No. 1.

VOTES AND PROCEEDINGS OF THE

LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL.

TUESDAY, 5 JUNE, 1855.

1. The Council having met., pursuant to Proclamation of His Excellency the Governor General, ben ring date the 5th day of April, 1855, the Clerk read the s1~id Proclam~ tion by Order of the Speaker.

2. New 1\lembers Sworn :-( 1.) James Mitchell, E~quire, having taken the Onth, took his seat as a Non-electivi Member, in room of Edward C'ox, E squire, resigned. (2.) Stuart Alexander Donaldson, E squire, having taken the Oath, nnd handed to the Clerk at tho 'fable the following Declaration of Qnalificat ion, tool\ his scat as Member for the Elcctural District of the Sydney IIamlets, in room of 'fhomus Ware Smart, Esquire, resigned :-

" I, Stuart Alexander Donaldson, do declare and testify, t.hat I am duly "seised at law or in equity of an estate in freehold for my own use and benefit, in "lands or tenements in the Colony of New South Wales, of the value of two "thousand pounds sterling money of t he United Kingdom, above all charges and "incumbrances uffccting t he same, situate in the City of Sydney, parish of Alex· "andria, containing mansion-house and out-houses, being my own private residence, "with five acres of land within tbe said Cit.y surrounding the same; and that I have "not collusively or colorably obtained a title to, or become possessed of, the said "lands and tenements, or any part thereof, for the purpose of qualifying or enabling "me toLe returned a l\1ember of the Legislative Council of the Colony of New South " \Yales."

STUART A. DONALDSON.

(3.) Thomas Icely, Esquire, having taken the Oath, took his seat as a Non-elective Member, in room of John Dobia, Esquire, resigned~ (4.) William 1\'Iaclray, Junior, Esquire, having taken the Or,th, and banded to the Clerk at the Table the following Declaration of Qual ification, took his sent as Member for the E lectoral District of the United Pastoral Districts of Lachlan and Lower Du·lin~r, in room of W illiam Macarthur, Esquire, resigned:-

"I, William Macleay, do dec~are and testify, that I am duly seised at law or " in equity of an estate in freehold for my own use aud benefit, in lands or tenements "in t.he Colony of New South Wales, of the yearly value of one hundred pounds " sterling money above all charges and incumbrances affect ing the same, situatr. in " the Ci ty of Sydney and county of Cumberland, and consisting of two dwelling-" houses on tbe south side of Goul burn-street; and that I have not collusively or "colorably obtained a title to, or become possessed of, the said lands and tenements, "o1· any pn•·t thereof, for the purpose of qualifying ot· enabling me to be returned a "Member of the Legislat ive Council of the Colony of New South Wales."

WILLIAM MACLEAY. Jun e 5, 1855.

(5.) Edward Wolstenholme Ward, Esquire, Captain Royal Engineers, having taken the Oath, took his scat as a Non-elective Member, in room of John George Nathaniel Gibbes, Esquire, resigned. (G.) James Robert Wilshire, Esquire, having taken the Oath, and handed to tl1e Clerk at the Table the fullowing Declaration of Qualification, took his seat as one of the Members for the Electoral Disbrict of the City of Sydney, in room of William Thurlow, Bsquire, resigned:-

" I, ,James Robert Wilshire, do declare and testify, that I am duly seised at " law or in equi ty of an estate in freehold for my own use and benefit, in lands or " tenements in the CCilony of New South \Vales, of the value of two thousand "pounds sterli ng money, above all charges and incumbrances affecting the same, "situate in Pitt-street, in the City of Sydney, consisting of a dwelling-house in "which I now reside, und the allotment of land on which the snme is built, boun-" ded on the south by a line ben•·ing west six degrees south one hundred and sixty-" three feet, on the west by a line bearing north twenty-eight feet, on the north " by n line bearing east six degrees north one hundred and sixty-three feet to Pitt-" street, and on the east by that street to the south-east corner aforesaid ; and that "I ha\' e not collusively or colorably obtained a title to, or become possessed of, the " said lands and tenements, or any part thereof, for the purpose of qualifying or "enabling me to be returned a l\Iember of the L egislative Council of the Colony of "New South Wales."

