The Daily Southern Cross.

Daily Southern Cross, Volume XXII, Issue 2717, 2 April 1866, Page 4

The Daily Southern Cross.

LTTOEO, NON tTRO. " If I have been extinguished, yet there riie A thouiand beacons from the spwk I bore."

MONDAY, APRIL 2.

"We have received by the mail a pamphlet of much general interest, under the title of " Remarks on the Credit of New Zealand, and " the Honour of Great Britain." It is not often that we find published in England any statements regarding New Zealand affairs so free from ignorance and prejudice as those contained in the pamphlet now before us. It is true that we do not agree with some things — indeed, with a good many things contained in it ; but it is also true that we cannot but respect the general knowledge and candour with which it is written. Curiously enough, the pamphlet does not bear any signature, and does not profess to emanate even from any body of persons in particular. The reinai'ks are addressed not, as most arguments on the subject of our affairs have been, to a Secretary of State, or a member of Parliament known to be acquainted with colonial matters, but to the real holders of England's purse — in a word, to Lombard-street. Prom the absence of a signature it is but fair to infer that the arguments of the pamphlet were intended to stand entirely on their own intrinsic merits. There is another novelty about their position also, which arises from the class to which the arguments are addressed. It is not as though Exeter Hall were being appealed to, where sentiment reigns supreme ; nor is it even like an appeal to a government which must listen to, and to some exteut at least be guided by, the influence of Exeter Hall. Such arguments we have had to repletion, and it would be weak to take any farther notice of things so unutterably weak as these. But the moneyed classes of England are very different, and need very different treatment. They are not obliged to listen to anything beyond their own interests, and Lombard-street is not exactly the region in which sentiment will find a congenial soil. To produce an effect on the mind of this class it requires only logical arguments and plain facts. However clever the joke may have been which said, that excepting figures thei-e was nothing more deceptive than facts, it is well known that upon these two delusive bases the moneyed class in England relies. The pamphlet has therefore peculiar claims to be noticed at length. The object of the writer is manifestly that of showing that our present position is one which is quite unworkable and cannot last \ and the mode of showing this is at once novel and important. He sets out by showing that Mr. Cardwell has practically conceded independence to the colony, by writing as he did to Sir George Grey, that it was " his deter- " ruination not to interfere with the priuciple <v of social self-government as regards the " affairs either of the colonists or natives. " But self-government means the control by " any people of their own forces, their own •' finances, and their own relations "or peace and wttr. IL - does not " mean that the right of establishing " a policy shall belong to one body, and the " means of carrying it into effect shall be " laid upon anothei\" Of course this meant, as no one can fail to suppose it was intended to mean, that if New Zealand liked to pay the expense of a policy for itself, England would not interfere to thwart that policy in any way. Ihe Southern politicians so understood it, and began at once to act upon it. They declared what they called a " self-reliant " policy," and said they would pay for it ; and in the strength of this saying they at once claimed the privilege of dealing with everything wholly apart from the Imperial Government. It is impossible logically to deny that they were justified in doing this, if they could, by Mr. Cardwell's deliberately expressed views on the subject ; but, as the pamphlet very justly points out, the effect was to change tbe arbiter of peace and war — not from England to New Zealand — not from Mr. Cardwell to Mr. Weld, or Mr Stafford — but from the Government at home to the capitalists at home. It was merely from Downing-street to Lombard-street that the change was made, after all; and the effect, so far as the writer of the pamphlet is concerned, is not to make him think all argument useless, but merely such arguments as suited the mercantile rather than the official mind. This pamphlet is, of course, more concerned with figures than with abstract questions of right or wrong. It aims at showing English capitalists what they ought to insist upon in their own money interests, rather than what they should attempt to make Government do in the interests of" natives or colonists. This gives the argument great unity and force, and makes it, on the -whole, more satisfactory than any other we have seen. We cannot deal with all in our present space, but we may take one point in the meantime. The writer aims at showing that New Zealand is a wealthier colony than people at home give it credit for being ; and we deal with the first because in this we find nothing to dissent from, while we do heartily disagree with some of the other views put forth in the pamphlet. The statement is boldly made that New Zealand can challenge comparison with Victoria, and can maintain her ground as possessing developed resources which are greater, in proportion to her liabilities, than are those of the Australian colony. In support of this the following facts are brought forward :—ln: — In Victoria, in 1863, the demesne lands amounted to fully 55,000,000 of acres ; in New Zealand they now amount to as much — above 53,000,000 of acres* There is no native territory in Victoria ; there are still some twenty millions of acres of native territory in New Zealand. There were fully half-a-million acres in cultivation in Victoria in 18 3 ; there were fully a million acres in cultivation in New Zealand in 1865. The land sales of Victoria amounted to £450,000 in 1863 ; those of New Zealand to £506,000 in 1865. The live stock of Victoria did not amount to double that of New Zealand, while its population was 574,000 against 1 71,000. This represents what Vic- ' toria was in 1863, against what New Zealand was in 1865 ; and the comparison is fair, because, in 186.3, Victoria borrowed seven millions of money to make railroads, &c. j and, in 1865, New Zealand tried to borrow three millions for war purposes, on the credit

lof its revenue. True, New Zealand was embarrassed by a debt of more than two millions — principally raised by the provinces; — but it -may well be contended, that with all j this she had as fair a security to offer for her debts as Victoria had given for hers. It is at this point that the question arises, why are Victorian 6 per cents, saleable in London, while New Zealand 8 per cent, debentures have been selling below par 1 The pamphlet traces it all to the want of unity in our re- 1 sources. It is because New Zealand is not one colony as Victoria is one colony, but is practically a sort of federation, each member of which is jealous of the others trenching in any way on its private resources. Victoria could raise seven millions, but she pledged everything to do it — land, customs, gold export revenue ; in fact, eveiything she had. New Zealand can do nothing of the sort, because each province warns back the Government from some special resource of its own. The land revenue of one, the gold revenue of another is sacx*ed ; and the customs revenue is insufficient security alone.