New Zealand Spectator, AND COOK'S STRAITS GUARDIAN. Saturday, October 4, 1845.

New Zealand Spectator and Cook's Strait Guardian, Volume II, Issue 52, 4 October 1845, Page 2

New Zealand Spectator, AND COOK'S STRAITS GUARDIAN. Saturday, October 4, 1845.

Thb duty which has so long devolved upon us as public journalists, of tracing step by •step the strange and eccentric career of Cap■<tain Fitzroy, has everbeeu most painful ; for in detailing the varied and ever changing measures of his- government, we&ave never yet been able to discover a single one, -which was calculated to promote the interests of the colony, or which did not demonstrate either his incapacity, or his gross and wilful perversion of the power confided -to him to base and unworthy purposes. But -Captain Fitzroy has rendered our duty more than painful ; for, not content with proving to the whole world his utter incompetency to discharge the duties of his office — not satisfied •with rendering his government a subject of ridicule and contempt to all, both natives and Europeans, over whom he has "been appointed to rule, he seems all along to have been bent upon obtainirgfor himself the same unenviable notoriety as a man, that he has so deservedly acquired as a Governor. Hence it . i», that we have repeatedly been compelled to describe acts committed by him, so repugnant to all principles of justice and morality, that had he been placed in a less elevated station, he would most assuredly have'been long before this banished beyond the pale of all civilized society, unless indeed the plea . -that has been urged in his defence — a plea that is a bar to punishment, had beenadmit•Hed. And yet Captain Fitzroy is still dissatisfied; — like the dog that returus to its ' -vomit, helias no sooner excited the surprise of all rightminded persons l)y some flagrant delinquency, than he increases their indignation by perpetrating some greater outrage. . Never, however, has he exhibited a more thorough contempt for all those fine and de- " licate feelings — 'for all those principles of ' honor, which are the distinguishing marks of the high-minded and honourable man — never has he shewn a more open violation of all those courtesies of society, which are far better esteblished and more unalterable than the Laws themselves, than he has displayed by his publication of the letter addressed to him by Sir William Molesworth on the subject of his brother's evidence before the Committee ©f the House of Commons on New Zealand. 1 From that letter our .readers will learn tb*t Mr. F. Molesworth toon sifter arriving

