THE BAY OE PLENTY TIMES. “The spirit of the times shall teach me speed.” KING JOHN, ACT IV. WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 1873.

Bay of Plenty Times, Volume II, Issue 129, 26 November 1873, Page 2

THE BAY OE PLENTY TIMES. “ The spirit of the times shall teach me speed.” KING JOHN, ACT IV. WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 1873.

Now that wo have passed through tho diHeront phases of political excitement attendant upon our Provincial elections" we would invito our readers to review tho occurrences of the last few years, and from the past to draw a lesson as to what our future poi'cy should be. We need not repeat what is patent to every colonist, that the one great evil that has retarded the progress of the colony, and the Northern i sland in particular, has been tho “ Native difficulty.” AVe will not attempt to go into the question as to whether the war, re-opened by Sir George Grey in 1863, was necessary or warranted ; or whether the system of confiscation, initiated, we believe, by Mr Domett’s unpractical Government, and adopted by the succeeding Ministries, under the leaderships of Messrs Whitaker, Weld, and Stafford, was wise, statesmanlike, or politic. Of one thing we are sensible, and every taxpayer iviioww 1 u to his cost, that Vv'c became saddled with a debt of over three millions of money, with little, indeed, to show ou the other side. This fact alone forces upon the mind of every individual possessed with common souse, the belief that our statesmen in those days committed a grave mistake. *

We are the more convinced of thin when we look back on the policy pursued by the present Government. While on the one hand, they have shown tho natives that we are able to suppress, m their own wild country, combinations of savage tribe?, whose one great object appeared to be rapine and murder; they have, on the other hand, manifested such a sincere desire to conciliate the irritated feeling of those of the chiefs, who believed they were acting for their country’s good; that they'have gained over many who arc now "fast friends of tne pakeha, but who were, a year or two ‘ l S°» our m ° s t active and bitter opponents. We have no doubt that we shall bo met by the remark that the means bv which this has been attained have been through the, to the Maori, potent ami seductive aliments ot u Hour and sugar.” For the sake of argument, we are prepared to grant this, and even more —but the stubborn and undeniable fact remains ; w © ar © a t peace. The country, we imagine, would much rather pay five or ten thousand pounds per annum for flour and sugar, than one hundred thousand for the pleasure of being shot down, or tomahawked by a lot of naked savages to say nothing of the evils and demoralisation of an internecine war. We need not paint the harrowing picture of homesteads in ashes, and the labours of years ruthlessly destroyed. The reality is known, alas too well, by many a hard-working and industrious settler."

It has been said that the wonderful success of the present Government is attributable to the improved circumstances of the colon} r owing to the increased price of wool. Piuaucially speaking there is no doubt of this, but we fail to see how the price of wool has in any way affected tae native policy ; ou the other hand, wo must all admit that the present peaceful state of the country has assisted great!v in our present prosperity, and has given every confidence to the lenders of money at home, to advance funds necessary to the carrying out of the large public works in which the colony is now engaged. To our mind the country owes much to Mr McLean’s wise management of native affairs, and we arc not singular in this belief. The “ Southern Cross ” of a late date, in speaking of native nows from the Waikato, says:—‘'"After all is nob the waiting policy and peace better than the rash policy of war F There can be but one reply.” It is our intention to pursue thesubject on a future occasion, and to fake an early opportunity- of laying before the country, our own grievance in reference to another branch of the present Government’s policy, as ailed mg tins particular district-

' It will bo perecivea tmit the libatnct Ili]ivv iy j Board bas adjourned its appeals until certain i members of line Board arc satisfied on some legal

omt*. Te understand. a:--,;, t n <;.,, ... , ?"’■ ini l ’ is- ilia re?:?;: NBm B; m ■,? m.v a I ! I J '-‘I tho rate ?fruck at t'.<> annu.l f • (1 of r;!'-p ircrj, which lie ■■.>:;■• i fim-; - he, ns. cu-.urman, not wishing to ahl ie * hi? IV l.i CLiSC. I-ROM the mimi-i! report of the p.'?Tira>(erlv.teuerai it mp; that tile total ntiaib.'r of I't'ors de?p:i! ched from the various p mllce? in the colony during the you- ending the 31-}, December, 1572, w.-is 3,370,170. Of that number: 2,591,609 a-ere wnhm the ml my ; 20 *>,BBl were scat, to Ine I Hired Kingdom ; aud 15T,031 to the Australian col • mes ; the total wit ’rout the c- don v being -175, Sail, dhe numbers reeo 5v t d during ihe ‘•'one time were : fatal, 3.555.073 —300, ISO of vmieh cama from the United Kingdom; 195,614 Irom Australian colonies ; total fr sm foreign place?, without New Ze dand, 512,225; total within Jfetv Zealand, 3,0/S,SIS. The nevv-paoers despatclu-d during she same tine were: Total, 1,613,409 ; total beyond the colony being 331.23 a j total within the colony, 1,309,176. The numbers receive 1 wore ; Total. 2,761,682 ; from btvoad the colony, 1,102,202 ; within the colony 1 ,-605,430.