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Hawke's Bay Times, Volume II, Issue 59, 14 August 1862, Page 1 (Supplement)

The following speech made by the member for Napier, in the debate on the above resolutions, we reprint from slips furnished us by the Advertiser ;— Mr. COLENSO felt almost powerless, after listening last night to that brilliant, noble, and manly oration of the hon. member for Ellesmere, an oration which he had not heard equalled in New Zealand—one too, devoid of that sickly sent" ientality they had hitherto heard so much of. lie was almost himself convinced by the oration that the hon. member was right and he was wrong, but with the schoolmaster Lambert, before Henry the VIII., he could conscientiously say, “lie might be silenced, but could not be convinced.” He took his stand as a practical man among the natives in all matters concerning them. The theory the I-,:n. member expounded was a most beautiful ore—golden, iris-hued, but, alas ! delusive. Ho would go heartily with it if bethought it couiu h: accomplished, but he was convinced that it was impossible, that it was Utop.an, and must prove a failure. He had noted several remarks of the hon. member for Ellesmere, and among them was the statement that the Maories had “grasped the mysteries of a lofty faith.” That was one of the greatest fallacies that could be. The “Maories had grasped the mysteries of a lofty faith” ! Why it was more than many of the students of the University which the hon. had left had done, more indeed, (he might take upon himself to say, without wishing to give offence) than half of this honourable assembly had done! The hon. member for Ellesmere had also alluded to the “constitutional lassitude the native chiefs enjoyed formerly.” lie believed the native chiefs of former days knew nothing of constituti- ' onal lassitude. It was the most active man who was always at the head of the tribe ; if he was not active he was soon put down. lie referred to two noted chiefs of the Ahuriri, who were put at the head of their tribes before their elder brothers because they shewed most energy, of whom the late Te Moananui was one. In a certain degree he allowed the intellectuality of the Maori race. The great check to that was their want of steadiness and of application. If they were such an intellectual race as they were said to be, they would be improving every day. They had reality, but not ideality; they could copy—so could the servile Chinese, —but could not invent. This was clearly enough seen in all their own works—whether building houses, hewing canoes, carving, tattooing, or weaving,—in their fables and songs —all from olden time ; in all deteriorating ; no one thing had the passing generation invented or improved, nor was there anything new worthy of notice. The hon. member had said, that “the introduction of Christianity had lowered the great chiefs”—such however was not the case, for it was iioi- tuo introduction or tins reception of Christianity which had lowered them—of that pure Christianity as taught by Jesus of Nazareth, and as recorded in the Gospel—but those adventitious matters—accidents he might say, tacked on to the same by the first Missionaries, which had done it. It was the false views of polygamy and slavery and divorce introduced by the whi e man; the chiefs were told they could not enter the church unless they put away all their wives save one. This they did; in many cases they burned away their wives, and bastardized their children ; and thus, being also forsaken by their slaves, the children died, and the principal chief became a poor labouring man! The hon. member had also said, “ the natives were a supremely juatice-loviim tjoonle.” Now he denied that they were a supremely justiceloving people. What is, and has been so termed

