THE WANGANUI CHRONICLE AND RANGITIKEI MESSENGER. “Verite sans peur.” WANGANUI, NOVEMBER 6, 1862.

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 6, Issue 316, 6 November 1862, Page 3

THE WANGANUI CHRONICLE AND RANGITIKEI MESSENGER. “ Verite sans peur.” WANGANUI, NOVEMBER 6, 1862.

The ‘New Zealand Gazette’ of Oct. 10 just received contains the returns of the Customs revenue, and of exports and imports, for the quarter ending 30th June last.

The revenue derived from tha Customs during the period named was £87,942 against £55,226 in the corresponding quarter of 1861,thus showing an increase of £32,716 this year or about 62 per cent. Ia addition, there is the export duty on gold, which during the quarter ending 30th June, amounted to £10,358, giving a total of £98,300 as the Customs revenue or at the rate of £373,200 per annum. This is very satisfactory at first sight. But on looking at the details of the increase, it does not wear so pleasant an aspect. The principal item of increase arises from the duty on spirits which during the quarter of 1861, was £24,527 against £39,469 in 1862. The increase in the consumption is chiefly in Otago - ; which is just what might be expected from the nature of the population introduced during the past year, and of their employment. The quantity of spirits duty paid there has risen from 9,209 gals, in the quarter of 1861, to 38,004 in the corresponding quarter of 1862. The duty on sugar has increased about 40 per cent. ; and on ‘tea 30 per cent. ; on measurement goods nearly 60 per cent, the greatest part of the increase here being also in Otago. The total value of-the imports for the quarter is estimated at £976,518 against £484,762 in 1861, being rather more than double. Auckland and Wellington have imported one third more ; Napier and Nelson nearly double ; Canterbury an eight more ; and Dunedin five times more than in 1861.

To pay for these imports, we have exports valued at £662,177 against £229, 299 in 1861, being nearly three times the amount in 1861. Here, as may be supposed, gold figures as the principal item—£321,092 in 1862, against £5,336 in 1861. Nelson was then the only gold digging province ; this year Nelson exports £6,200, Canterbury £221, and Otago £314,671 worth of the precious metal.

The other principal item of increase is wool, £297,203 in the quarter of 1862, against £199,850 in 1861, as near as possible 50 per cent. The balance against us for the quarter is £314,341 or at the rate of more than one million sterling per annum Where does this money come from 1 It cannot be all profit. Supposing all the exports to y'eld_lsp. c. profit, which, considering the large proportion of gold, .is a very high

estimate, and allowing £IOO,OOO for the troops, there still remains £BOO,OOO to be accounted for, which, if the Customhouse valuations are correct, represents the in* come of the inhabitants spon t in the coun • try, in addition to that derived from New Zealand sources.

Last week we mentioned briefly that the directors of the New Zealand. Navigation Company are anxious to extend its operations, so as to make "Wellington the centre-point of steam communication to and from New Zealand. It scarcely needs to be pointed out how much, not the town of Wellington merely, bnt the whole of the province, is interested in this being the case. Hitherto Auckland has enjoyed an undue preeminence in consequence of being made the calling port lor most of the intercolonial, and the head quarters of the inter-provincial, steamers. The position of Auckland at the. extreme end of the country did not justify tlie position she thus held. Now Otago is doing her best to obtain the advantages which Auckland lias hitherto enjoyed. And as Otago, though at the other end ot the country, has superior claims in this respect to Auckland, it is not unlikely that the energy and liberality of her Provincial Government will secure the object in view, unless an immediate and vigorous attempt be made to prevent it Already Dunedin is the first calling place for one line of Australian Mail Steamers, and the offer has been made to run a line of steamers between Dunedin and Panama for a subsidy of £50,000. If there were anything in the position of Dunedin which would entitle it to being the first port of call, as for instance, its position making it the proper centre of the country’s steam communication, it would be well that Dunedin should have the preference Wellington is, however, the proper calling station for steamers between Panama and Australia, aud it is more obviously sti.l, the central station for inter-provincial communication. It is therefore desired to increase the capital of this company, so as to enable it to take up all these lines of communication ; and we should think that our settlers might do worse than take shares in the concern, and thus help in the accomplishment of the scheme. There is every encouragement to do so, after the result of the Wellington Company, of which this is the successor, and which paid 10 per cent per annum during the five years of its existence and has wound up by paying back £lB IDs for every £lO share.

