The New-Zealander. WEDNESDAY, JULY 21, 1847.

New Zealander, Volume 3, Issue 119, 21 July 1847, Page 2

The New-Zealander. WEDNESDAY, JULY 21, 1847.

Be just and fcnr not: Let all the ends thou aiins't at, be thy Country's, Thy God's, and Truth's.

By the arrival of the John Lull, on Monday evening, we have-our usual files of< Sydney papers to the 9th. inst., and they- contain English news to the. of 25 ill March. "We are sorry to have to annoimoo the death ofsSir George Gipps, who died in February last. For the time that his administration of New South Wales was connected- with New Zealand, we found him a faithful friend, ever attentive to our interests, and ready with assistance in our need. We offer with unfeigned sorrow our tribute of respect to so great and good a man. The Sydney Herald contains the following extract from the Howe Ncwi of March 25th, relative to the " Royal New Zealand Fencibles" The fivst division of the pensioners enrolled for service in New Zealand, consisting of seventy-five men, under the command of Captain Kenny, late Staff-officer, at Sheffield, will embark in a few days for that colony This detachment is composed of artificers, who are to clear the land and build the barrack cottagos for tho recently formed battalion, the head-quarters of which will shortly he under orders for embarkation for tho same destination. The Slrathisla, Captain Heale, which ..sailed from this port for London in October last, put in at the Falkland Islands, on the 15th December, in a very leaky state, and was compelled to discharge a portion of her cargo. It was confidently expected that the parliament would be brought to a close, by means of a dissolution, about the end- of June, or beginning of July. Mr. W. S. OBrien, in his place in the House of Commons, had stated that the deaths from starvation in Ireland, up to the end of) February last, amounted to 24000 !—" all ofi whom," said Mr. OBrien, " might have been, saved, if parliament and the government had! done their duty. Me called' all the world to witness that his countrymen had been allowed by England to perish like vermin .'"• —A most ungenerous charge, of which the world will fully acquit England, after beholding the extensive amount of relief afforded by the British people, to their perishing Irish neighbors. The ministry had taken the loan of £8,000,000 required! for Ireland, at «£B9 10s. for every £100. A deputation of- seven members of thei committee on steam communication with Australia and New Zealand had an interview with Lord Grey, in February last. Sir George Larpent pressed upon his lordship the extension ot steam, navigation from Singapore to Australia, and other British settlements, which would bring them within sixty-four days' passage of the mother country, and connect the former with India and China. Lord Grey admitted its importance, but said that the Chancellor of the Exchequer had stated that not one shilling could be spared in furtherance of the object during the present year ; but he believed that Government would grant a charter, and offer every facility to a company prepared to carry it out.

On. resuming our observations on some peculiarities in our climate, with suggestions for a •ystem of cultivation adapted to its peculiar influences, we will, before proceeding, make a brief recapitulation. We endeavoured to shew that the power of the sun's rays is greater than many persona imagine, and that this circumstance explains phenomena which are not accounted for by the heat, indicated in the shade only, by the thermometer; shewing that the difference between the heat of the sun'i rays and the air, is more considerable than in most other countries. We j ointed out, where it was desirable to raise the temperature of cultivated spots, that by means of shelter, another climate might be created ; it has been stated that, at least, 10 degrees n ight be gained by preventing the wind carrying off too rapidly the beat absorbeu by the surface of the ground. It must be added that we enjoy a greater intensity of light also in this latitude, and that the chemical rays are more active ; for both these agents are secondary only to heat, in the vegetation of plants, and especially in the ripening of fruits. It is well known that in gloomy weather fruits grown in hot-houses in England, do not attain perfection, whatever may be the heat applied. Those who have to bleach linen, well know how quickly the sun does it for them in this country. On continuing the subject of raiu, wt have to acknowledge the great assistance we have derived from observations made by Dr. Johnson from 1840 to 1844. The quantity of rain which fell from September, 1843, to Sep tember, 1844, is given as 31.50 i«. And the average number of dry days for four years, on which not even a shower fell, was 211) an-

