THE WELLINGTON CORRESPONDENT OF THE "TIMES."

Daily Southern Cross, Volume XXI, Issue 2501, 26 July 1865, Page 4

THE WELLINGTON CORRESPONDENT OF THE "TIMES."

The authoritative manner in which the Wellington correspondent of the London Times writes upon the Hew Zealand war and tho general political state of tho colony is a very clear proof, to our mind, that ho is not far removed from a positionwhich gives him the benefit of State secrets, is evidently a great admirer of the Weld Government ; has implicit faith in their policy ; and takes every opportunity to depreciate the services of General Cameron and tho troops. His last letter in the Times bristles with disparaging allusions to the operations of the^ General ; and to show the decided animus of the writer wo will quote a few of them. He speaks of the General making " stealthy night marches" by which he was enabled to cross the Waitotara river, tho natives " never dreaming " that so large a force of men, whoso sole business was to fight, would decline their challenge. Ho says that tho General's " excessive caution " prevents them going on ; that he has urged his Excellency to apply for 2,000 additional troops; that ho is either waiting for tho weather, for further reinforcements! or for something else, that few know buc himself; that tho Governor, "acting on tho advice of his " Ministers,' 1 has "peremptorily refused" to apply for the reinforcements requested, and has urged the General to accelerate his movements ; that General Cameron has a European reputation, but that ,the logic of experience proves that he is not tho man for such warfare as ho is now engagod in; that tho colony would bo very glad to see a change of Governors, but a change to General Cameron would be a change for the worse ; and that the depreciation of our'socurities in every money market is owing to the little faith that is placed iv the ability of tho Commandor to bring the war to a speedy close. Thus speaks the correspon. dent of the Times of General Cameron, and now let us sco what ho has to say of the Civil powers that be, and tho policy enunciated by thorn. He speaks of the " daily-growing conviction" that a small force, over whom the colony would have control, is in fini tely preferablo to the large,' costly, and independent force acting under Imperial instruction ; that if this wretched war is "ever to be thoroughly crushed, if- the" British powor is speedily to regain its prestige, the task of doing so will have to bo entrusted to " other guidanco ;" that while the British force is inactive our native allies have again signalised themsolvcs ; that his Excellency tho Governor was about to proceed to the North to set going the machinery for investigating tho titles of friendly natives to portions of the confiscated blocks in Waikato, and that ho would then return to Wellington, and take up his permanent official abodo there ; that ho (the correspondent of tho Times) is happy to say that " the most perfeeb undersfcand- " ing " prevails botwoon tho Governor and his Ministry "on all points ;" that tho financ es of the colony must be a source of special anxiety to the Ministry, although it has tho advantage of " a most able financier" in Mr. Eitzherbert ; that happily, however, tho cordiality with which the Governor works with his advisers in some measuro lessens tho difficulty; that tho expenditure in the Waikato is "enor- " mous," that every effort is being made to cut down the expenditure, and that tho provious Ministry looked to tho recouping of the whole amount by selling to Australian and local capitalists tho confiscated territory ; bat tho present Ministry could not sco their way .to such a course at present, in consequence of tho existence of the claims of friendly natives to the land " described as con- " quered " by the General. Tho writer appears to be well-informed on the state of tho finances in tho colony, talks glibly of exchequer bills, can give the monthly outlay for the support of military settlers, viz., £60,000 ; in fact, seoins to be as completely at homo on tho question of finance as the Hon. Mr. Fitzherbert could be. Such is the style of the communications of the correspondent of the London Times at Wellington ; and we think from the quotations we have given our readers will readily admit that he is notfar removed from those political influences which sometimes determine the sentiments of such writers. The admirable consistency of this and former letters is but too clear a proof of their, origin. There is abuse of General Cameron and the troops on tho one hand, and laudation of the Ministry on the other; and as a matter of course "mercenary Auckland" eoraes in for a share of rebuke. We could afford to treat such harmless and nonsensical suggestions as those of bestowing a "C.B. or E.C.8." on Dr. Eeatherston with the levity they .deserve ; but the tone of these letters as a rule is so perfectly Ministerial— the most expressive term wo can uso — and' they, convoy so erroneous an impression .-to the English reader that we feel'boxiud to decry thenras xmworthy

; Igf^^^den^^pl^^^^^^^^^Q^^^^^ 1 1 fco&e^ned-he^wiU^^^odbMtMa^Shemii^fp^^^ffi ! ?feWiSn^#ulfr#alWn^^^^^ - l tno *n». estimation>£L of ifi*theil§BritttffiiifepublicllJ bound, for the proteotioffof t their'good3iame7tojW protest . thereforeTwe shaUgwatch ? nirrowly«Ke|pro*duc^ tions of the WellingtonsjcorrespondentVofg^thofk 2%»w, : ahd place them'in.Weif/iOTOper-lightftl^?

