THE HAWKE’S BAY TIMES. NAPIER, THURSDAY, JAN. 16, 1862.

Hawke's Bay Times, Volume II, Issue 29, 16 January 1862, Page 2

THE HAWKE’S BAY TIMES. NAPIER, THURSDAY, JAN. 16, 1862.

The all-absorbing native question continues to completely occupy the public mind, even to the exclusion of matters which, in its absence, would of themselves be sufficient to create a considerable degree of interest; even the election of a member of the Provincial Council, which is to take place within the next fortnight, has, up to this time, failed to divert attention from the subject of Sir Geo. Grey’s Native Policy and its effects (whether certain or probable) on the future progress of the colony. The reflection often made by human vanity on the realization of evil foreboding—“ w*e could see that it would be so,” is, after alb but a poor consolation ; the knowledge that parties have done all in their power (feeble and hopeless though their efforts may have been) to stay the progress of mistaken policy, and avert its evils, and if only the warning note has been sounded, even without apparent benefit, there is at least the satisfaction of a consciousness of duty performed. We cannot agree with our contemporary the Hawke’s Bay Herald in the tenor of the argument that, “ because the thing is done,” and “ that it is out of the question to expect Sir George Grey to withdraw so important a documentas the programme of hispolic}-which he has issued, and reverse his course of procedure” ; that the time for urging the many objections which may be brought against it is past.” By no means, for by the same rule everything that is “ done, and cant be helped,” in the popular form of expression, must be passed over in silence, no matter how great the error that has been committed is. 'We must say we were never so vain as to suppose that anything we could say would exercise any influence on the nature of the policy to be brought to bear on the natives, yet we have always felt it to be our duty to point out such defects as we have been unable to avoid seeing in it during its developement up to the present period.

It cannot fail to be observed by the public that in the same proportion as the new policy and its effects are developed, the objections to it are found to increase. In the short space of three days the views of our contemporary have undergone a decided change. Many drawbacks are apparent on Tuesday, which were not to be seen on the Saturday before, and why ? Simply because the Hon. Crosbie Ward had unfolded it a little more in a letter addressed through Mr. Donaldson to the working men, whom it will be remembered, had forwarded to him a series of resolutions passed at a Public Meeting, and which will be found in our last issue. The reply referred to is as follows ;

Gentlemen, —I have the honor to acknowledge jour letter of the 3rd inst., enclosing a list of resolutions passed at a meeting of the working classes on the previous evening. I have to express may regret that your communication did not reach me till my return from the country, last evening, and has therefore remained so long unanswered.

In reply I-have the honor to inform you that the Government do not propose to take into their hands the management of Native lands but to leave that privilege to the owners of the land, that is the natives themselves, subject only to such limitation sas are imposed by the necessities of the case.

One of these limitations, I need scarcely remind you, must be a restriction from dealing in any permanent manner with the land prior to the adjustment of all claims of the title amongst themselves and the determination of all boundaries. A system of purchasing or leasing not only before the survey but even the ascertainment of title on

the part of the vendors or lessors, would end very quickly in utter confusion and would resultV to the great prejudice of those who might venture te to buy or to lease.

The management of their lands being left to the Natives themselves and all steps towards the free disposal of their lands being necessarily to be taken by themselves I would recommend that the substance of the requirements of the working classes of Ha wke’s Bay should be embodied in a me° morial to be presented to the District Runam-a upon its hrst assembling, praying that body to take steps to attain the end which you desire and which it must be tor the permanent advantage of both races to attain as speedily as is consistent with safety. I have, &c„ Fox ourselves we do not know that this reply teaches us anything new. It was equally clear to us before as since we have read it, that the yielding of the management of the unalienated lands to the natives involved, the points so plainly brought out by Mr. Ward. These are in other words : The Governor having given over the management of the native lands to the Pamangas, is by that act in a great measure pledged to give eftect to their decisions. The laud being to a large extent already leased to runholders, is so far locked up from the agiicultuialist, as there is no reason to suppose that the Pamangas will eject those in possession if they are willing to agree to their terms. The profits of the runholder allowing a laiger margin for rent (for temporary periods) than those of the agriculturalist—the runholder will be able to compete with and keep the small farmer out of the market. The management of the lands being in the hands of the natives, renders all such steps as those taken by the late meeting futile, the only available course of action being that pointed out by Mr. A\ ard—to memorialize the district lainangas and humbly pray them to yrant our requests. Lastly, it is not difficult to see that the individualization of title will be a tardy process indeed, beset with difficulties innumerable, from the clashing claims of rival owners—difficulties so great as in many cases to render their final settlement impossible, within any reasonable time, and rendered greater by the iact of the Governor s having given up the ends of the tangled skein, which until now he has held in his own hand. Thus we see that the only redeeming point in the new scheme of policy the opening up thenativelands to an agricultural population,” eludes our grasp—proves a veritable phantom, the instant we we attempt to seize it, it vanishes “ into thin air.” A\ e readily admit that the “ thing beincr done, it would be better for us to see an agricultural than a pastoral population on the natL c plains. However, we cannot see much room to hope that this will be the case, and further, from all our experience of the Maori character, we would hesitate to advise any of our friends to hold a farm under a native landlord. It might reasonably be supposed that, in the immediate vicinity of the capital, when the first experimental trials of tire new regime were made, that some satisfactory results should begin to be apparent, but this is not the case. Tire fear of an inevitable war with the pro-king Maories is more perceptible in the columns of the Auckland press by each succeeding Mail, and those last to hand treat tire matter in a more dubious style than any we have seen since the advent of our new Governor. We call attention to an extract from the Southern Cross, which we give elsewhere, in corroboration of these remarks, which extract tends to confirm our uniformly expressed views, amLas the Cross is the most moderate of the Auckland press, and uncon. nected with the Government, its statements may be considered as worthy of some confidence, especially as it has always been favorable to some of the details of the new policy, as for instance, the legalizing direct dealings with natives for land. Certain it is, that the Ivingites show no signs of submission. By their acts they clearly prove that they consider their king* suen dc facto, and not a mere representation of their desire for law and order. Those on the Taranaki coast continue to hold the land they have taken from us, as their property “ by right of con-

quest” have cut a race-course there, and invited the Taranaki settlers to compete with them on the turf, they being the while armed with tomahawks. They threatened to burn all the growing crops of grass seed, of many hundred pounds in value, the instant any of it is cut; and by their whole course of conduct show their determination not to submit to British rule and their readiness to fight again should an attempt be made to enforce their submission.

But we will not pursue this theme further at this time, our conviction being that at the lest there is but a surface loyalty, liable to yield at any moment, under the extra pressure of a real or fancied grievance, and yet this is all the loyalty that can reasonably be expected to be purchased by money, whether it be £50,000 per annum or fifty times that sum.