AND S

BRW SSRiz3. HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY. ' Farsar, March 8. RPB\TE ON THE AMENDMENT TO THE

ADDRESS. wk. COLES’8 SPKECH CONCLUDED.

a

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tm the United States, the people elected their Presi- deat; and, although he was at liberty to elect his advisers, he was himself directly responsible to the people for any acts of his government which had been determined upon in pursuance of the councel of his

advisers, or with their sanction: and, should his govern- |

ment, in consequence of any such acts, have become umpopular, the people had itin their power to reject its, ehould he come forward asa candidate at the next Preaéential Election. The hon. member then ex- piained how far the principle of popular election and of responsibility to the people was carried inthe United States: and, after having contrasted it with the werking et the British Constitution in the hands of the Imperial Fovernment, declared that there was a much greater degree of responsibility attached to the men constitu- ting the Government of Great Britain, than to the. Y residential Government of the United States. Should the men composing the Government of Great Britain,

st any time forfeit the confidence of the House of| (Tommons, they at once ceased to be a Government; or, | ifthey wished to make an appeal to the people, they |

advised the Sovereign to dissolve the House, and their expa!sion from, or establishment in power was deter- mined by the result of the General Elections as being favourable or adverse to their policy. He would certainly prefer the responsibility of the British Govern- went to that of the United States. ‘(‘he noble Secre- tary, be could not avoid remarking, was, he thought, the waly British Minister of State, who, under a monarchical form of Government, had recommended to a British Colony the adoption of Republican principles. All that was desired by the Liberal Party was that, the venefits of the British Coustitution should be extended ty the people of Prince Edward Island, as far as its eperation would be compatible with the condition of a British Dependency. The majority of the Assembly hare had no control over the Legislative Couneil. It was otherwise in Great Britain. There, when any Government measure was successfully carried through the House of Commons, but rejected by the House of {.ords, the Administration, if bent upon carrying the mgaeure into law, had recourse to the privilege of the Sovereign, and by procuring the advancement to the peerage of a sufficient number of men favorable to their views, to give them a majority in the Upper House, {uay secured the success of their measure. ‘The occa- sioual practice “of the Imperial Government in this respect, Was, on one occasion, successfully followed in New Brunswick. It was certain!y true that the Des- patch was very contradictory; but, ona careful perusal af the document, and a just weighing of the clashing ef the passages contained therein, it would be found, tiooa the whole, favorable to the introduction of Res- eonsitle Government into the Volony. It was evident his Lordship was anxious to meet the desire of the aeople; and, encouraged by his sanction of their views, it seemed to him (the hon. member) that the only proper course for the House to pursue was to adopt the Re- solution which he had submitted to their consideration. Were it adopted, and appended to the Address report- ed to the House, the sentiments of the Governor with respect to the introduction of the Responsible system would goon become known to them. Should he be adverse to ita introduction, the course to be ptrsued by tha Elouse was evident. It was to refuse to do-any wusiaeas with His Exccliency, to withhold the supplies, and disregarding the loss of their cwn pay, to put on raait hats and retire to their several homes, leaving His Excellency, and his Executive Council to carry oa the Jovernment as they best could ¥ t

‘spasal, independent of the Legislature. From acting

thls manner, should their views be obstructed by His

Mesilency, there existed no consideration of sufficient

Wht to deter them. The people would suffer no

gi¢e: inconvenience from the roads being lef unre-

Paité for one year, than they would willingly submit

io fr principle. It was true the paupers usually re-

lievtuby annual legislative grants might feel much

divapPnted by the withholding of their annual relief;

Wut he as convinced there was sufficient charity inthe

vuaOtt¥y prevent their actual auffering from want.

