New Zealand Spectator, AND COOK'S STRAITS GUARDIAN. Satuarday, December 13, 1845.

New Zealand Spectator and Cook's Strait Guardian, Volume II, Issue 62, 13 December 1845, Page 2

New Zealand Spectator, AND COOK'S STRAITS GUARDIAN. Satuarday, December 13, 1845.

.Although the account we have received of the three nights debate in the House of Com.tnons upon New Zealand affairs, is most jmeagre and imperfect, yet we think>there is < ample ground for. congratulating our fellow -■settlers upon its satisfactory result. We allude not to the large and influential minority by whom our cause was so" ably sup-;ppijted.-rpwet allude not to the vast and / powerful interest evidentlyawakened amongst •aH 'parties' on behalf of this Government ac- ? * Cnrted Colony ;~but we allude, jtb f ',tne whole. t i |jte^p^.o]P;th^ f speieclies; of herJMfajesty's niin-i. J ' Mtera*--tP the ppinipns expressed by them japon the past policy of the Local Govern- - meat— -to the sketch given by them of their iuture intentions — and to the declaration made by the Prime Minister himself, " that he thought it important that the New.Zea-

land Company- should retain in full exercise tj*e powers committed to them with regard to settlement «nd -commerce — that he *' beiieved>that the Company might be made a useful instrumeit of Government, not exercising any ' Control over the Local Government, bat as a great commercial s )Ompany acting on enlightened principles, and assisting the Executive Government in devising means of emigration and employment for the surplus population of this country, and that -he did rot despair that that relation would be established between the Government and -the Company." We -point, with feelings*of no undue ex■nltation.'tout with an honest pride and satisfaction to the reasons of Captain Fitzroy's recall, as detailed by Mr. Under Secretary Hope, and we. ask, whether the course hitherto pursued by the settlers in Cook's Straits has not been amply vindicated — whether the constant, unceasing, uncompromising opposition, which they have evinced to the measures of Capt. Fitzroytand his servile- officials, has not been fully justified — whether the warnings and advice they ' have so repeatedly given — the protests they- have again and again entered, have not been by the highest authority^ proclaimed to be sound and just ? We can readily understand the bitter disappointment and dread dismay, which these declarations of her Majesty's Ministers, have created in the minds, not only of the whole tribe of officials, but also of the settlers at Auckland. The former cannot but be^painfully sensible that the reign of folly and imbecility, is at an end — that a new and different line of policy must and will be adopted — a line of policy requiring, to carry it out, not men, whose chief and only forte consists in doing nothing, but men of intellect and of firmness cf purpose — a line- of policy, in i short, of which it is utterly incredible that Capt. .Grey will hazard the failure. Jby,entrusting its execution to the hands ot those (to use Lord Howick's words) " incapable servants of the Government by whose misconduct the present state of things has been < produced." — So fully conscious aie the offi- ■ ' cials that their past conduct will amply justify Capt. Grsy in following Lord Howick's advice "to (dismiss them till," that, like drowning<men catching at straws, they seem disposed to attempt to screen themselves from their impending* fate, by doing their utmost 10 create -a prejudice against 'the in Capt. 'GreyVmiud ; for>they are one and HI , " that no Governor will ever he popular amongst us" — "'that we shall ever be discontented," and " opposed to the Locil Government." Now, if they mean, by these phrases, that we shall not, 'tike them, fall 'down and wor•ship every • Governor that comes, .without reference to his polic\-*if they mean, that we shall never *be satisfied, intil our grie- ! vances are reme'died — until the recently ex~ ! pressed intentions of the Home Government | are fully and fairly carried out, then we adI roit they are right ; but if they mean, as we suspect they do, that no matter how anxious the new Governor may be promote the true interests of the — no matter how good and 'beneficial his measures may be, we shall stall be dissatisfied, then we denounce them as guilty of a base and calumnious' falsehood. As to the hue and cryTaised by the Auckland settlers against the intimated intentions of her Majesty's Ministers, it is nothing more than what might hare been expected, from those, who have all along encouraged Captain Fitzroy in his mad career, and who have been »he chief instigators of" the very measures which have occasioned his downfall — as a brief reference to Mr. .Hope's speech will prove. The "first reason given by Mr. ''Hope for Captain Fitzroy ,s recall is "the 'financial course taken-by -him." ' Now, is it not notorious that the Auckland Settlers mat only urged him to issue the debentures to an amount limited oniy by the necessities of his Government, J l>ut that they forced him to make them a legal tender by declaring that the Auckland Batik wouldrsuspend payments, and that they would all *be irretrievably ruined ? The second reason, was " liis proceedings on the subject, of the laud ;" here again the Auckland settlers stand convicted of aiding •and abetting him — for «the violation of the Land Claims Ordinance ' the issue of •grants exceeding the .maximumnthe land scrip -fraud— the Ten s Shilling Proclamation -were ■attvdamourously -urged •• by \rh&n; N;ay, theyveven pressed the Penny Procter, | juation upon him, long before the *Maori chiefs took the question in hand and -settled it with a flourish of their tomahawks. The third "-ground of his recall was the course he took as to the Militia Bin," but j is it not recorded in the debates of the last j session of the Legislative Council, that the i settlers at the north were so opposed to the ' establishment of a Militia, t\%t even after

