New Zealand Spectator, AND COOK'S STRAIT GUARDIAN. Wednesday, December 11, 1850.
An article in last Saturday's Independent, which professes to be an answer to some observations we made in the previous number of the Spectator, (Dec. 4) on Sir George Grey's proposed alteration in the Constitution of this colony, may be taken as a tolerably fair sample of the way the learned editor of that journal attempts to reply to what he finds he cannot controvert ; he first misrepresents his opponent, and having raised a phantom of his own creation proceeds to combat it ; he endeavours to mystify his readers and ends in only mystifying himself; he tries to bowl down the skittles which he himself had previously set up. We should but enter into a useless logomachy to repeat the statements of the Independent for the purpose of refuting them, the most casual reference to what we did say will show that we made no mention of the late public meeting, and therefore could not " designedly misrepresent" the opinions of the speakers ; that we said nothing about " discontented agitators and personal opponents of Sir George Grey," and therefore could not allude by that expression " to Messrs. Featherston and Fox," as the writer in the Independent asserts, since we never used it. We successfully shewed by a reference to some able strictures in the Times (which we reprinted) on Sir W. Molesworth's proposed amendments on the Australian Bill, that public opinion in England (of which the Times might be taken as a fair index) was opposed to those demands ; that the minority who voted with Sir W. Molesworth was so small, being less than a fifteenth of the House of Commons, as to afford strong evidence that such proposals would not be favourably entertained by that House ; and that the settlers were more likely to obtain such a practical measure of self-government as would be beneficial to the colony by cooperating with Sir George than by opposing him ; that by draining after delusive shadows they would probably lose the substance which was placed within their grasp. These arguments the writer in the Independent does not answer. The silly attempt to represent the leading article in the Spectator and the
letter of a " Working Man" as the production of the same writer will not deceive any one ; Mr. Fox may judge of others by his own standard, but he cannot possibly know anything of the management or conduct of the Spectator, and though he may find it convenient to write both the leader* and correspondence of the Independent, we are content to allow our correspondents to express their unbiassed sentiments, neither burking their communications when they happen to be opposed to our own opinion, nor trying to impose on the public by false pretences, as is too frequently the case with our opponent, just as the commander of a beleaguered fortress, when sorely pressed, attempts to make a show of greater numbers by means of men of straw. The objections in the Independent to Sir George Grey's measure may be briefly disposed of. An attempt is made to mystify by talking of Provincial Governments and General Governments, of Provincial Councils and General Councils, the latter "consisting at pi-esenl solely of Nominees," and the sums to be withheld by them from the control of the representatives of the people. What are the facts ? Subject to the necessary reserves to be made on account oi the natives, Sir George Grey is disposed to give up the control of the revenue of each Province, with the exception of the Governors' and Judges' salaries, to the Provincial Councils. And though the General Council must be composed according to the Act of Parliament now in force, "solely of Nominees," Sir George has pledged himself to exercise the right of nomination in such a way as virtually to carry out the principle to be established by the Provincial Councils Bill, by selecting one-third of the members from those nominated by the Government, and two-thirds from those elected by the settlers to the Provincial Councils ; these facts Mr. Fox suppresses. But Mr. Fox appears to have but a poor opinion of his own party, since he considers it probable that " more than a fourth of the representatives," (vvho of course will all be members of the Constitutional Association) — "say three out of nine!" — can be influenced by the Government to carry any measure it chooses. An attempt is made to induce the belief that a more liberal measure of self government will be granted by the British Parliament to New Zealand than the Australian Bill, most of the restrictions contained in that Bill, it is said, having been inserted on account of the convict element in the colonies of that continent, and that Sir George Grey might, if he pleased, abandon the principle of Nomineeism and make the constitution of the chambers wholly elective. It is a sufficient answer to the former statement, that Port Phillip and South Australia, colonies considerably surpassing* New Zealand in the amount of their population, exports, and revenue, are not convict colonies ; and to the latter to remind our readers that that part of the 32nd clause of the Australian Bill empowering the colonial legislatures ".generally to vary in any manner not hereinbefore authorised the constitution of such Legislative Councils respectively," and which woutd" have" allowed the Councils to oust the Nominee members and establish single elective chambers, was struck out in the House of Lords. The settlers will be able to estimate the value of these probabilities and chances against the certainties offered them by Sir George Grey. Besides, the Colonial Reformers in .the House of Commons desired to include New Zealand in the provisions of the Australian Bill, and thought by doing so they were conferring a very great boon on the colony; this measure may therefore be taken as the extent of their liberality. But we have already shewn that the ordinance proposed by Sir George is, in • many respects, more liberal than the Australian Bill. The learned editor of the Independent then attempts to get over the inconsistency "of certain parties" in boasting of victories which turn out to be no victories at all, in first accepting Sir George's measure as a >
great triumph, and then rejecting it altogether, and can see no inconsistency m conduct which has rendered him and his party the laughing stocks of the settlement. This certainly is a very sore place and we must be tender with it. His excuse reminds us of the apology offered by a vehement partisan of Mr. Wilkes for that patriot's obliquity o£ vision — " Squints ! yes to be sure he does, Sir ! but not a bit more than a gentleman, and a man of sense ought to squint!" And so, in the opinion of Mr. Fox, the Faction are not a bit more inconsistent, their mental obliquity is not a bit more — than it ought to be !
