New Zealand Spectator, AND COOK'S STRAIT GUARDIAN. Wednesday, November 18, 1846.

New Zealand Spectator and Cook's Strait Guardian, Volume III, Issue 136, 18 November 1846, Page 2

New Zealand Spectator, AND COOK'S STRAIT GUARDIAN. Wednesday, November 18, 1846.

By the arrival of the Urgent yesterday, we have received Sydney papers to the 6th November, containing English news to the end of June, which had reached Sydney by way of Port Phillip,. The most important intelligence they convey is the dissolution of Sir Robert Peel's ministry, and the accession of the Whigs to office. We fear that this change will be unfortunate, so far as the interests of New Zealand are concerned, as it will have the effect of postponing the settlement of the various important questions affecting the prosperity of this colony, which awaited the decision of the Colonial Minister. It was reported that Lord Clarendon would be the new Secretary for the Colonies, being the third who has filled that office within the last six months. Copious extracts from the Sydney papers containing the latest English news will be found in this day's Spectator.

The Urgent has had a very favourable passage of ten days from Sydney, having anchored off the Heads on Monday evening. She has been very fortunate with her stock, having lost only twenty out of six hundred and fifty sheep, and twelve head of cattle out of seventy head which were embarked. A fine entii'e horse has also been imported from Sydney in the Urgent by Mr. Jenkins.

The Sarah Jane has brought oil and bone from Messrs. Geenwood and Rhodes's whaling station, where the Sisters is also loading and may be shortly expected. The Royal William was taking in oil and bone at Wood's station. The Scotia may be daily expected from the southward with oil and bone.

Intelligence has been received of the arrival at Liverpool, on the Bth June, of the brig Nelson, Capt. Sedgwick, having performed the passage from Wellington in 115 days. The Nelson has completed the voyage from London to Nelson and Wellington, and back to Liverpool, in the short space of nine months and twenty days. She may be expected to arrive in Wellington from Liverpool, about the middle of next month. It was also reported that the David Malcolm had arrived in England a few days before the Enterprize sailed.

The arms supplied during the late disturbances by Government to the natives at Te Aro, were returned to the Local Authorities yesterday.

In the account of the Liverpool June sales of Australian wool given in the Sydney Morning Herald, " a few good clean parcels sold at Is. 10£ d. per lb., which is about 2d. below last year's prices ; inferior and worse conditioned parcels were from 3d. to 4d. lower." The following extract appears to refer to the wool sent home in the Nelson : — A small parcel of New Zealand wool was included in these sales — it very much resembles that from Port Phillip, and we think the climate is well adapted for growing good healthy staple wool ; — it scours very white, which renders it better for fancy goods, but, like that from other new countries, the condition is bad, and the classing irregular.

The Australian has the following pertinent remarks on the postage charged- on newspapers in New Zealand. Our contemporary might have added that when, as is often the case, the Wellington mails are forwarded to Auckland, the postage is doubled, though from the detention caused by this unneces-

sary voyage to the Capital, the newspapers are out of date and useless : — New Zealand Legislation.— -The miserable government of this mismanaged colony taxes political information 1 Every now and then, the proprietors of the Sydney Journals receive back their papers, marked by the postmaster of New Zealand 2d., being rejected by the journalists there, on account of such charge. The latter cannot afford to pay £2:12:2 a-year for the Sydney Herald, sil : 6 for the Australian, &c. &c. &c. Even on their own papers they are obliged to pay postage, when they send them abroad ! When in the present day, a colony is so wretchedly poor, as to feel compelled to tax knowledge, its poverty is great indeed, and its government must have been execrable. But in the word Government, we mean chiefly that of Downing-street. The local government never was anything more than a municipal corporation, attempting to govern a country a thousand miles long. — Australian Journal, Nov. 5, 1846.