SELF-RELIANCE.

Hawke's Bay Weekly Times, Volume 2, Issue 93, 12 October 1868, Page 245

SELF-RELIANCE.

(Trom the Evening Post, 24th September.) Coloitel Eennt has Bucceded in passing ’a : resolution, in the Upper, House, to the effect that his Excellency be petitioned to cause the Militia Act of 1865 to bebrougbt into operation in the North Island. Should this motion .have the: desired ..effect^" 1 formation of Militia corps in each JfF tlr| provinces -will be proceeded with, the act' ! providing that all militiamen of the first , class shall be enrolled and prepared for any emergency that may arise. However distasteful, in the present distressed state of the colony, the proposed enrolment might appear to the great bulk of the public, who would scarcely relish the lobs of time and therefore expense it would naturally entail, .it must be borne in mind that such contingencies are simply the fruits of the ‘ “ self-reliant policy’’—not, self-reliant policy as suggested by Mr Weld when Premier of New Zealand,' but that of the present Government, Viz.,' ajpenny-wise and pound foolish one, and totally inadequate to cope ’ with the difficulties with which we always had to contend in native affairs—difficulties which, St was well/known when the Ministry- of the day took Office, would in', all,' probability occur.- Mr Weld’s self-reliance was /embodied in a few words; fifteen hundred well nrmedand disciplined men kept as a standing army,' ancl capable of taking the f fiield at a moment’s hotice. The proposal at first waslooked' Upbn by some people as extravagant, aiid one which would entail ? tod great ah expenditure upon the colony. ; It was laid aside, but the word self-reliance was still the shsidow alone being -‘there;?but notTthe- substance? /Before de- * dining- to j receive- any further /assistance ~ froin England, some reliable force to replace tlie 'lmperial -trootwi ’should Bave been raised. 'Recent events have proved- how -Absurdly and expensively, inadequate to -sudden emergencies, arrangements for de- . fence sueh'as made lately by the Ministry must be. Men arenotto be "obtained in New 'for war purposes at a moment’s notice ; and if d certain number, •as ; was the case latelyj are' at all got together, themature of their usual occupations 1 and) the' reasons' which drove - them to ' voluhteer, [are'sueh as to render 5 them of Very little real service. The last levies forwarded totheFrontfrom-Wellington had ‘ - hearly'two months* experience in/harness before Gob Mo6hhell' t took ? theiß.y to the that Afficer COTroborates in ; r his;despatch what we bear on all'sides JbonIcerniing/their utter inefficiency. Common - discipUne;:)ahd,?pl)ediencei-to orders, in a . great many-cases,/ appear, to have been -. entirely-overlooked;' ;• offioer states Ihat ’ he >coixld not ) prevail cover ii .. the ibushwhen ihtfcafekied/-■ by an -enemji debidedly inferior in number*: -’The raic ,iU^n;theWgroggeHeß, : lately/;made ; atth(

tof proyejthb utter amongst , / fre J&e rrieansj'oi self-reliant policy. -:Such|policy*a^ i: riof ! exist. <nTlTe: Government appear:to :'^t^ejraing^t^^f^ieoufiuu>ut^iga|^pxei(ie -; remarked, tbe want of organization at bead BKVs4^lSf^w??>V v :&Ri»fo},! %*•: ■■'■ *; iv 3

.alternate preponderance-'of civil find military powers on tho which a drunken ;soldier is allowed almost with jimpunity. tobeard his. officers,f are difficulties w;ith- which commander would ,find .it almost impossible to contend What, for instance, has been done to those men of the Armed Constabulary who;mu; tinied and insultedtheir officer, Major Hunter,i at.'the'Turo Turo Mokai affair? The Government took no notice of it, but to this day tliose very men are under the same command. r Jhe new levies are not subject to-theparticles of war, and they know, it; the farcical powers given into the hands, of their officers being' almost a dead letter. Perhaps when : Colonel Haultain returns from Patea Borne member will request that an unvarnished account of what he experienced and saw be furnished to the House.

(Prom the Wellington Independent, 24th. Sept.) It .'will be seen from our report of the proceedings in the Legislative Council on Tuesday last, (hat Colonel Eenny carried his motion for an address to his Excellency, praying that he may be pleased to adopt the necessary measures for calling out the first-class militia of the North Island for the purpose of enrolment,; and the formation in each province of one or more corps, as may be considered necessary. He explained that there' was no necessity that the provisions of the “Militia Act, 1865,” relating. to exercise and training, should be enforced in a manner that would put the settlers to any serious in? convenience. If lie is right, there is no question that the “ self-reliant policy ” requires for its practical adoption at this juncture, the step recommended in Colonel Kenny’s resolution. ’

If the motion which was carried the other day •in the Legislative Council, be adopted by the Government, and sustained, by the votes of the House of Representatives, immediate steps will, be taken tp enrol for three years service an armed force for putting down the native insurrection, and maintaining the peace in the North Island. It appears necssary that our legislators and tbe Government should be again reminded that such a force, comprising picked and disciplined men, was once in existence, but owing to a pennywise and pound foolish economy, that force was disbanded, and at a time too when the Imperial trooi s were rapidly being removed from*the colony. Whatever maj; be the merits, of our rulers," wisdom and