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Maori Messenger : Te Karere Maori, Volume 1, Issue 13, 21 June 1849, Page 1

There is a land, within about six or seven weeks sail of New Zealand, called California. Of that land the Maories living to the vicinity of Auckland have, no t'rbubt, heard a good deal of talk. Of Ibtiat land, and of some other matters connected with it; it may ho to their advantage that tliey should learn more. California is a portion of that great country called South America: —a country which is composed of many states and nations. It was originally peopled by tribes of Indians; but the voyages of Columbus having filled the minds of the Spanish nation—at that period, perhaps, the greatest power in Europe—with the most extravagant ideas of the riches of the strange lauds he had visited, numerous and reckless adventurers left their own country to aggrandize themselves at the expense of the uncivilized, and comparatively unwarlike, people with whom they had to deal. The most distinguished of these unscrupulous marauders were called Francisco do Pizzarro, and Fernando de Cortez. The former, by fraud and by force, and by a succession of the most sanguinary cruelties made himself master of that portion of South America called Peru. The latter, by enormities equally great, and by feats of military prowess, which have rendered his name as illustrious as his cruelties have made it detestable, obtained the absolute command of Mexico. The gold, the silver, the jewels, and other valuables, with which the soldiers of these chiefs returned laden to their own country, fired the imaginations of other .equally daring and equally profligate adventurers. Band after band flocked to the fated shore of what was called the New World. The Indians were driven from their possessions by fire and sword, or plunged into bondage by the foreigner, until nearly the whole country was reduced to the subjection of Spain, the Sovereigns of which nation, for many years thereafter retained the title of Kings of Spain and the Indies. The acquisition of America gave an extraordinary importance, and perhaps an exaggerated preponderance, to the voice of Spain in the councils of the European nations. The wealth which she drew from this region of gold, silver, and jewels was exceedingly magnified, and as her navy was a magnificent and a powerful one, she was regarded with equal jealousy and dread.

At the outbreak of the first and great French revolution, Spain was one of the leading nations of the world. Her colon'es were many and wealthy. The riches of every country were wafted into lier ports and harbours. Her dock-yards were the largest and best constructed ; her sailors were numerous, and her ships, ■whether of commerce or of war, the finest and the most perfect that sailed the ocean—so beautiful indeed, that the great English Admiral, Nelson, declared it was fortunate for Britain that Spain could not build sailors to equal her ships, Nelaon, by capture or by destruction of those ships, annihilated the navy of Spain; whilst Napoleon, at an after peiriod, by overrunning the country with the Armies of France, put an end to nearly all .communication with her American colonies, which threw off their dependence, Ifiplitting themselves into separate powers and principalities, which; after long, arduous, and sanguinary struggles, succeded In accomplishing their several indepencies.

Of these colonial possessions of Spain, Mexico was amongst the principal, and to Mexico the land talleil California was attached. Mexico under i's fr-ed condition, was called the Republic of Mexico. Witllia the last few vears a quarrel took place betwixt that Republic and the Republic of the United States of North America, They went to war j and in the contest the United States proved victorious. Tho contest, however, cost jr"di

money, and, as a compensation for their expenses, the United States demanded, and Mexico surrendered, the land of Ca. lifornia, which is now a portion of the territory of the United States—who9e sovereignty is thus extended in an unbroken line from the shores of the North Atlantic to the shores of the North Pacific Ocean—from New York in the East, to San Francisco in the West.

Since California has been given up to the United States, immense quantities of gold have been discovered nearly upon the surface of a large portion of the land. This discovery was made about the month of June last. To dig and to obtain possession of this gold has ever since been the occupation, not only of all the inhabitants, but of numberless strangers, who have flocked, and are flocking thither, from all the neighbouring countries. The 'inhabitants of the Sandwich Islands, of I whom we have already spoken to you, and whose country is near to California, have gone in great numbers thither. Ships touching at the harbour of San Francisco are deserted by their crews, and men of no principle, and who respect only the strongest hand, are crowding to the scramble for gold; to acquire which, robbery and murder will, we fear, bo matters ot indifference. Several ships have already sailed from Sydney; more are about to follow ; and others are laid on at Hobart Town and at Auckland, for the same quarter. These ships are taking away the scutn (that is, the worst people) of the countries from which they- sail—desperate and daring fellows, with little to lose, but all to gain. ' And, such is the unsettled slate ofCalifornia, and so greatly is it, at present, overrun by vagabonds from every nation and people'of the world, that life and property will be mainly dependant upon the strength of arm to protect, and the hardihood of constitution to overcome, the miseries and privations inseparable from the pursuit of that gold for which the seekers appear to be so reckless both of body and soul.

Wc do not write to warn you against (proceeding to this land of gold, because we feel convinced that you are too wise, and have too much love of your own country to quit it rashly for a strange and afdisturbed one. But there is a caution which we .are anxious to give you, and to which we beg to direct your careful attention.

Have you ever heard of the slave | trade P If not, listen. For many, many years, it was the practice of the nations of Europe who possessed colonies, where sugar, coffee, cotton, and other commodities are cultivated, under a burning sun, to send their ships to the coast of Africa, where they bought the prisoners, taken by tribes at war with each other, or stole them by force of arms from their native homes. The Africans are blacks, and being born under n burning sun, have almost always been considered the on'y people capable of labouring successfully in the sugar fields of the world, France, England, America, Spain, Portuga l , Denmark, Holland, all had their sugar fields, in the West Indies, in the East Indies, or or in South America; and the ships of all these nations flocked to the coasts of Africa, to buy or to steal the unfortunate blacks, who were packed in ships for long voyages, with far less attention to their lives and comfort than that which is bestowed upon the sheep, cattle, and horses brought from Sydney to Auckland. jThis is called the Slave Trade. By I France, England, Denmark, Holland, and America, that trade has been prohibiteJ. France and England have set every slave at liberty in all t ! ieir dominions; but in llie southern part of the Unit d -States of America, slavery exists in all the burbu■.itv of the most cruel of times.

