THE Evening Star. PUBLISHED DAILY AT FOUR O'CLOCK P.M. Resurrexi. SATURDAY, APRIL 3, 1880.

Thames Star, Volume XI, Issue 3517, 3 April 1880, Page 2

THE Evening Star. PUBLISHED DAILY AT FOUR O'CLOCK P.M. Resurrexi. SATURDAY, APRIL 3, 1880.

Whatetee faults Sir Julius Vogel may have, inattention to the interests of this colony is not one of them. , Continually we find him making valuable suggestions, writing in the leading journals of England and America on New Zealand topics, and in scores of ways proving his great interest in the future and present welfare of the colony he represents. The following dispatch, received by the Premier, refers to a matter which should be, of the greatest interest to Auokland and, indeed, the entire colony :— " Westminster Chambers, London, S.W., 27th January, 1880. Sir,—l enclose to you a translation of the German prospectus for the establishment of a company likely to exercise great influence in future throughout the South Pacific. The primary object of the company is to take over the assets of the company formed by Messrs Goddefroi, but inasmuch as its capital is to be largely in excess of what is sufficient for that purpose, with an almost indefinite power to increase, its objects are. presumably of a much more extensive description than those of the company it supersedes. Its title is a very wide one,' The German Maritime Trading Company.' Its object is stated to be ' Transatlantic trade purchase and working of factories, mills, and plantations, particularly in the South Sea Islands.' Prince Bismarck considers the company to have an importance of so high a national character that he has undertaken to procure for it a guaranteed minimum rate of dividend to the shareholders. It will be in your recollection that, in 1874, I strongly urged the expediency of New Zealand encouraging, by a guarantee, a similar company. I greatly regret that the proposal did. not meet with sufficient encouragement to induce the Government to persevere with it. We had very much opposition at the time to contend with. The opponents of the proposal freely stigmatised it as a revival of the South Sea bubble. Now that I read the papers again, I am more than ever convinced of the soundness of the proposal. The German company is formed on similar lines, but with almost unlimited powers. If it can suit Germany—so averse to colonising operations —to attach to such a company a national importance, and to assign to it a guarantee, it need scarcely be added that New Zealand has tenfold inducements to a similar course. The iSouth Sea Islands are a remote incident of i German commerce, but they are probably destined to be the leading exterior feature for weal or woe of New Zealand's future. She cannot afford to continue in, different to the destiny of Polynesia; ancl the longer she remains so the more onerous will be the task when she awakens to the . consciousness that nations and dependencies of nations cannot escape the ! responsibilities entailed upon them. By geographical and natural laws, Now Zealand from its position is tbe country possessing a climate to which Polynesia should, and must in future, attach the most importance. I trust these remarks will not be thought out of place from one who has taken so much interest on the subject. I. venture to ask that immediate publicity be given to this despatch, because I think the people of New Zealand should without delay ponder on what may be the effect of a large foreign trading company, supported by national funds, taking up its position in its immediate vicinity, Who shall mj

what may bethe limits of the ambition of the company, and to what extent it may be able to drag its Government, reluctantly perhaps, into backing up its actions in #elf defence? It stems to me New Zealand should proceed with the project commenced.in 1874. State assistance is of great importance to such an undertake my, because though in the long run theenterprise would meet with commercial success, it might for some time have to subordinate such success to the object of laying its foundations broad and deep. The trade would bring to New Zealand industries in the shape of mills and factories it would establish. These must also be taken into account. It is worthy of notice that the extent of the risk of the German Government is only £15,000 for twenty years, although the guarantee is for 4j per cent. The actual extent to which the gains of the company are to be supplemented is limited to 3 per cent, or £15,U00 a year, or half a million sterling. With this comparatively trifling encouragement, shares were subscribed for twice over and a great national enterprise started—l have, &c, JULIUS VoGBL, Agent-General."