"NEW ZEALAND, THE FUTURE ENGLAND OF THE SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE : OR THE NATURAL ADVANTAGES OF NEW ZEALAND COMPARED WITH THOSE OF THE AUSTRALIAN COLONIES."

Daily Southern Cross, Volume XIV, Issue 1029, 8 May 1857, Page 3

"NEW ZEALAND, THE FUTURE ENGLAND OF THE SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE : OR THE NATURAL ADVANTAGES OF NEW ZEALAND COMPARED WITH THOSE OF THE AUSTRALIAN COLONIES."

On the 14th April the Rev. J. Bui-ler delivered a lecture on the above subject in the hall of the Athenaeum, Wellington, which was densely crowded on the occasion. Throughout its entire delivery, says the 'Independent/ the lecture was received with marked attention, and interest, the lecturer being frequently interrupted by the cheers of his audience. - As the aubject is one which equally concerns all the Provinces, we extract from the columns of our contemporary a report of the reverend gentleman's lecture, omitting only the introductory and concluding observations, which occupy considerable space and are intended rather for readers at Wellington than for those at a distance. * * * « During a long residence in this country, dating itself •ong anterior to its colonization, his Missionary duties had) quired him to travel over much of it. In the course of those solitary journeys his mind had often mused on its probable future— he would frequently trace a parallel between the present condition of these Islands and the eaily history or normal condition of Great Britain. As time rolled on he thought the course of events was flowing in that direction. He had long, by local experience, been acquainted with New Zealand ; now, by visiting the adjacent colonies, he was led to institute the comparison in another aspect ; he thought he could trace another step in the analogy— that what England if. in relation to the continent of Europe, New Zealand will certainly become in reference to the continent of Australia, during his brief sojourn in those colonies he was several times engaged in public meetings in which he was requested to speak. New Zealand was naturally his subject. With this he was more conversant, and his hearers the less, than with any other subject he could have chosen. And besides this, he found, a little to his mortification, that New Zealand wa» but little known. He felt perhaps his vanity, as a New Zealand^, a little wounded that we who think so much of ourselves should be so little thought of elsewhere. And, as in his official capacity in the Wesleyan Conference, he had endeavoured to represent the interests and WHnts of the Wesleyan Churches in, the South T crn Provinces, so in these social and ipublic meetings, with something of* tHe feeling of « Patriot, he attempted to delineate the geographical, commercial, and political importance of this country as bearing on the destiny of Australasia. In short he strenuously ma'iquined then,

what he honestly iters now. th«t in his opiniott Ne# Zealand wiJl become the future England of th« Southern Hemisphere. In support of this view he did not hink it nreessary, j nor did he intend, to say anything by way of depreciation of the sister colonies. ' It tau&t be freely admitted that they contain the germ of rtrffehty empires— there it, lit the colony ot Victoria particularly, » marvellous development of Anglo-Saxon energy and progress. There is a "nation born in a day," and when it is said that it is adding to its population at the rate of more than 5000 ; per month, it; will afford an idea of its wonderful ealurgement. Besides its former extensive produce of wool, the recent discovery of gold, which continues to yield an unabated revenue, has given an impulse to emigration which Divine Providence will doubtless overrule for the wisest ends. Whether regarded from a commercial, political, or ecclesiastical point of view, New Zealand must, in comparison with those colonies, be considered in the infancy of its being, the "least among the princes of Judah." Nor does this admission in any way darken the prospect we entertain. It is the last as well as the least, but as in many other departments of human experience, so in this there is reason to believe that the "last shall be first." In fact we may notice, in this very circumstance, one point in the parallel between the respective conditions of this country and England. Our glorious nation did not attain it* greatness with a mushroom growth — centuries of gradual development, of patient and hardy discipline, elapsed betore she reached her proud pre-eminence and sat as a Queen among the nations. Her growth was like that of her appropriate emblem, the monarch of her forests, the noble oak-slow but durable; tardy but permanent. (Here the lecturer quoted a paragraph from "Allison's History of Europe" referring to