AN ERA OF CONSTITUTIONAL STRUGGLE, 1864-1868 129 



and equivocation when appealed to for a ruling on the "tack" 

 question, and the very noticeable manner in which he revoked his 

 own decisions when bullied by the Chief Secretary, determined to 

 put forward another candidate, though with little hope of success. 

 It was contended that if the Speaker had possessed the courage of 

 his opinions, he could, by a little firmness, have blocked McCulloch 

 in his first revolutionary step, and have spared the colony the dis- 

 credit, loss and injury to which it had been exposed during the past 

 eight months. Mr. Peter Snodgrass, who was nominated for the 

 position, found only eighteen members independent enough to em- 

 phasise the lesson, and a solid vote of fifty-two Ministerialists 

 restored Sir Francis Murphy to the dignity of the chair. 



The Governor's speech was a careful compilation of vague plati- 

 tudes, decorously abstaining from any reference to the social and 

 political revolution through which the colony had been struggling : 

 and there was little in it to indicate the future policy of the Ministry, 

 or how they proposed to carry on the Government. One thing 

 alone was definite. The tariff as approved by the last Assembly 

 was to be again submitted to Parliament, and His Excellency was 

 made to say that he " trusts the great difficulties which have accrued 

 from the differences between the Houses may be overcome," and 

 that " by a wise and considerate exercise of their powers, they may 

 be able to legislate according to the popular will" . Not perhaps 

 a very exalted idea of creative legislation, but probably fairly re- 

 presentative of the idea of manhood suffragists. The Legislative 

 Council promptly replied to the Governor's speech and made their 

 position quite clear. Their address stated that the late elections 

 having established the fact that a majority of the people favoured a 

 protective tariff, they were ready to give effect to this expression of 

 opinion, even should it involve a duty on wheat, flour and other 

 produce of the land. They disclaimed any desire to unduly interfere 

 with the fiscal system of the colony ; and they alleged that they were 

 not aware of any difficulties arising from the differences between 

 the Houses which could be removed by legislation. As to the 

 Appropriation Act for 1865, they said : "As we have more than 

 once informed your Excellency during the past session, we were de- 

 sirous to pass it, had it been transmitted in the accustomed manner ". 



VOL. II. 9 



