DISGRACEFUL AND UNSUCCESSFUL ATTEMPT ON THE PART OF THE GOVERNMENT OF THIS COLONY TO SELL THE SAME LANDS TWICE.

Daily Southern Cross, Volume I, Issue 34, 9 December 1843, Page 2

DISGRACEFUL AND UNSUCCESSFUL ATTEMPT ON THE PA RT OF THE GOVERNMENT OF THIS COLONY TO SELL THE SAME LANDS TWICE.

Private feelings and public duty_ too often interfere with one another, and it is at times difficult to say when, and how much the one ought to yield to or affect the other. The first are bestowed upon us for a wise and a good purpose, and the man who is not to a certain extent influenced by them, must be something more or less than the rest of his race. Public duty however, is generally speaking, expected tQ_ lead iho feelings cap-

tive, but even when this is the case, it may not be without a struggle for the natural sympathies which connect us with our fellow men, are strong as the sense of public duty itself. Both are good in their Avay, and he who cannot appreciate the tender sympathies of the one is scarcely able to render proper obedience to the stern and uncompromising demands of the other. Each must have its own place, and each must in its turn yield something to, and be modified by the other. Private feelings however, arc only a private virtue, and their effects are only known to, and esteemed by our private friends. The public will in no wise excuse a man for an imperfect discharge of public duty because of private sympathy, or private feelings. We have even in our own humble capacity felt the truth of this. Our feelings and our sense of duty have often opposed each other, and we must confess that we have not on all occasions been firm enough in the endeavour to make the one subservient to the other, even when we were aware of subjecting ourselves to disagreeable imputations by persons who cither did not appreciate our motives, or whose sense of public duty may have been happily stronger than ours. But however much we may have felt that we had justly subjected ourselves to blame in this respect, we certainly should have been contented to keep silent on the subject of the present article had not the parties concerned in the affair rendered this impossible, by unceremoniously forcing themselves upon the public notice through their proceedings in the Supreme Court on this day week. They have in this manner not only taken from us every excuse which the public might have otherwise felt disposed to make for us in neglecting to notice these most strange proceedings, but they have absolutely compelled us much against our inclination to publish proceedings which on their own account, had better for ever remain under the partial covering of the cloud. They have also added still stronger reasons why public duty should never give way to private feeling by proving that impropriety of conduct when not met with the reprobation which it deserves on the part of the public, is too apt to lead the author of it to "believe that whatever folly or impropriety he may commit, the public will bear with him. This is one evil effect of a well-meant forbearance ; the object is apt to. impose upon the motives, and to abuse the indulgence. These remarks have reference to the conduct of this Government towards Mr. Cooper, the late Collector of Customs, and the extra- | ordinary attempts made by one, or both of these parties to sacrifice the rights of private individuals who were unhappily connected with the latter. In order however, the more clearly to understand the merits of this case, and to appreciate fully the bungling and infamous conduct of the Government, it will be necessary to give a short statement of the facts connected with it. Many of our readers are doubtless aware that Mr. Cooper for a long time held both the situation of Colonial Treasurer and Collector of Customs in this colony, but for the last eighteen months he filled the latter of these offices only. For the present purpose it is only necessary to state, that for various reasons the Home Government thought proper to require that the receipts of Customs should be accounted for monthly instead of quarterly, as had formerly been the practice. The introduction of this new system was the means of discovering that a large sum was due by the Collector of Customs to the Government, which he was unable to pay. The Government devised various schemes for extricating Mr. Cooper from this dilemma, but finding that in their desire to accomplish the private object, they had neglected, if not sacrificed, the interests of the Crown ; and • perhaps risked at the same time their own j personal responsibility ; they invoked their usual tact to open a door of escape from this new difficulty. Instead of following the usual course of enforcing the rights of the Crown, by the immediate attachment of Mr. Cooper's property, the latter was persuaded by means of certain representations to confess judgement for a nominal sum of ,£2,500. The means by which this judgement had been obtained, not being satisfactory even to Mr. Shortland himself, it was not deemed proper to enforce it. In fact, the parties appeared ashamed of the whole transaction, and the judgement was thrown aside. A new arrangement was entered into by Mr. Shortland and Mr. Cooper, whereby the latter was permitted as a private individual to sell his real and personal property, with the exception of certain lands recently mortgaged to Mrs. Hobson, the widow of the late Governor, and the friend of Mr. Shortland. After due notice, the property was accordingly sold by public auction, the purchasers being at the time assured by parties instructed by Mr. Shortland, that the Government" were fully aware of it, had consented to the sale, and would concur with

