Guide 3 to NSW State Archives relating to Responsible Government - OCR - Flipbook - Page 77
A Guide to New South Wales State Archives relating to Responsible Government
Lord John Russell, commenting on the legislation, informed the
Governor that
those portions of the Provincial enactment which controlled and
regulated the future power of the Crown as to the reservation
and disallowance of Colonial Acts, and as to the Instructions to
be given to Governors respecting them, have been omitted by
Parliament.
Russell also mentions the omission of two clauses, "53 and 54 of
the Colonial Act", as they went beyond the functions of the
Legislature, relating as they did to other Colonies. The Secretary of
State continues the Despatch by commenting on a few of the
clauses of the Act authorising Her Majesty's assent.
Duplicate Despatch No.1 of 21 July 1855: the Secretary of State
transmitting the Order in Council declaring Her Majesty's assent to
the Bill to confer a Constitution on New South Wales. (The Order
in Council is not with this Duplicate Despatch but with the original
Despatch which has been topnumbered M136/B and can be found
in a Colonial Secretary Special bundle [4/714.3].)
Duplicate Despatch No. 7 of 8 August 1855: the Secretary of State
acknowledging two despatches of Sir Charles FitzRoy's, Nos. 140
and 141 of 10 and 11 November 1853, transmitting a petition
from certain colonists praying that "Her Majesty would withhold
her assent from the Bill for granting a Constitution to New South
Wales, and a letter from the Chairman of the 'New South Wales
Constitution Committee' in relation thereto". The Governor is
referred to the despatch transmitting the Act of Parliament under
which the Royal assent was given to the Bill in question (see
Despatch No.1 above), as well as the report of the debates which
took place in Parliament as amply showing the reasons "which
prevailed against acceding to the prayer of this petition, and the
discussion which its subject underwent". The original petition
referred to in this Despatch can be found in CGS 905,
CSIL 53/11354 in [4/3218].
76
Despatch No.1
Despatch No.7
State Records Authority of New South Wales
