NEW ZEALAND. (Hansard, 24 May 1852)

§ SIR JAMES GRAHAM
said, that in the debate on Friday last, on the New Zealand Bill, the right hon. Gentleman the Secretary for the Colonies had stated in the course of his speech that, in his opinion, the faith of the Crown was pledged to the arrangement with the New Zealand Company, with reference to their debt, in a manner somewhat different from the statutable arrangement of 1847; and he (Sir J. Graham) understood the right hon. Gentleman to found that opinion upon the correspondence which had taken place between the Secretary of State—before the appointment of the right hon. Gentleman to office-and the New Zealand Company; and the right hon. Gentleman had added, he was of opinion that that correspondence ought to be in the hands of Members before the discussion on the New Zealand Bill was again resumed. He wished, therefore, to know whether the right hon. Gentleman was prepared to lay that correspondence upon the table of the House?

§ SIR JOHN PAKINGTON
said, that the statement which he had made on Friday night, and to which the right hon. Gentleman referred, was to the effect that the clause in the New Zealand Bill relating to the state of things between the Government and the New Zealand Company did not rest exclusively, as the right hon. Gentleman who had spoken previously (Mr. Gladstone) had supposed, upon the clause in the Act of 1847, but that a subsequent arrangement had been entered into, which consisted of a correspondence between the late Secretary of State (Earl Grey) and the New Zealand Company; and he had also stated that he had no objection to lay that correspondence on the table of the House, But he was not then aware of the fact that that correspondence was included in the list of papers relating to the transactions between the Government and the Company which had been already laid upon the table, and he begged to refer the right hon. Gentleman to those published papers.

§ SIR WILLIAM MOLESWORTH
wished to know when the papers which he (Sir W. Molesworth) had referred to would he presented?

§ SIR JOHN PAKINGTON
said, he feared it was impossible to have those papers ready before the next discussion on the New Zealand Bill. They were very voluminous, and owing to the pressure of business, he feared that they could not be produced in less than a month from the time the hon. Gentleman moved for them. He would see, however, that as much despatch as possible was made with them.