Coroner's Inquest. — An inquest was held on Monday, at the Ship Hotel, Te Aro, before Dr. Fitzgerald, Coroner, on the body of Edward Head, a settler living at Ohiro, who was killed under the following melan-
choly circumstances : Reuben Shcrt, labourer, in the employ of the deceased deposed, that on Saturday evening last, about seven o'clock, he had just left deceased's house to get some water, when he saw the bullock dray, drawn by one bullock, coming along the road ; Mr. and Mrs. Head were in it •, Mr. Head's dog began to bark at the bullock, and the bullock bolted ; Mr. Head jumped off the shaft to catch the bullock, when the wheel caught the heel of his shoe and threw him down and the wheel of the dray passed over him ; he was about twenty yards from the dray when it capsised ; Mrs. Head was thrown off and the dray fell on her ; witness lilted the dray and pulled Mrs. Head from under it and placed her on tbe grass, and then sent for a doctor. G. D. Monteitk, Surgeon, deposed that he found the deceased complaiaing of very great pain and suffering apparently from internal injuries ; he said tbe wheel of the dray had passed over his chest ; his side was much injured, but witness did not like 10 proceed with the examination as deceased was apparently dying ; he died the following morning at five o'clock ; the witness since ascertained that some of the ribs on the left side were fractured, winch i!<» doubt occasioned death. The Jury returned a verdict of accidental death. The deceased has left a widow and four children, one an infant at the breast ; Mrs. Head, his widow, unfortunately received a severe compound fracture of the left leg from the dray falling on her.
The Barque Lnvinia, from Liverpool bound to California, put into this Port on Saturday. She left Liverpool 15 th Jul\ r , and spent a month in unsuccessful attempts to round Cape Horn. Finding all his efforts fruitless, the Captain at length bore up and has made New Zealand for the purpose of obtaining refreshments, of which his crew were greatly in need, many of them being laid up of the scurvy. The Lavinia is laden with coal for San Francisco.
Programme of the performance of the Band of the 65th Regt., at Thorndon Fiat, on "Wednesday, December 11 :—: — 1. Overture — LesDiarnans delaCou- 1 . . ronne \ Auher 2. Selection — Le Prophete Meyerbeer 3. Charles the Second Quadrilles .... Jullien 4. Selection— L'Etoile de Seville Balfe 5. Lucrezia Valse Jullien 6. Grand March (or Pas Redouble) . . FillinU 7. The Jetty Treffz Polk* Buller
Permanent link to this item
Hononga pūmau ki tēnei tūemi
https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/NZSCSG18501211.2.3
Bibliographic details
Ngā taipitopito pukapuka
New Zealand Spectator and Cook's Strait Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 559, 11 December 1850, Page 2
Word count
Tapeke kupu
1,598New Zealand Spectator, AND COOK'S STRAIT GUARDIAN. Wednesday, December 11, 1850. New Zealand Spectator and Cook's Strait Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 559, 11 December 1850, Page 2
Using this item
Te whakamahi i tēnei tūemi
No known copyright (New Zealand)
To the best of the National Library of New Zealand’s knowledge, under New Zealand law, there is no copyright in this item in New Zealand.
You can copy this item, share it, and post it on a blog or website. It can be modified, remixed and built upon. It can be used commercially. If reproducing this item, it is helpful to include the source.
For further information please refer to the Copyright guide.