The Lyttelton Times. Saturday, January 7, 1860.

Lyttelton Times, Volume XIII, Issue 748, 7 January 1860, Page 4

The Lyttelton Times. Saturday, January 7, 1860.

Whatever advantages may be hoped for New Zealand in the future, one at least may be safely for her—that she will become a great literary nation. There is clearly something provocative of literature in her climate and soil. Already, in these her young days, she has stimulated into print numbers of men who, to all appearance, would never without such stimulus have ventured upon the responsibilities of authorship. Already there has arisen a host of volumes, dedicated to the country which instigated their production and -which forms their Subject.

There are certain peculiarities about New Zealand literature of the present day-which it may be well to notice. In fche first place, little or nothing has yet appeared in which the subject matter has been independent of the country; we may almost say that in every case New Zealand herself has supplied the material for the work. Again, the writer has always been here and gone away again—as. if coming to the colony gave the power, going away the opportunity, to write. The works—whether book or pamphlet or occasional paper—are not published in the colony but in England, where also they appear to be written. And they are not intended for New Zealand readers but -for the British public : the only connection the author holds with the colony is one adopted from the cannibal principles of its aboriginal inhabitants—he has made the acquaintance of New Zealand that he may massacre her for a meal. It is needless to say that the quantity of these works is more remarkable than their quality, for it is evident that no one subject of the kind could furnish valuable material for the phalanx of books which have been written upon this one. With what object they have been written is the puzzle. Probably each writer has found friends at home who regard his visit to New Zealand, as a wonder; he has noticed that a portion of the British public is interested in the subject oi colonization; it has struck him that New Zealand is a country fitted for colonists ; he thinks therefore, very properly, that it ought to be known ; and he concludes, most illogically, that he must write about it.

Certainly, no little ignorance does prevail in England, even among those who are comparatively well-informed on colonial subjects. It is not a joke at our own expense to say that the great bulk of our fellow countrymen at home, educated or uneducated, know nothing at all of our present residence but its place on the map of tho world. Still, anxious as we are to have the eyes of England directed towards us, it is sickening to read the nonsense very often put forward as information by those who think that' personal experience' qualifies them to enlighten the world about this colony. We have seen within the last month a lamentable specimen of the class to which we allude, emanating from a gentleman in this province. It is a production too imbecile to excite indignation; it is beyond criticism, and any strong expression of contempt would be wasted upon it. There is another instance of indiscreet authorship, of greater pretence, in the shape of papers upon New Zealand, contributed to the ' John Bull,' London weekly newspaper. Copies of the journal containing these articles have been forwarded to us—and we suppose to other New Zealand papers—with the request that all notices favourable or unfavourable should be forwarded in return to the office of the * John Bull.' This is an indiscreet step to begin with; for if the author had contented himself with simply publishing in the ' John Bull', his lucubrations would have circulated to a certain extent in England without contradiction..

In these articles, Mr. Charles" Hursthouse is quoted with approbation, his opinions are urged, and his style is adopted. The writer, if not Mr. Charles Hursthouse himself, is then a disciple of that gentleman. He declares himself to have been a resident in this and other colonies; and be offers to intending emigrants ' trustworthy and disinterested information.' "We are; quite ready to take his disinterestedness for granted; like many of his

colleagues, he means well, no doubt; our complaint'lies chiefly against the assumption of' trustworthiness' by one whose leading' characteristic is presumptive ignorance. In tho introductory article, written chiefly with reference to the sitting- of the Now Zealand Synod, our trustworthy informant supports the Toryism of the journal for which he writes by the following1 assertions : — ' Wo may mention in conclusion, that tlio formation of Now Zealand into a distinct province, the appointmonfc of Bishop Sehvyn, as Metropolitan, and the admirable appointments of Bishops Abraham, ' Hobhouso, and Williams to their respective sons, are among tho many boons for which churchmen Jive indebted-to Loi;d Derby's Government, tho matter having since 1853 been constantly pressed by Bishop Sehvyn on tlie Home Government, without success —the Whigs, with their usual superciliousness, actually adding insult fa injury by making the Bishop of Christchurch subject'to the see of Sydney, a proceeding that one does not know whether to admire most for its gross insult to one of our most eminent prelates, or for the charming ignorance it displays of the New Zealand character—one of the leading characteristics of which is intense dislike of being connected, with, much less subordinated to Australia.

We must recommend the 'John Bull' to give up New Zealand, or Mr. Hursthouse to resign his support of Toryism, if it is only by such facts as this that the two subjects can be united.

