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ME. FITZGERALD to his CONSTITUENTS.

On Wednesday the 31st ult., a numerous body of electors attended at the Council Chamber, in compliance with an invitation to that effect, inserted by Mr. FjtzGerald in the " Herald " oi the previous Saturday, for the purpose of hearing from that gentleman a statement of the course he had pursued as representative of this province during the late session of the General Assembly.

On the motion of Dr. Hitchings, the chair was taken by Jas. Anderson, Esq., D.R.M.

Mr. FitzGebau) then came forward to addregs the electors. He said that meetings of this kind were the more necessary from the fact that the newspaper reports, voluminous and carefully prepared as they were, failed to give anything like an jidequate "idea of what waß said and done in the House. The electors present would understand that he purposed to address them, only on matters relating to the General Assembly — that was, without reference to provincial affairs. These he would not have the slightest hesitation to enter into ut another time, either as member for Napier or Superintendent of the Province, upon receiving a respectably signed requisition, expressive of a desire that he should do so. He would first make reference to the opening., speech of the session — the reply to which he, as one of the newest members, was requested to move. He was sorry that he did nofc on that occasion take the advice of older and more experienced members, and correct the report of kis speech, as others were in the habit of doing ; for, through an inaccuracy in the published report, he had been much misunderstood on the subject of the native land purchase ordinance, particularly with reference to the leasing of native ■lands. It- was well known to every member of the House that he never for a moment advocated the indiscriminate leasing of native lands. What be did say was. this, that the title to blocks of land which the native proprietors were not likely to sell, should be individualised ; that each proprietor should then receive his crown grant, and be able to deal with his land as he pleased, just as a European would. He certainly gave an opinion that the Native Land Purchase Ordinance -worked unsatisfactorily, as it was evaded in the most barefaced manner with pei'fect impunity. He had also inveighed against the sale of spirits ordinance ; for he thought this a most oppressive measure in a social point of view. Although it was well ■known that those of the natives who were co inclined could get spirits in large quantities without any difficulty, yet the chiefs felt it as a great indignity that, on coming to town, they were scarcely allowed to enter a public house. Mr. FitzGerald here adverted to the collapse of the debate on the reply, the effect of which was . nominally to ratify the war policy of the Governor. But the debate on the war was subsequently resumed in every phase, and the opposition party tried hard to shew that the Governor was in the ■wrong. There could be little doubt in the mind of any impartial person who listened to these debates, that the Governor, had no honorable alternative than to bring matters to the conclusion he did. If to blame at all, it was in entering upon a war without being prepared for it — without forseeing its probabie magnitude. But, on the other hand, it should be recollected that unless the Governor had made a demonstration, he would most likely not have received another soldier either from England or the adjoining colonies. It was the feeling of the Taranaki settlers, to whom the war had been so fearful a losb, that the Governor was right. The state of things they had been enduring for years was. utterly insupportable, and they were prepared to lose their all rather than go ou as they ha/1 been doing. The history of Taranaki was a lamentable one. One of the finet settlements, and comprising some of the finest land in N. Z., it had become, through the miserably vacillating policy of former Governments, a place where the natives could commit with impunity whatever outrages they pleased — could Bet the law at defiance. Well, Governor Browne was determined to stop this state of things— to assort the supremacy of the law. In doing so he did not look to his own interest ; he sacrificed, it might be, his hopes of future promotion, for the good of the colony ; but as the representative of the Queen he was resolved no longer to eat dirt at the hands of savages. That operations at Taranaki have been so unsuccessful, was not Ins fault ; he had done everything that man could do to bring the matter to a-, conclusion. The officers and soldiers in Taranaki were as fine a body of men .as could be found in the British army ; but there could be no doubt whatever that the gravest charges of incapacity lay ..against the military leaders. He would take this opportunity of adverting to a generally received^ idea that the Governor had power to direct military operations and to remove incapable officersT—the. fact being that the Governor had really no more power over the commanding officer than any other civilian. He could indicate the localities m which military operations should be conducted, but could not interfere in matters of detail. He (Mr^KtzGerald) heard in Auckland on good authority — that of Mr. Carrington, a Taranaki resident, and the founder of that settlement, — that after the^ affair at Waireka, the Governor besought Colonel Gold to send a fresh detachment of troops at daylight, the following morning to take possession of the pan amidst the confusion that ensued after the gallant assault made by Capt. .Cracroft— he urged the necessity of this both verbally and in, writing ; every man would have volunteered for the duty, but the commander of the forces would not sanction it. Much has been made of .Colonel Goldy instructions,.; but, the only instructions— er,< rather, recommendations—sent him, Hjreje'to delay crossing • the Waitara for a limited period: Had he not then the southern rebels, and the Ngatiruanui country, for. a battleground, had he chosen to fight,, but he remained wholly inactive, or. worse. The Governor, then, was quite free from blame.; indeed, so far was he from having any control, that . were _a madman at the head of ,the forcesj.hecould'do nothing towards removing trim fronj Ju»-,coi»mftndi Kp <?ne, be was Bure r

