NEW ZEALAND.

Hawke's Bay Times, Volume IV, Issue 197, 21 October 1864, Page 1 (Supplement)

NEW ZEALAND.

(From the Westminster Review.J (Continuedfrom our last.) From this point of our intercourse with the natives commences that distrust of the Government, which in the end ripened into open dislike and rebellion. The present war is traceable, step by step, up to this unfortunate reservation of power, which at once placed the Governor, theoretically supposed to be the chief protector of native interests, in the position of chief bargainer for the much coveted land, buying cheap and selling dear. After two-and-twenty years of unintermitted attack upon what was called “ the Government brokerage,” the exclusive right of pre-emp-tion was abrogated by law, to the great triumph of those who were mainly interested in the welfare of the native race, and notwithstanding the protest of those who considered the tax which had been so long wrung from the aboriginal landowners as a legitimate addition to the provincial revenues. But the evil had been consummated, for the ill-will of the natives had been almost irretrievably aroused. It was but idle talk assuring them that the profit derived from the retailing of the land was indirectly carried to their account through the expenditure upon public works, and the increased value given thereby to the lands which remained in their hands for sale ; for they perfectly well knew that value would be no more than ideal where there was not a market price for the commodity; and they learned by experience that the promises thrown in by Government as make-weights to the price were not fulfilled. Our readers may be surprised when we inform them that the whole of the land commencing at Kaiapoi, in the Middle Island, and extending south to Molyneaux, amounting to about 22 mih lion of acres, was acquired from the natives bv a payment of £2,000, with an assurance given bv the Commissioner, on behalf of the Government, that they must not regard the £2,000 as the principal payment, but must allow for (he benefits they would gain from schools erected for their education, from medical attendance, and the geneneral hospitable care of the Government. These lands, said the Commissioner himself (at the time Native Minister) in the House of Representatives, had passed to the Government; but the promise had never been properly fulfilled.

It would be unfair, however, to leave entirely without notice, the alleged motive for the preemptive reservation ; good in itself, though based on assumption which was soon discovered to be groundless. It was said, and believed by those unacquainted with the country, that Europeans, if allowed to purchase directly from the natives] would take advantage of their inexperience, and succeed in despoiling them of their possessions for a nominal consideration. The plea fell into disuse ; for it was soon discovered that a native could hold his own in a bargain against the smartest European. All he needed was an open market, in which to get the best price he could for himself ; but this was the very advantage denied him bv the Government.

Only the northern island was acquired by treaty ; the middle and southern islands were at once taken possession ot by proclamation. We dispensed with formality, being apprehensive that the French might be beforehand with us. But having thus secured the acquisition, we went through the process of acquiring the middle island over again, by virtue of a treaty with certain natives residing at Cloudy Bay. There is something not quite satisfactory”™ the exemplification of an over-worldly maxim, that “it is well to have two strings to one s bow ;” and this, coupled with the fact _ot Governor Hobson having brought down a stall'of Government officers with him from Sydney, though necessarily uncertain whether or not the treaty would be" agreed to, seems to indicate that the annexation of New Zealand to the empire was a forgone conclusion. It is, moreover, remarkable that no stipulation for the abolition of slavery should have been inserted in the treaty. Some of our transatlantic cousins would be not. ill-pleased to learn that the “peculiar institution” existed for years unnoticed in a remote nook of the Queen’s dominions. The only emancipation on an extensive scale that has ever taken place, was at the instance of the missionaries ; and even their efforts were crowned with only partial success. Such was the arrangement under which we obtained the sovereignty of the country, and secured to the Government a monopoly in the trade for Maori lands. In return we engaged to impart to the aborigines all the rights and privileges of British subjects. The advantages we made the uiost of; the duties we forgot. The fruit of it was not long in ripening. The very first purchase effected by the Government was the cause of bloodshed. The facts must be disposed of in a finv words.

In June, 1810, when Mr. Shortland, the Colonial Secretary, was at Monganui, obtaining the consent of the natives in that quarter to the treaty of cession, be met with a chief named Noble, who represented himself as the rightful owner of the lands in that quarter, while the occupiers claimed in right conquest, some thirty years before. Taking advantage of the dispute about title, Mr. Shortland concluded a purchase; the inevitable result was a fight; about thirty were slain, the Monganui party being the victors. This was but the first instance out of many, distributed over a period of twenty years, and finally leading to the war in which we are now engaged. The conduct of the Government towards the colonists was as vexatious as it was unjust towards the natives. Having founded Auckland, as a rival to Wellington, and attracted a large number of settlers by declaring it the capital of New Zealand, it then proceeded to extract tho uttermost farthing from them by a very questionable expedient. The Company were offering for £IOO one hundred acres of country land, with a town acre given in. Tho Government, in order to mve artificial value to their own land, brought Into the market not nearly so much as was required to meet the demand, and thus succeeded in obtaining for town allotments from £3OO to £I6OO per aero •

ginal native owners. But a still greater mistake was committed. • The land-fund, instead of being set apart, and strictly reserved for its legitimate purposes—viz., immigration, roads, and the making further purchases of native lands—was treated as ordinary revenue; not as capital to be made reproductive, but as income, to bo swallowed up by salaries and departmental expenses. It will presently bo shown that the colonists themselves when they obtained the power, to amend, only perpetuated the error. J