In the second article of the series, the writer is giving information as to the classes of persons who should emigrate and who should not. Among other recommendations to the capitalist he enumerates the " high per-centage —10 per cent —given by the Colonial Government, and secured by an Impeiial guarantee /" We are sincerely thankful: if all our attractions are. set forth on this scale by the trustworthy informant of the English public, we shall soon have to pass laws prohibiting the importation of capital into the country. Next follows a bit of romance concerning an unfortunate class of immigrants : —

Canterbury, especially, abounds, with men — younger sons —of gentle blood and good Hneage 3 who, having got into difficulties at home, have been sent oat there to retrieve their fortunes, but without the means of doing it. In many a hut in New Zealand a well-thumbed Homer or Horace testify to the classic tastes of "the unfortunate owner, who, sent out there with a fixed income, finds himself utterly useless —unable, on the one hand, from the want of capital, to embark in any undertaking, while, on the other hand, never having been accustomed to work, he cannot compete with the brawny labourer, and finding his income insufficient to obtain him more than the hare necessaries of subsistence, passes a miserable existence, too often gives way, from sheer ennui, to drunkenness, and having scraped together sufficient money to leave the colony, returns home to England only to abuse it. This is the mere remnant of a worn out jest. Perhaps Canterbury may have had among her colonists several men of good lineage; perhaps a few copies of Homer and Horace may* have been imported; perhaps some of the gentle blooded class as well as others have been unfortunate; and perhaps some have even taken to drinking1. But that the rule has been as described will be contradicted over the length and breadth of the colony. Well educated young men often come out; their chief characteristic is a mania for hard work' —simple hand labour; school books—and books of all sorts, we,fear—are objects of distaste. But even at bodily labour education shows itself; a cultivated brain and an enduring spirit do wonders to make the gentleman equal to the trained labourer; and we confidently appeal to real colonists of. all classes with the question whether the educated class in Canterbury has not taken its share of the burden and heat of the day, and has not deserved-its share of the credit which the rapid progress of the province reflects upon all its inhabitants.

Our trustworthy informant is somewhat more at home in dealings with the private concerns of emigrants, as to outfit, demeanour onboard ship, conduct on landing-, and so forth. His practical advice might be, perhaps, a little more disconnected from petty theorising. It is in treating of political questions that he gets so terribly adrift. The writer must be Mr- Hursthouse : no one else could so coolly assert that the evils of our political system arise from our not comprehending a certain set of laws or line of policy, and then proceed to set us right with an explanation so bewildered in phraseology and based on such absurd misconceptions. We have met the following 'trustworthy information' before. He is explaining the land regulations of the colony:—

The land once in the possession of the Crown, if; is forthwith officially surveyed and classified. It is then offered to the colonists either for sale or lease. The Crown at present makes over these lands to tlie various Provincial Governments, to be dealt with as they like, and their principal revenue is derived ■ from the sale and lease of these lands. This is, in' our opinion, one of the great evils of the provincial system, and we hope the time is not far distant when land may be sold and leased at an uniform rate and by a similar scale throughout the colony. * * * * There are three descriptions of wild lands—viz., town, country, and pastoral., The two first are sold—the latter leased. By town lands is implied the sites of old or new villages and towns; the agricultural wild lands of the district are called country lands; and " runs," i. c., wild grazing lands, for which a squatter's license is issued, are designated pastoral lands, For town lots a reserved price is fixed (varying from £10 to £200 an acre), and they are sold at periodical public sales for cash. Ifc is to be noted here that, with the exception of Canterbury, land is only attainable in the colony. We think this a great pity, and prefer rauch the rule of the old New Zealand Company, and the Canterbury and Otago Associations, which enabled persons to obtain land in England.

After describing the systems of Auckland, Taranaki, and Wellington, he enlightens England and the southern provinces on the regulations here adopted: —

In the Southern Island we find that at Nelson land, is sold by public auction, for cash, at prices varying irom 10s. to 20a. an acre. An inferior quality is put up from ss. to 10s. an acre. A drawback of £300 is allowed in the purchase of land to retired officers. Wild grazing lands are leased for fourteen years, at a halfpenny anil penny an acre.

At Ofcago the price is 10s. an acre, but lots under 10 acres are sold with the condition of spending within four years £2 an acre on improvement. The " runs" are leased at the&ame fee as in Auckland, and the pre-emptive right of purchase is similar to that at Wellington.

Wo have reserved to the last the' Canterbury regulations, rather more complex. In this province land is dourer than in any other part of Now Zealand. The tixed price h£2 per aero, but ontshiilfol'tho purchase»nioney being paid in England, cortain privileges with regard to passage of domes* tics is given to the colonist. The lands at Canterbury, it must bo remembered, aro far easier of cultivation than those of any other province; they are extremely fertile, and are contiguous to settled towns and villages. Above all, roads are made at the public expanse out of this purchase money. Canterbury is sometimes called the Silver-fork Settlement—the Bolgravia of New. Zealand. It is undeniable that the best society is to bo found in this settlement, and to the high price (comparatively speaking) of land this may be partly attributed. It is however, very much to be doubted whether in the end the dearest land is not the cheapest. Certain peculiar' privileges are granted in Canterbury to soldiers wounded in the Russian war, and to their widows; and the wild grazing lands in this province cmii be hired only on a yearly tenancy, renewable at pleasure.