J . R. WILSHIRE. 3.

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3. Governor Genenl's Opening Speech :-His Excellency the Governor General having been announced by the Sergeant-at-Arms, and conducted to his seat by the Speaker, read the following Speech :-

MR. SPEAKER, AND GENTLEMEN o.r THE LEGISLATIVE CouNcn.. :-

1. I should, in accordance with a wish which I am aware has been expressed by yourselves, have called you together at an earlier period, had I not been desirous that the many measures of importance which I shall have to submit for your con-sideration, should be in such a state of forwardness as to admit of being laid before you at the commencement of the Ses!ion. ·

2. The bearing of several of these measures upon the future prospects of the Colony, whether with reference to their action upon its material prosperity or upon the character and habits of the people, is such as tu require the most careful considera-tion of the principles upon which they are based, and of the mode in which effect is to be given to these principles. The delay, therefore, which ha3 been occasioned by the wish of the Government to perfect these measures, will not have been misapplied, neither will it, I trust, have been productive of inconvenience to yourselves.

3. Of all the subjects which have been pressed upon the attention of the Government, that to which I attach most importance is Educati(ln . It is impossible to exaggerate the effect for good or for evil which will be produced upon the future of this Colony by the character of the instruction given to the rising goneration. Much has been done by the wise munificence of the Legislature in endowing institu-tions such as the University with its affiliated Colleges, an.d the Sydney Grall).mar School; but these can hardly be expected to produce their proper fruit, unless the seed of education be sown in the primary schools, and ample means provided for the instruction of the whole mal's of the population. It is wir.h a view to the introduction of a system which will keep pace with the requirements of a rapidly increasing popu-lation, and which will afford to the youth of the Colony the means of qualifying themselves to take that share in the administration of the Government to which, us natives, they have a right to look forward, that I am prepared to submit a measure for your consideration, which, while enforcing upon the people the paramount duty of educating their children, will place in their own hands amplP. means of meeting all the expenses which a perfect and comprehen~ive system of education must involve; re~erving to the Government only such powers as may be necessary to guarantee the character and ability of the agents employed.

4. The principle of local action on the part of the people themselves, which is the foundation of the measure to which I have just alluded, may, I think, be very beneficially applied to many matters which have hitherto been placed under the control of the Government, and the funds for wbicb, though exclusively local in their application, have been derived from the General Revenue. It must be obvious that the control which it m!ly be in the power of the Government to exercise over agents scattered throughout a. country comprising an area of upwards of 350,000 square miles, cannot be of a. very effective description; even were the means of communication as good as they are notoriously bad, the supervision which the Government could exercise would be limited in amount and defective in character, and would in all cases where unity of system or of action is not required, be most bene-ficially replaced by some system of local management.

5. With these viewR I recommend to your special considerat.ion a measure which, under the name of a Bill for promoting the Public Health, is, in point of fact, an enactment conferring upon the inhabitants of towns a system of local organization for certain purposes bearing not only on their sanitary condition, but on their comfort and convenience. This municipal system is based, of course, upon the principle that the funds applied to local purposes shall be raised by local asse~sment.

6. I believe that this principle may be most beneficially acted upon wit.h regard to the roads of the Colony; it bas, in point of fact, been already adopted in the Act regulating the formation and repair of parish roads, but it would seem to be desirable to give it a more extensive application. I propose, therefore, t,o submit a Bill for your consideration, by which power will be given to the Government, upon the application of the resident owners and occupiers of land, to proclaim certain districts as Road Districts; in which case the residents in those districts will be invested with powers similar in character to those given to the in habitants of parishes by the Act 4 Vic., No. 12: looking, however, to the fact that the Govern-ment is as yet the proprietor of by far the largest proportion of the land in the Colony, I am quite prepnred to accept the responsibility which bas been entrusted to it by the Legislative Council of constructing and maintaining the great linea of thoroughfare in every direction. This is a work of peculiar importance in a country like New South Wales, for where nature bas done so little to facilitate the intercourse between one portion of the country and another, science and art must be called upon to establish thrse means of ready communication, without which no country can possibly attain to any high pitch of prosperity-! may almost Eay of civilization.

