, 1872-03-20

very good Governor; but he would never
answer for our times. He used to settle
difficulties much in the manner in which
Alexander the Great settled that OF the
Gordian knot. Other times have brought
other troubles and they must be adj usted
in q different manner. In those times
there was no nice distinction between the
legislative, judicial and executive. All
these powers were pretty nearly united in
one individual, the Governor General.
There was no Colonial Law or Council,
no prying, no scrutinizing of accounts, no
Avis for correspondents like Pro Bono Pub
tico; Governor General Won Scholten
would have felt himself personally offend
ed and insulted by the slightest pulsation
of the popular heart, and a Colonial Law
he would have called a colonial humbug,
and to talk of abolishing high posts would
have been looked upon not only as a too
free and illegitimate expression of opinion,
but it would have been called o crimen
lase maiestatis. The Governor General
could then say, and perhaps did say Ste.
Croix, c'est moi! But all this is nov al
tered; we are now bound in wedlock to
the Colonial Law, by which, when WE
have effected o few changes, we shall
almost be self-g0verning. Shall we re-
jolce at it or shall we regret it, as
some do7 Our correspondent does not,
we are confident, wish the old regime again,
but he has brought up the shadow of Gov
ernor Scholten, Invested of whatever des-
potic there was in him, and Il it is Governor
BiIle's description of a ChiefMagistrate that
has caused him and hundreds of others, to
make this abstraction. Now, there is more
probability OF getting one such Governor
as Scholten, but, of course, modernized to
suit our modern ideas, than two and be-
lieving, as we have on previous occasions
mentioned, with many other thinking men,
that one would answer even better than
two, we have been in favor of one, and
should it even be that circumstances do
not allow this change at present, the
change will come, when we have learned
to simplify our legislative machinery in
such a manner that it shall not be necessary
to drum the whole Colonial Council to-
gether a couple dozen times a year to talk
over the all-important question of spend
ing SO cents on q fence. But to return.
One of the reasons advanced for allowing
the Chief Magistrate q stipend for table use,
is that the Governor must have some place
where he can be entertained whenever he
visits st. Croix but those who say so, for
get that if we get the President as pro-
posed, he will be possessing more extend
ed powers, we shall be having quite a little.
state, almost al Independent one, and, as
o consequence, the Governor need not vi
sit us so often, in fact, judging from
former times, these visits or inspection
tours, cahnot be expected to take place but
very rarely, and the expenses connected
Herewith might each time be betrayed
from the Colonial Treasury. There might
as well be a observation-disclosures, with
thousands of dollars worth of furniture, 10
st. Johns, for that island too must be in
spected. To gain respect at home, and
prove our capability of self-government,s
let US set about arranging our matters IN
such q way that it shall never again be
said in the Colonial Council or elsewhere
as was said in the most submissive memo
rial of 1870 "that the costliness which the
administrative organisation entails on us 10
~disproportionate to our means"
With regard to the second point in our
correspondents letter-the Customs De-
partment-iti is very generally considerably
those who are able to form a correct judg-
- ALoA Ill 1okorockn ~-auld La okAon1