The Daily Southern Cross.

Daily Southern Cross, Volume XXII, Issue 2770, 12 June 1866, Page 3

The Daily Southern Cross.

LU CEO, NON TTRO.

" If I h»Te bf *„ extinpikhed, yet there rite A thou«»nf*i btaconi from the ip»rk 1 bore."

VUESDAY, JUNE 12.

The re-opening of the Compensation Court ought to, and we do not doubt will, by the great majority of our settlers, be looked upon as a very gratifying move in the right direction. Ihe third of the compensation money \trhich has been paid, has undoubtedly done muesli good, and there can be no question of the wisdom of the course taken, at least so far as this went. Settlers have been able, in 9i great many cases, to employ just that pimount of lahour on their own farms that -ivas required, to give these places a start once more after the destruction brought upon them ty war, and yet more by long and enforced neglect. Nor is this all. In addition to the good wrought in this way — a good which will be more apparent, when next harvest time brings before us the great and cheering increase in the growth of all sorts of agricultural produce in this province — we have all benefited by the opportunity, which the payment of this money afforded the Provincial Government, of ceasing to contribute funds for the maintenance of some at least of the Waikato immigrants who could not support themselves, and could not be allowed to starve. Yet, satisfactory as the payment of one-third of the money awarded has proved in many respects, it was far from satisfactory in some others. The bond for re-payment was not, indeed, one from which any honest claimant needed to shrink at all, but it was unquestionably an arrangement which by no means left them in a position of complete ease or comfort. There may have been something of needless alarm in this feeling, but it was quite inevitable under the circumstances. It was known that a re-investigation of claims was to be made ; it was known also that very loose and even wild statements had been hazarded, even in the Provincial Council, as to the extent to which such a re-investigation would be likely to affect the claims : but it was not known what sort of re-iuvestigation would be made. It was not understood what Jkind of evidence would be expected, or what sort of advocacy the Government might employ. Under these circumstances, it is not surprising that a good deal of the pleasure with which the instalment might have been received, was lost in the anxiety which made many suspicious, (probably most unnecessarily suspicious,) that somehow or other they were unlikely ever to see any more of it. On this account, it is no trifling subject for congratulation to the public, and also to the Government, that the coTnp' i " <!u+l^"- °i«*"«» are so soon re -opened for a final adjustment. For our own part, we are not at all anxious about the result. It would, perhaps, have been pleasanter that no cause of suspicion had arisen, and that the amounts could have been paid without further question ; but after all, this was uot to be expected. It is not possible to get people to value their own property as other • people will value it ; nor is there necessarily the smallest degree of dishonesty in the intention of those who may, perhaps, impose upon the public after first imposing upon themselves. But we may go a step farther than this with safety. It is said, and with every appearance of truth, that there have been cases in which claims were made where the claimants imposed upon the public, without first going through the form of imposing upon themselves. This was to have been expected also. There could scarcely have been found, in any community, three hundred or so of sufferers who would, with one consent, have determined upon pursuing a course of the strictest honesty. It is a favourite fiction with those whose morals are somewhat lax, that the same rules of right and wrong do not apply to their dealings with the Government as they are willing to acknowledge as applicable to their dealings with private persons. Some of these were sure to have been found in any community similarly situated to that of the sufferers by war in this province. That this has been so, we do not doubt ; but we do not feel the same alarm about other peopleknowing of it, which seems to have formed a strong argument with some against the course pursued by the Superintendent. It may suit some people in other parts of the colony to speak as if we had shown, as a body, an unusual desire to profit by the provision made for our reinstatement ; but, if they are at all honest, they will soon become conscious of the fact that they could not have hoped to see less of that sort of thing amongst themselves, had there been the same temptation to it. While we admit so much as this, we would not be understood to imply for an instant, that we anticipate any very great results from the investigation. We are in favour of its taking place, and of its taking place at once — not because we think that a great mass of corrupt dealing will be brought to light, and a great deal of money saved to the province by the process, but rather because, the accusation having once been made, it nearly concerns the people and the Government to have the matter cleared up, and to have it cleared up at once. Of course, the province has a direct money interest in the matter ; and the Government, as representing the pi'ovince, is bound to see that it is satisfied, so far as consists with justice : but we advocate, and have advocated all along, as much or more because of the settlers than of the province. It is understood that the reason why the plan of the Superintendent for enabling claimants to realise the greater part of their awards, by giving them a receipt for the balance, bearing interest has not been carried out, is simply this doubt as to the validity of some of the claims. In this respect, there can be no question of v the great importance to the claimants of an early settlement of their claims, on a basis acknowledged as sure by the Government. This is one, but hardly the in ogt important, view of the claimant's interest in this investigation. He has, to some extent, had a slur thrown upon his character. His own claim may be large or small ; it may be as absolutely unimpeached as he feels sure it ought to be unimpeachable ; but until the Court has done its worst or its best, he. knows that the public must look upon him as one who may have tiled to get the better of the Government. This,.., it wilLrbe,. Allowed, is far ./from pleasant.' Indeed,. iHs

, so much more than this that we conceive the Government would have been greatly to blame had no steps been taken, before the Superintendent left for Wellington, to have the matter settled and the awards closed. Very many cases, we are sure, have been as much under-compensated as others have been over-compensated; and it is a pity that all the cases were not declared open, so that the sufferers, as well as the Government, might have reaped what benefit there was to be got by a more thorough investigation of all the circumstances. This, however, the Government decided against, we think, with scarcely enough consideration ; and it only remains to hope that the cases to be investigated will, on the whole, show that there have been but few of our compensation-claimants who have been led to ask compensation to which they did not believe themselves, at least, to be entitled. One thing more we must say, before we close our remarks, because it seems properly to belong to the opposite side of the account. When the claims have been investigated, and when the award is finally made, we hope there will be no needless delay in issuing such debentures as were originally proposed by the Superintendent, for the balance owing. We are well aware of the poverty which oppx'esses the Treasury; but this, which would not be a drain upon it at once, would be an act of common justice, and might be of vast importance to the well-being of vexy many.