COLONIAL GOVERNMENT.

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 6, Issue 284, 20 March 1862, Page 4

COLONIAL GOVERNMENT.

I A very successful attempt at governing!! !a colony has been made by the Dutcha Governor of Java. Au interesting ac-ja count of this Dutch possession has lately* been 'written by an English barrister,| who made a trip to it from India. ‘ The| mode of governing, it will be seen, is in| some particulars extremely like that| which Sir George Grey is now [here. Tlie following short account of it|*j is taken from a home paper:— || . Gf course it is impossible to give any-j| thing approaching a satisfactory accounts of the details by which the Governors Van den Bosch worked out his grand! result.” Nothing, however great or how-1 ever trifliug, seems to have escaped thej| mind of that 'master statesman. He evenl took out with him to Java in 1830 al staff of highly educated young Dutchmen,! free from the prejudices of colonial service,! by whose aid and gentlemanlike manners® lie was enabled to deal with the native! aristocracy in such fashion as impressed* them highly with the uprightness audl refinement of the European -Tliis was in itself, for those who under-| stand it, a master-stroke (if policy. His® adoption of Government through thep Inatjve chiefs exclusively, whilst that of 6 jjtiie. European officials is masked and! guever executive, was another profounds gstroke of policy. For he retained thef labaolute power to Europeans by the sim-I |ple plan of making the native regent re-1 at pleasure, and without reasons fassigned. This seems tyrannical, but oni it proves otherwise, because! |the laud is already arranged upon a basis® |of justice, and there is therefore no need! gof European intervention for purposes ofj| ainjustice or extortion. If the regentl Iperforms his duty, the European, uuderl aßosch’s system, has no reason for iuter-g ifering with him. Iu selecting contrac-B Btors, funds were little thought about; in-g Itelligcnce, education, and manners con-i iciliatory towards the natives, were the! equalities looked for in the candidates.! ■The man, and not the accidents of the! gmahy.: were kept in view. Could a'rulerfl ■who*took this path fail? Two more prin-B iciplcs we will mention, and weliave done.! iThe Dutch maintain European prestige! ■to such a degree that 1 hey dismissed! jga native regent from his office because heH ■sought the daughter of low Dutchl ■parents in marriage. ■ They hold' thata ■any attempt to make the nuli\ e .equal tog

[the European by law must fail. But; in! irealityr -the European’s confined- within- tlie mere? jdefefyaftialj forms of, reverence and the suliitatioiiJi-dfj outward similar, .in fact;i-tb that; paid -to the-native aristocracy." If'thafej were any-men in Brita.h who-could'give! up theories, and... see : principles facts,! this principle would be accounted of con-1 summate wisdom. To argue hero Js to! waste words. The second priucijile'• is! that.they will not educate the native in] the European inanlierpbbV Ipave, him to] Javanese; and missionary efforts are con-1 fined to the capitals, and excluded from! the population of- tlie interior and'-from! all natives of rank and fortune. 'This! second principle will appear little betters than Pagan to ’ many; but if men would) look to the means of "propagating" the] true faith which we ; possess—-if they) would remember that a dominant- Vacej cannot come from the lip of command—rj they will see that even this principle of] the Dutch at any rate, not one weakly or loosely taken up. 1 I