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New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 5485, 25 October 1878, Page 2

During tlie present session Mr. Sheehan has upon more than one occasion stood up for the “ great” flour and sugar policy of the Govern.menfc. As a matter of expediency, most people a"rse with the course adopted, but upon principle it cannot be so easily defended. If strong measures are very costly as well as dangerous to carry out, it is sometimes advisable to pocket one’s dignity and attempt to gain the desired end by promises of reward, and by ignoring any affronts that may be offered. When a native chief says “I want Waitara or Waikato,” and the correct interpretation of the saying is said to be “ I only want a little bit of it.” the meaning of the Maori as well as o! the Queen’s English is deliberately ignored or falsified. Eew people, however, when listening to the fervid oratory of the Native Minister, now remember how different a tune he played when out of office in 187fi. During that session Mr. Sheehan spoke as follows : «There was a time, perhaps, when the flour and sugar policy was in full awing, when it was desirable to employ these bribes for the purpose of keeping some of these people from becoming obstructive and going into rebellion; but that time had entirely ceased.” This is a very different programme to that adopted in Waikato or at Waitara, but Mr. Sheehan has few scruples about a slight inconsistency. As to the results of the Waitara meeting, people are bsgining to ask where are they l . Echo answers —where ? The Maori character is well known to be similar to that of other uncivilised races. Gifts are looked upon almost invariably as signs of weakness. “ Why should they make ua presents if they did not want to bribe us to let them alone ?” is the idea present in the native mind. By-and-by the presents come to be regarded in the light of a tribute, and their discontinuance looked upon as a wrong, and resented accordingly. In this instance, the strong argument in favor of a conciliatory course of action is, that the European power grows stronger, that of the native race weaker, day by day. It is hoped that this fact may in time enforce itself upon the minds of the native chiefs who are hostile to us, and, when the hopelessness of resistance to cur power becomes apparent to them, they may accept the inevitable and begin to search for some way of living amicably with us as one people; As Dr. Grace well showed not long ago, the present change in the attitude of some of the Kin" natives towards us is due to the sagacity of the native chiefs, and not to tlie “personnel” of the Government. The truth of this dictum becomes manifest when we find that the very policy which was considered to be “superannuated” by Mr. Sheehan in 1870 is adopted and warmly upheld by him, and even carried much farther in 1578, On September 17, Mr. Sheehan in his Native Statement said: as we did last year, to the fulfilment of the prophecy I made that there will he no disturbance of the peace of the country. I regard this, in fact, as the millennium of tbo native difficulty. The time for any outbreak has gone by.” But like many another millennium that has been foretold, this one does not seem to have come yet. In point of fact, the European race, with a population of 420,000 souls, may be already said to have absorbed the native race, who only represent about one-tenth of our numbers. We believe that the fact of their relative weakness is becoming clear to the natives, and will soon force itself still more upon their attention. A reasonable being once convinced of the hopelessness of resistance submits to his fato, especially if he is allowed to march off with banners flying, and with all his worldly goods secured to him* And these are the terras constantly open to the Maoris. The telegraphic report of Mr. Bee’s speech at Auckland shows that even he found it convenient to admit that time was still required for the Maoris to become acquainted with the new order and condition of things. When, after all, the Ministerial bounce, Mr. Rees admits “ that every tiling hoped for has not yet been accomplished,” we safely conclude that the gushing assurance whlqh hU Excellency the Governor was advised to give to the Legislature in his speech at tho opening of the session was at least premature. Tho “at last ” is not vot.