Governor Fitzroy and his Councillors.

New Zealand Spectator and Cook's Strait Guardian, Volume I, Issue 31, 10 May 1845, Page 3

Governor Fitzroy and his Councillors.

(From the- Nelson Examiner. ,) When Governor Fitzroy first arrived among us, he went out of his way to debate upon the advantages of free trade to a colony like this, add led us to expect that we were early to rejoice in its privileges ; when, lo ! to our infinite mortification, his first legislative measure was to inflict a heavy tariff upon us, imposing 5 per cent, on most goods, and more than five on the remainder. Well, we paid and grumbled for some' three or four months without redress, till, fortunately for us, John Held grumbled, and wouldn't pay, and the Governor (to use his own expression), not thinking it prudent to go to law with a township (which John was supposed to represent), knocked off the customs at once, and gave us unlimited, absolute, unconditional, Bright and Cobden free trade. Such bonfires as there were, there was not a long face in the colony except the Custom-house officers, the searchers, and tide-waiters. Well, the good news began to be spread, reciprocity works like barm, exports are all alive; when, lo and behold ! our Governor walks one morning into the Council-room, and tells his legislators to put on the customs again. The bill is brought in ready engrossed, with the Government seal attached, and free trade becomes more free than welcome. Now, as regards the abstract question of free trade, and its particular application to the colony, we confess we are decidedly in favour of it, and sorry to return to the customs. But what we object to in our Governor is, not that he taxes us in this or in that particular way, but that he taxes us unnecessarily, and misapplies our money when he gets it. Ih the present sitting of the Council, we find him encreasing

the personal salary of the Chief Protector jfilOff a-year, while he knows very well that the settlers who find this money, consider both the, original salary and the increase as so much paid, to their injury, maintaining, as it does, part of an establishment (costing £1,600 a-year altogether/ which they regard as one of the greatest curses in New Zealand. We are afraid Captain Fitzroy will find us, in the matter of taxation, like the soldier who, beat him high, beat him low, there was na pleasing. It is not the manner -ia which this necessary evil is inflicted, rior would it be the amount, if we could afford it, and it were properly expended ; but it is because we do not choose to pay more than we can help towards the maintenance of a set of officials, one third of whom are helpless, one third useless, and the other third mischievous. But we will tell Captain Fitzroy how to make us liberal : like Mr. O'Connell's friend who had tried to fatten his lean horse on every thing except corn, Captain Fitzroy has tried to please us by every means except the only means adapted to the end. Let him throw overboard the Weak prejudices which have hitherto guided him, to the exclusion of all the most competent persons in the colony, and whose counsel, or want of counsef, has resulted in the sacking of Kororarika. Let him do equal justice between the races, govern for the general goad, and not to gratify morbid feelings, and platfoim orators at Exeter Hall, and we promise to support his government, or any other, on those principles, to the utmost that our impoverished purse will enable us.