I The subßoriptiohs^to t^ele"stim'oni»Qtf'Lieut«ilS|lil General'ffir'DunW,Oame^onXare]fiS^wef«peotedS coming in freely, and will fnlly'realise^the^toouufcll named by: the cbmmitt^\^llioy^o^^glld^ with kind expres«i6ns"towardF^hTGe'nsal4 r anal^% greb that circvmstanoes shower have *nsent;o A oauio -^ his Excellency to leavo our shores,, j. ,-Tho committee, •* will meet to-morrow/ at twelve Volook.^l^TieJpfe-*' \ sentation will take place id the; Albert Square. The day has not been definitely^ilxed/ but; r ib will, id all probability, l)e next "Monday. -^Thei*' place ohosen for the presentation is i very appropriate, and the publio will have an opportunity of bidding 1 * > , hearty farewell to the gallant general." , ,; 1 „'"*, The cutter • Elizabeth Ami,' which sailed from the" \ Thames on Sunday evening lust, reports th"at,alLw«Sa •-, quiet amongst the natives up to the timerof r Uer^de«~ 1 ' parture, and that the Hauhaus had- taken/i theirs departure. , t *■ i -'''-! !*,!>, --H The p.». ' Sandfly,' - which did 'suph „good," service for the Colonial .Government -'during *thvV war, has been purchased by • MpTl_"Samu(SlV" Oochrauo for the sum of three th'ousand'guineasj'J'dlV: \ r Jivered. She may, therefore,^ be expected to. amyeZ7daily, and be handed over to her enterprising'owrfertf It is not yet decided how she will be employed,' but'there can be no doubt" that if "she is employed .here * she will be a valuable acquisition ttvo v the port" of 1 . Auckland, , j. \ •' The p». 'Novelty' left the" wharf yesterday tJ ", morning for the Tamaki, to convoy 100 men' of the *-* Ist "WAikato Mil Hia to the Thames." - * - >' iJ " l Owing to the unfavourable weather yesterday ,tba v p.s. 'Waitemata did uofc'mako her customary trip ;' to Eiverhead, but will do so at 11 this morning." ., -^ '-■ The New Zealand Examiner gives < the follower ing short biographical notice of AdmiraLFitz-' j, roy :— l( The unfortunate Admiral was the ' youngest V son of the late General Lord Charles Fitzroy, by, his? second marriage with Lady Frances Anne Stuart, ,3* eldest daughter of Robert, fiisfc Mat quit ofLLondon- 7 derry. He was born on the sth of JiUy,t'lBOs ; *- entered the navy in October, 1819, and obtained his '' commission a? lieutenant in September, 1 1824; - After 7 serving on the Mediterranean and^SouthiAmerican Stations, ho became, in August, 1828,^ flag- hW> ' tenant to Bear-Admiral Bobert 'W.;Otway, at~Eio Janeiro, and obtained his commission as oommander. in November the lame year. Ho- wav employed- as commander and captain of the ' Beagle 1 fromlB2Bto' 1836 in important hydrograpbical operations in South America and elsewhere, carrying on Purveys and a chain of meridional distances rouud the globe/ In 1843 he was appointed Governor of New Zealand, which appointment he held three years, being recalled owing to the^ disturbed state of the colony. ..Previously to going to New Zealand he was eleoted.in 1841, M.P. for.lhe city of Durham., Admiral Fitz> roys lesearches in meteorology (have piooured him ~ the highest reputation in that branch of soience. He was a Fellow of the .Royal Society, a Fellow of the Asiatic Sooiety, and many other learned bodies. .The., late Admiral Fitzroy was twice married. He leaves^* a son and two daughters by his first marriage." $§) A meeting of the members of the Auckland Athonffitim was held last night, in their- room, Hardington's Building*, when Dr. Giles delivered a lecture ou "Darwin's Theory of Natural Seleotiou," Mr. K. Kidd occupied the chair. The lecturer began by giving a sketch of the history of the question, dwelling particularly upon the excitement caused by the publication' of "Vestiges