Thursday, March 13.

New Zealand Spectator and Cook's Strait Guardian, Volume I, Issue 28, 19 April 1845, Page 3

Thursday, March 13.

Present all the members. The minutes of last meeting were read and confirmed. The Governor laid on the table, A Bill for the naturalization of certain German settlers, to be confirmed by the Home Government, to be read first time on Saturdaynext. A Bill for the naturalization of certain German settlers, for which authority had already been received in the Colony, and which would take effect as soon as passed by the Legislative Council; to be read first time on Saturday next. The Governor stated that the remarks of honorable members on the votes which had been already passed for Colonial Treasury, Survey Department, Public Works, and Harbour Establishments, had received his most serious consideration. On the first opposition, he could not see the full objections urged by the observations of the non-official members, but since they had struck him more forcibly, and he would therefore propose that after going through the Estimates, the votes on the departments which he had named should be re-considered with a view to reduction. On the order of the day being carried for further consideration of the Estimates, the sum of £1,500 was proposed for Ecclesiastical Establishments. The Governor stated, that the sum of £1,190 was granted by Parliament for Clergy and Schools, viz. Bishop £600, Colonial Chaplain £200, and Schools £390, without religious distinction, to be divided equally. To this sum it was proposed to add :£3lO from the Colonial funds, making £700. In 1843 and 1844, Parliament had granted similar sums, but the amount had been deroted to other purposes, and he still considered the sum of £780 was due from the Colony to such purposes. Mr. Whitaker considered that £390 had better be the limit of the vote, until the Colony could redeem the debt. After some discussion as to the manner of appropi-iating- the sum of £390, the Attorney General moved, and it was agreed, —That the sum granted by Parliament to the various religious denominations should be divisible, with a view t® the maintenance and encouragement of a sound principle of education, and paid to each ; the principle of division being the number of children educated by each denomination during the preceding year. It was then agreed that the sum only of £1,190 be granted for Ecclesiastical Establishment. The sum of £300 was then proposed and agreed to for Medical Department. •It was then proposed for Aborigines, the sum of £1,900. The Governor stated, that it was necessary that he should receive intelligence quickly of what was transpiring throughout the Colony, and that was best accomplished by Natives conveying letters, &c. Hitherto for such purpose, the Protectors had been allowed Natives. It was now proposed to increase the salary of^ the Chief Protector from £400 to £500 per annum, and to discontinue the former allowance for Forage and Natives, making in reality a reduction of £65, and in similar manner with the other Protectors. The Interpreter to the Land Commissioner, Mr. Meurant, had been reduced from £150 to £92. The other Interpreter was employed as a Clerk, and still retained his salary. The contingencies under this head were for travelling expences and presents to Natives, which the Protectors were allowed when absent from their station, of ss. per day. Mr. Heale expressed his great surprise at a proposition to raise the salary of the Chief Protector. The office was intended for great and noble objects, but it had dwindled into mere Interpreter. It never wa3 contemplated that this officer should confine himself to adjust the paltry squabbles continually arising. In any serious outbreak among the Natives, the Bishop was always on the spot, but not so the Chief Protector. Another branch of duty, eitherneglected or indifferently performed, was that of sending half-yearly reports to the Home Government of the condition of the Natives. When he was in England, eight of such reports were due, and when the Committee of the House of Commons had waded through those before them, they were obliged to discard them, and to base, their resolutions, as regards the Natives, on.the report of management of Natives- in another, colony. He therefore consjderejd; the sum, of £1,900 much too large for such establishment. . The Governor, said, he had, heard various statements in this Colony-—Jn. the House of Commons, an,d on the hustings —but never in , his life had it been his lpt, to hear a more unqualified, erroneous description of the nature of the office of Protector, nor to hear a case sq