the seller, Mr. Cooper, in a title to the purchasers ; upon these terms, all the properties offered for sale were purchased, three and six months credit being allowed the parties to complete the purchase. It would appear that by a private arrangement with Mr. Cooper, the proceeds of the sale were to have been paid into the Treasury on behalf of the Crown. The necessities of the Government becoming urgent, and it being an object to obtain the full amount of the purchase money before the expiration of the term of credit, a request to that effect was made by Mr. Shortland to certain of the purchasers, with the offer of an immediate conveyance to the lands. This proposal would have been acceded to by the purchasers, but strange to say, Mr. Cooper the seller, refused to execute the necessary deeds ; conduct which was altogether unexpected by the purchasers. The purchasers being thus unable to assist Mr. Shortland, were obliged to await the expiry of the credit, when they would be in a condition to compel Mr. Cooper to grant the necessary conveyance. It would however appear that Mr. Shortlands tact and ingenuity were not even yet exhausted. Regardless of promises and contracts with the purchasers, he bethought him a second time of making the judgement available, with the view by a resale of the land to obtain better prices, as well as immediate possession of the money. On the return of the Judge, a few days ago, from Port Nicholson, a petition to this effect was presented to the Supreme Court, a copy of which being as a matter of form, served upon Mi*. Cooper, but strange to say, the purchasers, the parties really interested, not only had no intimation of this scandalous proceeding, but instructions were given that the utmost secrecy should be preserved towards them and the public ; as evil deeds however, cannot be kept secret, one of the purchasers accidentally became aware Of the circumstance the evening previous to its being moved in Court, and immediately prepared the subjoined affidavit, with the view of opposing the same. Mr. Swainson, the Attorney General, appeared in Court in support of this petition, and from the exhibition he made, it would seem that he was certainly any thing but comfortable in the place he occupied. The counter affidavit being read, he appeared perfectly paralysed, and Utterly unable to make the slightest reply to it ; and the petition, as a matter of course, was at once refused by the Judge. It has been too often our disagreeable, painful, and unwished-for task to comment upon the acts of this Government, but we may safely assert, that their conduct in the present instance is not only more deserving of reprobation than any tiling that has hitherto come before the public, but is in truth of so aggravated a character, that we cannot find words sufficiently strong or expressive, to convey the full measure of our detestation of such incredibly infamous proceedings. It is all one what part of it we refer to. We can discover nothing to palliate it ; any sort of apparent feeling for, or sympathy with Mr. Cooper in the first part of the proceedings is more than blotted out by the illegality and impolicy of the steps whereby this was attempted to be carried out. This however, is a part of the conduct of the parties on which we would not willingly dwell. The features of the case are dark and dismal enough without this. People have accused us of endeavouring to make some of the officers of this Government appear in a worse light than they deserve ; we would only ask such persons to read the above unvarnished narrative, together with the subjoined affidavit, and then let them if they can, say that we have told half enough of the conduct of these parties. We only require them to judge of this Government by the solemn I oath of Mr. Kelly, and if they do so, we ' shall certainly feel afraid that they will blame us for not speaking out in more unequivocal language than we have done. What does this affidavit, this solemn, this well-weighed oath reveal to us ? Does it not publish in a Court of Justice before the whole world that the head of this Government attempted to sell the same lands twice over? What bhould a private individual be thought of, and how should he be received in society if he were to act in the same manner ? We need not say, common sense and common honesty will teach every man to give the answer without any prompting. But what shall we say of the secret, the well- concocted scheme of taking the sacred Court of Justice by a manoeuvre ? What shall we say of that Government whose head would petition, and whose legal adviser would plead the Chief Justice of the country to grant an unjust and illegal demand ? Wo can only repeat in the words of the Chief Justice himself, that this proceeding on the part of the Government was "a breach of good faith." We are quite aware that the proceedings before the Supreme Court were secretly gone about. We cannot, and we do not say that Mr. Cooper assisted the Government in this scheme, but

it is notorious that Mr. Cooper had two <d notice, and it is notorious that Mr. Cool never informed the purchasers of his 1$ the only parties really interested in the jjj of the case, of the secret instructions, r why was secrecy enjoined ? If the thing right, it could surely bear the light, .jj every act of a Government should be $ and public. The cause of secrecy is ea| accounted for. Had the matter been secret, no affidavit could be prepared, •> if no affidavit had been prepared, the Jif could only act by the written evidence bef] him. A judgement of his own Court U been given for a certain sum of money | to this Government against Mr. Coo-3 Mr. Cooper's personal property had ]Jj sold, and was insufficient to pay the amoj for which the judgement had been gram) A petition was secretly prepared and pull presented to the Judge in open Court authorise the sale of Mr. Cooper's land property, for the full satisfaction of the { for which judgement had been granted? the Court ; and if there was nothing to sy why this petition should not be granted,! Judge could not help himself. He mi] privately know of Mr. Shortlands arraul ments, but a Judge cannot make use of | private information ; and he would be oblM in his public capacity had there been no «i davit, to grant this monstrous, this unjl request. He has been however, hapj rescued from this disagreeable duty, and] are quito certain that none can be m{ rejoiced at it than himself. We must sj that we expected better things of Mr. Sw son than to have thus lent himself to s Shortlands stupidly concocted schemes, ij could have wished to have saved Mr. Swd son from blame, but we are aware that t vsanted the matter to be kept secret, and] must on that account, treat him and S Shortland as art and part in the affair, h them go together. ]