the gradual progress of the fabric of society in general, and illustrated by the history of England in particular). It was needless to prove that compared with the continental powers, the British isles were for centuries far more eclipsed by the shadow of their greatness than New Zealand is now inferior to Australia. The elements of British ascendancy were in the course of training, and at last emerged in the consolidation of an empire upon whose territory the sun never sets and before the glory of which the splendour of other nations becomes dim. The ultimate greatness of this country will be the work of time— the elements are here ; the development will be gradual— and it is to the future we must look. No man is or oftght to be more unselfish than the right-hearted emigrant. He expatriates himself from country and kindred to assist in founding new kingdoms not for himself but for his posterity. What is said of man in a far higher acceptation, may be ascribed to the bonajide settler in a new country— he liveth not unto himself. Like the Pilgrim fathers of the far west, amid toils and privations and sometimes dangers too, he plants the tree of freedom and of plenty ; his children rise up, and while they eat of its delicious fruits they call him blessed — they embalm the memory ot the sire in their affections and institutions. We live in an age of wonders. Not long ago the immense Pacific was under the dominion of universal silence— not one graceful vessel " like a thing of life," nor one snorting steamer w.th its trail of smoke, disturbed the monsters of her spacious caverns—desolation reigned supreme. But now, such is the progress of human enterprise — she sustains the constant traffic — the busy action — the stirring interest which attend the planting of new countries, destined to become great and powerful nations, among which New Zealand, from its natural position, will certainly be found the first and greatest — the Britain of the South. As the first step in the analogy he might dwell on our insular and geographical position, affording advantages which, viewed in the mirror of the history of England, must strike every reflective mind. (The Lecturer here again quoted from Allison, on the advantages to England of her insular character, which he showed to be equally apparent in regard to New Zealand.) The effect of our geographical situation with respect to climate and soil he would again revert to, hut would mention it now to observe that it not only affords the key to the southern archipelago, but will make this the highway of future steam communication between England and Australia. The ascendancy pf England is greatly indebted to the excellent harbours with which her long line of coast is indented. Hence her maritime genius has been fostered until it has assumed for her the supremacy of the seas. Her naval greatness — commercial and imperial —stands unrivalled by the past or the present. And nature has bestowed upon New Zealand this advantage in, at least, an equal degree. He need not here enumerate the many spacious harbours which encircle these islands — hatbourn in which future fleets will ride in safety, and prove the commercial emporium of the southern seas. If, from the advancing population of Australasia, a class of native-born seamen is ever to arise — if we are not always to be dependent on England or America lor that useful and invaluable class of our fellow-men, there it not a country that bids so fair to contribute to that important service as New Zealand, whose proud pennant will hereafter wave— the acknowledged mistrjss of the Pacific Ocean ! Apart from the influence of other causes, there are three natural advantages which mainly support the commercial pre-eminence of England: her manufacturing superiority : her mineral wealth ; and her facilities for inland communication. We have the best reasons for supposing that this country will also attain n high character for manufactures. It abounds in the natural product, the Phormium Tenax, or New Zealand Flax, and this plant only awaits the discovery of some process by which its preparation shall be more rapidly effected, to make it a valuable commodity in the way of raw material. Besides our vast forests of fine timber, it is certain that immense beds of coal exist, which is an indispensable article in manufacturing pursuits. That mineral ore exists in large quantities i8 an ascertained fact, but the richness of those stores is to be revealed by future explorers. Then, for the purposes of inland communication, New Zealand possesses facilities beyond comparison. If there be obstacles to the immediate establishment of railways, there is the less expensive avenue afforded by means of her many and noble rivers, by which in many places the country is all but intersected— rivers