much at variance with the truth. He had before him these reports, which had been regularly and -duly sent to the Home Government, and were •accessible to the Council ; he could bear witness ''to the merits of the Chief Protector, He had "sought advice from those who had been long resident in the colony, and well acquainted with theNatives-^he had sought advice from that most respectedindrvidualtheßishop— from Archdeacon Williams at the Bay- i -fremArchdeacon Williams atTaurangi — infactfrom all those who could form an opinion of the Natives — and all have recommended him to take the opinion and counsel on such subjects of the Chief Protector. If he were to select whether he would lose the services of five of the most efficient officers under the Government, or dispense with the advice and assistance of the Chief Protector, he would prefer losing the former. The slanders so calumiously circulated must hurt the feelings of the Protectors, especially when they hear it asserted that the allowances for distinct purposes have been appropriated 'to their own personal wants. The difficulty of finding qualified persons to act as Protectors was extreme. He was most anxious the present-time for one, and he had offered the situation to a son of Mr. Clarke, but he had declined on account oftheslan.lers. The qualifications necessary were numerous — knowledge of the language,' high character, moral and religious, and gentlemanly bearing. He was certain that, were it not for the critical state of the colony at present, as regards the Natives, the Chief Protector and his family would leave ' the service of the Government with disgust. 1 Persons could have no idea of the tours of anxiety *rbich be '(the Governor) passed, and his only refuge was in the assistance of such trustflrotthy persons as the Chief Protector. It migh^tejaaidof the Protectors an of the Dragomen In the^§M& that the difficulties were so multifarious a%d complicated in dealing with the Native tribes — that the language was so peculiar in its idiom, that, as that the Dragoman was the only person through which ambassadors could negociate in the East, so was it here that only by the Protectors could he safely negotiate with the Natives. With respect to the reports mentioned by the hon. member, instead of eight, there could not be by any possibility more than six — if all were wanting — as the *olony, at the time mentioned by the hon. member, had only existed .three years. But all the reports had been supplied, and returned to him, by Lord Stanley, printed, as they had been laid before the committee of the House of Commons. When he (the Governor) looked at these reports, voluminous as they were, and considering the other duties which* the Chief perform, he was surprised that so much had been dqne. There is not a subject which arises among the Natives themselves from all quarters, but the Chief Protector is the referee. Of course the subject was open to discussion, and ■ must be matter of opinion, but he publicly declared that the sum and substance of his opinion was, that the Protector was so essential, and his -council and assistance were of such value and importance, that he would not attempt to carry on the business of the colom without him. Mr. Heale explained and said, that he had anticipated obloquy from the course he thought it necessary to pursue on this question ; bat he could not understand how the committee of the > House of Commons could overlook these documents. In reference to the Dragomen, it seemed to him that it would be here as at Constantinople, that the office was likely to become hereditary. The Governor said, such remark of the honorable member was inapplicable, for Mr. Clarke's son had declined office, and he was quite sure it was the prevaling feeling of the - Protectors, as well as inclination of the present occupant, to retire with disgust .from the public service. His Excellency then read extracts from Lord John Russell's despatches to Captain iHobsoo, respecting the duties of the Protectors. Mr. Whitaker observed, that the reading of Lord J. Russell's dispatch had saved him much time in defining the duty of Protectors. In his opinion Protectors were not required — the name ■was misapplied — they were the cause of much ill will in consequence of that name, and as the public were quite aware that the Natives required no protection they were annoyed, and ,did not feel themselves called upon to pay for •such Native protection. The question simply was whether this additional allowance was required or not. Taking cuff allowance and adding to salary was anomalous — for in the latter case the individual could apply it wholly to Ms own purposes, without consideration as to the purpose for which the allowance was previously made. He therefore should move that the salary of tae Chief Protector should remain at £400. Mr. Donnelly remarked, that the Natives of New Zealand had been very inefficiently protected altogether. When the colony was first established the w-bole European population were dependent 4>n th§ Natives for food and assistance of Various k^db/pind then the Natives were fostered : now, that the former nsrere becoming less dependent in these respects, the poor Natives were reviled and abased, ' He thought much reproach was to be attributed to the Home and Local Governments on their neglect of the Natives. Neither to the health nor to their educa-

