The Waikato Times.

Waikato Times, Issue 642, 1 July 1876, Page 2

The Waikato Times.

Equal and exact justice to all men. Ox wWtover state or persuasion, roli^iouscr political **«•■* Here shall the Prssi tha FiMiVLK's right maintain, Unawed by mlluoute and unbiubod bj gwiu.

SATURDAY JULY I. l^7i>.

TmKaccouut of the interview betwcon the •Defence Minister and the lung, repnblislied in nnother column from Parliamentary papers laid on the table of the House, on Wednesday last, unless there be more to come from the mouth of the Defence Miuister hhubelf, aaii bvuiculy be held to be aalWn^ory, or to wnnanl the expression of satisfaction uttered by Sir Donald MuLeau to more than one depuUrion in Waikato, after his return from the King country. For the present, therefore, we withhold further comment upon the general character of these papers until the diaoubbion wliich tbey are sure 4o evoke takes placo in the Rouse, and they can be read by the light of farther informatiou and explanations, which we have not the slightest doubt will be furnished >fey the Defence Minister himself. There is, however, one subject to which i refvionce in them is made on which wo cannot maintain silence. We have a high resppot, a feoliug of gratitude to the Defence Minister, Sir Donald McLean, as evQiy thinking 1 Waikato settlor must have, for the general results of vis native policy, under which — free from the actual horrers of w.ir, or, from tbe .ilinosb equally disastrous panics which, before tbe advent to power of the present administration, marked the history of Waikato — Jie district has peacefully progressed in wealth and population. But, neither to the Ministry, nor to auy member of it, does this journal owe a slavish support. It is our duty to represent, not the Ministry, but public opinion in the Waikato, and if the action of this or any other ministry were felt by -the majority of the settlers to bo inimical to the true interests of the district, we should be found as ready to oppose, as under the other view of the case we have be^u forward to support the Grovernment. We cannot, therefore, pass by the official statement, that the Defencw Minister in his interview with T.iwhiao, on the 27th of May, promised *that though he could not restore Waikato, yet ho might "bo able to yife back some sniill portions out of the lands not purchased by settlers which are still tbe property of the Government." For some time past there has been a growing uneasiness on the part of many of the settlers that tho lands boing purchased by Government on the left bank of the Waipa river were intended to be granted to the King natives. Such a proposal seemed to us so monstrous, so utterly opposed to the interests of the settlers, so retrograde a movement m fact on ( the part of the Uuvwumeufc, tliao we l»ve |

always looked upon n aa a mere indention i>f the Opposition to discredit the (ji-overn-•ne.it an>l the Native Minister. W« can oven now suarcelj bidieve thirt the |Jtomise is uiPint to .ipplv to the tii ty acre t^ratttb lerentiv purchased from Mr VV Aitken, .in, l the butt I bought from Hone te '(s>ne, bat that tbe Detenc • Minister muat rofei to c ■> rain binds away back bftyond B.unyirni, which somu ycir-> biiii c, if we recollect rightly. wore set a«,ide for some such purpose. We do not hesitate to Bay if the Waipa lands are mo nit as tlnsp promised that the Government will be jfuiltyof a very sjr-ivo and ben >us im-.tukt' in such 1 eturn. No( merely from the Auckland Opposition, bu» troiu one end of AVaikato to the oilier .such course will be alike con•lenmed as un|ust, impolitic, and likelj to lead to the most disastrous results. It is unfair upou the European settlers iamany ways. Thuy will uot only be prevented from exf« i ndinar tlieir farm-, but will have forced on them :ts neighbours those who will render settlement impossible. The Mam-is are bad enough neighbours as it is on thft Aloxtndra and Har.ipipi frontier, wjunuiioA thijy nuve uo legal status. What, then, may be expected from them when they ardJjqa-ittpd dowu by right of possession h i'rf aui tlu-re amongst the settlers. Wither tho latter must leave their farms in tlisgtmt or they will come into collision with tne nn'ivus, and in a day, an hour, tiurlo rtho work of the Defence Minister's peace policy of y<>:uu It is but a day or two ago we were speaking 1 to one of these settler*, who told us* that, will he nil he, he left a M.<ori pig-hunting party damped in hi-< own stookv,ird, to the risk of his shftepand other .property, anl that but lately "the Maoris had coolly killed the pig ot one of his neighbours, leaviug the brad and feet in the p.vldock: close by his "bonae, w il.» another parly, As-syri.iti-liko, had coma down like the fox on vi.-> Liu'ivjyrt, Now, we put it seriously to the 'government, are these thu sort of neighbours tint should be settled hun ;tn I tliei'e amongst the peaceably disposed li.irdworkinir European settlers whj have won the land after hard military service, and nro^pen lingyearsoffui-rhertoAin inuking iiomes up>n it for themselves and their families. We sincerely trust 'that the Y\ aipa s ttlers are unnecessarily alarmed and that thu words of Sir JDonald qnotod fi'oin -(he parliamentary papers will barb >ar some other f instruction, for we are quit* 1 sure that such an A^t would crp'vtu KXtru uc # dis,ii is'action thron^hou!) the dis-ti-ifi. As we before observed, wo feel sure the matter is >p« » to ox >lanation.

Ix an )bher uulutu 1 appears a letter fr >m a , eoi'rer KMident, w'io adopts the "iiom de ulumo" of " Hamilton East.." The suggestions lio makes are well worthy of i.-oubuiurai!OD. Tlie number and wealth of the iuh ibitants of Hamilton Ikst givo a rigl.!. to flub district lo claim the aeooinmodatiuu which Government extends to such portions of the country as can shew a pi'o'ubility "f a paying return. The population of Hamilton Kasta.id Kirikiripoa combined is r'ii wu by the laat census to am mat to 1 )0 souls, of whom 276 are I tn.ilcs. Assuming the average amount e^pendwil iq telcgriphin^ by each male member oV the uomm unity at LI per Liuuum, we ha\p a return sufficient to fiippoit a sUiii' cijuiil to the requirements of the people. V/e t.»ke tin's viuvr of the oasi- because iiotvvithbt.niding the repeated demands made upon Government for the erection of a biidge orer the Waialo river, we seem a^ f.ir as ever from that consummation. There cm be n» doubt that if the two townships were connected by a bridge the one post .mci telegraph office would meet all thoir rtiquii-etient^. In the meantime, and until the Government choose to move in the nutter, we think it a gioat hardship that one iraportaut section of the Hamilton township should be debarred from ready access to telegraphic communication with the rest of the Colony. We trust, however, that any action that may be taken in consequence of the suggestion of oar Correspondent will be directed to urging the Government to forthwith erect a bridge, thus bringing the two townships into one and obviatiug tke expense of supporting two separate telegraphic and postal statioos, within a ie.v hundred yards of eauii otlifi*. We am see in this matter a strong additional reason for tho immediate erection of a bridge between the two town, ships of /'.last and We.st Hamilton.