7. Past experience has proved the utter inadequacy of the common mac-adamized road to meet the duily increasing demand for transport of every kind; and it il; therefore obvious, that, as the means of water carriage are in this Colony so very limited, recourse m11St be had to an extensive system of Railways, by which the COilntry most be covered as with a net-work, so tha.t, eventually, every settler may hc.pe to be within a reasonable distance of one of those main arteries of transport.

Contemplating,

3 . Contemplating, however, as I do, this very extensive development of the Railway system, I am not prepared to adopt for this Colony a mode of construction which, by involving an inordinate expenditure upon the original formation of the Roads, must of course limit the distance over which i t will be in the ]' Ower of the Colony to extend them. This expensive system of eonsn·uction is necessary where high rates of speed are required, but by limitinl! the speed to l(J or 12 mi les pe1· hour, by employing the material which nature bas placed at our di:.posal, by e~chewing every expense which has not economy for its ultimate object, it. will , I believe, be possible to bring the cost of the ro:~d within such narrow limits as will enable t he Uolony in the course of some few years to reckon the number of miles of Railway by thousands.

8. Before, however, the Government can be pre.part'd to carry out an under-taking so extensive in its objects, and so importaut in its effects on the prospects of the Colony, i1 will be absolutely necessary that it should be supplied with a sufficient number of properly trained and qualified agents. Indeed, as for wany y~ars to come the development of the material resources of th:l Colony must occupy the special attention of the Government, it will be absolutely neces!'ary that it should have at ita disposal a staff of officers upon whom it could thoroughly rely; I purpose, ther,e~ fore, to ~uumit for your consideration a scheme Ly which I hope to be a hie to supply, a want which is now most urgently felt, by training up a body of men selected in great measure from the youth of the Colony, and who will have, as such, a special interes' in its welfare. .

9. The stoppage of the regular monthly Steam Communication with England has been productive of much inconvenience. I have, in consequence, addressed letters to the Governors of the other Australian Colonies, and of New Zealand, for the purpo~e of ascertaining whether, by the joint action of all thetle Colonies, arrange· ments might not be made, which, by relieviug the Home Government from a portion of the cost of maintaining the Monthly Steamers, would ensure Lbe speedy re-establish-ment of a system, upon the advantnges of which it is unnecessary for me to dilate. I n bringing tht! subject under the consideration of Her Majesty's Government, I felt myself justified in assuming that the Legislature of New South Wales would not hesitate to sanction any outlay which might be con

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13. My attention was drawn al a very early period after my arrival in this Colony .to .the defenceless state of the City and Harbour, and to the con~~quent ri~k ~Q which the inhabitants would bl! exposed should any unforeseen cir

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Question-(2.) That such Committee consist of the following Members, viz. :-Mr. Nichols, Mr . .Martin, The Solicitor General, Mr. Holroyd, The Colonial Secretary, Tlie Colonial Treasurer, Mr. Cowper, Mr. Donaldson, and Mr. William Macleay-put and passed. Mr. Samuel having brought up the Address in reply to the Speech of His Excellency the Governor General on opening the Session, as prepared by the Committee, the same was, by order of the Speaker, read by the Clerk as follows:-

" To His Excellency Sm WILLIA~I Tuo~us D l';NISON1 K nigltt, Gove1•nor Gene1·al in. "and ove1· all IIer Majesty's Colo11ies of New South ,Wales, Va" Diemen1s " Land, Victol'ia, South .Austt·alia, and Westet·n .Aust1·alia, and Captain-" Gen e1·al cmd Gove1·nor-i11- Oltiej of tlte 'Pert·itot·y of Neto South Wales at1d " its D ependencies, and Vice-Admiral of the same.