tionhad any assistance been rendered. Lord John Russell's instructions were explicit as to medical assistance and as to other points ; but when and where had these instructions been fulfilled ? He greatly deplored these facts, and feared that it would he proved in this colony, as Lord John Russell had so emphatically declared had arisen in all others — that where civilized man placed his steps, there the extinction of the whole native race inevitably ensued The Attorney ■General observed, that the attack of the honorable member who commenced the discussion, had been violent, but not effective. With reference to the remark of Mr, Whitaker, as to the name of Protector, he thought with 'him, that looking -to the .question at the present time, he should say, that ten thousand against one hundred thousand armed men, needed protection % but as the services of the persons acting in the department for which this sum was to be graated, whether «nder the name of Protector, or any other, were indispensable to the Government, he should support the original vote of £1,900. The Governor said, that taking a retrospective view of the Colony for the last five years, it was very certain that had the New Zealand Company attempted to obtain unjust possession of the lands to the southward, there would have been union among the Natives, and extinction of the whole European population then arrived there, would have taken place. This would have been followed by retributive measures by the Home Government, and the ultimate result would have been, in due time, the complete extermination of the Native race. It has been by the active exertions of theJVtissionaries that such scenes have not taken place.; and by their impressing on the minds of the Natives that the unjust acts of a few individuals were not the measures, wishes, or intentions of the Queen, and that justice would be fairly aad fully administered to the Natives. He considered that recently the whole Enropean population had been placed, as it were; on a pow der magazine, or on a volcano. Had not the Natives had implicit confidence in t3ie Government, the whole southern district would have been. in a fearful state. The safety with which the population have pursued their avocations, arises from the confidence of the surrounding Natives. The disturbances at the Bay of Islands had their origin in the insidious remarks of ill-disposed persons among the Natives, who endeavoured to impress the latter with the belief that Government would take possession of their surplus land, and eventually the Europeans would treat them as they had done the Natives in the neigh--bowing (gotoniea. Another cause at the Bay of Islands; was an inclination among some young native chiefs to try their strength with, the military, and to acquire a name among their own race. But he trusted all this would soon be remedied; and when we received additional assistance, which was hourly expected, there would be no danger. Increase of oar strength, both naval and military, we should soon receive, and more, he knew, was on the way. The motion of Mr. Whitaker was then put : — For — Against — Mr. Whitaker. The <aovernor. Mr. Donnelly. Attorney General. Mr. Heale. Colonial Secretary. Colonial Treasurer. The motion was then put by the Governor for the whole sum of £1,900, which was agreed to. On the suggestion of the Governor, the consideration of " General Contingencies" was postponed. The vote " For Judicial Establishment, &c." the sum of £3,030 was then proposed. The Governor read a letter from his Honor the Judge, stating, that if the finances of the Colony could not sustain the appointment of the Commissioner of Court of Requests, he would willingly perform the duty for three years, in addition to the office of Judge. — The Governor then observed, that deeply indebted as the pubhe must feel to his Honor the Judge, for thus so handsomely and liberally offering to take upon himself tins additional duty; yet he, the Governor, conceived the office of Chief Judge in the Colony so sacred* and so highly important, that he was averse, however anxious he was for retrenchment, to lessen in any degree the consequence of the learned excellent person ; and he thought that the Council might obviate the difficulty by 'another arrangement. As the present Police Magistrate wiii go to tLe southward shortly, to relieve Mr. Robinson at Akaroa, and also, perhaps to' Otago, and the whaling stations, with the Superintendent of the southern division, the present Commissioner of Requests might perform all the duties of the three offices of Commissioner of Court of Requests, Sheriff, and Chief Police Magistrate. After some remarks from the Attorney General on the propriety of preserving the office of Judge, so as to be held sacred, as well as influential in the estimation of the public; the suggestion was agreed to, and the sum of £27 for Commissioner, Clerk, and contingencies at Auckland, and the sum of £295 at Wellington for similar purposes were struck out. On the vote of £800, for the Judge of the southern division, which had been marked in the Estimates at £500. The Attorney General observed, that it was

highly important that the salaries and office of the Judges should remain intact. In England, the Judges could only be removed, or their salaries touched, by the House of Commons. He was aware, that in the Colonies, that the Crown, through the Government, had the right to reJ move ; but still he thought, for the due and pure administration of justice, the office should be regarded in the same light as in England. l Mr. Whitaker observed, that in Adelaide there was on the formation of the colony, but one judge, with a salary of £500. The motion was then agreed to. The Council then adjourned to Saturday next.