BAY OF PLENTY TIMES. “The spirit of the times shall teach me speed.” KING JOHN, ACT IV. SATURDAY, APRIL 26, 1873.

Bay of Plenty Times, Volume I, Issue 68, 26 April 1873, Page 2

BAY OF PLENTY TIMES. “The spirit of the times shall teach me speed.” KING JOHN, ACT IV. SATURDAY, APRIL 26, 1873.

our last issue we published a letter received from the Honorable Mr McLean By Captain iSkcA. from which wo gather that there are good grounds for hoping tliafc the commencement ot the prosperity we confidently believe awaits the Bay of Plenty in the future is at hand. * If, however, ail the hopes awakened bv the

lettor ol the Honorable the Minister were at once rca'C-i tlvo thing more would be reo U ircd7» the rapidity of prom-o 4-■ •> to ® Us uro that is bo earnestly 'desired by°i tTwf wishers. - ir * WellThe inhabitants of tins colony have sulfered much Lm %,*• Th °y ha lf fougbt brakfe ' VJLLI ctttuuoiasm in tho days when fikmwas a necessity of safety l the days of warfare arc 3 over a d portion of the colony is as secure L th “ Iree from hostile natives as an ? a part from tho North Capo to the Bluff it is for the men who’ showed%},« selves ready and fit to take the field deience of their homes and families t the old unhappy days of strife, to exhibit the game determined energy and niiX.? self-abnegation in the progress. _ Small jealousies, tending the establishment of separate parties it our midst, must be at once and nt ter “ forgotten. Every settler must mer»e S own individual ambition and opinion!®,? one harmonious aspiration for the generd welfare and legitimate advancement 0 the whole of the district; and no a« should bo satisfied until ho is coascien t.ously able to say that ho has in some form or other, and to an extent comm™ surate with his abilities and opportunity contributed towards the permanent pro£ penty of his adopted home, We can all do something, and if we agree to sink minor differences and labour in the common cause of progress for a district blessed with so magnificent a climate ini so fertile a soil as the Bay of Plenty we cannot fail to secure for it a very” hi<4 , a “ lon^ those hitherto sparsely settled localities in New Zealand from which the intending emigrant seeks to choose his future home. Let us theretore be up and doing. Let us speak less ot what should be done for ns, and do more for ourselves. Individual effort in the right direction has not been altogether wanting, and but that it would be invidious to mention names we mivht cite instances of honorable endeavour to illustrate the splendid capabilities of our exceptionally fertile land, or to benefit the district in other ways; but what has hitherto been the exception must now become There has been with manj- of us too perceptible an inclination to a blind following of the Micawber practice of waiting for “something to turn up. Let this no longer be the case, but every man remember and fully realise to himself that upon him to some extent depends whether the Bay of Plenty shall b© spoken of throughout the colony as an evidence of good natural advantages turned to the best account, or shall be scarcely known by those living out of its own neighbourhood, and if known only identified as a place at which there was once some fighting. O £3 ~

Eveet now and then we notice cropping up in the newspapers evidence of a most extraordinary feeling of jealousy existing bet ween the white and the Maori inhabitants of New Zealand. We are not quite right perhaps when we say between the white and the Maori, because the expression would argue reciprocity in the matter of jealous feeling, whereas to our mind all the indications go to show that it is the white man only who complains, and calls attention to the envy that is consuming him. The Maori does not make any complaint of the superior advantages of hispakeha neighbour. To all outward seeming, be is ready to acknowledge the superior virtue, morality, and intelligence that have placed the whit© nations in authority over all dark skins whose countries they have settled in. Our correspondent “ Asmodeus seems to be unhappy in this matter, and to feel a sense of injury because a shelter is found for aboriginals on their visits to a place whence the white man has driven ail their friends of their own colour. What would <£ Asmodeus” have? Would he refuse the commonest rites of hospi* tality to the stranger within his gates? het “ Asmodeus " travel away into Maori settlements where the white man has not yet “ civilised” the Maori, and he shall find that the fact of his being a stranger and a traveller is sufficient reason to the Maoris for giving him shelter, food, and help on his journey. “ Asmodeus ” also seems to suffer from the insolent and supercilious behaviour ot wounded Maoris. It appears to us be ought, on the other hand, to be. grateful that he against whom the lame man fought is able to walk erect, and should admire the spirit of the man who, though wounded and limping, can look undaunted at the face of his conqueror. The wound goes to prove one thing at all events : it is fair evidence that the man who received it had faith enougn, and spirit enough to fight for (be cause ha believed in. W «■ do not quite understand what is generally meant by the term “ Pakeha-Maori.” To us it seems that a man to deserve that name should live exactly like the Maoris —be one with them in everything except the colour of his skin, throw aside all the advantages of his birth and breeding* and become so for as possible a very Maori. * have heard of such degenerate men, but have never known sne to bo employed as a mediator between Government officials and the Maori** M e have known Government officers to order sue Pakeha-Maoris away from native settlements, an see that they left ; but that was not employing them as "mediators. 1 * We ftrapersuaded,howeTCn

