E—No. 3.

NATIVE INSURRECTION.

at Waitara been different, liis birth might liave given him the command over the Tribe which he pretends to exorcise. It is enough to s;iy that King's right to dictate to them is not recognised by the principal men of the Ngatiawa in Taranaki, and that its attempted exercise is the real cause of the disturbances which have so long , vexed the district. Still less would Te Whero Wlieio and the Chiefs of Waikato have countenanced King's ambitious views until the rise amongst them of the new ideas, of which an exposition has been given in the former part of this Memorandum. The Waikatos themselves, claiming the district by right of conquest, transferred their rights to the Crown in 1842, by deed of cession, of which a copy is annexed. (App. No 3.) The boundaries named in the deed extend from Tongaporutu, 10 miles south of Mokau, to the Waitotara River, near Wangaaui. This deed was relied upou as, at all events, precluding the interference of Waikato in the Taranaki question. It now seems that this reliance was not well founded. But should the tribes of Waikato take arms in a case in which they have so little concern, in which the Governor is so clearly in the right, and in which they are themselves so pledged and bound to support His Excellency—it will be manifest that the state of their feeling was such as that by no possible sacrifice of interest, honor, and principle, could a rupture have been long avoided. And in that case it might be, on the whole, matter of reasonable congratulation that the British Government should have come openly to an issue with the King party, before the preparations of the enemy were complete. The Districts North of Auckland are yet firm in their allegiance. But everywhere i-lse in the Northern Island the determination to shake off the British dominion has been steadily gaining ground. The agents of Government hear it everywhere avowed by Natives that their desire is to humble the Government (wkakaiti te hawanatanga), and to recover for the future Maori Nation the Sovereignty which they were, in their childish ignorance, beguiled to part with to Quren Victoria. The Waitara purchase has brought the Government front to front with the King-party before the preparations of the latter were complete. To use the phrase employed by themselves in answer to the deputation from Taraniki, " the Pah is not yet built." A view of the present political state of the Natives would be incomplete if notice were omitted of the part taken by the Ngatiruanui and Taranaki Tribes, who inhabit the country extending from New Plymouth southward, round the base of Mount Egmont, to the River Patea. These people have long cherished deisgns agaii.st the British settlers, ai;d, as far back as 1853, invited Katatore, the Pukeiapu Chief, to join them in an attack on New Plymouth. Katatore, much to his credit, firmly refused to be a party to an unprovoked atrocity, and disclosed the correspondence to the British authorities. These people have seized the occasion of the Waitara dispute to attempt the execution of their old project — which is nothing less than the extermination of the whites. They have commenced with murders already reported to the Secretary of State; and though happily repulsed with loss at Waireka, when on their way to attack the Town of New Plymouth, they are, according to the latest intelligence, preparing (or a fresh attempt. That a war between Natives and Settlers would be of a most merciless character is probable, from the approbation which many of the Waikato Natives express, of the murders of defenceless settlers perpetrated by the Taranaki and Ngatiruanui Tribes. These people have shown that they are still savages as rapacious and bloodthirsty as their forefathers. May it not be justly feared that in a contest with the settlers the impressions produced on the Natives by forty years of Christian teaching would be obliterated ? Former wars had a chivalrous character which cannot be looked for in the impending struggle. The Colonists, as a body, are in no degree responsible, directly, or through their Representatives, for the existing state of affairs. They have never had the direction of Native policy. Nor have they dictated, or even suggested, the acts of the Imperial Government in its relations with the Natives. But they approve of the stand made by His Excellency in the Taranaki case, and are naturally willing, as their present attitude proves, to risk life itself in the maintenance of the Queen's authority over the Islands of New Zealand. At the same time it is evident that the resources of so small a community are unequal to sustain, unaided, a prolonged war with the Aborigines. Industrial pursuits would be brought to a stand-still. Under continued pressure the better part of the population would drain off to neighbouring Colonies —their places being supplied by lawless and desperate men from both shores of the Pacific. The Colony, in a word, would be ruined. Nor would the Natives themselves fare better. The contending forces would be nearly matched, and the weak cannot afford to be merciful. All modes of warfare would be deemed legitimate against a savage foe ; and though the Maories might for a time gain the ascendant, their ultimate extermination would be a matter of certainty. Justice, therefoie, and Humanity require, that England should freely recognize the onerous duties cast upon her by the Colonisation of New Zealand. To avert calamities such as seem to impend, it is indispensable to place at the disposal of the Goveino l- a Military and Naval Force, adequate to support him in a Policy of equal justice to the two Kaces which have been placed by Providence in a relation to each other so singular and difficult. (Signed) C. W. Richmond.

Appendix No. 1. Wiiitoki, Taranaki, April l Oth, 1860. This is my message to Waikato, that Waikato may understand the character of this foolish work at Taranaki. I arrived here and have ascertained the causes of this war. Enough of this.

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