The Government, apparently deeming that the monopoly ol land sales was not sufficiently secured to them by the exclusive right of pre-emption now proceeded to declare war against the'old settlers, who had purchased land,from the‘natives before the annexation of New Zealand to the Empire, and who, if left undisturbed, might become rival vendors. To borrow an expression from Dr. Martin, “ they attempted to found a new colony on the ruins of the old decrying land speculators in order to monopolize their trade ; even the .Government officers, with the *3ecrctary at the head of them, taking advantage of their official position to job, and in a manner so irregular as to draw a rebuke from the Secretary of State for the Colonies. The feudal doctrines that all title tol land derives from the Crown, was brought to bear against the landowners. This, in itself not quite an incontrovertible proposition,* at all events did not apply'to the purchases in question.*. This position in law of thosa who had bought from the independent Maori before 1840, corresponded exactly with that of an Englishman who might have acquired an estate from a French Canadian before Lie annexation of Canada, or from a Dutchman before that of the Cape. In the three cases alike, private rights of property existing! at 3 the time of the cession of the country would remain intact. Nevertheless, an ordinance was made by the Legislative Council of the polony ‘ (composed of the Governor, three officials, and three nominees) confiscating the greater portion of these acquisitions, and empowering the Governor to give Crown grants for the remainder. Hence arose an acrimonious controversy, varied by occasional litigation, which for years made bitter the position of successive Governors, and entailed ruin upon the great number of the aggrieved. It was alleged m extenuation ol so high-handed a measure, that estates bought for “ a hatchet, or a blanket ;” and that the property which had been acquired, was upon a scale prejudicial to the latent interests of the community. Pains were taken to give colour to the allegation by carefully confusing the bond fids land claimsf about which alone was there any serious question, and which were of moderate extent with certain imaginary purchas mainly by Sydney speculators, defined after the fashion of the New ZealandJCompany, by degrees of latitude and longitude,[or perhaps by the expression, “as far as a cannon-shot can reach.” Ihe extent, however, of these acquisitions appears to be immaterial; the simple question beim* whether a native tribe could convey a valid title to land fairly pin chased from them during their independence. It appears to us t lhat nothing less than an act of the Imperial Parliament could destiny titles thus obtained; and that Governor Hobson’s ordinance was void, on the ground of repugnancy. But it was none the less effective, for Chief Justice Martin, in a judicial decision’ stated that “Asa Briti.-h subject could not be allowed to plead the invalidity of British Inw'in a British court of justice, so a colonial subject of the Crown could not bo allowed to plead the invalidity of colonial law- in a colonial court.” Without impugning a dictum from such high authority, wo may observe that such is not the ordinary opinion of jurists; and that there is at least one instance of the validity of a law having been successfully impeached in a colonial court.

The ordinance limited the claimants, as it was thought proper to term the owners, to a maximum (save in exceptional cases) of two thousand five hundred and sixty acres. The question remained, what was to become of the surplus, where the estate was larger in extent. Whereupon a curious doctrine was broached, viz., that the natives by selling the land, had divested himself of his own title, but that the .European buyer could not acquire that title ; argal , the land" became demesne of the Crown,J a somewhat startling extension of the rule that a felon can acquire property for the Crown, but not for himsclt.

J-he Government, whilst inveighing against greed, showed its own disinterestedness by absorbing the balance I3ut a dangerous effect was produced on the minds of the natives. Unable to appreciate the subleties of legal distinctions, they regarded with a jealous eye the expropriation of those to whom they had sold land in favour of a new authority which had never purchased. They could see nothing in it but an arbitrary act of violence. If the Queen, said they, <e treats her own children so, how will she treat us ?” They sided with their old friends, and determinately resisted the first attempt ot the Government to occupy.§ In return for this, for the good offices w ere mutual, the claimants, who woidd much rather that the surplus went back to the natives than to the Government, were careful to open their eyes to another view of the case, viz., as argued by Mr. Terry : That the' land -mist he the property either of the buyer or the seller; it cannot belong to a third party. If a claim is altogether invalid, surely the land will remain the pro- * Vide Allen on Prerogative. t This is one of the most curious feat-ires in the story of the claims. It appears that payments to the value of upwards of £95,000 were made by Europeans to natives for the purchase of land. Yet this sum, though it includes all that can he ascertained with tolerable certainty bv no means represents the whole amount which was paid away.— Mr. Commissioner Bell’s Report , July, 1362 No claim acknowledged and maintained, by the natives was of such an extent as to justify the Government in disallowing it, on the ground of its extent or value making* its recognition ■’ prejudicial to the latent interests of thecominanity.’ It appears from an official return that flve persons laid claim to 2G tracts ofland, estimated in the aggrogate, at 7,950.000 acres; hut that of these live persons four never made any attempt to substantiate their claims’ and that the fifth does not appear to have made good his claim to a single acre. On the other hand. It is official!v reported that out of 700 claims which had bee Commissioners, only four or flve had'been"disputed * Stanley’s authority has been adduced In auprort of this doctrine. If the despatch in question bo referred to, it will be found that ho reasons hypothetically, being carefulto restrict hlms If to the terms of the cae/kS

party of the aborigines; so ought -whatever portion that is disallowed hy the Commissioners to revert to them, by the same rule of equity,—

an argument which was deemed unanswerable by the sellera.

Bloodshed was spared, in this instance, through timely concession; but shortly after occured the fatal massacre at Wairau, proceeding from a dispute about land, claimed by the Company, but of which no valid purchase had been effected. The natives, under their chiefs, Rauparaha and Rangihaeta, finding the surveyors on the ground, requested them to desist. No regard being paid to the demand, they carefully removed all property out of the huts, earned it into the surveyors’ tents, and then set fire to the huts, observing they had a right to do as they pleased with their own. The surveyors returned to Nelson, and procured from the police magistrate a warrant against the chiefs for arson. The Government brig was then in port; the magistrate himself with Captain Wakefield, the Company’s agent, several of the principal gentlemen of the settlement, and about forty labourers, all armed, proceeded in her to the Wairau to execute the warrant. A collision ensued; Rangihaeta’s wife was shot in the melee the Europeans were over-matched, but the gentlemen stood their ground, were taken prisoners, and tomahawked in revenge.