"MaY IT PLEASE Youn. ExcELLKNCY :-"We, ITer :i\fajesty's most dutif11l and loyal subjects, the Members of the

" Legislative Oouncil of New South Wales, in Council assembled, desire to express " to Yow· Excellency our affection a.nd loyalty to the person and government of our " Most Gracious Sovereign, and to offer our respectful thanks for Your Excellency's " Speech to this Council.

" 2. The subject of Education for all classes has deeply occupied the attention " of this Council from its commencement, and it will afford us sincere gratifi~ation " to be able to co-operate with Your Excellency in the promotion of such measures " as may be thought conducive to its extension and improvement.

" 3. The proposal to establish municipalities invested with a power of apply-" ing to local purposes funds to be raised by local as'sessment, we admit to be one of " great importance; we shall be prepared to give it our careful consideration.

" 4. We acknowledge, with Your Excellency, the va!?t importance of establish-" ing a cheap and extended system of Railway communication throughout the Colony: "We confidently anticipate that, under the auspices of Your Excellency, a compre-" hensive system may be devised suitable to our requirements.

" 5. 'rhe establishment of Po·sto.l Commnuico.tion by Steam with England has " been for some years an object of our anxious solici tude, and its discontinuance has " been a source of general disappointment: We shall be glad to take into consideration " the best means for its re-establishment.

" 6. Immigration is a subject that has long occupied a large share of our " attention, and various measures have been devised with a view to its conduct: upon " the most satisfactory basis: We shall willingly give our support to any sqhcme " which may promise improvement upon the present system.

"7. The extension of those appliances which are necessary to facilitate the " administration of Jus tice in the remote districts of the Colony, is, we believe, much "needed; and we shall be prepared (if we can do so without departing from co~.stitu" tiona\. principles) to devise the means of promoting such extension.

" 8. The subject of the Defences of the Colony has been one of more' than " ordinary solicitude; and we shall therefore anxiously consider the documents and " recommendations in relation to that subject to which your Excellency refers ...

"9. The several other subjects adverted to in Your Excellency's Speech shall " receive our attentive consideration, and we join in the earnest prayer, tha.t the " meatiures to be perfected under Your Excellency's administration may be copd.ucive " to the loyalty, order, and prosperity of this impor'tant Dependency of the ~fitish "Crown."

L egislative Omtncil Cltatlibet·1 5th June, 1855 .

. Mr. Samuel then moved, That the Address, as read by the Clerk, be now adopted as the Reply of this Council to the Speech of His Excellency the Governor Gi!neral on opening the Session. Mr. Darvall moved, That the Debate be adjourned until to-morrow. Debate ensued. Queation put on the motion for adjournment of the Debate until to-morrow. Council divided.

Ayes, 12. Noes, 24". Mr. Dnrvall, Captain King, Mr. Nichols, Mr. Martin, Mr. Donaldson, Mr. Samuel, 1\lr. Bligh, The Solicitor General, Revd. Dr. Lllilg, ·Mr. W . Maclcay, Mr. Wilshil·c, Mr. Osborne, Mr. G. Bowman, 1\Ir. Egan, Mr. Campbell, , Mr. Bradley, Mr. Onkcs, Mr. llolroyd, Mr. Flood, Mr. Holden , 1\.fr. C;owpcr, } Tellcra. .Mr: Mitchell, hlr. l:'nrkes, Mr. l cely,

Mr. Barker,

' .·· D~. Douglass, Mr. Parker, Mr. Allen, The Postma.Ster General, Captain W nrd, The Colonial Treasurt'r, '!'he Chief (;om missioner of Crown Lands, The Colonial Secretary, The Inspector 0 cneral of Police, '!'he Audi_tor General, } •fellers. Mr. Morns .

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Original Question then put and passed ;-Whereupon the Colonial Secretary stated that, in anticipation of the proceedings of the Council, he had ascertained it to be the pleasure of His Excellency the Governor General to receive their Address in reply to His Excellency's Speech on opening the Session, at Government House, to-morrow, at a quarter before Three o'clock.

