THE EURONESIANS, Or the Children of European and Native Parents.

Daily Southern Cross, Volume I, Issue 23, 23 September 1843, Page 2

THE EURONESIANS, Or the Children of European and Native Parents.

We have advocated the rights of the European and Native, frequently and fully. We have treated of the effects of British Government, as far as the present and prospective circumstances of both are concerned, but there is another, and a very important portion of our community whose interests we have always had in view, although we have nois^had an opportunity until now of bringing their "case prominently before the public. A class of persons, who appear to have been entirely overlooked by our wise legislators. The Natives and the Europeans, have each been the subjects of treaties and of laws ; the privileges of the former have been attempted to be limited and prescribed, and the rights of the latter have been usurped and violated, but there is a class of persons who cannot be affected in their rights, either by the treaty of Weitangi, or the Land Claims Bill, We allude to the descendants of European fathers, and Maorie mothers, commonly called " half casts." These persons are iii many instances, the children of misfortune, and as such, are too often neglected and despised ; but they are still our , fellow-creatures, and entitled, under the laws and dispensations of the God of nature, to an equal interest, and an equal participation in the soil on which he has planted them. Our object in the present article, is to endeavour, as far as possible, to throw some light upon their condition and rights. We have protectors for the Maories, wo have oppressors of, and advocates for the white people, but there is not a single voice raised in favour of the poor Euronesian. Is he less deserving of pity and compassion, than his outcast father, or his credulously fond, and demi-savage mother ? Is there any protector of his rights, any one to claim, and prove his title to his mother's, or his father's land ? No voice ig raised in his behalf! The natives have their protectors, and certain rights are acknowledged to belong to them ; the Europeans are struggling hard and perseveringly, to obtain the rights and privileges of the citizens, or subjects of the civilized Governments to which they belong ; but the coloured children of New Zealand neither assert their own claim, nor does any one assert it for them. Have they then no rights ? Are they beyond the influence, and without the benefit of human laws ? If they are not, it is surely the duty of this Government to say what their precise position is. At the present moment, they may be perhaps, too poor, too insignificant, or too few in number to render

it imperative upon the Government seriously to take up this question ; but, if there should be one of this description (and there are scores, even hundreds of them in New Zealand) it is very plain that he must have some' rights and privileges, he must be expected to obey the laws, and for such obe- j dience, the laws must confer some benefit upon him ; he must have certain privileges, civil and political. What then, are the privileges of the Euronesians ? The coloured inhabitants of this country, consist of two distinct classes, the children of persons who have been legally married, according to the customs and ceremonies of England, and the children of persons who have been united according to the laws and | customs of New Zealand: who, in consequence, would be in England deemed illegitimate ; but who are, according to the customs of the natives, fully entitled to the rights of New Zealanders. The first class are at the present moment, not quite so numerous as the latter, but they are fast increasing, and many of them are respectable ; the children of respectable and well behaved European fathers, and high born native mothers. How then, are such children to be regarded ? Are they merely natives living under the conditions of the treaty of Weitangi? or, are they British subjects ? or, are they both ? "We are of opinion that they are both entitled by English -Jaw, (seeing their parents have been legally married) to inherit the properties of their English fathers, and according to native custom, and to the treaty of Weitangi, they are entitled to all the rights and privileges of their native ancestors. The first is theoretically true by English law, and the latter is practically trus, according to present native usage and custom. If this be the case, how will it affect the claims of the British Government and especially that absurd and assumed right of preemption ? Let us suppose a case of the kind, and it is no .imaginary one, where a British subject is legally married to a native woman, say the favourite, perhaps the only daughter of a great chief. The son of such persons would be certainly entitled to inherit all his father's property. But how would he stand as the heir of a high, a powerful native family? His mother has, it may be, become possessed of all her father's landed property, and has taken exactly the place and rank which he held in his native tribe, and' her people are a$ waiting and looking forward to the time when her son shall be old enough to exercise the power and rights, and to assume the possessions which are fairly his by native law and custom, guaranteed by the treaty of Waitangi itself. — Could such a person bo prevented from inheriting, occupying and selling his native possessions ? We imagine not. — Such a being, and there are now several of them, would rather perplex the framers of the treaty of VVaitangi. Jt would afford some occupation to the law officers of New Zealand to discover what his anomalous rights were. Many such cases will however, ere long come before them, where the person will on the one hand, claim the rights of an Englishman, and on the other, backed by all the strength of his native connexions, demand and enforce the rights of his native ancestors. A subject of the Crown of England will in fact become a native prince, with his thousands of native subjects, followers and connexions. If he be educated and intelligent, will he submit to the state of demi-slavery in which his countrymen are attempted to be kept by our present system? Will he allow his vast possessions to remain unavailable and useless, because England says that a native has no right to sell his lands ? Will he as a British freeborn subject submit to the I wrongs of preemption over his property, while his other fellow subjects can dispose of their | lands as they will? Will he be a free man in the one sense, and submit to be treated as a slave in the other ? The thing is absurd, and gives additional force to the arguments j which we have so repeatedly used in favour j of the necessity of at once conferring upon the | natives of New Zealand the full rights of British subjects. v So far we may be supposed to have been forming a case, and people may perhaps think that no hardship can or has at least been sustained by the Euronesian, because his rights are unknown or left in abeyance. This however is not the case. Hardships, extreme hardships, and gross and cruel injustice have already been sustained by persons of this class. Many of our readers will doubtless know something of a Mr. Maxwell, who was lately drowned and who had for a time resided on the island of Weihaki. Mr. Maxwell was married to a native woman, by whom he had a numerous family ; he was also the owner of considerable tracts of land in this country, which he had purchased from the natives long before the Government was established in Zealand, and being in' comfortable circumstances, he made much exertion to give a good education to his chil- - dren, three if not more of whom he had sent' to Sydney to school. Tho father however

