THE CONDEMNED MURDERESS

Hawke's Bay Times, Volume 7, Issue 374, 7 May 1866, Page 2

THE CONDEMNED MURDERESS

(Prom the Hawke's Bay Times, 26£hApril.)

Referring to a recent article having reference to the trial before a civil court and conviction of those Natives concerned in the East Coast murders, in which we expressed our approval of the course so far pursued by the Government, —inasmuch as all grounds for complaints are by this means removed from the most ultra Maori sympathiser,—we have yet to express our indignation against a party of this class (happily, we believe, a small one) who yet endeavour to step between those murderers and their doom, in order to avert the latter, and turn these worse than savage beasts again loose upon the Colony. Surely it cannot be urged for them that, at their re-trial, any possible circumstance or idea that could tell in favor of their reprieve was ignored, as, on the contrary, the Judge himself almost acted as a counsel for them, in bringing forward points that even their own advocate considered unnecessary. The investigation, indeed, was of almost unexampled patience, and it resulted, as it could only do, in their condemnation. But their lives are yet spared, and we are at a loss to account for so impolitic a course on the part of His Excellency, While the execution of the sentence is deferred, there is room for the philo-Maori party to hope for their reprieve, and we accordingly read of petitions addressed to His Excellency, praying for this on the ground that they were the victims of a fanaticism whose leader has, though in the hands of the Governor, been permitted to live, and that by consequence it would be wrong to punish them and spare him. The ostensible parties to the particular petition referred to are persons of the Native race, but we need hardly say that it is altogether unlikely that it had its origin with them; in fact, those best acquainted with such petitions know that usually, the Maori is but an instrument in the hands of their real originators and promoters. We do not justify the

Governor in his treatment of the arch-impos-ter, Te Ua, —the acknowledged originator of the Hau-hau superstition. Our opinion on this matter has been already expressed, and we have not found any reason for its modification, He fell into the hands of the authorities suspected of being concerned in the perpetration of certain barbarous murders on the West Coast, and was well-known to.be the founder and propagater of a vile delusion that has cost the Colony untold treasures of blood and wealth and instead of being at once put upon his trial for his crimes, he becomes the favored guest of Vice-royalty, greatly to the surprise of his own people, ahd the unmitigated disgust of the friendly natives. But all this does not say one word for the now doubly convicted murderers Whakatane and Opotiki, who now only await the Governor’s assent to their doom, though it has no doubt tended to keep alive in their minds a hope or an expectation of pardon—a pardon which we have too much reason to fear His Excellency, if it be only possible, will be quite ready to bestow. We will not now pursue the theme. Even while we write it may be that the news of His Excellency’s action may be at band, and before these lines go to press we may be able to inform our readers whether his decision has confirmed the sentence of the law, or whether it has restored once more to liberty the twice-condemned murderers of poor Fulloon and the good Yolkner.