navigable for vessels of the largest burthen, and rivalling in beauty as well as in utility the venerable father Thames of whom Denhara says :— 11 Though deep yet clear ; though gentle yet not dull : Strong without rage ; without o'erflowing full." Did such rivers flow through the country of Australia, they would deem themselves rich indeed. Compare them with those steams dignified with the name of rivers— for instance, the Yarra of Melbourne, and the i Torrens of Adelaide, the latter of which, when the Lecturer was there, was a mere congerie of stagnant pools, connected with each other by little water runs, winding like the crawlings of a snake between them. On the bosom of our rivers a tide of inland navigation will, in time to come, bear the strongest testimony to our prosperity and power. It is allowed that formidable difficulties present themselves—herculean labours are demanded before the ideal can be realised. It is easy to imagine the stranger on his arrival looking wistfully around at the steep and forbidding hills by which this harbour is environed. We may suppose his heart sink within him with a feeling of bitter disappointment. But let him wait. If there be hills there are also valleys. He has yet to look on fertile plains, luxuriant forests, fruitful dales, beautiful banks which he (the lecturer) often in imagination has peopled with all the busy activities, the stirring interests, and the charming adornments of the coming settlement. And though there be barren wastes besides, yet these are capable of being converted into use. (Here Mr. B. read a quotation from thenaturalist Dr. Dieffenback as bearing out his assertion of the improvable character of our most barren lands.) With the fullest confidence would he address the newly arrived settlers of the right class in the language of Moses to the Israelites. "The Lord thy God bringeth thee into a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and depths that spring out of valleys and hills ; a land of wheat and barley, and vines and fig trees, — a land of honey ; a land wherein thou shalt eat bread without scarceness', thou shalt not lack any thing in it." That hard labour is a necessary condition he would readily admit. But even this circumstance again affords another instance of resemblance to the England of the old world. While in Sydney he (Mr. B.) attended * public meeting on ''Colonial Missions'' in connection with the Congregationalists. Many things were said forcibly and eloquently on the growing importance of Australia. The speeches gave a glowing picture of its approaching greatness, and compared it with the glory of our ancestral land. One of the speakers towards the close said that he was not quite so sanguine as his brethren who had preceded him. He agreed with them in the great importance of those countries, and sympathised with their aspirations for future prosperity ; but he confessed he should have greater hope of their rising into a parallel with English grandeur .-had they but greater difficulties to overcome. He thought thsy had too little to do. Had they, as our Saxon forefathers had, dense forests to clear and immense swamps to drain, and the like, then their energies would be, like theirs, so developed that they wpuld.rise into thfrsame hardy, enterprising, and successful race. He, (the lecturer) felt, and he whispered to the Rev. Mr Buddie of Auok~ land who sat by his side, thaj were Mr. Baizeley, the speaker, as well 'acquainted with New Zealand as with Australia, he would have an illustration that wouldsuit his purpose. What our Saxon forefathers did for us, we must expect to do for oHh^s. By their labour, order and beauty emerged ifrom confusion and rudeness; by our patient exertions^w ill the same results fr^pr.od.uctd, n

hen. "Instead: of (he tho*n shaft com* ttp the ffcttee. md instead of th* brier shall com* up Che fltyt<fe*tte» r r ' md the very exercise involved lurttfie* a physical and mental training which ahall be followed fey the happiest consequences* , In comparing the respective advafctcgfefrot duferenf countries w« should look at the tugafhf «* «*H •* ta « positive side of the question. We sfkdttlif rcsnamlter from what disadvantages we escape as welf« mfoa* advantages We enjoy. Here, for instance, we are not subject to myriads of mosquitos ; to the suffocating hot winds; to the patching droughts-^ to thfc,o**rwnelmin2.' torrents ; of the venomout reptile* which invert tho colonies of Australia. (Heie the lecturer related a Very affecting instance of death by poison inttdtnilated by a> fly, in the cttae of ason of G.Oakes, E*q..ofF}»rramattfy a very promising youth of i 7 yews of age). Oh tW other hand, we possess « priceless treasure in out Cfyav tal streams and gushing fountains. Otrirptitftiig bfoofcr are ao common In New Zealand, that