By a file of the Southern Coss received the other day, we observe that the case of the Listers is still engaging the earnest attention of our superlunary, (not superlunatic), contemporary. He is so far removed from this sphere of things, that he makes terrific mistakes regarding even the geographical position of the place. For instance, he informs his readers that the Governor and Wi Tako met half-way between Otaki and Wanganui ; and this might be excusable considering the remote position of our contemporary, for from it Otaki and Wanganui must appear very near each other. But the constellations are general'y allowed to be excellent time keepers, and tliei e can be no excuse for the Southern Cross making the meeting with Wi Tako a week later than the natives’ meeting here. .Here are the words of this correct chronicler :—“We will make an extract or two from the speeches made in the Wanganui and Rangitikei districts. After talking two days with the ‘friendly’ natives, Sir Geo. Grey sent Mr. Buller as his envoy to Otaki.” The envoy returns, unsuccessful in his negociations ; and “ the Superintendent of Wellington, Dr. Featliei’ston, went privately and entreated Wi Tako to come to Wanganui, but in vain. He was deaf to all entreaties \\ hen it was found that the Governor would not go to Tainui, and that the chiefs would not come to Wanganui ; a compromise was effected, and a meeting took plac6 half-way.” Now, after this egregious blundering about time and place—things so easily mastered even by a child, who shall give our contemporary credit for being correct, when he comes to speak of the sentiments of the settlers here, where, as in other places, not half a dozen people think exactly alike on any subject, and where even in the case of those who have the same opinions, these opinions are held for quite different reasons. And yet the Southern Cross , with its usual glil ness and selfsufficiency, discourses of the opinions held here on the Lister case with as much assurance, as if the inhabitants had a 1 under oath made it aware of their sentiments. There are people,

■“ That therefore only are reputed wise, For saying nothing. ” But certainly the Southern Cross, not having a reputation from this source, must be held to be very unwise in saying so much about what it knows absolutely nothing. Hear our contempoi-ary on this ease : “ Never perhaps has so glaring an outrage been committed in any British territory. the manner in which the inquiry was conducted was studiously calculated to condone both the felony and capital offence. The mouth of Lister’s w ife was closed by a British magistrate, and tne ruffian who attempted her life and the life of her wounded husband, was examined on oath as to his share iu the transaction and set at liberty by the court. To persons accustomed to the fearless and impartial conduct of British magistrates, this statement may appear incredulous,” (sie) (l but it is strictly true.” Our contemporary accounts for the awful and “ incredulous ” conduct of the Magistrate by “the public feeling in the district.” What is it- 1 “ The natives are looked up to as the dominant race ; —as British subjects, when they choose to- select our courts in which to proceed against settlers

for any sum. they may claim, but as above and beyond all law, if they choose to stand upon their own right. This feeling in time reaches. the judicial bench....... But even in \\ ellington there is a small minority free from the Helot taint. When a Maori commits a felony and attempts to murder a settler whom be.has first robbed, these men think it justifiable in the white man to defend his own life even at the expence of his assailant’s ; and they do not fear to censure a magistrate who protects the surviving accomplice in any such case of felony and murtherous onslaught.” The “dominant party.” however, approve of the Magistrate’s course. “ But even this is not far enough for them to go. They positively decline to extend the hand of Christian charity to relieve one of their own race, who has been dangerously wounded by-a savage, and who lias likewise been despoiled of all his earthly -goods by his. assailant’s tribe, because the wife of the injured man, who so gallantly defended her own life, and assisted her prostrate husband, had the temerity to publish the particulars of the outrage, which the Besideut Magistrate declared he would not let her make on oath in court.”

