THE COLONIST NELSON, TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 1860.

Colonist, Volume III, Issue 300, 4 September 1860, Page 2

THE COLONIST NELSON, TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 1860.

Yesterday morning the Airedale again returned to our port, after so short a term of absence, that it was at once evident her trip had extended no further than Tarariaki. Upon her coming alongside the wharf this proved to be the fact, her assistance having at once been in requisition to bring a further batch of the settlers from Nevy Plymouth, to the number of one hundred and eighty three, to claim what protection we may be enabled to afford them with our daily increasing difficulty to extend it. The wharf presented a bustling but painful scene; pending the arrangements for the conveyance of luggage to town and the necessary instructions to be given to them, the new arrivals had gathered in little groups, their travel-disordered garments, and poor anxious faces telling eloquently of sufferings and reverses which, although stoutly as might be borne against, would nevertheless, at times, force tears from some who, surrounded by groups of children, and involved in maternal cares, found even the momentary indulgence of grief a luxury that the exigency of their situation would scarcely permit of.' Many clotbed in the deep weeds of mourning testified that even in their search for a sate asylum, some severe affliction had preceded their banishment. One poor woman, crying bitterly, led a child up the wharf while sorrowing for the death of a younger, which expired .in'her arms upon her being about to leave the vessel. Another person clearly arid distinctly enumerated the story of his losses by plunder and fire at the hands of the aboriginals, with that cool narrative despair that could only exist where dozens of companion cases had almost rendered a com-: .LmxiJi.ity.lo£lif.lii-0-ri'f».nticlQtA..fo]'..inrliviclacvl.loßo. The sudden influx of so many persons to this settlement will call for the most careful arrangements and active forethought. More than one thousand persons have yet to arrive before New Plymouth will be considered sufficiently weeded of her inhabitants, and living as they have been, within the most contracted limits for their numbers, it may be but a proper and common. precaution to suspect that with the present universal predisposition to illness, even amongst our more fortunate population, the chances are the germ of some still more virulent disorder may be developed, unless immediate thought be given to the subject. Apropos of this. What has been done respecting the houses that were in contemplation for the use of the refugees? The erection of these brought forth a , spontaneous and highly creditable offer from our artizans to do so gratuitously, and it appears to us that with so large an addition to our population such erections will be indispensible. A' proclamation followed the return on the 28th of the Victoria to New Plymouth from Mapukau with General Pratt and Commodore Loring, to the effect that all women and children without distinction must be prepared to leave about the Ist September for Nelson, " the Government having made arrangements for their inception at that place, and having agreed to maintain them there." The proclamation 'further slates that steamers would be provided for that purpose, otherwise we should probably have had the Anne Longton returning with six hundred that she was prepared to acommodate, had the proffer of her,.captain been accepted. We hear that this general clearance of the disposable portion of the settlers is preparatory to active operations against the enemy, and such of our readers as fortunately are remote from participating in the evils of this struggle have only to witness such scenes of general suffering as we have described, to at once enlist their earnest desire that reprisal for the past and security for the future be 'attempted without an atom of avoidable delay. With regard to the actual operations that have been carried on since our last advices theseappear to have fallen short of general anticipation here.. The local: prints however describe affairs as fraught; with incident, every day bringing its fires and destruction of property in close proximity to the intrenchments. Desultoryskirmishes outside the trenches, have occasionally taken place, without casualty on our side. The enemy having evacuatedliheir centre-entrenchments at Waireka, they were destroyed and filled in; a portion of this force was moving towards the Waitara; the remainder had commenced a pah on elevated ground at the back of Omata, on Captain Burton's land, having destroyed most of the houses in the Omata district before their departure. : The Waitara pah was also abandoned oUrvrif tha oQmo ti'mfl '• this was \ al#o de-

stroyed and some cattle recovered. The' Waikatos are said to-be returning home.This retrograde movement is variously accounted for—from the effects of.influenza down to the necessity of planting potatoes; but all vague and uncertain. There appears to be further testimony of the mischievous effect of the espionage of the so-called friendly natives, maugre a late dated proclamation directing that friendly and neutral natives shall be treated as friendly allies and not distrusted ! The loss of one man at the scene of the brig, and the butchery of another (H. Crann) who was snot-and -tomahawked while out a short distance from the town in search of his working bullocks, are amongst the sad, "details of the present news. The oftrepeated cautions of authorities against persons venturing out of bounds in this way appears to be constantly disregarded, and would seem to call for some more stringent measures for its prevention than at present exists. ,

The House of Representatives, upon the discussion of the native question, does not appear to have viewed the circumstances connected with and coming out of it as any other than inevitable; and with the ex- ; cqption of four members the.following resolution, 'moved by the Colonial Secretary,' was unanimously endorsed: — 'That in the opinion of this House the interference of Wjremu Ringi at "Waitara, and his resort to force to prevent the survey of land there* rendered the measures adopted by his Excellency the Governor indispensable for the maintenance of ; her Majesty's sovereignty, and the welfare of both races of her Majesty's subjects peremptorily requires a vigorous prosecution of the war to a successful termination.' With respect to this quadrate of Colonial John Bright's, the Taranaki' News of last Thursday says:— . 'Strange however as it may appear, there are men filling the position of representatives of the people who are desirous that an altogether opposite policy should be adopted. This peace-at-any-price party consists, we learn, of seven AVellington members and. four Auckland members, who, it would seem, were not unwilling to sacrifice this province and the prestige of the sovereignty: of these islands to mere selfish ends. They pretend that the natives are more than a, match for us, and that no more troops will be sent to our aid—an assertion for which there is not, up to this time, the slightest foundation; and that as the House had nothing to do with the commencement of the war, they could with a good grace tell William King that they did not approve of the Governor's conduct, and wished to see the contest ended. These men appear to be afraid that the war will extend to Wellington and Auckland. It is probable that, if such a suggestion were adopted, W. King might give- up to the settlers the land in dispute, or even extend the boundaries;: but who would remain in New Zealand under Maori domination ? Or what probability is there that others would come to tn© colony if peace were so patched up?-. Wellington and Auckland might remain at^ peace for the present; but unless the natives be thoroughly subdued, the remembrance of the plunder obtained at Taranaki might some day or other suggest to them to try the same game at other places.' . The latter part of these remarks we thoroughly agree with.

We received by the Airedale some further papers on native affairs; likewise some Government Gazettes. One of the latter contains the names of thirty-one officers for the Nelson regiment of New Zealand Militia. This looks as if that force would be once more embodied after its butterfly existence and sudden death a few months since.