THE HAWKE'S BAY TIMES. NAPIER, THURSDAY, DEC. 4, 1862.

Hawke's Bay Times, Volume II, Issue 75, 4 December 1862, Page 2

THE HAWKE'S BAY TIMES. NAPIER, THURSDAY, DEC. 4, 1862.

Outrages and disturbances on the part of the Natives of this district, are again the order of tire day with us at Hawke’s Bay. Scarcely have the Maori Nobility! and Boyalty! ! of the Maori people returned from paying their allegiance to king Matutaera, at Waikato, than they commence to show their supreme contempt for the officers of her Imperial Majesty and her laws. Neither could less than this have been expected from them, seeing that previous to their departure they had given formal notice to the Civil Commissioner that they would have no more to do with the Queen’s Government or Magistrates. Our local intelligence will he found to furnish ample materials for intellectual exercise for the brains of all (if there be yet

any) who still cling to the idea that what the Maori is seeking is law and order, or that the insane course that has for so many months past been pursued towards them can ever result in anything other than ruin to the settlers, who are exposed to their outrages —infinite trouble [to the officers of justice—a constantly-increasing complication of the difficulty of dcalingy’with the' natives in an effectual manner—and their own ultimate destruction as a people. We are far from criticising the course usually taken by the Civil Commissioner with undue severity—that gentleman undoubtedly feels that he, as he has publicly'owned, is to enforce any decision he may come to if against a Maori, but we must, perforce, blame any and every one, be they individuals or collective bodies. Ministers or Magistrates, who accept RESPONSIBILITIES WITHOUT POWERS. To hold an office nominally for the performance of certain duties, which are entirely beyond the possibility of executing, is to occupy a false position, and one that should not be assumed. Such an office, instead of being to its possessor one of honor, becomes one of contempt, and this feeling spreads far beyond and above the particular office which is its cause, and involves every other, even to that of the Governor and the throne. If the natives are to be ruled (?) by the system of officers and salaries, Runangas and Native Magistrates—this, like every other system, requires the exercise of authority,— it is sheer folly to permit one kainga of natives to accept the “ institutions,” and the next to refuse them; or to permit, as in Hawke’s Bay, a district at first to accept it, and then, as soon as officers are appointed to these parts, to repudiate the whole affair, before even any decision adverse to the good pleasure of their honors was made by the officers of the Government. AVhen in other cases the adverse decision of a Runanga—albeit of their own race—has caused a whole hapu or tribe to forswear their allegiance to their Queen, and pass over in a body to the ranks of the rebels, there has at least been that excuse for them, but no such case as this has occurred here —in all instances where there has beon a point in dispute the Maori has had it decided according to his will, even though the laws were set aside for this purpose, and the money claimed taken out of the public purse. But there is a question of a most important nature to be asked for and answered. How far is this submission to savage will to proceed ? If the native race can now with impunity rob and outrage the European settler to the full extent of their pleasure, what is to prevent this pleasure from extending its demands, and seizing on flocks and herds, houses and lands ? If they can fell a settler to the earth, and drag him by the hair, as lately occurred to Shirley and to Harding, or inflict equally outrageous violence on the guardian of a Jail at his post, as occurred still more recently at Clive—what is to prevent them from taking the lives of the settlers, should they think proper to do so ? and if there does not exist the power' to capture and punish the guilty in the one case, could it be suddenly found and exercised in the other ? There is, even now, unfortunately, much nearer home, a very striking parallel to the events occurring amongst us, and which have been brought to pass much in the same way as the native policy is acting here. Each successive mail from the Mother Country brings fresh intelligence of outrages committed in Ireland, where the criminal is effectually protected by his fellows from the hands of justice, as the Maori is or may be here, while the loyal subject is forced to bear the outrage of the rebel, and feel the full force of the law in case of its breach on his part. In the following quotation from an Irish paper, if wo substitute “colonists” for “Grangemen,” “'rebel chiefs” for “priests,” and “Maori king” for “ Pope,” we shall see how close the parallel is even now, and how much more so it may become ;—■

“ The enlightened Government of England alone trembles at TTltramontanS arrogance, and cringes before a proud and alien priesthood. England’s Viceroy in Dublin bites sharply the loyal Orangemen, and consigns them to the dungeon if they dare celebrate the deliverance of their country from the “ Pope, brass money, and -woodenshoes but when Cullen and his assembled myrmidons outrage the Christian Sabbath and defy the law of the land the majesty of England neither lifts the finger nor wags the tongue. She basely gives up her authority and dares to attempt a palliation of an insult to our laws. Legal quibbles and unworthy excuses are resorted to to escape a collision with Cullen’s forces. When treason a few years since stalked abroad or skulked in the cabbage garden, imploring requests were made to the loyalty of the Orangemen to assist the Government in putting down rebellion ; hut now that their aid is not wanted they are threatened with pains and penalties, and the police are instructed to enforce the law-, and Magistrates are to show no mercy. But to conciliate the priests laws may be set aside, as in the case to which wo have referred when the Popish hierarchy mustered their impious hosts albeit neither nobility nor gentry patronised itie snow vy inuir presence, the Government instead of enforcing the law and forbidding the display of banners and party music take credit for having allowed a violation of the law praise themselves that no breach of the peace took place.” It has been the fashion with a certain class of Maori Doctors to refer to the policy adopted for the pacification of the Irish, and recommend a similar course with the Maori—to refer to a state of lawlessness that once existed there, as a parallel state of things to that of New Zealand, as though that had been a decided success. We suppose that such will now see their error, and he disposed to own that to yield to violence what is denied to submission is not the way to ensure respect for the law —that only one course i s open to a ruler or Governor, and that is,— to act with justice towards all —to enforce the penalties of the law against its transgressors—and not desist from such a course because of its difficulty.