The New Zealand Times (PUBLISHED DAILY.) WEDNESDAY, MAY 8, 1878.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 5339, 8 May 1878, Page 2

The New Zealand Times (PUBLISHED DAILY.) WEDNESDAY, MAY 8, 1878.

The telegrams from Europe are sufficiently alarming, and show that the hopes that were entertained as to the maintenance of peace between Great Britain and , Russia , are becoming more and more faint as the summer approaches arid as the icy barriers to action in the extreme north are removed by the sun. The Imperial Government has shown itself not unmindful of its duty to its dependencies in this crisis, and has, we are officially informed, ‘ ‘instructed a sjpecial, committee of military and engineer officers to report upon the best means of defending the British colonies in the event of England being compelled to go to war.” This Commission,. we are told, has reported, in reference to New Zealand,

. in their opinion “ the defence of the cjiony by sea is impracticable, and should not be atteiripted.” They recommend instead “ a system of land batteries at the four principal ports in New Zealand, viz., Wellington, Auckland, Lyttelton, and Port Chalmers,- that these batteries should be armed with heavy guns, and they estimate the cost of these guns, twenty-two in number, at £44,000.” We learn, ; in addition, through the Press Agency telegram published yesterday, that on Monday last the following communication was made by the Premier to his Excellency the Governor ■

The Hew Zealand Ministers reply to her Majesty’s Government that the colony will undertake the expense of the proposed armament. Her Majesty may rest assured that her New Zealand subjects will, in the event of any crisis, loyally and resolutely in all respects do their duty to their Queen and country. Sir George Grey requests that the Marquis of Normanby will bo so good as to at once telegraph 'a copy, of this mememorandum to her Majesty’s Government for their information. 1 f In the English telegrams received yesterday morning it was announced that on the Ist May— The schooner Cimbria at a harbor in Maine from the Baltic with GO officers and 600 men of the Russian navy, under the command of Count Grlffenberg, It is believed they arc intended forprivateering. That is the situation. War may be declared to-rridrrow, and it will find the principal ports in New Zealand practically .defenceless. The attention of succeeding Governments has over and over again, in Parliament, been; called to this subject, and many paper schemes, more or less impracticable, for the defence of our coasts, are to be found in the.records of the colony; but nothing lias been done, probably because there was.no pressing need for action.

Of late,; however, the conditions have changed, and the more provident Governments of the Australian colonies have sought the best professional advice on the subject of defence, and have wisely followed the'counsel given to them by the experts.'' The late Government in this colony desired to follow the good example set' to'them. In May last Major Atkinson moved his Excellency, the Governor to apply to the Governors of Victoria and New South : Wales with a view to securing for New Zealand the professional-advice of Sir William Jbrvois and. Colonel Soratchley, officers of the highest ability and experience, who were then engaged in preparing plans for the defence of the respective colonies. 1 Arrangements were made accordingly, and in November last Sir William Jervois announced his readiness to visit the New, Zealand ports in the month of January, and asked that the Hinemoa should be placed at his disposal for that purpose. The. “curt” answer of the Premier was that “the Hinemoa is required for other purposes.; ” two or three days afterwards 'Sir. George Grey,' delighted to find that he was able to snub two Governors at once, dispensed with the services of Sir William Jervois. The correspondence on, this subject was laid before the Houses by : the : Governor,, and .will be found printed iti extenso in our columns to-day. It will repay the trouble of careful perusal and is, at this moment, particularly interesting; Whether or not the use to which the Hineriioa has been put since the proroga-. tion of the Assembly has been: more profitable to the colony than that which Lord Normaney proposed to put her in bringing over Sir William Jervois and Colonel Soratchley, we need not now stop to inquire. The situation is, we repeat, this: War may bo declared to-morrow, and as far as New Zealand is concerned we have! neither guns; nor ammunition for the guns, nor forts ; nor, so far as we know, any feasible scheme, even on paper, for the protection of our ports from the privateers; to.whom our gold would be an irresistible' attraction. Three, months must elapse before the . guns and stores can be here ; in thirty days a fast Russian war . ship or an American steamer with a letter of marque may come into Wellington harbor from one of the ports on the west coast of the Pacific. It may, indeed, be urged, that if we have; no guns, no forts, and no feasible | plan of defence, we have Sir George l Grey and the Honorable Colonel and that we ought to feel secure. We have not .faith: in the military or engineering skill of Sir George Grey; it may exist,. but there, are no proofs. - His greatest exploit, the ■ victory at the Wereroa pa over General i Cameron,, with whom as Governor he was; then at war, was a bloodless one; it is ! memorable ' chiefly for the admirable, despatch—a work of high literary art—; in'which the thrilling incidents of the, siege and capture of the empty pa, are re-, corded. Major : Rookes’ note Sir George,' Wereroa is yours. Captain; Ross, myadjutant, will explain thereat”— written as, after gottingup thehilland into! the deserted fortifications, that somewhat! corpulent'.warrior sank down exhausted; to have a smoke—has no modern parallel; for dramatic brevity. The “ Glory to. -God and Catherine, Ismail’s ours,” of old! Buwarroff ’comos perhaps nearest to it.,

If indeed paper pellets or a good stump speech could turn,Home modern Kidd from his unholy purpose of pillage anel rapine, we might rely upon the Premier; but such a result cannot safely be calculated on. . Colonel Whitmore is a trained soldier, and a good one; he has rendered valuable service in the field to this colony ; services which have not yet received the recognition which they merit; but even he will not, we think, pretend that he combines within himself all the special knowledge of all the branches of the military profession,, or that in this contingency it would not have been better to have bad recourse to the aid that was offered by Sir William Jervois and Colonel Scratchley, It would be a real calamity if, in addition to the danger from an external foe which now threatens us, some outrage by Te Kooti and his followers, who are hovering about Hikurangi, armed, and primed with rum, should involve us in the very danger—that of being forced to resist an internal enemy—the necessity forprovidingagainstwhich, in his memorandum No. 6 in the papers, Sir George Grey pleads as his excuse for dispensing with the proposed visit of the engineer officers. We await the development of the Government scheme for defence. Wo fear, however, that the people must now depend upon themselves, and not upon their rulers; but we rest assured that although faith in those who have snatched at the place of leaders may be wanting, “her Majesty’s subjects in New Zealand will, in the event of any crisis, loyally and resolutely in all respects do their duty to their Queen and country.”