SIR JULIUS VOGEL ON NEW ZEALAND.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 5237, 5 January 1878, Page 1 (Supplement)

SIR JULIUS VOGEL ON NEW ZEALAND.

The following report of Sir Julius Vogel's speech at (the dinner given by the directors of the Colonial Bank of New Zealand, is from the London Times of November 3:— In our last issue we referred to a dinner given oh the 31st ultimo by the directors of the Colonial Bank of New Zealand, at the Albion Hotel, to a few friends interested in the co'onies at the antipodes, when Mr. E. B. Cargill occupied the chair. After the customary loyal toasts, The Chairman proposed “ The Colonies of New Zealand,” which he said he desired to couple with ‘the name of Sir Julius Vogel, an illustrious Now Zealand statesman. (Cheers.) The name of New Zealand probably suggested to different persons somewhat different ideas. Some of them had spent their best years there, and to them the name of New Zealand represented a country with an unsurpassed climate and a colony that had made remarkable progress. To others who had not been so immediately connected with it New Zealand suggested the idea of a laud of savage and cannibal Maoris, who gave a great deal of trouble not long ago to a very distinguished British General and a great force of Imperial troops. It was perhaps not known to a great many people that these Maoris were not all enemies, but some were true and fast friends ; and throughout those troubles they were often dependent for the protection of their settlers’ wives and families upon the good services of gallant Maoris who were on their side. Other people, no doubt, looked upon New Zealand as a dreadful place for swallowing up money. (Laughter.) No doubt a good deal of money had gone out to New Zealand and been spent there, and very likely a good deal more would have to be spent ; but, with regard to the money that had been sent there, ho believed it to be one of the best investments that the British public had committed themselves to. (Choers.) The Chairman then alluded to'the material, intellectual, and religious progress made by the colony during the last thirty years. The early settlers, ho said, had great difficulties to contend with, but they had gone

out imbued with the idea of taking with them the blessings and privileges enjoyed in the mother country, and the results had surpassed their expectations. The value of the exports daring the last year was five and a half millions, the item of wool alone being three and a half millions. There were 800 miles of railway at work, and 400 additional miles would soon be completed. So far as he could judge, there was no part of the world where the money of the old country could be invested with greater security than it could be in New Zealand. (Hear, hear.) Sir Julius Vogel, in responding, said : I feel that a very great responsibility has been cast upon me in responding to this toast, which Mr. Cargill has with so much eloquence proposed. If I had the opportunity of watching over what I may term the childhood of New Zealand, Mr. Cargill has had the opportunity of watching over its infancy. His knowledge of New Zealand is incomparably larger than my own. Now I may say—what Mr. Cargill's modesty forbade him from saying—that the settlement of Otago, which he justly states is commercially, perhaps, the most important in New Zealand, owes its foundation to Captain Cargill, Mr. Cargill’s father ; stranger who visits Dunedin, the capital of Otago, will find tho principal object there In a monument, which a grateful people have erected to the memory of that gentleman to show the profound reverence in which his memory is held. (Hear, hoar.) Long after the time to which Mr. Cargill has referred, when I first went to New Zealand —-about 1862—the colony was certainly, in respect to public works and material advancement, not on a par with neighboring colonies. I think I may say that, except a few miles for military purposes, there was not at that time established any telegraph line, and there was not any considerable amount of railway construction ; yet I well recollect that oven than the spirit of enterprise was abroad. Mr. Moorhonsc, then the Superintendent at Canterbury, where there was a population of enly 18,000 people, had the rare courage to earry out tho construction of a tunnel a mile and a half in length—at that time a work of very formidable difficulty—in order to place the people of Canterbury in connection in an easy manner with the coast, the difficulty in communicating with which was found to interfere materially with their advancement. There was also a feeling strongly entertained by the Superintendent of Otago, Mr. Macaudrow—who has now lately become a Minister —and by others, that only by a system of public works could adequate justice be done to the rare capabilities of the colony. X want to point out that this policy of public works and immigration, to which Mr. Cargill has referred, did not come srl-tjaly into birth ; but was really the result of efforts carried out in different parts of the colony, long matured, well considered, and very generally desired. There came n time when the Imperial Government gave tho colony of New Zealand to understand that it intended to withdraw from it every kind of assistance whatever ; that it must, in future, manage its own affairs with respect to protecting itself from the natives ; and then tho colonists had seriously to consider their position. Tile North Island of New Zealand had merely a fringe of settlement around it. Tho interior was at the command of the natives, while, in the Middle Island, a considerable period of depression had raised the question in the minds of the people whether they should really be responsible for tho settlement of the whole colony, or