5. Criminals Execution Act:- The Speaker reported that Her Majesty's approval of the Act intituled "An .Act to ?'egulate the Execution of Criminals," passed by the Council on the 17th duy of August, 1853, and reserved by :F:Ti.s Excellency the Governor General for the signification of Her Majesty's pleasure t.hercon, laving been notified during the recess by Proclamation of IIis Excellency the Governor General, bearing date the lOth day of ,January, 1855, he had ordered the following Minute to be made for entry in the J ournals so soon as the Council should again be in Session, pursuant to the requirement of the 33rd Section of the Act of Parlia-ment 5 & 6 Victoria, Chap. 76, viz,:-

NEW SOUTH WALES. MINUTE, LEGISLATIVE CoUNCIL, Tuesda_y, 16th J anum·y, 1855.

The Speaker, having ordered t he attendanc~ of the Clerk and Clerk Assistant, directed the following entry to be made in the Journals of the Council, pnrsuaut to the requirement of the 33rd section of the Act of Parliament, 5 and 6 Victoria, chap. 76, viz. :-

" That a Proclamation having been made by His Excellency the Governor 1' General, in a. Supplement to the New South Wales Uove1•nment Gazette of Tuesday, " the 11th January, 1855, to the following effect, to wit:

"PROCLAMATION. "By His Excellency Sir Charles Augus~us FitzRoy, Knight Commander of

"the l\fost Honorable Order of the Bath, Knight Companion of the Royal l:lano-" veriau Guelphic Order, Governor General of all Her Majesty's Australian Possee-" sions, and Captain-General and Governor-in-Chief of the Territory of New South "Wales and its Dependencies, &c., &c, &c.

" Whereas by an Act of the Imperial Parliament of Great Britain and Ireland, " passed in the fifth and sixth year of the reign of H er Majesty Queen Victoria, in-" tituled, 'An Act for tlte Gove1·nment of New South Wales and Van Diemen' s L and,' " it is amongst other things enactP.d, that the Governor of New South Wales, with the " advice and consent of t he Legislative Council by the said Act constituted, shall have " authority to ruake laws for the peace, welfare, and good government of the ~;aid .Colony; "and that every Bill which has been passed by the said Council, and also every law " proposed by the Governor which shall have been passed by the said Council, " whether with or without amendments, shall be presented for Her Majesty's Assent " to t.he Governor of the said Colony, and the Governor shall declare, according to " his discretion; but subject, nevertheless, to the provisions contained in the said " recited Act, and to such instructions as may, from time to time, be given in that " behalf by Her Majesty, Her Ueirs or Successors, that he assents to such Bill in "Her Majesty's nawe, or that he withholds Uer Majesty's assent, or that he l'eserves " such Bill for the signification of Her Majesty's pleasure thereon; and it is thereby "further enacted, that no Bill which shall he so reserved for the signification of Her " Maj esty's pleasure thereon, shall have any force or authority within the Colony of " New South Wales until the Governor of the said Colony shall signify, either by " Speech or )1essage to the Legislative Council of the said Colony, or by Proclamation " in the N ew Sout!t Wales Governme11t Gazette, that such B ill has been laid before "Her Majesty in Council ; and that her l\Jajesty has been pleased to assent to the "same ; and further that no Bill which shall be so reserved as aforesaid, shall have "any force or authorit.y in the said Colony, unless He1· Majesty's as&ent thereto "shall be so signified as aforesaid within the space of two years from t.he day on "which such Bill shall have been presented for Her Majesty's ussent, to the Governor "as aforesaid: And whereas the said Legislative Council did, in the month of " August, one thousand eight hundred and fifty-three, pass a Bill, intituled, 'An "'Act to ?·egulate the Execution nf Criminals,' which Bill was, agreeably to the " provisions of the above recited Act, reserved for the signification of Her Majesty's "pleasure thereon .: Now, therefore, I, Sir Charles Augustus Fitz Roy, as such " Governor aforesaid, do, by this my Proclamation, signify and declare that·the "Right Honorable Sir George Grey, Baronet, one of Her l\lajcsty's Principal " Secretaries of State, has trausmitted to me an Order made by Her l\'Iajesty in 11 Council, confirming, ratifying, and finally enacting the said Act, which will take 11 effect accordingly from the date hereof.

