SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 28, 1846.

New Zealander, Volume 2, Issue 78, 28 November 1846, Page 2

SATUR DAY , N OVEMBE R 28 , 1 846.

Be just and fefir not : Let all tlie ends thou aims't at, be thy Country's, Thy Goo's, and Truth's.

A RETROSPECT.

We conceive it to be the duty of a ftiithftfl public journalist to record not only the -occurrences of the passing day, but to ■connect, arrange and analize the' events of each succeeding year, so that his rea x ders may be in possession of a kind of epitome of all the great events that characterize the proceedings of public bodies^ or affect the interests of the community, Thepresentmoment appears to us to be the proper one for passing in review the various occurrences , that have transpired, and the diversified operations that have been carried on during the period that has elapsed since His Excellency Gover nor Grey first took the helm of public affairs in this Colony. The memorable session of his first Council has been terminated, and one year of his administration has been completed. Now let us calmly and dispassionately sit down and report progress. Governor Grey assumed the reins of Government under the most flattering auspices ; and at a juncture more than ordinarily favourable to a successful career. The folly and injustice of earlier administrations had prepared a mine which exploded with fearful effect soon after Goveror Fitzßoy accepted the insignia of office; and he, after enduring the full force of a storm, not of his own creating, relinquished the helm to his successor when the violence of the tempest had abated, and the waves which had been lashed into fury, were gradually subsiding into an irregular swell that gave but faint indications of the force of the hurricane that had passed over the surface of the political affairs of the Colony. Will a candid investigation of the acts of the past year lead us to the conclusion that Governor Grey's successes have been commensurate with his advantages ? We fear not. We must not, for the sake of pandering to the prejudices of ill-informed parties at a distance' or from a fear of dispelling an illusion that may exist at home, shrink from the duty of avowing that the successes of Governor Grey have been more adventitious than real—partaking rather of a fortuitous character, than of the meritorious results of wendevised plan's. Let us first take a glance at the real character of those military operations, upon which a part of the renown of the present administration must repose. We certainly did expect that with such an armament as the Governor had at his dis-

posdi,:" something .effectual would havtfbqeil done to retrieve our 'tarnished laurels, and vindicate the prostrate honor of the British name, in the estimation of the Natives ; and if the public were so loud in the expression of their disapprobation and disappointment, at what Captain Fitzlloy did— or rather at what he wisely refrained from doing, at tlie outset of the struggle, when he had not more than 200 men at his command, and not a single Native ally upon whom he could depend — with how much greater propriety ; might the public have given vent to feelings of disappointment at the poor successes that were achieved by the over- J awing force commanded by His Excellency Captain Grey. These feelings, however, though entertained, have been wisely and considerately stifled. The simple his- ! tory of Governor prey's opening campaign is this : that with a force of about 1200 men- 1 - exclusive of the bands of devoted vyaniors, who had been converted into allies by Ihe policy of his predecessor, and who have hitherto effected nearly all that has been done — he invested the pah of Ruapekapeka, and, after 24 hours' heavy cannonading, walked, or rather followed his allies, unopposed , into the stockade, while its inmates, who had re- J tired behind the sloping ground to avoid j the shot and shell, were unsuspectingly engaged in performing Divine service. We do not mean to disparage the con L duct of our brave soldiers and sailors, who have never yet bedn found wanting in courage when danger appeared, and who at all times only require a skilful leader to accomplish all that men can do. This feat of arms was followed by the publication of a pompous Gazette extraordinary) announcing, in glowing terms* the glom ous termination of the campaign. This production was viewed an'd treated b^ every well informed person in the light?, and in the manner, which its merits de-!-served. Then came a proclamation oif pardon to rebels who neyer asjced fpt ity but who rejected it, when offered, with feelings very nearly approaching to the appearance of contempt : but who> at the instigation of our loyal and devoted. ally> Waka Nene, consented to make peace on ■ their own terms and according to their own customs. Turn we now to the proceedings at the South. From the Ruapekapeka the troops were removed to the southward, in order to expel a small 1 band of turbulent intruders from the Huttj and this was ultimately effected, but not, without considerable loss* and we fear at the expep.se of a still more formidable and protracted struggle, which will in all probability bring on. a war be- ! tween the races, and terminate in the extermination ot the Native combatants. The equity of this contest is, at best, of a j doubtful character, and the expediency, not to say necessity, of resorting to force, in'brder to accomplish the desired end, is a very questionable matter. The successes of the southern, certainly of a character somewhat less~eq"uivocaj than those of the northern campaign, were aleo achieved, principally through, the agency of native allies, whose co-operation ,and support were gained, not so much by the legitimate influence which the Government exercised over their feelings and affections, as by the willing spirit of revenge which was thirsting for an opportunity to retaliate for the injuries inflicted upon them in former days by that portion of their countrymen against whom they were now|about to turn their arms. The' aid of these men, whatever may have been the motive that influenced them to afford it, was Invaluable ; as they were mainly instrumental in saving us from defeat and disgrace/ if 'riot frb'm destruction ; and as by their means alone, teh of the insurgents were captured. Seven of these misguided men have beeh'seht'to a portal settlement, and one cif fh'cm'has b'een'sdbjected to the extreme penalty of a Taw, which, as he neither understood its nature nor its obligations, he could hardly be said to have wilfully violated. Pardon us, reader, for pausing to comment upon this disgraceful transaction— this deed of sanguinary vengeance. A culprit, following the natural dictates ot his educational'allegiance to' the will of his chieftain, was taken with the weapons in his hand which he had wielded in obedience to the impulse of an authority thpn 'Which he knew of none 1 superior, or which he acknowledged as equal-, ly binding; upon his conduct: and on this account he was arraigned before a military tribunal, and indicted upon the charge of bearing] arms against the Queen. The formalities of the trial— if the mockery substituted in this case for the solemn ordeal which usually decides the question of life or death of offending individuals! deserves the name — being concluded, the unhappy victim was, soon alter, launched into eternity, as ignorant of the rt»al nature of his crime, and of the meaning of the process by which his guilt had been declaratively pronounced, 1 as he was before the en-