whether it did not behove them rather to look after the interest of their own island, casting upon the Imperial Government the responsibility of dealing with the North Island. At the time the Imperial Government gave the colony to understand—-it was stated in scarcely veiled terms—that it might, if it liked, become independent; but that certainly troops Would be withdrawn from the colony, and that it would be left to itself with regard to providing its own defence. I think lam really not exaggerating the case when I say that the Imperial Government not only took away from the colony every soldier, hut parted with everything which might give it the appearance of responsibility within the colony. I do not think it preserved oven a single flag or any emblem by which it might he supposed that it stiff retained any responsibility. It did nothing boyond leaving them the Imperial representative—-tile Governor. It then forced itself irresistibly upon tho minds of the people of New Zealand that the small population that existed in tho colony was utterly unequal to the responsibilities oast upon it, and that it was imperatively necessary for it to increase the population and to enlarge the sphere of settlement, especially in the North Island. It also forced itself upon the minds of those who had charge of the Government cf New Zealand that it was a far more profitable thing to expend money in employing the Maori race in peaceful objects, such as opening up communications, than to expend it upon the most wasteful of all purposes—war. Out of those principles grew that policy which at last assumed a distinct shape ; and when it assumed that shape it was well understood that the Middle Island would not be responsible for opening tip the North Island to settlement unless there was a reciprocity in the matter, and that the same policy must be pursued in respect of both islands. Here, perhaps, I may bo allowed to say, without touching upon a very delicate political question, which for obvious reasons I should he very much disinclined to refer to, that New Zealand has been settled and colonised in a manner widely different from other colonies. I firmly believe that, had New Zealand been settled from one single centre, you would not how find tho colony in anything like the position it occupies at the present time. It is owing to tho fact that the colony was mapped out in so many districts, each community striving to emulate the other and striving to advance Its own particular district, that you have the astonishing progress which you may how see from one end of New Zealand to tho other. (Hear, hear.) Tho time has come when the people of New Zealand have thought it desirable to abolish those particular forms of government ; yet I think—and I believe Mr. Cargill will agree with me—that for a long time after the separate symbols of government have been dispensed with, the memory of those partioalar districts and distinctions will-survive ; at any rate so far as concerns tho spirit of emulation which has been tho means of advancing New Zealand, not at any one particular point, but from the extreme north to the extreme south. It was determined that two tilings were required by the colony—one an increase of tho population, and the other the opening up of the lands, the tolonists firmly believing that if means of communication wero only afforded between those lands and markets for produce there would be no lack of enterprise to cultivate them and obtain for them the best results. It is scarcely necessary for me to say how very much these anticipations have been realised. Within the Inst seven years something like eighty thousand souli have been introduced into tho colony at the expense of tile Government by a system of assisted emigration; and a proof that those immigrants have not been introduced into tho colony in order that they may go from there to other colonies is to be found in the fact that the number of arrivals exceeds the total number of departures over and above the number that have been introduced at Government expense, so that tho colony has attracted free immigrants, coming at their own expense, in excess of those who have left. As long as this is the case, there is a satisfactory answer to any plea that may be raised that the Government were importing immigrants in order that they might go to other colonies, As Mr. Cargill has told you, there are some 800 miles of railway now at work, and I believe by tho end of June next there will be another 200 miles, making a total of a thousand miles of railway. These railways have been constructed principally by tho colony, but in some part by tho provinces. I am not able to give you the exact figures ; but I am dealing with tho aggregate results when I say that, if the anticipations which were formed two or three months ago were carried into effect, there will be over n thousand miles of railway open for traffic by Jmie 30 next—surely a not inconsiderable result when you consider in how short a period all this has been carried out. The anticipation is that during the year ending