felt more disappointment at the present state of things than the Governor himself. Much had jpeen made of Kingi's not having been summoned before the Supreme court, and of his assistance 5 m the southern war. But hadnot King already bee,n summoned before the Governor and "admitted Teira's right to the land, although he prohibited the sale, and thus denied the prerogative of "tEe Queen. And, -on the subject of the southern war, he (Mr. F.) well recollected the circumstance of King's followers at Waikariae biting the bullets' off the cartridges before they fired them from their guns. King was always a bad, troublesome man, who did not hesitate to trample British, law under foot. With regard to the Native Offender's Bill, which was introduced to meet the case of such men without the necessity of having recourse to-arms, and which was so fiercely opposed by the native fanciers of Wellington and of Auckland, what was it in reality? ' He (\jr. F.) upon its introduction, asked Mr. Sewell wljat he thought of it— that gentleman having sat, in a former session when a similar measure was brought forward. He replied that it was an excellent bill and he would support it. It was at first rather too general in its application, but the Ministry agreed to alterations |which confined its operation to particular districts. These would only be the southern part of Auckland and the Province of. Taranaki. The object was to prevent natives at war with the government from deriving the same advantages from commerce as those who were loyal — to prevent them selling their produce and getting English manufactures in exchange— above all, to preclude the possibility of their getting arms. He (Mr. F.) spoke in support of this measure, although his remarks Ijwere dismissed by the press in a few lines. He did not agree with the bill to its full extent, for which reason he did not Bay so much as otheis did. In fact, unless a member is well up in a subject, he requires to exercise much caution in what he says, especially when opposed by experienced debaters. Better to speak at the right time than too much. Un- " fortunately, this bill was made use of by, certain parties as a^lever with which to try and lift thd ministry out of office. Not that they really believed the measure a pernicious one, but "that they thirsted for power. The next great question of the session waß the subject ' of native policy. The policy of 1858, inaugurated by the present government, notwithstanding the three excellent acts in which it resulted, had not proved successful ; but this was generally supposed to be owing to a counter influence at work — that of the native department. When the Native Minister was appointed, he found all his efforts entirely frustrated in that quarter. The head of that department was a zealous and an able man, but as an irresponsible adviser of the government he was completely out of place. It had been proposed by some to substitute an independent board; such as Bishop Selwyn, Sir Wna. Martin, and others desired. This idea had been embodied in the NewZealand Government Bill, which he was happy to find had been withdrawn at last adviees= Such a board would have been of a legislaiiye character, and quite independent — leading to two equal and-,. it might be, conflicting powers in the colony, and sure to prove injurious. The interests of the two races were interwoven with each other, and he (Mr. F.) believed that the natives were far more likely to receive justice from the representatives of the people than from a body so constituted. The settlers were deeply interested in the peace and advancement of the colony ; and to take all powerof dealing in native matters from the General Assembly and lodge it in the hands of persons wholly irresponsible, would indeed be a dangerous step. This was the feeling of members, and a resolution was arrived at recommending the formation of a board of advice, to be under the control of the Ministry, and its members to be removable upon an address to that effect from both houses. Ministers would generally act upon the advick of the board in native affairs, although they wquld not be bound to do so. He would now turn" from matters of general import to topics of a mor'e ! l6cal character. And, first, with reference to the debt question. Upon his arrival in Auckland- he lost no time in preparing an abstract of proceedings from the earliest date with reference to the •claim by Wellington and Hawke's Bay ; and this document was circulated amongst the members of both houses and forwarded to a good many inhabitants of the provinoe. On the subject being introduced, by means of a notice which, after waiting a long time in expectation of the Government moving in the matter, he caused to be put on the notice paper, the Ministry suggested three ways in which the matter could be adjusted — by a select committee, by a commission, and by arbitration. iHe (Mr. F.) rather preferred a commission, but the government thought arbitration the best course, and he, depending on the justice of his case, acquiesced. The bill for this purpose was brought in by Mr. Kichmond, who reserved his observations. He (Mr. P.) seconded the motion at some length. ' Dr. Featherston, and Mr; Fitzherbert followed. ' Unfortunately, the debate suddenly collapsed before Mr. Richmond had time to reply — which he would have done effectually and^which might have made a great difference in the "result — and, on a division, there was a majority, of. five against the second reading of the bill. In the then temper of the house, it was almost hopeless to take any other steps. The Canterbury railway bill. had been passed — unfortunately for us, for the members for that province, supporters of jbhe government prior to that event, turned round after, and voted on all questions with the Wellington parry. Many, however, who voted against ifche bill, were convinced that a strong case had been opened up for investigation, and will be prepared (if then in the House) to vote during next^ejssion for the appointment of a select committejij?, Be (Mr. F.) subsequently endeavoured to , ob^gin jbfteappointment of a commission, who shouldi fenquire during the recess and; report, at ,thg;npxt meeting: Bub in this he, did not succeed. lAsi the matter now stood, both parties, woilltl! be obliged to fall back upon the provisions of the New ' Provinces Act, under which Hawke's Bay was answerable for a proportion of the interest of the ' Wellington permanent debt ; but it was shewn that, at the time of separation, the only permanent debt was about £35,000 of the Gladstone loaor-the other sums' having been borrowed from the Union .Bank for a period of ten yeasß. Mr, FitzGerald, '

