ORIGINAL CORRESPONDENCE.

New Zealand Spectator and Cook's Strait Guardian, Volume II, Issue 57, 8 November 1845, Page 2

ORIGINAL CORRESPONDENCE.

To the Editor of the Wew Zealand Spectator. Sir, — The Home Government having at length, happily for the colonists, terminated the erratic career of the '• chivalrous" Captain Fitzroy, by recalling him from the governorship of this huh rto unfortunate and wofully mis governed colony, which he has by his insane acts brought almost to the verge of mm ; it now becomes the boune'en duty of all persons really interested iv its future prosperity, but especially >f the Southern Settlements, to bestir themselves so as to be well pre pared to lay before the new Go*' raor, oo his Ar rival here, a full and maturely conoid red statement of all the grievances and ill treatment that the colonists have so long, so unjustly, and, I may add, patiently endured : and firmly, but respectfully, demand trom his Excellency the mo»c ample reviress of the same at the eaiheat po siole period that ciicumsUnoes will admit of. V\ ith this objt-ct theiefore 1 nowaddre«s you on a subject of great importance to the in'erests of this community, but pai ticularly s>o to the mercantile and shipping portion of it. It will be in the recollecti n of your readers that when Captain Fitzroy abolished the cv toms dvI ties in the colony, he also abolished the Pilot esta blis/nnent at the heads, which may be justly said, j i-> almost i idi^pen->able for the preventi n of un- - necessary iisk to yes-els coming heie for the first j time: in proof of which 1 may allude to the mo>t recent cases of the" Falco." " I don t know," »nd " 'Jeazer," the two former having been three or four day^, and the latter two days at the entrance of the heaJs before they would venture to beat m a.-ainst the north westeis that prevailed : whereas had these vessels had pilots on board, they would I have been brought into the harbour without any ! loss of time. It any confirmation, be war ted of the correctness of this assertion, I will allude to j the case of the regular trading cutter " Ann and I Sarah" (of 25 tons only) having beat into the harj bour on a dark night, whil t one of the above named vessels, which arrived at the heads twelve hours previously to, did not get in unlit two days and a half after the cutter 1 1 A pilot is equally j neeesaaiy for a strange vessel making the heals i with a strong south-easter, which causes such a very heavy surf on Barrett's Reef as to make the rocks perfectly invisible, and to give the entire entrance the formidable appearance of a bar harbour. This nrakes cautious shipmasters visiting our port for the first tirre very timid, and many instances have occurred of vessels running through the btraits. in preference to entering the heads. It is not unreasonable to say that had not the Pilot station been broken up, the unfortunate Barque " Tyne" might possibly have been seen from the look-out on the hills before she ran ashore ; and thus, id all probability, the loss of much valuable property would have been avoided. I would suggest that an efficient Pilot station be re-established, and placed under the direction and control of the Harbour-master: the expense of supporting which to be paid out ot the revenue raided in this port, and that this should not increase the expenditure of the colony, let all useless public offices be abolished in the same firm and unshriuking manner that characterized Governor Grey on his assuming the direction of affairs in South Australia. This step would give unmixed satisfaction to an immense majority of the colonists, and would be a favourable omen of a change to a .»ound, economical, and just system of government. If, however, the new Governor should object to the Pilot station being maintained in the way just mentioned, which, if he be a gentleman of sound sense and practical experience, I am unwilling to believe he will do on light grounds, I would then propose, sooner than we should be deprived of such a very useful establishment, that the neces-

sary funds for its support be raised by a small charge upon the master of eafih vessel entering the port, for pilotage, wh-ther he take a pilot on hoard or not. Vessels, however, under 50 torn menwrement. to be exempt f*ra pilotage, unless a i)ilot be required b\ the mister in which case he would of c mr«e be . harjeable with due*. On coa-ting vessel-, pawppdini nO tons (of which there are only a very few in number) which enter and leave the port perhaps twenty times in a year, and which would, from the great experience acquired thereby by their masters, seldom or never take a pilot, it would only be lust, therefor", that some reduction be ma !e them from the rate of pilot* re dues chargeable to vessels from the adjacent colonies or from England.' A scale of charges would have to be framed, •trhich might be according to the draft of watv-r. or to the tonnage of each vessel as might be deemed the most advisable. All pilotage dues to be paid in the usual way, on the clearing out of the vessels at the Custom house In addition to the formation of a Pilot station, there is yet another and still more important requisite wanting, to ensure greater facilities to strangers in the navigation of our port at all times : I mean, of course, the erection of a Lighthouse near the heads, in respect to which the observations already made apply with double force. If, however, tne colonial revenues be nor within a reasonable time in such a state as to enable the new Governor to spare the necessary funds required for the erection of a Lighthouse, it would be of great service to shipping, if, as a temporary expedient, a Buoy, with a perpendicular iron bar of >ome 15 or 20 feet high attached to it, and from the top of which be suspended a Bell, such as ship's usua ly have, be laid down a shoto t distance from the outer ridge of Barrett's Reef. The action of the sea against the Buoy woulJ, unless nearly a calm, keep the Bell perpetually ringing, which would give masters of vessels constant warning in thicc weather, which is the usual attendant of a south-easter, that they were near the heads, and might shape their course for the entrance accordingly. It was my intention to offer some suggestions with the view of rendeiing the customs department more efficient than it hai hitherto been ; out having already trespassed la gely upon your space, I shall defer doinr so until next week. I am, Sir, your's respectfully, Wm. Hickson. Wellington, 4th Nov. 1845.

IWe publish tho following 1 depositions, j taken before tne Pol cc Magistrate of what appear^ to be a most gross and unprovoked outrage, and we call upon Mr. Kemp the Native Protector, to spare no exertion in investigating the matter so that justice maybe done to all parties. We shall have a few words to say to this functionary next week, on another subject connected with the settlers and the natives.