June 30 next there will be, in excess of the working expenses, a profit realised on these railways ef £174,000, and this estimate has, I believe, been made with moderation. Now, will you allow me to point out this to you ? If you were going to found a colony to-morrow in a strange country, where there were no roads formed, the first thing you would think of doing would be to make roads. You would have no idea of making any profit out of them. You might perhaps have to put on tolls to keep them in repair ; but you would have no idea of making any profit out of such road-'. Now, the view that has been taken in New Zealand is that railways such as are suited fur the country—we do not pretend to railways giing fifty or sixty miles an hour; railways adapted to opening up the country and conveying the produce of the land to the markets of the seaboard—are really equipped roads, and that it is more economical to malic such roads and charge for their use than to provide for roads that cost a great deal for maintenance, and for which rolling stock, in one shape or another, has to be found. Railways in New Zealand are really an expensive form of roads and a cheap form of railways, and the fact that the anticipations respecting them have been realised has been proved in a most remarkable manner. It has boon found that the anticipations of traffic upon these linos have been far less than the results have shown. It was proposed in the first instance to use iron rails of forty pounds weight; now it has been determined to nso steel rails cf over sixty pounds. Tho demands of the traffic have rendered this necessary. The requirements of the rolling stock also are far in excess of what was originally anticipated. There arc many gentlemen around this table whom I recognise as colonists, and who are familiar with tho circumstances of New Zealand, who will bear mo out when I say that during tho past season tho railways have been found inadequate to meet tho enormous demands made upon them. Mr. Cargill referred la a very eloquent manner to the question of tho demands which tho Colony of Now Zealand had made upon tho money market of-Great Britain. Now, in my opinion, no greater benefit was ever bestowed upon the money market of Great Britain than a colony coming forward and asking for money for the purpose of honestly and bravely developing English territory by the countrymen of those who lent tho money, persuading them that it was more for their interest to lend tho money in that manner than to provide for the armaments of the Continent or carrying out railways for military purposes abroad. There is a groat difference between the public debt of such a colony as New Zealand and the public debt of tho mother country, and if I am not detaining yon too long I would ask leave to point it out to you. When you come to compare the debt of a colony and the debt of the mother country you should boar in mind that tile debt of a colony comprises debt for the construction of works, which are altogether left outside the public debt of the mother country—the cost of railways for example, and of harbor improvements. Taking those two alone, if the cost of harbor improvements and railways in Great Britain were added to the national debt, how much larger would it be than it is at present? Then recollect also that you have oast upon this countx'y as an annually recurring burden, from which it is impossible to escape, tile cost of an enormous array of pauperism, unfortunately existing in this country, but happily unknown in the colony. And when you consider the question of taxation, you must recollect that our general revenue comprises objects which, are not paid for out of your general revenue, but which are with you objects of special and very harassing and oppressive taxation. From our general revenue is defrayed the cost of gaols, lunatic asylums, and almost the entire cost of education, but those are outside your ordinary scheme of taxation ; they are made the subject of special taxation, which very few escape. Then we have a special resource which is not known in countries where the public estate has been parted with. There are in New Zealand about 34,000,000 acres of public estate not yet sold. The revenue derived hist year from the sale and letting of land was over £1,000,000, and we have during the next five years an enormous extent of leases of pasture country that will fall in, and it is expected that a very much heavier rental will be obtained. It is certainly within the mark to say that those railways which have been made have at the least doubled tho value of the public property of the colony. (Hear, hear.) I will also ask any of you to consider, it you had an estate of your own, whether it would be bad policy on your part to expend an insignificant sum as compared with the value of the estate for the purpose of developing the value of the whole of the land if you wished to put it into the market. Now with regard to the railways that have been constructed in New Zealand, it is not too much to say that they have doubled the value not only of tlie public estate but of the private estate of the country; and the responsibility of their construction undertaken by the Government really belongs to the body of colonists themselves. Emm this point of view the railways have been over and over again remunerative. I undertake to say that any one who will dispassionately examine the question will come to no other conclusion than that which I have pointed out. I know it is somewhat opposed to the feelings of those who believe entirely iu the Homo policy which has been approved for a long period that Government should undertake duties such as have been undertaken in the colony of Now Zealand. Allow me to point out that that feeling has of late years become much modified. There was a great innovation in thjs country when the Government proposed to take charge of the telegraph lines of the United Kingdom. Ido not think there would ho found many persons from one end of the kingdom to the other who would now dispute the policy of that step, and, after all, that was simply following in the wake of tlie course pursued by the colonies, who had made telegraph linos public property. There are now, I think, a large body of men in this country, probably the majority of people, who, though they may not see their way to the State acquiring tlie railways of the United Kingdom, would yet agree that if the time for railway construction had to corns