immediately; instead of leaving those affairs to be managed for them mediately, by the Central Government under which they live. The want of a law of incorporation of this sort has been much felt lately in the case of Kaiwarra-warra. With a considerable population for the size of the place, it has been without the organization requisite to enable the inhabitants to take the steps necessary in the typhoid fever which broke out amongst them. It is true that the General Assembly