we *re Jf*bl# t» undervalue what hi other hands Wdiild d* the riefiesfr luxury. Bow refreshing to the wearteo* xnt) tStirsty traveller to> luxuriate, aa he (Mr, B.) had" often dote, at the banks of these pure and perennial streams whifcb meander through the land* What Would the WattfSe* in New South Wales give for such a tfeat when «S«ty> ing to assuage his thirst at some odious mudhoie ? What is the testnaony of the goW-digger te Victoria Who* formerly lived in Jfew ZeaTawf tot whe>, attracted by the magnetic force of gold*, had gone to those buttling: regions where he would gladly exchange his auriferous wealth for ths cooling and refreshing beverage which* nature here so abundantly supplies ! When in Adelaide, the only supply of water for the town was that, which the stagnated pools of the Torrens could supply r and while, to the great disorder of his stomach, hr (Mr. B.) was perpetually drinking lemonade and sods: water, how earnestly did he long for a "cup of cold water" from New Zealand ! He could sympathize withKing David who "longed and said, oh that one would* give me to drink of the water of the weil of Bethlehem,, that is at the gate." But the crowning point of our natural advantage* consists in the salubrity of out fine climate. He (Mr... B ) never appreciated this advantage so greatly as since his recent visit to Australia. He used sometimes to* think, when our winds blew bleakly, and our sky wascloudy, and our atmosphere humid, that he would not object to a warmer and drier climate. He had heard*! much of the beauty of Sydney weather, but when hehad been there a day he found the sky gather a leaden blackness— the thunder roared— the lightning glated--the rain poured- the atmosphere was close antf sultry —every one complained of lassitude or head -ache, and he felt there was nothing in New Zealand so bad aft that. In fact, in passing through three colonies, he wa*> like a boy at school describing the three degrees of com' parison. Sydney was hot, Melbourne was hotter, Ad* elaide was hottest. There the hazy atmosphere— the lurid sky, the parched gronnd, the clouds of dust, the heated air, all combine to rob one of his energy. On the morning of February 1 Ith, immedately prior to embarkation in the Havilah, on the return voyage, a breakfast was provided in the school: room belonging to the large Wesleyan Church, in Piriestreet. Here a number of our Wesleyan friend* of Adelaide met the President and other members of the Conference, on the occasion of their departure. Being requested by -the chairman, with others, to address themeeting, he (Mr. B.) could not but feelingly acknowledge the rery great kindness he had received, together with all his brethren on every hand— kindness he^would ever remember with pleasure— and which he could compare only to the glowing, melting, fervid sun of their Australian sky ; but while he never could forget the' social pleasure he had enjoyed and the new acquaintances he had had the privilage of forming, he could not but anticipate with satisfaction his speedy return to theislands of his New Zealand home, where he would no> longer dissolve in heat, but would ,once more inhale ■ the bracing air of its mountain breezes. Nor is thisa consideration of mere personal comfort. Thatf climate exerts a positive influence on the character and habits of men is indisputable. The testimony of Humboldt, the celebrated cosmologist, and other writers, may be adduced in proof of this. Of this influence one of the most striking illustrations is found in' the case of the Jews. By the peculiarity of their religion and other causes they continue a distinct people, although scattered all over the world. With rare ex> ceptions they do not intermarry with any other people.. If therefore they assimilate to the peopb among whom they live it cannot be by the admixture of races. Yet, the English Jew is white ; the Portuguese, brown ; th« American, olive; and the Egyptian, swarthy. (The Lecturer here read an quotation from a scientific writer.' in the ' Classical Journal,' to the effect that a warm cli* mate necessarily produces an enervating influence on both body and mind, and that temperate regions are most favourable to the cultivation of hardihood, heroism, and genius.) He (Mr. B.) observed that other causes < must be taken into consideration as combining- with th*t r of climate in the formation of national character. In our - native land, for instance, her political and religious institutions have op. rated most powerfully upon the national mind and manners ; but still the difference of olimate produces its special influence. Hence we havethe volatile Frenchman, the mercurial Spaniard, the voluptuous Italian, while it is the Anglo Saxon racealone which seems qualified to impart their language and laws, their