was lately drowned, his children were too young to look after his property, which almost altogether consisted of lands claimed by purchase, or gift from the natives. After the Commission or Inquisition was established, we believe he went to the expense of < bringing his native witnesses to Auckland, i but owing to a freak of one of the Commis- ! sioners, his claim would not at that time be' entered upon. He has since been drowned, ! his lands are unclaimed, unoccupied and useless to his family, from comfort and civilization his children have been reduced to want and to barbarism itself. His young sons, ! whom he endeavoured to educate and to bring up as civilized beings, are now living! with the natives almost naked, and dependant! on their bounty for their bread. Their father's ' property has been by this Government ren- \ deredvalueless, their right to it is denied, and ■ they will themselves become savage^ andhea- ) thens. They have no protector, no o*ne to look ; after their interests, or that of their parent and her other children. Neither the Church nor the State 'have becorue their guardians : on I the contrary, the Government and the Com- * tnissioners of Land Claims have thrown everj j obstacles in their way. We understand that * a certain private individual in this town has 5 made repeated application to the Commis? sioners in behalf of these children, he hasp; tried hard, but vainly, to have their claimsf; enquired into, with the view of obtaining a& title to the same ; but one individual couldr? do little in the cause even of suffering huina [: nity against the overwhelming power of anilunjust and arbitrary Colonial Government,^ We sincerely trust that these remarks majjl be read by some of the benevolent, charita-h ble and religious people at home, and thaK some effort will be made by them in behalf^! of this unfortunate class of persons. It would?' be well to appoint protectors and to estabpj lish an institution in tins country for the|f maintenance and education of such persons,^ Let not our friends at home however expect^ any assistance from Government or fromp religious sects in this country. The case we!j have mentioned above is known to Govern r ment, and ought to be known to the ministers of religion, and yet nothing but tli^sC destruction of the valuable property of these|^ unfortunate orphans has been accomplished Charity, justice and mercy seldom find theiijj*' way into the British Colonies, and if theji - do, they soon expire. } ' u , Downing- Street, January 21, 1843, " Sir, — I am directed by Lord Stanley fe, 1 ■ acknowledge the receipt of your letter of tW, ; 7th instant, and to acquaint you in reply];*, that the Petition from certain inhabitants ip\ Auckland in New Zealand, to which yotf;^ refer, has been received through the Govl|| ernor ; but that, as Her Majesty had, beforo'|| the arrival of the Petition, been advised if| % disallow the Ordinance to which it refers, 4$ had not been found necessary to enter infM! the consideration of the Petition which ha^f that dissallowance for its object. Jy| I have the honor to be, Sir, * M Your most obedient humble servant^ G. W. Hope. $ | Arthur Willis, Esq., \ fj 3 Crosby Square. / ~I)| 1.0 ! t'