" Given under my Hand and Seal, at Government House, Sydney, 11 this tenth day of January, one thousand eight hundred and a fifty-five, and in the eighteenth year of Her Majesty'" "Reign.

11 (Signed) (L.s.) CHA5• A. FITZ ROY.

''By Bis Excellency's Command,

" (Signed) C. D. RIDDELL."

GOD SA YE THE QUEEN!

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u And it being directed, by the 33rd section of the said Act of Parliamen~ u 5 and 6 Victoria, chap. 76, ' That no Bill which shall be reserved for the u c signification of Her Majesty's pleasure thereon, shall have any force or authority u c within the Colony of New South Wales, until the Governor of the said Colony " ' shall signify, either by Speech or Message, to the Legislative Council of the said "c Colony, or by Proclamation, that such Bill h!!s been laid before Her Majesty in u' Council, and that Her Majesty has been pleased to assent to the same; and that " ' an entry shall be made in the Journals of the said Legislative Council, of every " 'such Speech, Message, or Proclamation, and a duplicate thereof, duly atteated, " c shall be delivered to the Registrar of the Supreme Court, or other proper officer, " ' to be kept among the Records of the said Colony.' "

* * * * * * u The Speaker ordered that the original Act and an attested duplicate of the

" said Proclamation, together with a copy of this Minute, be forthwith delivered by the " Clerk of the Council, to the Registrar General, to be kept among the R ecords of "the Colony; and that the acknowledgment of the receipt thereof by the Registrar " General should be placed among the Records of the Council."

CHARLES NICHOLSON, Speaker.

Council adjourned at half-past Five o'clock, until to-mon·ow, at halj-prut Two o'clock.

MEMO. :-The Council meet at lwlf-past Two o'clock, on Wednesday, the 6th day of June instant, to proceed to Government House, there, at a quarte1· before Three o'clock, to present to the Governor General their Address, in reply to the Speech of His Excellency on opening the present Session.

NOTICES OF MOTION.

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 6. NOTICES OF MOTION :-

1. TnE CoLONIAL SEORETARY to move, That H enry Watson Parker, Esq., be Chair-man of Committees of the whole Council during the present Session.

2. 'l'HE CoLONIAL SEORETARY to move, That Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, in each week, be the days on which this Council shall meet for the Dispatch of Business.

3] THE CoLONIAL SEORETARY to move, That on Wednesday and Thursday in each week, Government Business shall take precedence of all other Business.

4. THE CoLONIAL SEORETARY to move, That the Standing Orders Committee for the present Session, consist of thefollowing l\'Iembers, viz. :-The Speaker, the Attorney Gener.al, Mr. Parker, Mr. James Macarthur, Mr. Nichols, Mr. Cowper, Mr. Broadhurst, Mr. Holroyd, and Mr. Martin.

5. TnE COLONIAL SEORETARY to move, That t.he Library Committee for the presen~ Session consist of the following Members, viz. :-The Speaker, the Attorney General, Mr. P arker, Mr. James Macarthur, Captain King, Mr. Nichols, Mr. Murray, Mr. Holroyd, and Mr. Martin.

TUESDAY, JuNE 12. NOTICES OF MOTION :-

1. MR. MARTIN to move,-(1.) That it is the opinion of this Council, that no charge should be made for the refining or coinage of Gold at the Branch of Her Majesty's Mint in Sydney, other than such as is madP. at the Royal Mint in London. (2.) That tbe foregoing Resolution be embodied in an Address, and presented to His Excellency the Governor General, with a request that he will cause the same to be carried into effect.

2. MR. l\foaRIS to move, That an Address be presented to the Governor General, praying that His Excellency will be pleased to cause to be laid upon the Table of this House, the correspondence between the Government and Captain Vignolles, relative to the appoint-ment of Mr. J. J. Whitting to the office of Justice of the Peace.

CHARLES NICHOLSON, Speaker.