The Tauranga Record.

Tauranga Record and Bay of Plenty Examiner, Volume 1, Issue 22, 30 November 1867, Page 2

The Tauranga Record.

SATUKDAY, KOYEMBER 00.

With.hearts resolved, and hands prepared The blessings we erjor to guard/

Thb trutli imist he tol!. Tlio fnct is now stnriiur us in tlie face. tlmt our crisis li.is come ; tli.it onr hotir of trial, ]nno prcul "cttvl, 1ms nrrivcd. The i riiicip.il j art, ucarly pll of onr military settleis liavc left us for other fields of eiiiplovmeitt. 1 isap fmintcd in the opjMirtunit y of nrciipyjiio' tlicir hinds, unablo to fiii.l snbsistonce dtjring .111 ind. iluite ] oiiud of tiine oi \ Iticli 110 oue enu prcdict tlie tcraiiiiation, v.lien tlie \vislicd forsccniity ofpnssessiijo ea 11 lie olitaincd, tliey have sold tlicir a 1 1 » >ti 11c 1 1 s a'*". in sonie iiihtances fahnlouslv low piiccs. and retircd fr ili the sccuc in despalr. Fveiy vo.-scl wliicli leavcs tl,e h.nbor cnriies nwny mnny f ' IV licst 111 ti. and tiiosc wlio timimi- k-ave. long to hdlow It is «(:11 ]»I10W|1 tliat tliere liavc 1'eeu instiiices of saies of filty acres of land nt £0. iind inaiiy at £|(), bcing respectiveiy at tlie rate of 4a, and n.it qnite 2S. Gd. per acro. 1 lic coaseqiK'iice is. tliat all business is coinplctely proslrnte, tlie stores are witliout pnrclinsers, hoiho nre abandoned, and tlie beacli is deserted. A quiot Suiid iy state of affuirs prtvails. and ^ iii3tances of smere pi i vatioii tind suiFcrinu are known' to exist. Tliis caiuiot be otherwiso, for /tlie oalk of tln inen of tlie regiiiioii t -liavc lioeii struck off

ino rntion Jist, and, tlicir resonrcea having long been oxlr UHted, inid themselvcs iiiialdo fo procure employincnt, tliey nro diivcn to nbs'ihtte sliifts to sustuin cxistunee. 'flies; privntions nre borne with manlv eiidiimnee and with tlin't kiwi of lieroism wliieJi disjpostfs inen to eonceal tlicir euffcrings tlie publie gnzo, so tliat it is less nppaI'ent tliflii l'cnl. To crown nU, tlie ono hojie wliicli exisled, of discoveringa gold field in tlie district lias bccu crutlly destroycd. All liopes of prospeeting are now nt an ond for a long tiine to co e. Ihe uarning of Hnunpln was not believei, ftud'would not liave deterrcd tlie ganie prospcctors wlio went uufc before from re-

peating tlicir trials, but tlie ibsence of tlie fnnd subscribed for the purpose on tlie niglit appointed for meeting prior to tlicir starting, and tlie iiuliffcrcnce or iucrednlity of otliers in tlie townsliip to tlie success of t'ii~ enterprisehas tlioroughly dauiitedtiie ardor andnillinsrness of tlie parties to procecd lurtlier. Tliis state ofalfairs is deplorable, and any itnuicdiate alteration for tlie better seems to grow more remote jas timo advanccs. • Wlie i | tliings are at tlie worst tliey I begin to niend, ' is an old apliorisni ' trne so far oi\;: tbat tliey niust liavc bc] to iiieiid bcfbre it ean !t:ibeon asccrtaini'd tliat tlie// liave reaclicd tlie tlie worst, and witli us tliey liave not yet begun to mond, but are daily and p. rccptibly growiinr i worsc. Yet tlie district is1 not now nny less desirab!e| for sctfleinciit tliat it lins' always been. It.s fertility is iiiiiinpaired, lts great inaritiine advantages ivniain. It lias indecd been greatly 1 iniprovcd liv tlie growtli ofa ! consid rablo town (,itb ad-j vantages 'grcater timi tlioso! possessed by maiiy of larger dimonsioiiH, bcsidcs by tlie! erccfioii of iiumcroc.s subur-^ hau dwc'lings and tlie cultivation of small plots of land. It niust tbcrcloi'c ho patcnt to cvcry oue tliat ibcsnccost of tlie locnl jotirnal eainios j fail to liavc l ccn injniiously j affceted, so tliat witliout ! cxtranc ous aid it cnnnot in tvason bc cxpeetcd mucli longcr confiuue to cxist. A ncwspapcr is of very grcat advantngc to anv placc iu giving it importaiicc, and inakiug tlie wants of tlie coniniunity kiiowiqand tlicrcforo it is not t io inueb to ask tliat tliose most interestcd in tlie ]irogre.«s of, and tliose i wlio liave consi lerablc stake I in the locality sbould givci support to wliat is a inost valuable feature iu any coiii-l iininitv. Tliere nre bowcvcr

sonie features in tlie preseiit state of nfiraira «liic!i givc a gloam of hope. TJi balance of tlie suui of iiioikV. eontracted witli tlie uativJs liy tlie Governiiiciit for tlie purcliasc f t'ic Kati Ivati block, £o,0U0, bas not vet been paid, and tnc nativcs dcclare tliat tliey wi 11 not porniit tlie turvcy to procecd beyond tlie present niontli unless tba inoney is nt once paid. In tliis are to sonie extent justilied, for tlie ternis of the coutract wero tliat the mouey sbould iie paid down 011 its conipletion, and tliis lias not been di.nc. Nevertlieless, tlie natives are permitting tlie snrvey to proceed on the assurance tliat the balance of money is to be jiaid to day, Saturday, so that in such case, all

the anticipated difficulties attending tlie Kati Kati snrvey will he removed. In addition to tliis, before the arrivnl of the next mriil from I Auckland the r/sulte of the ' fftlc of the lescrved Jands of ; Tauranga will become known ■and tlio coiisequences lnny ! be an iiifusion of a new influence into tlie coinnuinity here. J.arge capitalists may ; have purchased, and if tliey ; conie to residc aniongst us. niay iutroduce an eleruent of ; wealtli for whieh we were !not prepared. Yet v. e know that several Soutliern capita/Usts have iuvested iu land 3!id, afraid to rem l-cnpy tlieir purclj. , ;e left in despair. We (lo not altogether despair, but we liave at present great reason to despond.

A ComtESPnxDMXT wliom we have every reason to helieve iufornis us that the- natives on the Maungatapu side entirely eorroboratc the tenor of llanapia's letter. and tliat it will not he saf'o for Kuropcaiis to go out so lmig as the prowling linnburn* are in the ueighhorhood. If so, onr [irevioiis infiiri'-ation. thoiuth rec-ived from a higlily respeetnblo sotirce uiiist have been incorreet and tlie stii.tures inio «liicb we wero led are to be deeply regretted as iinputiug blfune wliere blame was uJi dite.