the destruction of Kororarika, and when even Capt. Fitzro/ had seen the error*Sf his ways, they presented a petition against it ? The last ground stated by Mr. Hope was " his not having shewn sufficient firmness and decision in his proceedings with the natives." We need only call <to remembrance, the approbation expressed by the Auckland SPttlers of Capt. Fitzroy's procesdiugs at Waikanae — the fulsome adulation lavished upon him after he returned from the disgraceful exhibition at the Bay of Islands, when he sent away the troops, abolished the Customs, waived the Queen's right of preemption, and made every other concession demanded by the Maories at the very time that they were in arms against the Queen's authority, in proof that they (the Auckland settlers) may be fairly charged with having encouraged Capt. Fitzroy in his Maori mania. It is unnecessary now to dwell upon the facVthat the very reasons which have induced the Home Government to ■ recall Capt. Fitzr-oy, are the chief grounds upon which our opposition to his Government has been based; but we must be permitted .to ask, whether it is credible, that the acts, which have • now been so strongly condemned by the Ministry, would ever ■ have been committed if the seat of Government 'had been in Cook's Straits; whether the Local Go^ vernment would have dared to have defied the public opinion, which would, in that case, have been brought to bear upon its proceedings, more especially when that public opinion was in stria accordance with the views and instructions of the Home Government ? Will any rational man deny, that if ""the Government of this colony "had "been (as Sir R. Ped himseli asserts it ought to be) in connexion with those who are immediately interested in its locul prosperity, .assigning them a due weight and influence in the administration of .affairs," the present calamities in all probability would have been entirely averted ? And further, if it be true, " that every man ' is the best judge of his own affairs," do not the diff.rert views taken by the colonists at the North and those at the South upon the questions above alluded to us having caused Captain Fitzroy's recall, afford the best possible evidence that their . interests are opposed ? And if so, upon what ground can that system be defended, by which the Southern settlers are debarred from-exerci-sing the slightest influence in the framing of«the laws? With respect to the future intentions of the Ministers — Sir R. Peel stated not only his willingness but his earnest desire to grant us a representative government, but expressed his fears, that the dispersion of the settlements rendered it at present impracticable. H ere again, the capital being placed at Auckland is the-eole impediment 10 our obtaining this inestimable boon; for if the seat of Government was at this place, there is not a settlement In Cook's Straits, that could not and would not willingly send its repre- \ sentatives. Nay, we venture to say, that if necessary, the expenses of members to this place would cheerfully be defrayed by funds raised here. Can, then, a more intolerable evil be imagined, than that four-fifths of the British .population in this' colony should be denied the privilege of all 'Others most dear | to them— .that ofrepreseritatlve government, simply because seme five years ago, a s>et of needy' land jobbing officials, availing themselves of Capt. Hobson's paralized intellects, induced him to place the -eeat of his Government at the greatest possible distance from these whom he was sent to govern ? We trust, however, that this stumbling in the way of our prosperity- is about to be removed, for Sir R. Peel "himself admits its gross injustice, both when A he asserts, " (Siat | the Government constituted in New Zealand, j ought to be in connexion with those who ure j interested in its local prosperity, assigning them a due weight and influence in the administration of affairs" — and also when he states that his only objection to giving us a re- j presentative government arises from the dispersion of the settlements — for all the Com- j 1 pany's settlements being within twenty four hoars eail'of each other, Auckland is, in fact, the only one really isolated— -the only one to which his objection applies. Moreover, if Sir R. Peel's anticipation of the Company's resuming their colonizing operations on a grand scale be realised, then the injustice of keeping the capital at the north will be still more monstrous, .for most assuredly the settlements formed by the Company will either be in I Cook's Straits or on the East coast of the Middle Island — and in such a case, it is [ quite certain that in the course of one or two years, nine-tenths of the British population wfHbe in the Company's settlements, and that in ten or fifteen yearstheir settlers will out number the whole native population in the three islands. So convinced are the settlers at the North, that the present seat of the capital 48 untenable, that they have already raised the cry of. '• no spoliation" —

