THE CONSTITUTION STATUTE OF 1842 291 



Amongst those to whom the Executive referred was the Super- 

 intendent of Port Phillip, and Mr. Latrobe, after carefully reviewing 

 all the surroundings, pronounced in favour of separation. But on 

 the question of the form of government he said, " That any form of 

 constitution which may be proposed for the future colony, for some 

 years to come at least, which takes the government out of the hands 

 of a Governor, Executive and Nominee Council, and substitutes for 

 the latter a representative body, will be ill-suited to its real state 

 and position, and will render the administration of its government 

 as a distinct colony, upon whomsoever it may devolve, a task of 

 exceedingly great difficulty and responsibility ". 



When this deliverance, which was printed in the House of 

 Commons papers, came back to the colony, it evoked a storm of 

 obloquy upon the writer and a denunciatory resolution by the 

 Melbourne Town Council. That body had previously moved for the 

 recall of the Superintendent on the ground that he had abetted the 

 Sydney Government in withholding the share of the revenue to 

 which they considered Melbourne was entitled for public works 

 and street improvements, and it is not improbable that the remem- 

 brance of their violently antagonistic action on that occasion had 

 inspired the reprehended paragraph. However, on the 1st of April, 

 1846, the Executive Council, having taken all the evidence they 

 required, recorded their verdict. The Colonial Secretary and the 

 Commander of the Forces voted for separation, the Bishop of 

 Australia and the Colonial Treasurer against it. The Governor 

 cast his vote with the ayes, and the first official step was com- 

 pleted. In accordance with Latrobe's suggestion, the form of 

 Legislature recommended was a Nominee Council. 



When the decision became known in Port Phillip there was 

 much gratulation, and peace reigned for a time. But unexpected 

 delays in giving effect to the recommendation soon began to irritate 

 the public mind, and to lead to the belief that a cold indifference to 

 colonial wants pervaded the British Parliament 



The troubles over the Corn Laws, which drove Sir Eobert Peel 

 out of office and stirred all England with political disquiet, were to 

 the colonials quite a subsidiary matter, and they took no heed of 

 the fact that the despatch of Sir George Gipps reached the Secretary 



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