New Zealand Colonist. FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 1843.

New Zealand Colonist and Port Nicholson Advertiser, Volume I, Issue 46, 6 January 1843, Page 2

New Zealand Colonist. FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 1843.

The selection of country land within the districts surveyed by the New Zealand Company, terminated on Wednesday last. Out of 476 orders which remained unselected, 343 were chosen, and 133 reserved. In addition to these reserves there were 21 sections chosen under the arrangement with Sir George Gipps, which were thrown up, and the choice for which was reserved. The whole number, consequently, still to be chosen, amounts to 154, or, 15,400 acres. In respect of these reserves it was arranged that the parties reserving should within two months deliver in to the Company’s Principal Surveyor, the name of the spot for which they had reserved; and that in the event of the same place having been selected by two parties the right to choose would be according to their priority of reserve. There were many papers given in .to Mr. Brees upon the termination of the selection, and these were sealed up to await the expiration of the time allotted for notifying the districts chosen. Within two months, consequently, from this time, or a little more, the whole of the land

originally sold by the New Zealand Company will have been selected, and the surveys may then, for the future, be always kept in advance of the sales. When this is the case, we may not unreasonably expect some accession to our agricultural population from the neighbouring colonies.

The Nelson Examiner, in a recent number, while referring to the numerous cases of burglary which have occurred at Port Nicholson, states that there is no security here for either person or property. This is just one of those exaggerations, made without any design to deceive or injure ; but which is certainly calculated to produce a very false opinion with regard to our present position. It is true that robberies have

of late been alarmingly frequent; but we are not aware of a single circumstance from which it might be inferred that there was any personal insecurity. On the contrary, we believe, that there are few places where so little ground for apprehending any crimes of violence exists. To this extent the statement of our contemporary is utterly, though, we dare say, unintentionally unfounded. That there should be frequent robberies in this place, is not perhaps any very great matter of surprise, when it is considered how singularly unproductive was the last whaling season, and that there are from seventy to eighty whalers, without money, and with few means of obtaining subsistence, now in this place. And without any disrespect to very useful class, we may at least suggest that a large proportion of them left the neighbouring colonies, because they had found a longer residence there unsafe, or at least undesirable. These are perhaps precisely the persons who might be expected not to scruple at any means of eking out a scanty maintenance; and robbing is possibly the easiest method of doing this. Among the disagreeable consequences of an unsuccessful whaling season, we fear that this will have for the future to be reckoned—that it lets loose upon the community many rather unscrupulous individuals. But as we can hardly contrive to dispense with the fishery, we must submit as well as we can to the consequences. It is, however, worthy of consideration, whether some measures of additional precaution might not be adopted. The police has hitherto proved inadequate to prevent these outrages, though they have in almost every instance succeeded in detecting the offender and bringing him to justice. Whether or not any means might be devised for affording protection against these occurrences it may, perhaps, be left to the Settlers themselves, who will probably adopt some means to secure their property when they apprehend any real danger to it. While upon this subject we must correct one error into which the Gazette (so far at least as we can understand it, for we write under the constant apprehension of having mistaken its meaning) has fallen with reference to this subject. To read our contemporary’s lamentations on the topic, it might be supposed that persons who were robbed were further put to heavy legal expenses in retaining a solicitor to prosecute the thief, and that this was added to the loss of time and trouble which he must, under all circumstances, expect to incur. This, however, as our contemporary might have known, is a pure delusion—the whole of this expense being undertaken by the Government—and the only trouble incurred by the prosecutor being his attendance in court.

Our fellow colonist, Mr. Greenwood, has recently arrived at this place from East Cape, by way of the Taupo Country. Pie brings news of Mr. Shortland and Mr. Spain, which leads us to imagine that their arrival here is not to be expected for two or three weeks. It appears that, on their landing at East Cape, they found a serious warfare existing among the natives, which they were unable to restrain. The Victoria was accordingly despatched to Auckland to fetch fifty soldiers, and she was to wait until the war was concluded, and then return to Auckland with the soldiers, and again call at East Cape to take on board the acting Governor and Mr. Spain, and come on with

them to Wellington. It will therefore, probably, be at least the time we have mentioned before their arrival is to be anticipated.

Captain Bell, of the Hamah reports the loss of the Look-in at the Chathams.