THE WANGANUI CHRONICLE AND RANGITIKEI MESSENGER. “Véritè sans peur.” Wanganui, February, 26, 1863.

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 7, Issue 332, 26 February 1863, Page 3

THE WANGANUI CHRONICLE AND RANGITIKEI MESSENGER. “Véritè sans peur.” Wanganui, February, 26, 1863.

IF is high time that .something were clone to' put the conveyance'of the mails to this part of the island oil a more satisfactory footing. The two months during which the agreement has been in force have been months of disappointment and anxiety, and it is very unlikely that the mail will come in clue course this month. True, public news has been received in a meagre fqrm by way of Sydney and Auckland,' but. letters, which contain the most 'important intelligence — that .referring* to.private, . personal, 'and. relative interests—have not. been received till nearly . three weeks after the proper time; and not until, here at least, the departure of the return mail prevented the sending of replies. The agreement is, that a steamer be in readiness to leave .Melbourne on the oth of each month with the mails ; but if the P and O, Steam Company’s vessel has not arrived there, but- has been. tele-. ■ graplied at Adelaide ill time to allow' 1 pf I her. arriving by the llth at latest, then the Otago steamer does .not leave on the 9th, but waits till the llth'.. If on that day the English ihail has not arrived, the Otago steamer may leave, and the con- : tractors are not .bound to forward the ’ mails till it suits their convenience—that is, they, may lie in Melbourne waiting a conveyance for nearly a month, or until the next monthly steamer sails. It is, indeed, true that the frequent intercourse between Melbourne and Otago renders this unlikely, and that an opportunity may be found, sooner ; but the delay, howevei short, is exceedingly provoking. Again, this loss,'of time is greatly increased in our case. If the mails come at the regular time there are steamboats lying at Dunedin and Wellington ready to bring them on. lint, when the ma chinery is put out of gear .at. Melbourne, elsewhere it is disjointed and at a standstill. 'The Canterbury and Wellington mails must wait in Dunedin fora chance vessel to bring then on, and our mail remains at Wellington for an opportunity by which it may be forwarded ' Thus a fortnight or three weeks may in all be lost before our . mail reaches us. .. Every one will see that this is a most foolish and intolerable arrangement. . If only a moderate sum were given for the service it would not be excusable ; how much less so, when more than double of what would be a reasonable amount is to be paid. . The contract must remain as it is till; it expires,'and it. is in . force for twelve months, after which six months’ notice must he given on either side if it is-to be cancelled.. But it is not to be borne that this Province should be kept in such doubt regarding the arrival of each mail as this contract occasions. It may be expected that in at least nine out of the eighteen months the mail will be a fortnight behind; and- the prospect of this ought to stir.', up every one to apply for a remedy. 'J he - present remedy appears to be this. When the mail is not in time for the regular steamer from . Melbourne, let the Wellington part of it be sent on to. Sydney with the Auckland and Nelson mails. In this way it would come by a roundabout route ; 'but it would be received by us earlier and more regularly than if .it be kept waiting as-at present for a chance Otago steamer. We do not know if the expence would be increased ; but should suppose that the steamers taking the additional bag would be quite satisfied, if they required any additional remuneration at all, with the proportion of the postage that would justly fall to them. . ■; It is a long time since we pointed out the folly of. bringing the mail for the southern provinces by way of Sydney.This folly has now been laid aside only to be succeeded by another. The mails come by a direct route ; but, the arranger ment is made, with such consummate stupidity, that for the most part a longer time is taken in their transmission. We pay tremendously dear for our whistle, and when we get it find that it is cracked.. ;; ,

In the last session of the" Provincial Council, a sum of 500 Z was voted for enlarging the Wanganui Gaol. This money has,"of'course, not" been' expended ; prolpablv the Executive thought' that -crime was not increasing here with . sufficient rapidity to justify or require the expenditure. ■ We think’ they have been quite right in not expending-this money. There is°no need whatever that the gaol should be enlarged. ‘ There will never-be too