Although the slave trade lias been prohibited, and although a vast number of the ships of war of Ifranco and Eng-

land are continually watching the African const to prevent that traflie; yet, so gi-cnt is tlie demand for African slaves, nii(l so high ft price <lo they fetch in the markets of Brazil and Cuba, that swarms of fast sailing vessels are constantly fneaking from the Afrirnn shores with ful cargoes. These vessels are chiefly Spanish, or Portuguese, nnd they are manned by wretches of the worst and most daring character, the refuse of all countries. They nro chased by the men of war whenever seen, nnd fired at, frequently yvitli a prodigious slaughter of the miserable slaves who are squeezed into their holds, chained two and two, and with no more room than they can sit down in. Numbers perish from pain and suffocation, and a living man often remains linked throughout the horrible voyage to a dead nnd putrid corpse. If a slave aliip be taken, she is carried into port, condemned, and sold to reward her captors—the slaves being restored to liberty. If one cargo of slaves reach the port they'are intended for, the price they fetch will pay the loss of two other ships, an.d leave the trader a profit; nnd, as tbey are small, light, vessels, built expressly to sail fast, they frequently escape from the men of war. We will give you one instance ot what must be the agonies of these unhappy people. It was quoted by Sir Robert Peel, at the first anniversary meeting of the " Society for the Extinction of the Slave Trade, and for the Civilization of Africa, held at Exeter Hall, London, June Ist, 1840,'* His Royal Highness Prince Albert, the husband of Queen Victoria, presiding:— "On the 24th of January, 1840, during a hurricane from the south-east, two slavers, a ship and a brig, were wrecked at Mozambique harbour, but the crews of both, and two hundred slaves on board the brig, were saved. The ship had arrived the preceding day, and had not taken in any s'aves. It was reported that the brig, commanded by a Spaniard, had originally nine hundred slaves on beard, but during the hurricane the lintclies had been battened down, and on opening them three were found to have died of suffocation. Again the liur rican« came on; the hatches were battened down a second time, and the consequence was, that three hundred more of the slaves perished from the same cause, and a hundred of the remaining three hundred died on the passage to Mozambique harbour." That you may still further be able to distinguish the iniquity of the Slave Trade, we copy the following repulsive example of its unnatural cruelties:—

I am about to recount a story which, like many others of the same kind, Mr. Thompson, a missionary, has lately told in a public meeting held on the subject of slavery. A young physician of much merit and knowledge, made a journey from his native town, in one of the Northern States (of America,) to a town in Mississippi. The young man, whose name was Wallis, took lodgings in a furnished house. The mistress of it, a young woman about twenty years old, inspired iu him the most ardent love. Although the colour of the young woman was not of the purest white, the doctor, having no prejudice against the coloured race, offered her his hand, which was accepted. The marriage took place almost secretly, and the huppy couple went, soon afterwards, to establish themselves in Washington, in the district of Columbia. They had not been there long, where they lived peaceably and retired, when, one morning, an individual, who hid all the manners and appearance of a gentleman, presented himself at Dr. Wallis's, under pretence of business. The conversation proceeded, when the siranger addressed the following indiscreet question to the doctor :• "Did you not bring a woman with you from the South, Sir?" " No, Sir ; 1 do not understand " How V rejoined the stranger. " Did not your wife come with you from Mississippi 1" " I believe she was born in that country," said the doctor.

" Well, your wife, as you call her, is my slave, anil unless you pay me immediately 900 dollars for her purchase, I will advertise her as a runaway slive. In fact she is worth J 000 dollars, at least; but, as you hare married her, I will abate something'" " Your slave !" exclaimed the astonished doctor, " that is impossible." " Whether you believe it or not," cried the other, "you must give her up, or pay the money. If, in twenty-two hours, the money is not sent to my hotel, I promise you, my dear Sir, that you will see the name of Mf».

Wallia in the newspapers, as that of a fugitive slave." As soon ns the man was gone, the doctor went to his wife, whose good qualities, virtues, and graces rendered her so dear to him. " My pood angel," said lie, " when we were married, were you a slave ?" " Yes. I was," she confessed, at the same time shedding abundant tears. " Why did you not tell me before the ceremony was performed 1" " I did not dare to do it. Could I have expected you would have allied yourself with a slave ?" " Well, now I know it, I will give the 900 dollais required, for I love you too much to consent to a separation." During this short dialogue, Mrs. Wallis was labouring under the mo.t livrly agitation. She asked her husband to describe the appearance of the claimant, which he did as exactly as possible ; thi*n he asked her whother the description answered to that of her ancient master. •' Yes," said she, casting down her eyes, "he is more than ir.y master—he is my Jalher !'' Holland atul America are the most brutal of the nations that yet hold slaves —their treatment of these miserable creatures exceeding in barbarity that of every other people. In fact, men and women are by iiiem subjected to punishments which the laws of other lands would not permit to be inllicted on the brute creation, . The southern provinces of the United "Hates are slave holders- California is a slave country, and will be a southern province. In those southern provinces it is said to be it practice to entice free Africans from their ships, inveigle them into the interior, and tiiere sell them for slaves. The caution we desire to give you is this: You are good seamen, and you are fond, at times, of entering on board ship Beware of California; for you are a coloured race, and. should you venture into the interior of that country, you may be pounced upon and sold to shivery. Be warned, therefore, by those, who, like ourselves, wish you well.