NEW ZEALAND SPECTATOR AND Saturday, May 15, 1852.

New Zealand Spectator and Cook's Strait Guardian, Volume VIII, Issue 708, 15 May 1852, Page 2

NEW ZEALAND SPECTATOR AND Saturday, May 15, 1852.

The Tory arrived yesterday with a small mail from Lyttelton and Otago, the mail from the latter settlement having heen brought on by the Black Dog. The Lyttelton Times gives an account of a Meeting at Lyttelton for the purpose of constituting a Society " for the discussion of all subjects of public interest," intended to replace the defunct "Council of Land Purchasers," if indeed the latter could be Baid practically to have had an existence, or any claim on the sympathies o the settlers for what it had done. In the report of the meeting we are told " that Mr. Cholmondeley, amidst great laughter 9 gave a humorous description of the last days of the Society of Land Purchasers, how step by step it grew enfeebled and became deprived of its members, until, being reduced to its Chairman and Secretary, meeting merely to look at each' other across the table, it had finally departed this world one fine afternoon at the Land Office, at Christen urch, in Mr. Brittan's arm chair." As one .main feature of the new Society is the delivery of lectures, we suppose it will ultimately, if carried out, assume the shape of an Athenaeum or Mechanics' Institute, though the editor of the Lyttelton Times, in congratulating the settlers of Canterbury on its formation, compliments the embryo society at their expense, when he talks of its aspiring "to become a school for the political education of the people." Now we Jiad always supposed from the previous representations of our contemporary that the Canterbury settlers were so perfectly instructed on all political questions, and so well fitted for the exercise of political privileges as to need no schooling whatever; to speak more seriously, the fate of the land purchasers society should act as a warning to those who are busy in trying to form the present society, that the settlers are quite able to think and act for themselves on any public question affect-

ing their interests without any "schooling," or allowing themselves to be made use of by any society or clique. It is curious to observe how, one by one, these societies have gradually "paled their ineffectual fires" and gone out like so many farthing' rushlights. The Bowie Knife Association here was completely extinguished by the settlers' memorial, signed by eighthundred settlers,and comprising the bulk of the community. The end of the Canterbury "Council," as it was somewhat pompously termed, is pleasantly described by Mr. Cholmondeley, and the family compact at Otago is too insignificant to end in any thing but smoke. By the way since our notice of the WitlesSy&sit is humorously designated at Otago, we have not received any numbers in exchange, Captain Cargill, we suppose, being afraid of further criticism, and as the reciprocity would otherwise have been onesided, we have discontinued sending the Spectator- We hear active measures are being adopted for establishing the new Paper which will really represent the opinions and intelligence of that community. '

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