‘The oassf those who were ia the habit of contracting

EMEI-WERERKLY

CHARL

~

HARLOTTETOWN, MARCH 20,

dependent upon the gaing arising from their contracts for the maintenance of themselves and fainilies. In fine, added the hos member, it was his opinion that, should the House feel themselves compelled to pursue the line of conduct which he had just indicated, they would be received in their several localities with demonstrations of confidence and respect, instead of being annoyed by the murmurs of discontent. ‘The people of the Colony well understood, from long endurance, the nature of their grievances, and were sufficiently intelligent and well-informed to be able to comprehend what form of British Govermment was best calculated to afford them relief; and on every account which could render a | British Dependency entitled to the most favorable and kindest consideration of the Government of the Parent State,—-loyalty, obedience to the Jaws, preservation of social order, and observance of moral and religious obtigations,—“ were the people of Prince Edward Isiand,” to adopt the language of the noble Secretary, * entitled to the acknowledgement made by him to the Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia, at the outset of the arrangement for the change of Government in that Colony: ‘‘I’hat it could not be too distinctly acknow- ledged that it is neither possible nor degirable to carry on the Government of any ofthe British Provinces of

, question of Responsible Government: a part being in

d with the means at their

North America in opposition to the opinion of the in- habitants.’’ ‘hen, said. the hon. member, afier so full an admission that the people of the Colony were fully entitled to the complete establishment in the Colony of self-government, and to all the social and_ political advantages to be derived from it, was it not the duty of their fathful 2epresentatives in the Legislatura, to make every exertion in their power to obtain for them ful

measures of justice, and waiving all personal or selfish considerations, to assume that attitude, with respect to the existing Colonial Government, which could alone bring to an issue the momentous question then pending between the people of Prince Edward Island and the Imperial Government. ‘The hon, member then observ- ed, that he understood the members of the Legislative Council were divided amongst themselves on the

favor of it, and a part opposed to it. This, although in that body there might not be a majority in favour of the views of the majority of the House of Assembly, could not but strengthen the hands of the latter. He was, however, sorry that the whole of that body did not perceive that, by joining with the Liberal Party, they would secure to themselves a just sbare of all the ad- vantages which would result to the people at large, by

Xaminer.

INTELLIGENCER.

“THIS TS TRUE LIBERTY WHEN FREE-BORN MEN—HAVING TO ADVISE THE PUBLIC—MAY SPEAK FREE”—Mitton’s Eunipipes

“1850.

a “ey

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vO. 1—H0. 16.

near em gen re,

if the British Government thought they eould carry on the Government of the Colony, with no other resoutces than those afforded by the Crown Revenues, they had hie full permission to try the experiment. He had, for the present, done his duty, and should it afterwards appear necessary to go farther, he would not hesitate te proceed. Then, Mr. Havitanp having explained that neither the Colonial Secretary, the Attorrey General, nor the Clerk of the Crown had memorialized the Impcrial Government on the stibject of services and salary, the House was adjourned.

AFTERNOON SITTING.

Farivar, 8th Marck. . _ Mr. Corxe—with reference to what he had advanced in the morning, in support of the amendment ta the Address in answer to His Excellency’s Speech, which he had submitted to the consideration of the House— observed that he might easily have gone much further, but wes withheld from so doing in consequence of the houe of adjournment being arrived. “Should any, oppo- sition be made to his motion, he would be found prepared to meet that opposition by the allegation, of new facts and the adducing of new arguments in support of his motion; but, otherwise, he would rest satisfied with what he had already advanced, Aftera little delay. Mr. Speaker was about to put the question, but was pre- vented from so doing~by the rising of Mr. Pope. te speak to the question, ‘I'he honorable member express- ed himself to the following effect. e the question should be pat, he was desirous to offer two or three ob- servations, although perhaps it was scarcely worth while to do so; but having been one of the Committee ap- pointed to prepare the draft of the Add@vess then under consideration, he wished to be understood as having re- served to Himself the right of supporting any cmend- ment that might be moved inthe House having reference to the Despatch laid before it. It had not appeared to him to be the most suitable mode of ugring apor His Iixcellency the necessity which exited for the intre- duction of Responsible Government into this Colony, to makethe Reply to his Speech the vehicle by which te convey to hin the views of the majority of the House with respect to that great and important question, as the reply of the Imperial Government to the Address of the late House had not’ been entered tpon according te purliamentary usuagé, the Address in reply ought to te a mere echo to the Speech ; but, in the present instance, the departure from such usage was, ina great measure,