On behalf of the Province of ■■Canterbury we shall enter into a compromise with Mr. Hursthouse. On our part we are willing to give up all the laudation received or likely to be received from him, if he on his part will engage never again, by act or sign, by word of mouth or by writing, to spread or endeavour to spread any information,, intelligence, news, assertions, or facts, trustworthy or otherwise, of or at all belonging to the waste land system of the colony of New Zealand. When we have adopted regulations by which one-half the purchase money of our waste lands is paid in England, and certain privileges is given to domestic servants, we shall take care to inform the British public of the fact; but we do not like Mr. Hursthouse to be gossipping about our liberal.intentions so long before hand.

Perhaps we have made too much of these papers ; they may be intended rather as advertisements for a special purpose, in Holloway's style, than as seriously-meant information about New Zealand ; we should be sorry to interfere with any man's honest method of earning* his bread if he only will make us understand his meaning-. Certainly, as we close the papers, a new light begins ito dawn. The writer, whose norn de phcme is 1 Colonus,' winds up, after the manner of certain insinuating newspaper paragraphs, with—

Any persons interested in the subject may receive practical information connected witli outfit, &c, on application to " Coloni Uxor," at this office.

The time of the yearly balance, with its dull array of facts and figures, is, perhaps, the most important epoch in the existence of a nation of shopkeepers. How great must be the aggregate of satisfaction at anticipations successfully carried out; and who can tell the number of heavy, hearts as hidden fears are more than realised by this same yearly balance !• As it is with individuals so also is ifc with communities ; we must check our anticipations or fears by these same dry figures. It is with this purpose we place before our readers some of the statistics for the past quarter, of the province in which we live, and call their attention to these.returns as compared with those of the former part of the year.

The shipping entries give a return of 559 vessels, measuring 14,568 tons, entered inwards; and 597, with a tonnage of 16,216, entered outwards, representing the provincial coasting trade. The inter-colonial trade shows 244 vessels, of 26,959 tons, inwards; and 252 vessels, of 28,074 tons, entered1 outwards. The foreign returns give 63 vessels, of 18,738 tons, entered inwards; and 56 vessels, 15,119 tons, entered outwards. The passenger traffic gives the following results : INWAEDS.

Foreign Ports. Ports of N.Z. Quarter ending— March 729- ...... 359 June ......... 696 ...... 331 September ... 855 .„,..; 254 December ... 942 262 3222 1206 OUTWARDS. March. 59 288 June 33 180 September ... 20 •'. ....... 193 December ... 35 253 145 914 Bal.ofimmig.3o77 ...... 292

Shewing a balance of 3369 persons who have arrived in the province during the past year. It should be mentioned, however, that the return of passengers leaving for colonial ports cannot be quite relied upon, many going on board of vessels after the entry outwards at the Custom-house has been made j but even if we add 50 per cent to the number of departures—reducing thereby the balance of immigrants to, say, 2750 during the year —a very satisfactory result will remain,, We trust that this amount of immigration will be at least equalled during the present year; for in spite of the outcry that the labour market was overstocked only two or three months ago—since which time we have had several arrivals of full emigrant shipsthere is now a steady demand.for labour at wages but little below the highest rates ever obtained. Should immigration be checked for a time, these plain facts clearly prove that we shall soon find ourselves in the same position in which we stood a year ago. The amount of imports and exports for the year stand thus in point of value :—

The number of horses which entered the province by sea during tlio year was 670, and their declared valuo £23,139; of this number almost all were iniportod during the first six months of the year. The declared value of cattle and sheep stands at £'4100If to this we add 250 horses, valued at £12,500, imported ovorland, we shall arrive at a very moderate calculation of what the country lias expended in horseflesh during the past year— say £35,000. If to this we add £20,000 paid for imported timber, we iind that a sum equal to half the wool income was drawn from the country in hard cash in the space of a few months. It will not, therefore, appear very surprising that a serious re-action should have occurred in financial matters, when it is remembered that at the same time an extensive investment in land was going on. In fact itspeaks well for the strength and resources of the country that the storm was weathered with ho little damage; for we believe that we are not afc all premature in asserting that the storm is over and the horizon once again clear.

Referring again to the returns before us, we notice that the revenue, which dropped suddenly from its culminating point in the June quarter, when it stood at £9235, to £6080 in the September quarter, has recovered in the last three months of the year to £7233; which, from the diminishing operation of the new tariff, is equivalent to £800 increase on the first quarter of the year..

These returns indicate far more truly than any others which we could take the actual state of prosperity of the people of this province generally. With an easier money market, and an approaching harvest which promises well, there is every reasonable prospect that we shall resume our usual rate of progress, probably even at an increased ratio. Let not prosperity if it come be too much for us to bear, or cause us to plunge into extravagant speculations, which cannot fail sooner or later to end in trouble.

Quarter ending Imports. exports. N.Z. produce. Other. March £72,187 £98,375 £462 June 96,468 19,800 1029 September... 77,291 10,809 1269 December... ,85,094 7,252 2008 £331,040. £136,236 £4770 The Customs Kevenue during the year for the >ort of Lyttelton has been as follows : — . March £7,223 4 2 June 9,224 11 8 - September 6,081 0 2 December... 7,233 8 7 £29,762 4, 7