after a few observations upon the injustice of the demands of Wellington, turned to another subject .of local interest — that of educational reserves. It was at first the opinion of the Government that, in the present state^ of .the. law, these reserves were in a' kind of" chancery. However, , the ministry subsequently agreed, under the provisions of the Reserves Act, 1858, to convey these asiwell as the other public reserves, to the Superintendent of the Province for the time being as a body corporate. Another object that he tried to effect was the alteration of the land regulations, including the appointment of a board. But as nearly every province required some alteration, however trifling 1 , in its regulations, and as so much time had been lost in debates upon the war, &c, and a good deal of business on hand, the whole subject was deferred by mutual consent till next session, which would probably be held at Wellington, about March next. With regard to the land board, however, the wishes of the council would yet be carried out, for the Col. Secretary had promised that the powers held by the Governor under the Waste Lands .Act, 1858, should be delegated to the Superintendent of the province. This, he (Mr. F.) hoped to receive by the " White Swan." With reference to the swamp "on" the" west side of Hastings-street, he had intended, on taking his seat, to introduce a bill providing the requisite powers for reclaiming it; but, upon taking advice in the matter, he was apprised that it was quite within the power of the Provincial Council to take what land was wanted and give compensation. In consequence, he took no action in it. But towards the end of the session he found that, effectually to reach parties who might prove obstinate, it would be necessary that they should be summoned before the Supreme Court, and that an Act of the General Assembly would be necessary to prevent difficulties from interposing. Such a measure, however, being in the nature of a private bill, requiring previous notice in the newspapers, no course was left but to let the matter lie over till another session. They were all aware that under the Representation Act Hawke's Bay had been allotted an additional member. He wished for three— the same number as Taranaki—alleging that two were not sufficient for so growing a settlement. However, with some exceptions, stcn as Marlborough and Muvihikuj population was taken as the basis.of representation, and, in getting two members, we have one to 1300 people, whereas the average was about 1 to 1500. He was glad when this important measure became law, which it did in spite of the opposition of some of the southern members. He regretted much that he could not give the electors any good news on the subject of steam postal communication. The heavy expenses of arming the militia and generally in connection with the present protracted war, had left nothing to spare either for this or the Sydney and Auckland service. Seeing that Auckland felt the necessity of this sacrifice, he could not arouse any feeling in the houße in favour of Napiev; although he took occasion to iDsist that, as the postal arrangements were entirely in the hands of the General Government, they had no right to arrange for the delivery of the mail to *the older provinces and leave the newer ones to look after themselves — seeiDg that the latter were also charged with their proportion of the expense. He found, however, that it was quite futile to ask at present for the mails to be brought nearer than Wellington. The province would have to make its own arrangements to bring them thence, although it would have a just claim for the amount so expended, at. the next meeting of the Assambly. The government, it would be seen from the papers, had gone to great expense for arms and ammunition, which were now expected shortly to arrive. Hawke's Bay would have its share of these, as well as an increase to its military foree — although he trusted, from the peacable disposition, of the natives, that there would be no occasion for the population to "arm. Another I subject upon which he had to address the meeting' was the New Provinces Act, which, after the native war, was really the great question of the session. A combination was entered into on the part of the Wellington, Canterbury, and Otago members, and some of the Auckland members, to upset the act, and they very nearly succeeded in . doing so. Bnt after a debate of 3$ nights, the Ministry defeated the attempt by a majority of one. That majority, small though it was, he (Mr. P.) regarded as a sign that the act was growing in favor ; for it originally passed by a majority of only five, with seven Wellington members absent. There was only one thing he would wish to see altered in the New Provinces Act, that the Superintendent, instead of being elected by the Council, should be elected by the people. He could Bee many disadvantages from the Superintendent ..being elected by a small Council. He might find himself, on a division of opinion, entirely in the hands of one member ; and, altogether he would be more under the control of the Council than the people probably would wish. He (Mr. F.) believed that an alteration to this effect would yet be made in the Act, although, in the present temper of the house, the experiment would have been a hazardous one, as a clause might be carried which would virtually impair the operation of the whole act. The fate of the New Provinces Act was now, he was happy to say, settled for the next two years at all events ; for even if the House of Representatives next session passed an act for its repeal — which he did not believe it would — such act would not be. likely to pass the Legislative Council., Mr. F. here referred to the attack made upon this province by the Superintendent of Canterbury, and shewed the absurdity of many of the statements made by that hon, member. (See the speeches of both as reprinted in the Herald.) He would next advert to the action taken against the Surplus Revenues Act, 1858. When in committee on the supplementary estimates, the government wanted to appropriate out of the balance remaining over the appropriations of last session, fdr a nearly equivalent/amount of -unauthorised expenditure. But the southern members objected, to this, and passed a resolution to the etfect that such' balance- or, surplus (amounting to £37,000) should be divided among the provinces according to the strict letter of the law. The result of this will be that/ the, provinces will get a little ready cash, (Hawke'B Bay about £1000) : but the amount expended by ministers on their own responsibility , ■wili^jbecpiDae a| eliarge upon the revenues of 1861.