and of " vested interests," forgetting that to transfer the seat of Government to this place, is simphJKjj|repftir the injustice originally committed towards us, by placing it at Auckland. It would be just as reasonable | for the thief to complain,, that it was monstrously unjust to compel him to restore the stolen property to the rightful owner, as for the Auckland people to protest against our reclaiming that, to which we were by every law of reason and justice originally entitled. As to their assertion, that to change the capi'al would be ' an act of direct fraud and robbery unparalleled in the history of civilized nations," we need only refer them to the repeated changes, within the last few years, of the capital in Canada. We know not whether the Church of England will join in this cry of " vested interests," and point to the money it has invested in Land, Churches, Schools, and Colleges at Auckland, on the faith of its being the seat of Government. ; but the answer is simple enough ;-*-if the Bishopric of New Zealand was founded on account of the white population, then the See ought to' have been at one of the settlements in Cook's Straits, more especially after the handsome and liberal endowment made by the New Zealand Company ; if on the other hand, it was established for the exclusive benefit of the Maories, then Auckland undoubtedly is its proper See. and the settlers here will have no right to complain if it does not follow the migration of the Government. We had written thus much, before the Royal William arrived with English mails up to the 22nd July. Although we regret to find, that no arrangement had been effected between the Company and tne Government, owing to Lord Stanley continuing as hostile as ever, yet we can find nothing to induce us to relax in our endeavours to effect the removal of the evils inflicted upon us by the present distance of the seat of Government, but on the contrary, every possible inducement for us to persevere; as Lord Stanley has himself declared that " the change of capital is an open question." -

By the Shamrock, which arrived this morning from Sydney, after a favorable passage of ten days, we have received Sydney papers to December 2. « The Sydney Morning Herald of that date contains a report of the debate on Mr. Bailer's motion, occupying three very closely printed columns. , The debate lasted two nights ; on the second night the r |)rincipal speakers were Capt. Rous, Mr. Ward, Sir C. Napier, Viscount, Ingestre, Sir R^Eee), and Lord J. Russell. Sir R. Pejsi, eulogized the gallant conduct of Capt. Robertson, which he publicly announced should be rewarded with promotion in his profession^ . He argurd that the Government had been planned into its prevent 'difficulties with respect to New Zealand by acting dn the principles contained in the report on the aborigines, and by founding its claims to the land, ~not on the right «f discovery which was indisputable, but «n the right of cession which was very questionable. Lord J. Russell took blame, to himself that he had not earlier taken the tense of the House on the misgovernment of New Zealand, which even then he saw must end in some disaster. The Government, 'however, would he obliged to alter its policy in NewZe»land, as it bad altered the policy of Lord Stanley in a country nearer bom«. The time-would Come -when Sit R. Peel, discarding the pride, pique, and obstinacy of his colleague, would determine to do justice to New Zealand ; but in the meantime the colony would be exposed to the greatest risk, until tht colonists were treated as the seas, -and not as the enemies of the country. Mr. Buller's amendment was negatived by a majority of 155 over 89 voices — being one of the largest minorities against the Ministers during the session. The Susannah Ann was to sail two days after the Shamrock for Wellington, she was detained by the necessary repairs caused by her -carrying away her mainmast on her passage to Sydney. The price oi wool was rising xapidly in Sydney.

By the Elizabeth which' arrived "this morning from Auckland we learn that a school of 22 sperm whales were captured at ftlahia in Hawke's Bay in oneday, which produced 1 00 tons of oil ; part hat been sent to Auckland and 15 ton* have been brought in the Eliza' beth to this port.

Another box of sovereigns was recovered from the wreck of the Tyne on Thursday last, by Mr. Richmond, of Barrett's Hotel. This is the fifth iox found, so that there "only remains one more of those brought out-by Capt. Robertson, which we hope Mr v 'Richmond may be able shortly to discover.

Horticultural Socixtt. — The fi|st prize foi the Cottagers' garden in the best" state of cultivation, and in the neatest order, was awarded to Mr. James, and the second prize to Mr, Gascoyne, both of Wades Town.

In preparing for the press* the -ntfbrmalion collected for the Cook* Straits Almnnack w« have' found it necessary either to. increase tht price or to leare out much,.Taluabfe-informa-tion, and we have not hwkMed to adopt the

fonaer tlternatife. The Almanack for 1846 'Will contain newly forty-very closely printed pages ; several- valuable table* have been (prepared by. A. Wylie, Eq M so that, it will ■contain all the information to be obtained from tha Nautical Almanack, required by masters of coasting vessels ; while the section con - •Mining the latitude, longitude, rime of high ■water, fee, of the principal harbours capes, &c, of New Zealand will be found most useful' to misters of vessels, and invaluable to those visiting these islands lor the first time. Tbis-parthas been prepared with great care by A. Wills, Esq., of the Company's Survey office, from the published maps, and MS. charts af>d journals in their possession, the use ofTPhicb, through the kindness of Col Wakefield, has been freely permitted for the purpose.