institutions and religion over the unpeopled regions of the world. The same cases will produce the same effects elsewhere. Eventually the distinction will he palpable between the inhabitants ofc Australia and of New Zealand Already the incipientdifference is apparent. You cannot go into their homes, . you cannot meet them in the street, you cannot mingle ■ with them in the public congregation, but you mustt notice the pale and sallow complexion and the spiryv growth for which the youth of Australia are remarkable. . He would not say it in disrespect to the ladies of Australia, nor intend it as flattery to those of New Zealand, but if a comparison be instituted between them as-tOo personal appearance, he was sure the balance must preponderate decidedly in favour of the daughters of' this, country. And he would ask what earthly blessing can i be compared with that of a vigorous constitution— with : robust health. What so seriously deserves the con- . sideration of the intending emigrant* as that which will I affect his own health and longevity, and of those who ■ are dearer to him than life itself— his own children i whose home he desires to establish. And wtat sight is . so lovely — what scene so beautiful — as that of the large and well trained family— the hale and joyous parents, with their hardy sons and graceful daughters "ttk&j olive plants around their table." Such families un«broken by death and almost unvisited by disease, he • (Mr. B.), had often seen in this country, but in Australia alas ! you can hardly visit a family with whom disease i and death have not formed acquaintances. " The fire side shows an empty chair ; The grave yard bears an added stone." He would quote with much satisfaction a passage from i Dieffaubach, which fully bean out all these views, and i declares, " as regards climate alone no country is better • suited fora colony of Anglo-Saxon race thaniNew Zealand : and were this its only recommendation it would I stil deserve our utmost attention as the future seat of ' European civilization and institutions in the Southern • Hemisphere, since in the other southern colonies — for instance, in that of New South Wales, Europeans undergo more or less alterations from, the original! stock. There is another element which must certainly affect: the future character of this country. He had reference.to the aborigines. They are acknowledged on all hands' ; to be the finest of all aboriginal tribes. They are highJVv susceptible, not only of the arts, but also of the polish: i of civilization. Their present conditidn,.«ompareaiwith,'i the past, clearly indicates that in two or three generations more, they will be fully vprepared in every respect r, to stand on a social equality* with their European i brethren. The question has "often been~«ked r What will become of the New Zealanders? The general I opinion is they will become extinct. If* he. (Mr. . B.) ) may give his opinion, it is, that they jrill become ex-. tinct, but not in the sense of dying tmJ^Jbut by reason t of amalgamation with our race, for which it is the office.' of a Christian education and progressive civilization to > prepare them. And here, tlw lecturer observed, he would take the opportunity of observing that Christian ■ Missionaries are not enemies to civilization. He knew they had been ao represented; and erroneously believed I to be such. He would not say that no individual tois-. lionary in New Zealand deserved th^t- character* btrt» this he would affirm that, being acquaintedlwith'every.missionary of his own denomination, add many of itbftu Church Mission, if there be such an one, he does--not-know him. For his own p^rt, while folly sensible: of ' the demoralizing influences which are inseparable from . European colonization in the present state of humanity, „ lie never traversed our newly formed roads, he iwveri »rtook of the improved hospitalities of the natives,, hte never beheld them following their teams and their carts, le never saw them depositing their money in the bank, t >r giving a portion of it to benevolent and religions obects, but he felt that colonization was, after a11,, a boon o the New Zealanders — h« was persuaded. that it was n accordance with the- designs; of Divine Providence ; md he asked credit for sincerity, when h« aaid, that it iflbrded him the fullest satisfaction to. reflect that wiwt>.ver may have stained the British' name in the eatanizng process in other lands, the aborigines of New Zjaaand have received nothing at the hands of the.Bri.tish , Jovprmnent but that paternal regard whioh is. ever due . Rom the stronger to the weaker i and he did not doubt ? iut this -fine,race,-of people will ultimately contribute t© , mixed >and noble generation even as the sons of Britain , re the offspring of, a . blend«d «.took. • ♦ •,•*•.*