in England was attacked by brain fever ; that a few days before the disease fully developed itself, but while he was suffering from the premonitory symptoms, one of the chief and most constant of which is an imperfect and confused memory, he was summoned to give evidence before the Committee ; that in giving an account of the strange occurrences at the first levee held by Captain Fitzroy at this place, he stated that he himself was present and a witness of the scenes he related ; whereas it is well known that Mr. M. did not attend the levee. Sir W. Molesworth having ascertained some time afterwards that his brother had not been present, instantly communicated the fact to Lord Stanley, Mr. Roebuck, and other members of the Committee, and begged that his brother's evidense might be suppressed ; failing, however, in this, he immediately wrote the subjoined letter to Captain Fitzroy, in which, after explaining the pai% ful nature of the disease under whicfy..his[ brother was labouring at the time he gave Ma evidence, he expresses his deep regret at the involuntary error into which Mr. M« had fallen, and his readiness to atone for it by every means in his power, and then concludes by. " trusting to Captain Fitzroy's generous indulgence in this unfortunate affair." Now, upon receiving this amende honorable — after hearing such a satisfactory but distressing explanation of the cause of the misstatement, what would an upright and honorable man have done ? Would he not cheerfully have accepted the apology as most ample ? Would he not at once have expressed his warmest sympathy with Mr. Molesworth's relatives on account of his serious and distressing illness ? Would he have for one moment hesitated to exercise the " generous indulgence" so justly due to the prompt and unsolicited apology made by Sir W. Molesworth for this unintentional and as we shall presently *hew, very immaterial misstatement ? Such -a course undoubtedly would have been, not merely in accordance with all the u»ages of society, but the only one santtioned by the principles of honor and justice. We need therefore scarcely say that this was not the course by Captain Fitzroy. No — he, " the very soul of chivalry" (as some wag in the House designated him) immediately published Sir William's letter and his brother's evidence, with the apparent object of impugning Mr. Molesworth's veracity and of throwing discredit upon the whole of -his evidence. What other motives he may have had in adopting this proceeding, we neither know nor care to inquire. Weknowindeed, that womenof ascertain reputation are always the most quick to discover, to magnify, and to hold up to public execration the slightest indiscretions committed by any of their sex ; — that habitual drunkards are ever the first, to be seized with a godly horror, at the very appearance of inebriety in their friends or companions ; — and it may be equally true, for aught we know, that men, most dead to the feelings of honour — most given to fraud, trickery, and deception — whose veracity is a bye- word of reproach, are precisely those who are most eager to impute these failings to others, in the hope and expectation, that by blackening their character, they may, like the cuttle-fiuh, when it pours out its black .and filthy secretion, screen themselves from the public gaze ; — but, be this as it may, one thing is certain ; — to attempt to lay hold of inaccuracies in the statements made by one labouring under a serious affection of the brain — to catch at the words uttered by one upon the very verge of delirium, and upon these to impugn his veracity and honour, is an act of such cold-blooded and heartless cruelty, that all must turn from it, and from him who has been guilty of it, with feelings of horror and disgust ; and yet, at the same time it must be admitted, that those who remember the manner in which Captain Ktzroy availed himself of his position to bully and insult Mr. J. Wakefield — to give the lie direct to the Hon. Mr. Dillon — but above all, his dastardly attempt to brand the memory of our fellow-colonists massacred at Wairau — 'men against whom, if living, he dared not to have breathed a whisper of reproach, will rot be surprised at his conduct on the present occasion. Such, then, is the "generous indulgence" practised by Captain Fitzroy, in answer to the appeal made by Sir William Molesworth. Such was not " the generous indulgence" exercised by the brave and gallant Despard j towards him who forged the postscript to his despatch. If, however, Captain Fitzroy, expected, j by proclaiming to the world this mis-state- ! roent, to throw discredit upon the whole of Mr. M.'s evidence, he will fail as signally as in his attempt to injure his character ; for there is not a settler who was present at the levee who will not bear testimony to the substantial truth of the evidence given by Mr. M. — Nay, so far from having been guilty of *ny injustice to Captain Fitzroy in his nar-

rctive of these occurrences, Mr. M. has on the contrary omitted many circumstances which would have placed his Excellency's conduct in a far more unfavourable light than he (Mr. M.) made it appear ; if, for instance, Mr. M. had more fully described the insolent tone and manner assumed by Captain Fitzroy towards the settlers, not a few of whom were his equals in birth, and many immeasurably his superiors in education and intelligence; if he had detailed the gross and calumnious accusations he heaped upon them — accusations which the deputation in their subsequent interview compelled him to retract, the Committee would have been enabled to have formed a far more just and accurate picture of the manner in which Captain Fitzroy prostituted and degraded his high and honourable office, and would have been better able to appreciate the moderation and forbearance evinced by the settlers under his coarse and taunting insults. Seeing then, we repeat, that instead of exaggerating the offensiveness of his Excellency's behaviour, on this memorable occasion, Mr. M. has very considerably understated it, the turpitude of Captain Fitzroy's attempt (more especially after Sir William's explanation) by availing himself of a perfectly immaterial mis-statement, to throw doubts upon the truth of the whole of Mr. M.'s evidence, is so glaring as to require no further comment. But let it not be for one moment supposed, that in the remarks we have made, it has been our intention to defend Mr. Molesworth from any imputation attempted to be cast upon him by Captain Fitzroy ; this we feel would indeed be to add insult to insult — for none can be more fully sensible than we are, that though Captain Fitzroy's attack, like the sting of some other noxious and offensive reptiles, may annoy, yet it cannot wound so upright, straightforward, and honourable a man as our fellow colonist Mr. Molesworth. One word more — Captain Fitzroy may have forgotten the fustigation inflicted by Mr. Sbeppard, near one of the club houses in London, or be may still flatter himself that his present office will shield him from the consequences of his wanton and gratuitous insults, but we would venture respectfully to remind him, that the same sense of honour which prompts an immediate and ample apology for the most trifling and unintentional error, is also not sIoh: to resent any unfair advantage taken of the reparation afforded.