of Creation," which, notwithstanding its many errors, -prepared the way for Darwin's theory. He then gave a brief account of tho theory of natural selection, ; illustrating hie remarks by instances from natural history,' and noticed some of the arguments against the theory, suoh as tho one tbat we do not find transitional forms in the geelogioal strata, which he said Dr. Darwin attempted to obviate by pointing out the imperfection of. the geologioal reoord. He remarked that to the popular mind the great objection to Dr. Daiwin's theoiy lay in the fact that according to it the human speoies must have been derived from lower species. He entered at some length upon the comparative anatomy of man and the lower animals, showing the unity of type that existed. Up to a oertaiu point , too, the mental functions were common, and several curious anecdotes were related to show that the lower auiuials possessed to some extent the power'of reasoning. If in mental chnracterittics a line could be drawn anywhere between rnau and the lower animals, it was in the possession by man of the power of imagination. He concluded by stating that the Darwinian theory - was' the only one 'exisliug on the subject, and that we, „ must eithor adopt it or have none at all. Some cliscussiou jnuued upon the subject, most of the speakers statiug what they conceived to be objections to Darwin's hypothesis. Mr. Cadman said that, so far as he could see, the theory was quite unsupported by facts ; and indeed he would be ai muoh entitled to propound the doctrine that the lower auimals'were ~ developed ftom man as Dr. Darwin was that man. was developed fiom the lower animals After some further discussion it was agreed that tho subjeofc should be again brought up at a future meeting. The Eesident Transport Officer invites tenders to be sent in to him in duplicate, until the 31st inst., for tho conveyance of invalids aud wounded men to ' England ; the ship to sail from Auckland at the end of August. Further particulars will be found in the advertisement. The Cameron Testimonial Committee will meat to-day at 12 o'clock, in the Chamber of Commerce. The lease for three years of the school' reserve at Awitu is to be sold by public auction this day, by Mr. Samuel Cochraue, at hh sale rooms, Fort-street. There are 364 acres, and the upset pi ice is £50. At the Police-courb yesterday, Bryan Corcoran was brought up for assaulting Peter Coyle, in Queenstreet, on Monday night. Evidenoe was taken, biit as Dr. Wilson, who diessed the wounds, stated that there was still some danger from them, the prisoner - was remanded till Friday. The cutter 'Elizabeth Ann,' which left the Thames district on Sunday last, arrived here yetterday morn--ing. She brings a specimen of gold quartz found by^ a prospecting party at Kauaeranga. So far thepros; , pecting has been carried on by private enterprise^ and one of the party, Mr. JVliddlemM, is endeavouring to induce the Provincial Government to assist them in their further prospecting operations. party of four men, whom we mentioned, as having' left Coromandel to prospect the lame district, 1 arrived there on Sunday lost with a boat load of pi o visions. We have Hobarfc Town papers to the Bth, instant. - An "extraordinary" of the Hobart Town Advertiser, of the sth, has the following paragraph fromaoorrespondent, headed "Important Discovery of^Gold at Devil's Den, Launceston :" — "A man T named'. ', Stuart, brother of J. L. Stuart, has just krriyed iv Launceston, and reports that he has s obtained a fine,, specimen of gold at the Devil's Den, about twenty* , four miles north of Launceston, on the George Town Eoad. The ground is paying