had much better be classed under the head of fear to tho superior being—whether he were an influential chief or a white man. Much had been also said by the hou. member, about the love of nationality, and of law and order. They do not themselves believe in nationality. It is utterly foreign to the genius of the people. “Nationality” and “love of law and order”—were two bug-bears, the very Scylla and Charybdis of the day. on the one hand he saw the bug-bear of “nationality,” and on the other hand there was the bug-bear of “law and order” among the natives. And tho only sure and safe way left the Government, was that of Ulysses of old—to stop their cars with wax, so as to be deaf to all such cries. Nationality among the natives, the natives would be the very first to scout. What else was it that had ever deluged this unhappy land with blood, but their determination not to be national ?—not to be a one united people. For it must not be forgotten, that while we view and speak of the New Zealanders as one people, they have ever viewed themselves as distinct (in their tribes) as the French and English. And such a spirit still existed—nay more, vigourously flourished ; and would as long as the people lived. As to “love of law and order”—the reports on tho table before them sufficiently answered that. He joined issue with the hon. member about “the small paltry scattered village runangas.” h rom them he believed all good was to come ; if from anything at present among them. Let the district runanga be for a time ignored ; they' would no doubt in time grow from tho germ—the village runanga. Then again the question from the hon. member. “How on earth are the eccentricities of those village runangas to be avoided ?” How ? by putting a careful pakeha to guide them. He quite agreed with the hon. member that something like the Encumbered Estates Court in Ireland would do some good. He had long thought so. He had done more; he had more than once pointed such out to the authorities, and he never could understand why- the Native Land Commissioners had not been usefully employed in this way—not for the purpose of Government purchasing, but in order to form an authentic book of records—a Doomsday Book—one highly useful for the future. The honorable member had truly' said, that “ the natives were in a state of distrust. “Distrust.” Yes, that was the very word, pregnant with meaning. They themselves spoke of themselves as being like a wild pig which a man comes on unawares at the edge of a forest or round a corner—he pricks up 4ul ears and stares. The man throws down faeftatoes then Jcumara, then corn, then bread, anti coaxes with his voice ; but after all this display jof/goodness the pig runs off. That was just a true state of the case. They had for some time had. a vast deal too much coaxing and petting. Last session, at Auckland, he had heard much said about “ teasing ” the natives, and of “ third-class-clerks,” but lie had since found that. Loth such had been continued and increased usque ad nauseam. As to the resolutions of the hon. member, when he (Mr. Colcnso) first saw them, he said, there was more in them than appeared at first sight. In truth they formed a most comprehensive major, containing his conclusion and a great deal more, and therefore the consequences (as was often the case) were very many and highly important. With regard to fhe first resolution he thought it very good, but they 7 had all heard, so often of one law and one people, that no one believed it. When the chiefs signed the Treaty of Waitangi, Capt. Hobson shook hands with everyone who did so, saying, “ We arc now one people.” (“Kn tahi ano tana Jca imi laid.”) That promise has not been fulfilled (hear). A ow the resolution in its integrity would do away with nearly the whole of the laws affecting the natives, as well as with very much, if not all, of (he Governor’s scheme of native policy. 1 To must confess he did not like the second resolution. It spoke much of privileges to be granted, but nothing of duties and responsibilities. The responsibilities and duties, as he took it, should come first (as in the cases of a child, a servant, or a younger brother) and then tho privileges: first, the good root, or tree, then the flowers and fruit. Duties before privileges. Teach them how to behave before you allow them privileges. He would ralher the second resolution should read (after the word “Colony”) “to render a full and equal responsibility and obedience to all laws and requirements.” At all events, duties and responsibilities should run pari passu with privileges. They, the whole Colony, wanted to see the “Majesty of the law” upheld, of which the hon. member had so justly and eloquently spoken, and Jiere he (Mr. Colenso) fully agreed with him. He, however, joined issue with the hon. member on the third resolution. He confessed he did not see now a recognition of the the first two resolutions “necessitated” the presence of natives in the General Assembly. It might, perhaps it would, pave the way, but did not “ necessitate.” And here he would crave the indulgence of the House while he gave in a few words his thoughts on first reading the third resolution. On reading that portion of it which referred to the presence of the Maori nobility in the Legislative Council; he had thought, at first sight, the meaning of the resolution of tho hon. member to be, that ho (the hon. member for Ellesmere) believed the natives possessed ancestry, birth, dignity, power, intelligence, oratorical ability', honesty of purpose, and fearlessness of expression; and that therefore he wished their presence in the Legislative Council; or, that the hon. member might have intended, (he, Mr. Colcnso, would mention it delicately) that all such things as ancestry', or birth, or dignity, or intelligence, or oratorical ability, or honesty of purpose, or fearless outspeaking, were wanting there (laughter). Further, this resolution spoke of “a fair representation in this,House” as a thing to be wished for for the natives. Now the cry out of door was, that the natives were belter represented than the whites (hear). In his opinion they were very fairly represented—if nut too much so. Did they not vote at elections ? Could they not increase their number of electors to almost any amount ? ■ . as not large sums of money yearly voted fw i them? 3 las not great, nay, more, the greatest attention ever been paid them in this House ? It was very well-known that the most able, and the best men of the House were their champions! If they think they are not fairly represented let them by all constitutional means seek

to become better represented. But tho natives themselves cared very little about it. And here it occurred to him to ask of those hon. members (particularly of tho hon. member tho Superintendent for Canterbury) why did they not begin at the beginning? Why did they not put the natives into the Pi’ovincial Council—say at Canterbury ? Such a practical lesson would have had more effect than oceans of theories or cataracts of speaking in this House, and (following in the track of (ho hon. mover,) would, no doubt, have done much towards removing the “distrust” which everywhere reigned. In conclusion, he would say, that he looked upon this scheme as Utopian and premature ; and by no means a step in the right direction. A long scheme of education was first necessary before they could put the nrtives in the position proposed. "He once more praised the hon. mover for his good intentions and for the very best motives ; but he had not lived among natives, and therefore really knew but little of them. It was however pleasing to find that his scheme and his speech were both alike without that sickly sentimentality, so ruinous to the real interests of the native, which had come to them from the North—that this was a Maori Colony, and that the set Hers were only, or mainly, here for the natives. It was his dut y first to oppose this resolution; and secondly, to call upon the Government to pause and consider ere they affirmed it; for, although carried, he felt assured it would prove to be utterly impracticable in the working, and then they would only have another stumbling block, and increase of distrust; for by carrying it, it could only hold out vain delusive hopes which could never be realized, and so become a new source of discontent to the Maori people. (Hear, hear.)