•* Asmodeus,” m using tho terms, had in v iew some ot tlioso gentlemen who, without holding permanent official appointments, are frequently able to do excellent service to the country in native matters—men who from long residence in districts principally inhabited by Maoris, have gained a practical knowledge of the peculiarities of the tribes about them, and are therefore able to go straight to the heart of the matter in question, at the same time using their jniluoncc, derived from worthy and honourable careers pursued within sight of the Maoris, for tho patriotic purpose of furthering the real interests of their countrymen, both pakeha and Maori, do sneer at those gentlemen is a very popular practice with persons who know little or nothing of native matters, but wo must confess to a feeling of surprise that so intelligent a correspondent as “ Asmodeus ” should go out of his way to follow the thoughtless crowd, and to rejoice that some of his fellow citizens have fallen on evil times, Me see no cause for congratulation j o the fact that any man has failed to att dn prosperity, unless it can be clearly shown that his efforts have been made without regard to honour and honesty. As to the Missionary “ broad acres and commodious homesteads,” we are bound to say that with every anxiety to ascertain the truth in a matter so import .nt as the part taken by the devoted men and women, who left all home ties and comforts to come out here many years before the ordinary settler dared show] ’ * face in Jfew Zealand ; wo fail to see anything to justify the imputation insinuated by ‘'Asmodeus,” Most of the missionaries are probably secure from actual want of the necessari of life and many of them are doubtless comfortably provided for ; but wo are not aware of any man amon t them who can be pointed out by Asmodeus” as a large property bolder on his individual account. The men who were the first to attempt to brln<* a Christian influence to bear upon the Maori, and who, in pursuit of their*holy purpose, ’were obliged to perform arduous journeys and to encounter dangers of which few of those surviving in colony the can form any adequate conception, should at any rate be, in their old age. exempt from thefearof insufficient me us to provide for them the comforts of life as they retire gradually from the active duties of the career they chose when it offered no inviting prospect to any but those who felt a hope of dispelling the heathen darkness that surrounded the Maori by introducing the glorious light of Christianity ; and who had every reason to expect the martyrdom that did indeed await some of their co-labourers.

That “official preferment” should fed upon the eons of the missionaries was to be expected. They had grown up amongst the Maoris, understood their language and traditions, and were naturally more trusted by natives than those white men whose avowed object in coming to the colony was monoy.makin-;. Until comparatively late years, they were the only educah 1 men in' the colony’, and, therefore, toe mo t suitable tor public trust! It is only rair they should remain in the positions they have been appointed to, uni 3 they show themselves unworthy or incapable. We are fully aware that the foregoing r- aa-ks will at first sight appear to clash with the convictions of some of our subscribers and irtonds, but we are satisfied that our desire to serve the interests of truth and justice will be recognised sooner or later, lu 13 our deity, as well as our earnest endeavour, to show all sides of every question to the utmost of our ability. It may be that, in doing so, we shall sometimes have occasion to run counter to opinions and ideas current in the district: but we have sufficient confidence in the practical good sense and love of turn play of the inhabitants of the Bay of Plenty to fearlessly pursue the course we honestly conceive to ba most conducive to the permanent prosperity of that part of tiie colony in which it is our lot to labour, even if the onour of our profession did not demand that we ehou.d be true to our convictions at all hazards.