There is here - such a “ murtherous onslaught ” on the naked truth, that we cannot refrain from warning our contemporary against such misrepresentations, lest his character - should in. justice be stigmatised more severely by others than our settlers’ by him, if at least that be possible. If this is the kind of trash that finds favour with the Auckland public — the maligning of their own countrymen in such scandalous terms —we regret that the lectures lately delivered there on the prevention of crime and kiudred subjects should have so little effect on a population where such preventives seem so greatly needed. But we do not believe the tone of public feeling has sunk to so low an ebb as the Southern Cross has been carried to by its insane envy of Wellington. We leave the Wellington press to defend the Wellington public. In this district, there is no such feeling as the Cn.ss ascribes to us. The Maoris are not “looked up to as the dominant race.” There is not a settler here who would tldnk for one instant of calling in question the propriety of Lister’s conduct. So far as we know, there is not a settler wno has refused to subscribe towards the Lister fund on the plea that is mentioned. We believe there is not a settler who does not admire the heroic conduct of Mrs. Lister. But there are some who think such conduct above all pecuniary reward ; and there are others who think that it is no case foi charity—that so far as loss has been sustained, it should be made good by the Government. So much for the misrepresentations as to the public feeling. Next, as to the particulars of the attack--Ihe “ ruffian examined on oath” was a boy about 12 years old. His statement and Mrs. Lister’s are quite at variance. Mrs. Lister’s statement as printed, is at variance with the oral.statement she made immediately after the occurrence. Which account is the more likely to be correct — that of the boy who was not particularly interested in the struggle, or that of the woman who was excited to frenzy by the awful position of her husband 1 The boy stated that he interfered to separate.the com! atants. Mrs. Lister naturally thinking that his intention was hostile, dragged him off and had a severe struggle with him. The boy by his evidence condemned his own countryman, and exculpated Lister. Had lie been evilly disposed,he might, by false evidence, have raised his countrymen to arms, and involved this settlement in war. By telling the truth, he exposed himself to the indignation of his countrymen. Having told the truth on one point where there was so great temptation to falsehood, is it not probable that his statement is correct throughout 1 Now as to the part the Resident Magistrate took in the affair.

i he Southern Cross says “ the inquiry was conducted by the Resident Magistrate.” The ‘ ruffian was set at liberty by the Court.” “ It may not now be possible to arrest the would-be assassin, but it is not impossible to call the Magistrate to account for allowing him to escape after being in the hands of the authorities.” These statements are taken from an article in the issue of the 3rd ult., and four days later, the Magistrate is again attacked in severer terms, and told that if he has not power to bring criminals to justice, he should resign his office. We could not have believed that any respectable journal-would have made such serious charges against any one, much more a British Magistrate, without being sure of the facts. That ou r contemporary is grossly ignorant of the facts in this case will be evident from the following contradictory statement. No enquiry was conducted by the Resident Magistrate. An inquest was held by ths Coroner of the district, who before closing it, asked the Jury if they wished to hear Mrs. Lister’s evidence, as he was ready to call her if required. They declined, declaring themselves quite satisfied. The “ruffian” was not set at liberty by the court. He was never in the hands of the authorities. The Resident Magistrate did not allow him to escape. He came to the Coroner’s inquest, on being called, and gave his evidence in a straightforward manner ; and it was his evidence that enabled the jury to acquit Lister by a verdict of justifiable homicide, and that satsfied the Maoris that Herewini had been the aggressor. After all this had taken place, the Resident Magistrate was asked to take the woman’s deposition. He declined doing so for reasons quite satisfactory to himself and to others -who knew all the circumstances and were very capable of forming an opinion on the point. We thought differently, and published the statement, but we thought then and think

still, tliat it was a case in which the magistrate ‘might fairly exercise a discretionary power. It may be mentioned that the Government fully approved of the whole of the Magistrate’s conduct in the affair. Our contemporary says, “it may not now be possible to arrest the would be assassin.” English law holds a m:in innocent till proved' guilty ; not so this writer. If arrest is impossible now, it was equally impossible then. Going a step further four days later, the writer says the magistrate should lay down liis office, if, from want of power, he cannot perform its duties. Is this reason ? Is it common sense V Sir Geo. Grey is nominally. .Governor of New Zealand. Is he so really? Then let him resign, if he cannot govern. Is no account to be taken of the peculiar circumstances of this island ? Is every magistrate whose officers cannot capture a suspected criminal, to resign his office on that account ? The notion is absurd. The whole strain and tenor of these articles illustrate the truth of the sa irist’s lines: —

“ The truest characters of ignorance Are vanity, and pride, and arrogance ; As blind men use to bear their noses higher, Than those that have their eyes & sight entire. ”