THE COLONY.

Patea Mail, Volume 1, Issue 14, 29 May 1875, Page 3

THE COLONY.

A long and ably written leading article upon the condition of New Zealand appears in the “ London Standard” of the '22 nd February last, which will go a long way to defeat the attempts of Mr Fellowes and others to decry the Colony. The writer, after sketching the difficulties the Colony has had to surmount owing to native wars, and the results of the policy of the present Oovermucnt, concludes thus:—“ Under all those circumstances Mr Vogel lias a right to ask ns not to blame the Colony because it aroused itself to the task of improving its means to bear its liability for unproductive expenditure on native purposes.” Being clogged with so enormous a weight of unproductive expeditnre, the true statemanship was clearly to develop the springs of national life—to broaden the back which is to bear the burden—to enlarge the future resources of the colonial financiers ; and this is what is being done in New Zealand with so much courage and foresight hy Mr Vogel. Whether, in her struggle to overcome her difficulties, New Zealand has not earned some right to imperial help, seeing that those difficulties were thrust upon her by that imperial policy of which she was made the first victim, may he a fair cpiestion, in view of the loyal and earnest e(forts which are being made hy the Colony to rid herself of her financial embarrassments, to do justice and to restore peace to the natives, and to lay the foundations of a State of which Ungiand may be justly proud, and in which, of all her children, her own lineaments are destined to be most faithfully mirrored.—“ (trey Biver Argus.”