nually. Now it must be borne in mind, when comparing the climate of this country with another, such as England, that the annual quantity of rain is found to be greater as we approach the Equator. This is the case, at least, in the northern hemisphere. At Uleaberg, lat 65 °, the annual quantity of rain is 1 3.5 inches ; whereas at London, lat. 5 1 ° , it is .22.2 inches j at Rome, lat. 41°, it amounts to 39, inches; and at Calcutta, lat. 22°, and Bombay, lat. 18 °» the large quantity of 82, inches falls during the year. Considerably more then, according to our latitude, might have been expected than we really have ; for if the above rule is applicable to the southern hemisphere, our share would be nearer 43, inches than 31. Yet we have scarcely so much rain as they have at home, the mean quantity annually falling in England, being ,'i2 inches. Our* number of fine days, also, are considerable; although we cannot boast, as our Nelson friends do, of haying 235 bright and dry days in one year. Having already reverted to the effects of th 6 wind, we have little more to add than to observe the see-saw manner in which they blow | across this peninsula. If not blowing from \ the south-weat, a person would not be often wrong if he asserted that it was a north-easter, and vice versa. The winds from the southwest to south-east being cool and dryi whereas those; from the east, north, and north west, are generally wet. We have never- yet observed- it to blow a gale from south-east. The evaporation during the prevalence of the south westerly- winds, accompanied with its usual bright weather, is very great ; and points out the necessity of shelter, to prevent their carrying off moisture or perspiiation, as well as l heat, from the leaves of plants. | Another peculiarity in this climate may be ! observed when the atmosphere is electrically, excited. Thunder, instead 1 of clearing up the: weather as in England, is here the sure precursor of storm and rain. It is true, tliat the little thunder we have, is almost confined tot the winter months ; whereas, hi Europe, it is more frequently met with in summer. Comparatively seldom, however, as any electrical! disturbances are witnessed in this neighbour - hood; they are, we repeat, almost invariably t the forerunner of bad weather. We now come tfo something more tangibles and solid — the soil. For the purpose of more easily characterising the peculiarities of the surface of the earthi in this district, we shall divide the soils intoi two great classes; tlie Neptunic, or water formations ; and the Volcanic, or those formed' by the agency of fire. Each class has its varieties, and a general' knowledge of them is highly necessary to those who wish to make the most? of their ground. The water formation comprises all the clays from the. stiff to the sandy. By far the greater portion of olay land was, in former ages, covered with kauii forests^ and' much otiib,, indeed, up to a very recent date. For, stumps and branches buried r , and partially burnt, are everywhere to Be met with on that peculiar and infertile' sandy clay, on which the kauri alone flourishes. The whole of this formation may be set down as comparatively poor land ; and yet it is astonishing what a change is produced in its fertility, by exposure to the air and by draining. Indeed, we have to thank our genial climate for the successful cultivation of some soils, which, in most other countries, would be neglected as worthless. The sides and bottoms of the hills of the clay formation, are usually the most productive, as might be reasonably expected, from the action ol the rain carrying down the fine particles of soil and decayed vegetation* to those situations. We do not possess any tracts of soil which can be properly called alluvial. It is characteristic of New Zealand that the livers, instead of leaving any soil along their sides, generally cut their way deeply through some diluvial formation. Hence, we lose, especially in this narrow tract, a great source of fertility. Perhaps the best soils of the clay kind, are those in the numerous estuaries, where either by mixture with sea sand and mud, drift of sea- weed, or even, salt spray, the I character of the land is much improved. Nature thus teaches us a lesson, which we should not be slow to profit by. The volcanic formations in those cases we have examined, are of more recent origin than the clay ; they have been thrown up, and 1 consequently overlie the earlier clay deposits. This is an important fact in the/ acquisition of water by sinking 1 wells on volcanic ground ; for by observing the general height of the clay lands in the neighbourhood, a very near estimate might be formed of the necessary depth of the well. (^Although the volcanic soils vary much in fertility, they are found to be more productive than the clay ones. They vary in quality from a mixture of stones and soil, or "scoria" land, to a mixture of fine volcanic ash with clay. Of course, their present qualities are determined, like those of all other new soils, by the quantity of vegetable mould on the surface. Most appears to exist on the moderately stoned ecoria land, as may be seen in , the rich dark colour of the soil between the stones, partly worn down scoria, and what is a still better criterion, in its great fertility. That the volcanic soils are easily worked,

and require no drainage, is easily understood; but there is one fact respecting porous and well pulverized soils which is not so well known. We allude to the property they possess of absorbing and retaining a sufficiency of moisture, whilst they permit no water to lodge to the injury of vegetation. In the summer season, the volcanic or porous soils may be compared to a sponge, absorbing every passing shower, and benefiting by every dewy ; night ; whereas at that season, the unpulvej rized clay ones are baked up and hardened ; !■ and before any sensible depth has been moistened, the bright sun, or passing breeze, dissipates the refreshing drops. As a practical illustration of what we have advanced, we have merely to remind our country neighbours of the fact, that the vegetation during the past very dry summer, was fresher on the volcanic soils, than on the more compact diy ones. We hope to continue the subject next week.

Our, Sydney cotemporaries have, we are pleased to observe, been making us a kind of amende honorable for the very unmeasured language that escaped them on the dapaiture of a portion of* » he troops for New Zealand. We have quoted an article on the subject from the Herald, which will be found in another column.