throwing open the way to places.of honour and_emolu-

member then observed that it was due to himself to say that, much as he desired and insisted upon the recon- struction ef the Executive Council upon liberal principles, it was only to the political, and not to the private, character of some of its members that he enter- tained any objections. Apart from their political bias, he knew them to be men of much real worth. In con- clusion, he then observed that the amendment proposed to the Address to His Exocllency was couched in moderate and respectful language; and that, if His Excellency knew, and was disposed to acquit himselfot his duty to the people whose chief magistrate he was, he would readily adopt every constitutional means of action in his power, to facilitate the adoption of that system of British Government so much desired by the people. But, indeed, he was inclined to hope for

ment to the free competition of merit and ability “The hon. had been taken by | the House a Des

if not altogether, justified by the unusual course whieh s Excellency, in sending down to

immediately after the delivery of his Speech to the Legislature, and, consequently, before the Assembly could ave had any opportunity to prepare an Address inveply : thus prematurely urging upon their notice and consideration the subject matter of that De- spatch. ‘fhe mistaken policy of the Governent had induced them to send down the Despatch of Earl Grey, of 27th December last, touching the question now at issue between the Imperial Government and the people of this Colony, with a view, most likely, to perplex and discourage those members of the House who s en- gazed to use every constitutional endeavour for the establishment of Responsible Governmentin the Colony ; and, by that unprecedented step the Government had forced upon the House the extreme measyre which, in accordance with the Resolution submitted by the honor-

liberal action on the part of Ilis Excellency; both on account of the opinion which prevailed amongst the public, that he was in possession of private instructions from the noble Colonial Secretary to yield to the wishes of the people, should the majority of the lately elected Representatives firmly and unitedly insist upon a com. | pliance therewith ; and also from a consideration of the fact, that His Excellency, before the General Election, | might haye filled up the vacancies inthe Legislative Council with anti-liberals, had he thought propér to do 30, without subjecting himself to justifiable censure for such exercise of his privilege. He had also had it in

the issue of the General Election had shown him that the majority of the new House were liberals; but, in

that, in doing so, he would subject himself to the strongest censure here, and perhaps also draw down upon himself a rebuke from the neble Secretary for the Colonies. His Excellency had, therofore, he (the hon. member) thought, wisely deferred the flilig up of those vacancies. The hon. member, after a few other edser- vations, which the want of newspaper tccommodaken

his power to do the same thing, ifso disposed, Since |

that case, he thought His Excellency had perceived |

able member for Queen’s County, the majority were, he believed, prepared to adopt. If his advice in the last Session had been taken, such a course as the As- sembly were now likely to pursue would not have beea found necessary. The rights of the people were as fr.ily and clearly defined by the Constitution as. were those of the Sovereign ; and, in assertion.of their welll understood and undenieble rights, their Representatives in Parliament assembled were fully warranted, in having recourse to the extreme measure of withholding the annual supplies, when thei endeavours, by constitutional neans, to effect a needful beneficial reforsn, whether fa the Government or Legislature, or in both, was obsti- nately resisted by the Administration ; and that without justly subjecting themselves to any charge or suspici of disloyalty or disaffection. It was his wish to have assured His Excellency of the readiness of the H touake provision, by permanent law, for such a Citi! List as would e the due performance of ceriajn public duties, wh ere should have been conceded | the Colony su of justice ag that prayed for im the Address mbly to Her Majesty in 1847, astha whieh ’n granted to the people offNova

;

a." e+. &

for the f@jr of roads and bridges, did not, he thought, rewmi's indy congdeauen, eimec these persons Were BO: |

compels the Reporter yo omit, cencluded by ssgingthat | Scotia. Mj easites had been teed tont enough ;

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