It is sometimes the unpleasant duty of a Journalist to have to deal with matters purely personal, and we much regret that such a task has in manner been lately forced upon us. It will be within the recollection of our n ■ iers that not many weeks ago, at a meeting of the constituents of Mr G. E. Douglas, M.P.C., the proceedings towards the close of that meeti > took a somewhat amusing, butralher unbusinesslike turn. After a long address from tue member, Mr, or rather Captain (as he delights to be lied) Morris, of the Tauranga Rifle Volunteers, rose (as usual amidst the jeers of the audience) to remark that e was not satisfied with Mr Dougi is’s explauauon about £IOO, which it had been the object of t ie meeting to elucidate. After being answered, ne again stood up and repeated his question—_V hat about the £1Cl) ? Causing a general laugh. Re was answered a second time, with a similar result, for rising amidst much merriment and some uproar lie again enquired about the £IOO. uia kind of business was continued for some nne, and he enacted the roles of clown and Pantaloon to the very life. Wo omitt: i this part °. , e proceedings from our report partly out of -uanty to the gallant officer who had made such an exhibition of himself, but principally because he matter was not worth reporting. By so doing 1 appears wo have grievously offended, for the ,°® cer question on the afternoon. of our publishing day was to be frequently met about J\ e town in his customary afternoon state of 'tund complaining bitterly of the omission of his speech, denouncing the conduct of the Press, threatening to withdraw his powerful influence, slip the p-.per,” and crush the Bax ox 1 ' Plestv trA'^' 3555 " of these dire threats he has carried He has stopped his paper, and, nauthorised by his brother officers, withdrawn v? e p°mpany’s advertisements. Row, Captain orris is no doubt a very good grocer and provision dealer, but he makes a very poor officer, or we are informed by one of hia corps that , a spite of long and painstaking tuition he , ?et utte, *ly unable to drill his men ij.', f'k® Sergeant-Major at his elbow, inefficiency in a regiment of the line would ® , ea * ruc ‘i' ve of discipline ; but in this case it only n ers parade a sort of ‘ lark,’ the captain, to do ‘to Justice, joining in the merriment caused by comical mistakes. But although Captain whvf 18 * 8 * n re9 P ec f forbearing, he is not so J . re gard to the dignity of his commission, •uch, amongst civilians, be upholds with inflex-

chuJng I ' l*' %' U \* F °. itl that Httie children pm. Imvo cL<ire,}Tr' l n° f ivo!u h ” Covfain Nor-U ! t ®. aii V res 9 lnm » not as Mr, but soul above buttons 1 ” h ‘ S pos?e ' si<m ol ' » tho exultation K„ V ° 0:1,1 Bcarc clj imagine temped district and t * Lt ° L Major Huberts Irom the nii co'y "IVI iir™”"'! ‘!”' olrh ‘S =s?«JS'ivar-tt bo Warded b .!f- ra,!!iuct thafc could searedv man ” d tf becoming an officer and a gentieaeahW 19 a? ° wel . l * kf iown that he retains, a amst the expressed wish of the corps, a private orele ftT-M fc - emolument double fimt of the present drdl mstructnr, who has offered to perform m duties °f theoffi ■> without additional pay—.arv>fe!f Ul t fl ’ e 3 ° f *>?' t 0 the Sre- ( Wfib.v 1 for his oicn private affairs. Ld H a WOrd fco sa y a g ainst Mr Bradley, and take the pr ’eat opportunity of thanking n tor i e many i mrteous favours we th^rv 1 Yf* } r With tbe numeration of toese v fanes of character we may, for the p- 0 - .ent content ourselves; and ask our readers We h K r CaP - tf n Ebenezer &■ Morris would not have been w er o moderate the rancour of lug tongue than >f. U foul of a newspaper, in the trlaJedn? h ® ° “ ainl - v been worse tieated than his neighbours. His high military restrpinp? U \ a - h& f & ** le hi ™ merciful > and restrained him from attempting to crush the freedom of tne press with tho iron heel of parvenu But so it is _ There is a pinnacle in the hve- Ql men from which all progress is downwards and the Tauranga Bombastes Furioso, in the exhilaration of possessing a dignity to which he was unaccustomed, and for which he is utterly unfit has indulged the “ vaulting ambition which o.erleaps itself. the showman’s monkey, he has climbed too high, and the rest is “ Fadlis secensus avt-mi ’