quiry jiad taken place. The' blood of this man will fartainly be required -at the hands of the present administration. In technical parlance his execution may be represented by some.as the inevitable consequence of impartial justice; butin the estimation-of the enlightened Christian, and in the language of moral truth, his death must be described as, a legal murder. The apprehension of To llauparaha — an event which in itself may yet be productive of most important consequences, when viewed in connexion with the tragedy just referred to — appears to us wholly inexplicable with our present Governor's professed regards, and superior kindly feelings towards the Native race. In forming our opinion of this act, of course we are entirely guided by the public dispatches relative to the subject ; and assuming them as the basis upon which our conclusions rest, it would appear that Te Rauparaha was suspected of holding communication with, and conniving at the practices of Rangihaeuta ; and that upon this suspicion he was surrounded, while quietly sleeping in his hut, arrested, and placedin durance without being subjected even to the form of a trial,withouta friend to interest h imself in his bchalf,without being afforded an opportunity of explaining his conduct, tho' surrounded by a community whose judgments must be more or less biassed by the hat rowing reminiscences oftheWairau affray, and whose public press breathes vengeance. Is this the way impartial justice distributes hvr punishments and her rewards, alike indiscriminately to the native and the European ? We tremble for the fate of our loyal WakaNene, who might be arrested at any time, not upon suspicion merely, but upon the well known fact that, during the course of the northern insunection, he did many things, which, if tried according to the strict letter of our laws, would convict him of treason, hurl him from the eminent position of a tried and trusty friend, and stamp his character with the disgraceful and universally ab« horred marks of a delected foe. If a system) similar to that which was adopted in the'case of Te Rauparaha^ was generally acted upon; almost every native in the north might be arrested, aye, even hun£i for< committing acts which never appeared to them in the light of crimes. i .\Ve cannot altogether suppress our feard for the consequences which these acts may entail upon the Colony at large, and the miseries which may result to our countrymen jn the South in particular. "We cannot conceive' it possible that these proceedings should bo productive of good j birt we think it highly probable that they will be productive of much harm; and if the recent accounts from the southern settlements are true, there is every p'rbsp'ect of a new and 'protracted 'struggle. ■ F-ronvth'e military we'turn to 'the civil pro •! ceedings of the past year. Many changes have been effected in various departments of the public service, but no saving hris been effected in the public expenditure ! : on the contrary, a large addition has been appended to the estimates for the support of an' armed police, whose utility is, to say the least, a matter involved in uncertainty and doubt, and an additional burden has been imposed upon tne people for the purpose of maintaining this costly experiment The only means that formerly existed for counteracting the misstatements that were promulgated amongst the Natives, 'or 'for affording them that information of -the < nature and character of passing events 'Which they so earneslty covet, has been abolished. It may be urged that tlie 'Maori Gazette wasnot made as instructive as it might have been.—- Granted. But then, would it not have been better to have raised the tone, and improved the 'character of that useful work, instead of suppressing it altogether. This 1 circumstance is not easily reconcileable with professions of deep interest in the welfare of the Maori ; and certainly is not indicative of a wise and enlightened policy, as the Natives are known to be a thinking people, and excessively fond of reading. Hospitals have been projected, and certainly this is a gratifying feature in the policy of the past year. But where are the Schools ? Hos-, pltals, though invaluable adjuncts to a system, are not alone sufficient to work any great change in the moral condition of the NewZealahders. Medical attendants are not the only agents necrssary to be employed in the civilization and improvement of the Native rade. But the policy of the 'present administratidn may not yet be wholly developed respecting these eubjects ; we therefore await tlie progress of time. Great tact and considerable care must, we imagine, have been employed by our Governor in securing for his plans and policy every probability of success. Every department must have been gradually prepared for the change ; and every officer must have been given to understand, andact upon the knowledge, that he'was to be in future an implicitly obedient machine, and surrender his opinions and prin-, ciples unconditionally into the-ha-nds of the Governor. , In the Legislative department, there was, for| a time, some symptom of an unruly disposition, on the part of the non- official scholars, but they too were soon reduced to perfect order, and made quietly to assist in the tasks of their, ; official companions. The nature of the tasks) i need not novv be described, as they have bceni

s everar, tilths repeated <in.} the hearing of the public ;'» an<s, as it4s , evident from their verynature, that they could only have been got by heart, with difliculy, and not without constraint of the will, we will not disturb the enjoyment of the half hdlidSy tliat" has been granted as the reward of application, by any further allusion to them. Hp But, to abandon the metaphor .vfyuch as we coincide with His Excellency in desiring to induce emigration, and attract settlers to the country, we will not attempt to effect this object, by representations at variance with fact. >j I'After1 'After a careful consideration of the proceedings a.nd policy of the past year, we come to the conclusion that the ''problem of New Zealand" is very little nearer a successful solution than it wasformerly. The final result of Governor Grey's policy cannot yet with safety be predicted, but certainly he has hitherto been more fortunate than successful, more favoured : by a concatenation of circumstances, over which ho had no contrpul, than, really triumphant in the execution, of his.,pwn plans.