iriany criminals ilTit. This opinion does notarise, from the idea that there is any peculiar and pre-eminent- virtue in the district; It may be better —perhaps it is —than others. Still, as the population increases, it; might be expected that more accommodation would be needed in the prison for the class to which 'it'is appropriated, that class generally increasing in proportion to the growth of a community. But even though this class should become more numerous, the prison does not need enlarging. It has been so ingeniously constructed that it can never be too,full. It is, indeed, quite a unique specimen of architecture. The designer must have had peculiar views of humltn nature, and must have been greatly in advance of bis age in his opinions regarding the Salutary effects of prison discipline. 'FIc must have, held what is now : looked on as an axiom that prevention is fetter, than cure ; but his mode of applying this axiom practically lias the sublime simplicity which is the characteristic of all great discoveries. 'lhe gaol is so constructed that 'no one can enter without permission of the gaoler ;' but any one mav go out when he pleases. It will scarcely be credited, but it is nevertheless true, that the palisading l-ound the gaol vafd.presents- a smooth surface on tlie outside, so that it would require a very dexterous -climber to make his way in ; but that on the inside the horizontal battens, to which the upright deals are nailed, are bare, and present'a series of steps, by which a man with wooden legs and no arms might manage to climb over and;make his escape. But this is not all. There tire two doors to this yard—so' closed 'that 5 they can neither be opened Iroiri without, nor fastened within. I here is a simple latch on one, and a small drßwJ’olb oh the other. No one can enter without summoning the warder ; but for ' the retaining of the prisoners these doors might as well stand open day and night.. Now behold the grand idea of the architect developed. First, prevention. Make entrance to the gaol as difficult as you possibly can. If entrance is effected, notwithstanding all the difficulties thrown in tlie way, then, secondly, cure. “ Stone walls do not a prison make, nor iron bars a cage.” The prison'. —-the reformatory—-must be made of other materials. Let the gates stand open ; but appeal to the' better feelings, the higher moral nature of the prisoner. Let his honour be the impassable barrier. Then you have still your prisoner, and you have already put him on tlie road to a thorough moral reform. The theory of the architect may appear Quixotic to most people, fitted perhaps for Utopia, but' certainly not for Wanganui ; nevertheless, see how it has wrought. ' la the considerable number ot years during which the prison doors have been open for any departure, there has been till lately no attempt at escape. It may not be the system, but the man who works it; or, as has been hinted lately, there may be even a more tender influe|ice in operation ; but, however that may be, the architect’s fondest hopes were, till very recently, wonderfully realised. About three weeks ago a man of 1 aser meterial than his fellows was put in prison ; his honour was uneared for ; music had no charms for him ; and on a beautiful summer morning he opened the door and walked out. A reward having been offered for his capture, he was caught by the Mabries, and next day consigned to his lonely cell. Either disliking solitude, or thinking, with the poet, that “ short retirement urges sweet return,” this individual, who was now kept in closer confinement, had, by means of a gimblet ‘and augur, nearly again effected his escape, having gone a certain length in making a hole through the wooden wall of his cell into the yard, when lie was happily discovered. It thus appears that a base fellow will sometimes be put in prison, who will not scorn to sully his honour by attempting to escape ; and to provide, for such extraordinary cases we would suggest that tlie Government do now expend os of the 500/ in the purchase of two padlocks, to be used when any such desperate character as this individual is incarcerated. And if the Go vernriient have not the faith in human nature which their architect must have had, they might alter the vote next session, and let it stand thus For enlarging and making secure Wanganui Gaol, 4.99/ 1-os.

The golden age of Wanganui may be passing away ; the keeper of the prison, finding that he has now to do with desperadoes, may require a salary for his trouble and responsibility ; but still we think tlie Gs judiciously expended may keep the rising tide of crime within bounds, and permit the balance of 499/ 15s to lie continued on the estimates for at least four or five years.

Our attention lias been directed to a paragraph in a letter of the Wanganui correspondent of the U'albngton Independent, in which, he says that a King native, against whom a criminal warrant has been issued, had passed through the settlement, within sight of the Courthouse, armed with a horse pistol. As we understand this statement it is not cor.iect. The man in question went by the Wangaehu, which happens at its nearest point to be eight miles from the Courthouse; and we believe lie was not seen in bis,transit by an\ European policeman. The object of the correspondent seems to be, to bold up the Government to contempt for its pusillanimity in dealing with tile natives. If he wishes to do so, he should take care his instances are correct, otherwise he only defeats his own object. At the present moment, however, we greatly doubt the propriety of faking up the few cases of outrage of which the Maori'es have oeeii guilty, and holding them up on all sides, and at

every- opportimity, to public reprobation. Nor do we think that the Governor is to be derided because he does not bring the dUputeyat once.an.d' everywhere to a final if-sud. " ‘An atFeinpt is now being made to introduce British law among the Maories. The attempt may succeed or it may fail. But-it is the first time that stich an attempt has been made. Let it have a fair trial. Maories have hitherto been allowed to escape, soot free, where Eui-o-peans would have been severely punished. They are now told-that-they must submit to British law. • If, where they have not dcufe so. the Governor does not think fit to inarch a posse of policemen or company of soldiers to compel obedience, at the risk of exciting a general collision, but prefers to go tb work in r a quieter and, as he thinks,' more hopeful manner, let him be allowed to try; his plan, and iet liis agents have' the same > -forbearance extended to .them as himself. Whether the 1 question of supremacy is? to be settled by soldiers or cirilians, tlie work will require time; and it is but fair that for a wliile at least the actors should not be subjected to premature carping. The success of the Governor’s plans depends much on the agents lie employs. Hq himself has a competent knowledge of the Maori character. No die can doubt this who lias watched his. proceedings since he came here. His inaction for a while, his personal visits to various places, liis patient attention to what the Maories had to say, his'^ constantly repeated assertion of his position as the ; supreme power in New Zealand, his appai’ent carelessness, his sudden visit to Waikato, his gaining the Waikatos’ confidence so far as to be entrusted wiilh the King’s son- —all these things show that lie knows liow to cope with his antagonists If his second visit toNgaruawahia, where Matutaere was to await his coming, and where he most probably is at present, be as successful as those acquainted with the native mind in Waikato anticipate, the greatest difficulty in the Governoi’’s way will have been surmounted. If lie is ably seconded by his magistrates, the problem of peace without war may be solved, although the most ardent lover of peace can scarcely but desire that there should be some contest and confiscation at one particular place We believe the Governor lias given Wanganui a nacive magistrate thoroughly competent for his work. He has done two things within the last fortnight which go to prove'this; Hitherto armed parties of natives have passed through this settlement without let or hindrance.' !he other day Mr. White interdicted a party of 120 King natives from going through armed, and they left their guns behind them, unwillingly, but under the compulsion of reason and firmness. He has also checked the Government natives in a desired attempt at retaliation on the King natives at Waitotara—an attempt which, if made, would have involved this settlement'in the feud. No doubt he has liis plans for'punishing out-' rages, such as those already referred to. Prudence dictates reserve on such a subject. But let some reasonable time be given; and then, if the iiellingion Independent finds things no better, let facts be adduced to show that they are not,' not mere rumours circulating in this district, of which its 1 Wanganui, correspondent ought by this time to know the value. There" is every reason' for expecting that if the Governor is aided elsewhere as he will be here, the King movement will be checkmated, and liis superior sagacity will have won the game.