over again, it would bo a much more politic tiling for tho State to undertake the charge of railway construction and tlie working of railways, than for it to allow them to bee nne tlie property of private individuals - (hear, hear); ami when we turn to the State itself and look to what has taken place with municipal government we see how largely that change of feeling lias been manifested through the minds of tlie people. Municipal governments are by common consent taking part in affairs which would have been supposed a few years ago beyond their province. It is now an ordinary tiling for municipalities to take charge of tlie duties of providing gas and water for the 'ratepayers ; and there is also a dispos'tbu to provide, at tlie risk and expense of tho municipality, suitable dwellings for tlie poorer classes, and also to construct and work tramways. Those are innovations which nally, to my mind, arc simply following the stops taken iu some of the colonies. But, after ah, what are the colonies but colonies of people from this country, persons who have gone out there imbued with tlie spirit of enterprise, and who are, oa tlie wind--, mo.-e educated than those who remain behind ? If you come to look at tlie tiling from a philosophical point of view, you will'arrive at this conclusion—that the community of New Zealand is simply engaged upon one great task, that is, of obtaining from the land its products, whether animal, vegetable, or mineral. All other employments in the colony are subsidiary to that, llien you may ask yourselves, “ What encouragement have they in performing such a task ?” Take the wealdi which is procured. First, auini d wealth. There are very few of you around this table' who are pot aware of the enormous results of the wool industry alone. A few years ago the colony of New Zealand was far behind other colonies in its production of wool and in the number of sheep. At tlie present day it has as many sheep ns the large colony of Victoria, and about half the number of the enormous colony of New South Wales. Then in respect to its vegetable wealth. I have been amazed to see public statistics which have been issued not from New Zealand but from other colonies

from which it appears that) the other six colonies of Australasia—that is to say, Western Australia, South Australia, Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland, and Tasmania, have under cultivation, including the laying down of' laud for artificial grass, nil extent of 3,480,000 acres, while New Zealand—this sraalT colony—has 2,377,000 acres. It has been found that iu New Zealand you can lay down artificial grasses with the greatest advantage ; while iu very fow parts of the large neighboring colonies can this be done. As regards mineral wealth also there are fow of you who are not aware how much gold the colony lias produced, hut you may not all be aware of the great field that is open to it into coal mines. There are very few parts of New Zealand where coal is not to be obtained, and in some parts it is of ihe best possible quality. It lias been part of the system of railway construction within the colony to provide means for bringing more of the produce of these valuable coal mines to market, and there is scarcely a question that in the next two or three years the production of coal within the colony will be so great as to reduce, if not altogether to dispense with, the large quantity of coal hitherto imported. Mr. Cargill has referred to the climate of the colony. It has an immense variety of climate. You can grow anything in the eolony, from the productions of a temperate to those of a sub-tropical climate. Ido not think there is any country in the world that has in proportion to its area such an enormous seaboard and such facilities for shipping. Then you must recollect that the colony has been peopled with the greatest care, that those who have gone out have done so after mature consideration. I thiuk, taking the colonists of New Zealand generally, Jam not exaggerating when I say that they are hard-working and self-reliant, frugal and industrious, and, on the' whole, au educated people. It ha* bean made the duty of the State to see that the rising generation shall without exception bo educated. As has been pointed out by Mr. Cargill, an advanced education has been opened out to those who choose to take advantage of it. X ask you, then, is a land 'if this kind not a land worthy of being developed, and is it a wild dream to conceive o: it that it muy attain enormous importance in the future ? At any rate, if yon do not answer me iu the affirmative, I have long since conceived that idea, and any poor share that I may have had in advancing the colony has grown solely out of the profound conviction I entertain that there is not a land in the world more worthy the efforts of those who have devoted themselves to its advancement than the colony of New Zealand. (Loud cheers.) Mr. Westgakth then proposed “ Prosperity to the Banking and Commercial Interests of London,” which was responded to by Mr. Milford, Manager of the Union Bank of London. The toast of “ The Colonial Bankers ” was acknowledged thy Sir. Campbell, Manager of the Oriental Banking Corporation, and Sir. Mathesox, Manager of the Bank of Victoria. Sir Julies Vogel proposed “Success to the Colonial Bank of New Zealand,” and complimented the directors on tho appointment of their new London manager, Mr. D. Maokic. The paid-np capital of the hank, he said, was about £400,000, all raised in the colony, and, after setting aside a reserve fund, the shareholders had been paid 6 per cent, interest Mr. Mackie replied to the toast, and proposed “The Health of the late Special Commissioners of the Bank,” which was acknowledged by Sir. Akdep.son. The company then separated.