THE HAWKE’S BAY TIMES. NAPIER, THURSDAY, JUNE 19, 1862.

Hawke's Bay Times, Volume II, Issue 51, 19 June 1862, Page 2

THE HAWKE’S BAY TIMES. NAPIER, THURSDAY, JUNE 19, 1862.

“ On the 28th the Native Chiefs began to show symptoms of uneasiness, and I found it would be impossible to keep them in good humour for business much longer; therefore, at their unanimous request, I agreed to close this,'our first session, in the evening, which I did, just before 4 o’clock.”— Official Document, And so terminates the first act of the melodrama or farce of the Maori mock Parliament, as performed at the Bay of Islands. Three days of acting the legislator was found to be quite enough to exhaust the patience of the actors, or rather two days, for we are told that “on the 27th the real business of the session commenced.” They were, however, very probably almost tired at the first, on account of the rehearsals they had to submit to ; for, “ having been schooled the night before,” “ they soon became masters of the subjects,” and so were already prepared to go through their performance. The ac-’ count (published in the Maori Messenger) of this “ solemn mockery” is much too extended to be transferred to our columns, neither do we suppose that one in a hundred of our readers would be disposed to wade through the whole were we to publish it; the aim of its concocters has evidently been to approximate the “ Maori ruuanga” to the Provincial Councils of the colonists, and lienee we are presented with a list of documents enough to make the poor Maori chiefs porangi. But there was one consolation to the Civil Commissioner to cheer him in his hopeless task of making the Maories understand what it all meant, and this was the knowledge that they could imitate what they were shown to do, and say what they were told to say ; hence the heavy drilling they received under the hands of “ Mr. Williams, the magistrate of the hundred.” It would be a profitless task to analyze the speeches made and the motions passed, satisfactory as it all was to the Civil Commissioner, but one of these latter is almost too striking to be overlooked, and .(supposing it to be the genuine offspring of a Maori brain, which is, to say the least, extremely doubtful, all circumstances being considered } it shows them to be as apt in voting their own pay as some of their pakeha neighbors. “ Nothing,” so runs the report, “ could convince them that they w r ere on an equality, as members of the Runanga, w r hile there w r as an inequality of salary. The salaries of constables and wardens, they remarked, were equal, and why should not theirs be ? They could not comprehend how it was that a constable should be paid more than an assessor.” The Civil Commissioner considers the argument a credit to their understanding. The following was the resolution arrived at on the question in the Committee of the whole Runanga—- “ That the committee having taken into consideration the difference in the salaries proposed for the members of the Runanga, are of opinion that all the salaries should be alike, inasmuch as the salaries proposed for the wardens are alike ; those for the kareres are also alike ; the committee also desire to record their opinion that His Excellency the Governor be (?) requested to increase the salary of an assessor to .£2O (twenty pounds) per annum. It will not be matter of surprise to the public that the Maori chiefs understood the question of payment for their services, else why were they there ? “Doubtless,” some of the Government organs maysay, “ from their desire for ‘ law and order.’ ” Perhaps so, just a little, but something more from their desire of the pakeha’s money. At all events, it would have been better to have permitted this question of salaries to have rested during, the first session, and then we might have had a little more faith in their wish for “ law and order,” which with the accompanying payment will doubtless be acceptable to them, but without it would be \

considered worthless. A little more patience with the above and other absurdities (albeit expensive ones) must be exercised by the colonists. There can be no doubt that all llftge things will be waffi sifted by the General Assembly ivhen it meets - (for it is not unlikely that the disturbances in the North will cause its further prorogation, although,there is little reason to doubt it will be held at Wellington). The members for the Southern Provinces will not per. mit the new native policy to pass unquestioned, or even with a mere formal opposition, seeing that that is tHe great question with the South, and even now endangers the unity of the colony. The Government party, however, feels no alarm, as there is no organised opposition. The New Zealander takes courage fiom the fact that “ the great leader of the party"’ “ is engaged attending to his private affairs ; olntr ex-ministers are similarly absorbed f there!--re there is no fear to be entertained by I & Co. of a mmisterialcmis. But the fact is, the opposition to the native policy has slumbered, from the supposition that these things were in the hands of the Governor alone, and that opposition would be futile, as it could not force him to change his policy, and might be productive of evil consequences by obstructing him; but this is not so now that we have officially learned that native allairs are, as well as oilier matters, in the bauds of the people’s responsible representatives. When we falsely supposed we had no control, we had no Impe ; but now we find the question in our power, public opinion will be brought to bear upon it. The, pity is that this much was not known long oga; had it been, wvuid the Fox parly have been now in power ? We opine not. Could we persuade ourselves that the course pur-nod In- Mr. F,,\- -since placed in j power was the be’ieved hv him to be j the best, we sbou’d have nothin? to mv j against him—we sb viM nerelmee still feel j it a duty to exoosn the poling nod its evils, but it is now the map as w’« 11 ns the ™ea*vres that must be condemned. Mr. Fox has years ago gwen to the world opinion of the true and m-oner course fo be r>nr=ned toward the aboriginal race—the sentiments are tho«e of a eVar.« ; gVe<l p-dMcian . nr) q be has done e-en nmre Cmu this, be has himself condemned the whole line of policy be has now’ pursued in words perbans move strong than any used by bis opponents. That he can have forgotten all this is impossible ; that he can suppose it was not the truth, and can really bei’eve the contrary now, is equally impossible ; one other supposition only remains, which is, that his actions are now so counter to his principles then because it suits his purpose that it should be so.