instead of those of the two preceding years. Them with reference to the Land Bevenue Appropriation Act, Dr. Featherston brought in a bill to repeal that clause of the act which authorised thegovernment to.stop from <the provinces one-sixth j of the land revenue for the purposes of the Native Land Purchase Department. He' (Mr. ¥.)■ was at first inclined to vote with the government ■ in this matter, for he thought it judicious to harefunds for land purchasing after the loan for that purpose had all been expended. However, befound that there was a clear understanding in the House, in 1856 upon its sanctioning the loan, that the land revenue of the provinces of" both islands should be quite free for purposes of immigration, public works, &c. ; yet in the session of 1858, foreseeing that the £180,000 would not besufficient for purposes of land purchasing, and taking advantage df the absence of the Wellington members, the government brought in and carried the measure under which the one-sixth had since been stopped. Ministers were defeated on Dr. F.s - motion by a maj ority of 9. The result was no fc unpleasant to the provinces: Auckland would pocket about £4000, Hawke's Bay Borne £12000, Wellington about £10,000. A large proportion of the TCMglish Loan is still on hand in Auckland and Wellington ; and the feeling of the House wbb that any funds which might be required after it was expended should be obtained by loan, with interest and sinking fund, eoas to leave something for posterity to pay. He had now, he thought, touched upon most subjects of public interest. He would mention, as his reason for returning before the close of the session, that he did not expect, on leaving Napier, to be so long absent ; and it was necessary that he should return as soon as possible in order to have matters straight for an early meeting of the Council, that no difficulty might interpoße immediately after that meeting in the -way of that body choosing another person to hold the office of Superintendent. He had long since given notice of his intention to resign, and ne now held office but temporarily. There was no risk whatever to the interests of the province by his leaving before the termination of the Bession j as the ministry was determined not to resign until an appeal had been made to the country even if they were defeated on any point. He (Mr. FitzGerald) hoped that the result of the fresh elections would be to strengthen the hands of the ministry, both with regard to the native war and the New Provinces Act. (Much cheering.) * In reply to a question, Mr. FitzG-erald said that, had the Wellington party succeeded in repealing the New Provinces Act, it was their declared intention to bring in another measure, reducing the new provinces to the same state aB before the act was passed.

In reply to another, he said that the delegated powers the Superintendent expected to receive from the Governor would be simply administrative. They would not enable him to put in force any new* regulations..

On the motion of Dr. Hitchings, a vote of thanks to Mr. FilzG-erald was carried by acclamation for the lucid aud explanatory statement he had just made.

A vote of thanks to the Chairman terminated the proceedings. .

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Permanent link to this item

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/HBH18601110.2.7

Bibliographic details

Hawke's Bay Herald, Volume 4, Issue 164, 10 November 1860, Page 4

Word Count
3,943

ME. FITZGERALD to his CONSTITUENTS. Hawke's Bay Herald, Volume 4, Issue 164, 10 November 1860, Page 4

ME. FITZGERALD to his CONSTITUENTS. Hawke's Bay Herald, Volume 4, Issue 164, 10 November 1860, Page 4