his party at the rate of an ounce and a-half per man per week. --The 'gold - increases in size the farther they drive. t ,,The ■ heaviest nuggets average from five grains' 'to one ' pennyweight (eaoh. "- . " >\ t '. - The Argus of July Bfch says :— "An extensive -•, robbery has been perpetrated at one of the Melbourne" - , banks, under somewhat romarkable . circumstances.' . The property stolon consists of Victorian Gdvera-\ H ment debentures to the value of £10,000,*bf whfchvt the following are the particulars : — £25 debentures; *^ numbered from 40, 138, t0 .46, 177 r ; £50-debentures,- ? numbered from 40,057 to 40,078, and" from 42,"410 A to 42,418 j and £100-debentures, numbered, from' 23,800 to 23,879. '.They ware ,the , property,? oflfT;* gentleman residing at Hobart town,' who kept'thena-a^ in a^box locked up with one of Chubb's patent locksV^f This box was deposited,' »evcral- months r "ago,*in*the"Ju. safe of the Uniou Bunk of Australia,- the ownor.Tbf'Vv the' debentures" keeping* the key /ofljhe 'box'.^Oa.V ' opening tho box this week,' -he, aisdovered^tnat^tbol^ whole of the securities had 1 been ikbytracted/^Thero*'^ was no appearance of the' look ,havin^ : been|foroed,*% and by what means;, or , t>jrwh.om thejfobbe.ry,fjriis~*2 effeoted, is at, present reriveloped r m?oonsiderab'l«f?4 mystery. , Suspicion bus' falleif upon ajfornwr official S.§| of the bank, aud^ it",' is stated that information?hiS^» been" obtained t that he hadtdispl)ied,qf(ab'putT£2ioo0 > iM worth o£ the. miising debejjtywj^ono timVs^eV>f||i§

Wl'haTe been informed upon reltablajjiu'thority tllftt ,tno, following regiments we under immediate orders t6 leave this colony for home, viz., the 40th, 43rd, 65th, 68th, and 70th. -, - , >{, , ' 1 <Brigadier-'Gener»l Carey, d.8., will leave Auok- ' land on the Ist 'proximo, accompanied by Major .Tapper, Aide-de-camp, for Melbourne, to take the command of tho Australian forces, in the place of 'Major-General Chute, wtio, as already stated^ is" to take command of the Imperial troops her*. Brigadier General Waddy, O.B M will take the command until Major General Chute's arrival, and Colonel Weave will take his place in the^Wangamu district.^ ( Tho following appointments aro recorded in the United Service QasetU of May 9 :— Military Train.-— Tho appointment on May 2of Captain G. ftorner, from tho lato stli West India Regiment, vice J. Smith, who reverts to half-pay, lias been cancelled. " 12th Foot. — Captain G. Homer, from the late stli West India Regiment, to be captain, vice J. J. P. Fox, transferred to 61st Foot j Lieutenant H. M, Lowry to be captain by purchase, vice A, J, Leesou, who retires ; Ensign J. Roulton to be lieutonant by pnrohaie, vice Lowry ; R. B. WaTd, gent., to fee ensign by pnrchase, vice Botiltou ; Staff AssisbautSurgeon J. M. McLean, MID., to be AssistantSurgeon, vice T. Walsh, appointed to the Staff. 18th Foot. — Lieutenant F. W. Lipscomb to bo Initructor of Musketry, vice Lieutonant H. G. Heath., who has resigned tho appointment. 40th Foot.— Gentleman Cadet A. Wilkinson, from th« Royal Military College, to be ousigu without purolinso, rice E. Stack, promoted. 50th Foot.— Ensign A. S. Campbell to be lieutenant by purchase, vice 0. Goldsmith, promoted by purchase to a half-pay company ; J. P. Soote, gentleman, to be ensign by pnrchaie, vice A. S. Campbell. 70th Foot.— Captain W. Cooper to bo major by purchase, vice A. J. O. Rutherford, who retires ; Lieutenant C. Roger to bo captain by purchase, vico Cooper ; Ensign G. Young to bo lieuteuant by purchase, vice Roj»ev ; gentleman cadet A. C. Y. Rolleston, from the Royal Military Collego, to bo ensign by purchase, vice Young.