A.—No. 1a

36

DESPATCHES FROM THE GOVERNOR OF NEW

difficulties arising from the Governor having lost all useful control over the forces, that they have declined in any way to advise me regarding the Regular Troops, requesting merely to be kept fully and immediately informed what was to be done with them; but this, from the absence of the General, and the consequent delay in obtaining information, I could only imperfectly do. Efforts were then made by my issuing direct orders in some cases to the Local Eorces, and communicating direct with Officers of the Regular Eorces, to get over these difficulties in part; but this gave rise to all the evils of divided command, and as I was assuming powers to which I had no right, I was obliged to act with a caution which prevented all energy. 22. Your Lordship informs me that I have misapprehended the intention with which Her Majesty's Regular Eorces are retained in this command, for that it is not with the object of being useful to the Colony that they are now in New Zealand. 23. This opinion of your Lordship's is given in consequence of my having informed Major-General Chute on the 18th of August, 1866, that if all Her Majesty's Troops were withdrawn from the outposts to the chief towns, they would be entirely useless to the Colony. 24. This opinion I gave to General Chute on the 18th of August, 1866, at a time when I apprehended that attempts at new disturbances would be made, which attempts resulted in the events which took place in the months of October and November in the same year. Every one will now admit that if the proposal of General Chute had at the time been carried out, there would have been again disturbances on an extensive scale throughout considerable portions of New Zealand. In fact, had the troops in this Colony merely touched at Wellington, I think it would have been my duty, at that time, to have retained them to meet the momentary emergency which had arisen, and to prevent another rebellion from breaking out. I am sure if I had failed in my duty in this respect, and had in consequence entailed another war on Great Britain and the Colony, your Lordship would have been the first to censure me for a gross dereliction of duty. 25. lam also of opinion that the events which rendered necessary this delay in the embarkation of the troops would not have grown up in the country had the General resided at the Seat of Government, so that for the preceding twelve months Her Majesty's Regular and Local Eorces could have been rapidly moved as necessity required. 26. I have always acted on the principle that it was my duty to get the troops out of the country with the least possible delay, taking care at the same time, that Her Majesty's possessions were preserved in safety, and the lives and properties of her subjects kept secure. Great Britain is in a great degree responsible for the war which has taken place in this country, and especially for the great expenditure wliich has been incurred by the Colony, and I have never read the instructions of your Lordship or your predecessors as telling me that, in order to save a trifling extra expenditure of a few weeks' field service of troops, I was to throw away the advantages wliich it has taken so many years, so many lives, and so much money to attain; and that when, by a trifling expenditure of the same kind, I could secure the permanent safety of this country, and the future concord and welfare of its inhabitants, I was to sacrifice all these to save so paltry a sum, and to hurry the troops into towns, leaving flourishing settlements to be abandoned, peaceful homesteads to be burnt, happy families to be murdered and beggared, and then, when the troops were embarked from the towns, to leave the two races of Her Majesty's subjects to seek each other's destruction as the only means of safety. 27. I knew your Lordship would hold me as guilty indeed, if I permitted this, and that it was my duty to keep my eyes # in great part upon the-welfare and safety of the Queen's subjects. 28. Your Lordship states in your Despatch, that whilst the troops in New Zealand are merely awaiting embarkation, there is no reason why the Governor of the Colony should have any greater authority over them than if they had merely touched at Wellington in their passage from one part of the Empire to another.