Colonial.

Lyttelton Times, Volume XIII, Issue 793, 16 June 1860, Page 3

Colonial.

AUCKLAND,

We have papers from this province by the Airedale, the latest date of which is that of the t New Zealander's ' monthly summary on the 26th ult from which we take the following :— The month has not been prolific of stirring events. The news from Taranaki may be described 1S being of a neutral character, distinguished by no successfbut unmarked by any disaster. The military expedition which at the close of the last month started southwards, had returned to its quarters after having destroyed several unoccupied pahs, laid waste the cultivated grounds of the rebellious natives, carried off or scattered their stores of grain, and raised their horses and cattle. All this has been done without resistance. The natives who had been concerned in the affair of Waireka, haying ensconced themselves in a pah strongly fortified and difficult of approach, the taking of the place appears to have been considered, as we think very prudently, not worth the expenditure of life which must have attended an assault upon it. William King remained in his pah near Waitara, which has been* doubly and trebly fortified according to the Maori idea of engineering. He continues inactive, but is still defiant in his tone. ; Even whilst it must appear to him certain that his only chance of being able to maintain his present positioner any leno-fch of time depends upon his being joined by the" Waikato tribes, he is said to fear their interference in his quarrel, lest, in consequence of former feud between them and his own people, the occasion might be seized upon to clear off old scores. seems however tolerably certain that the majority of the Waikato people are on the side of peace, and that, except such recruits as may be collected amongst the ill disposed and turbulent individuals of the tribes, Kingi will be left to his own resources. The long talked of meeting of the tribes at Waikato had not taken place at the date of our last advices, the men of lower Waikato and others not having as yefc succeeded in eating their way to Ngaruawahia, although they had already been nine days on their journey,—days which' were spent, principally in feasting and talking, at the various settlements oh the river. A preliminary meeting composed of Ngatihinatu, and Ngatihaua men was held on Monday last, the two former under the leadership of Tomo Whahapo, the latter headed by William Thompson—the Maori " Warwick," the Native-King-maker. In the early morning, immediately after the conclusion of prayers, business commenced with a discharge of musketry, after which about 150 men of the Ngatihaua, armed and in military order, marched up, saluted Potatau's flag, uncovered, made him an address, and then retired backwards from the presence. Then followed Ngatimaniapoto, in number 70, (of whom 50 were armed,) and after going through a similar process, retired with their faces still towards Potatau, who, poor old rnanj sat.^t the door of his house wrapped up in his blanket, his chin resting on his knees, his eyes closed, and 'to all appearance wholly indifferent to the proceeding before him.

When it was ended he retired into his houses threw himself upon his mat, and there remained during the day. Not so his liege-men. To the place appointed for _the meeting they were followed by 150 women bearing baskets of potatoes and eels, and by men carrying pigs cooked whole. The food having, been distributed under the direction of the master of the ceremonies, — a very liberal portion being laid before the European visitors—was disposed of with great rapidity. Then began the oratory; there were about thirty speakers, and the proceedings did not terminate till sunset. As this party, represented only the extreme opinions of the Maori-King faction, it may be supposed that the views expressed were not moderate. The proceedings were howeve' 1 very orderly, and although there was, upon some points, much difference of opinion, it would appear that upon two points they were agreed;— First, that Waitara (the land in dispute at Taranaki) ought not to be given up to the Queen ;—Secondly, That the men who committed the murders at Waireka should not be surrendered.

These are vital propositions. They are sustained at present, not, as it appears, by Potatau himself and his advisers, but by the extreme Kingites. We shall await with anxiety the result of their discussion; when Wm. Nay lor with his following, and the loyal Natives of the Lower Waikato, shall have the opportunity of being heard and of making their influence felt.

The Provincial Council adjourned a fortnight since, with a view to its prorogation upon the return from Waikato. No session since the Constitution Act came into operation has been so unproductive. With the exception of the liberal proposition relative to the supply of water for the city, nothing worthy of note has been effected during the weary months through which its sittings have been dragged. The great "financial" inquiry, from which so much was promised, has ended in a newspaper article written by the Cburman of Committee. The report has not been offered to the Council for adoption. This, too, was the first session of the enlarged Council, when much advantage was hoped from the infusion of new blood. After a review of the results of the meeting, we arrive at the conclusion that the powers of talk and of obstr'uctiveness in the Council have been increased by tl^e addition to its numbers, and that its present usefulness and practical working power have been correspondingly diminished. The number of immigrants arrived during the month has been considerable; on the 6fch, the Avalanche came into harbour from London, after a fine passage of, 95 days, bringing an addition of 111 souls to our population. In a few days afterwards the Avon presented herself, having on board 64 passengers, and closely following her came the Ellen Lewis from Nova Scotia, with 235 souls. The passengers by the latter vessel are for the most part relatives and friends of the Nova Scotians already settled in the Wangarei District, about sixty miles north of Auckland; they have come to this province at the invitation ot their friends, or upon their recommendation. The Nova.Scotians, a large number of whom have located themselves at Waipu and in the neighbourhood of the Wangarei Harbour, are amongst our best and most successful settlers. ■Frugal, industrious, enterprising, they have shown what may be done with ' forty acres' by men who understand the work to which they set themselves. The simple fact that 235 of their relatives, friends, and former neighbours have left Nova Scotia to join them in Auckland, at their recommendation, is a conclusive answer to the objectors to our Land Regulations and to those who affect to contemn the Land Order system. Gn the 17th the renowned Red Jacket, 111 days from Liverpool, (of which 15 were occupied in discharging cargo at Melbourne) brought 144 passengers, making the total of arrivals from Great Britain and from Nova Scotia of 554 souls. Amongst the recent immigrants have come wore than 40 female domestic servants, selected with great care by the agents for the province (Messrs. Ridgway), all of whom found immediate employment at satisfactory wages. From official returns published in the Provincial Government Gazette, we learn that in the month of January last the sales of waste lands in this province amounted to 9842 acres, 1 rood, and 17 perches. That the sum of £1341 16s. 6d. was received in cash, and £1007 10s. in scrip, and that land orders, for 7092 acres were exercised. There remained at the close of that month, according to the returns furnished by the Deputy Waste Land Commissioner at Auckland and Mongonui, 48,607 acres surveyed and open for sale or selection.

In the following montli, February, the return shows that 4795 acres, were disposed of, for which were received £1024 16s. 6d. in cash, £1470 7s. 6d. in sorip, and land, orders for 3920 acres. On the 29th February, there remained open for sale or selection, 43,812 acres. ■

The land sales for the month of March, according to the returns prepared for publication, and which are now before us, amounted to 9380 acres, 3 roods, and 20 perches. The cash receipts were £1800 3s. 6d., scrip £104 10s., whilst land orders for 7464 acres were exercised.

It thus appears that, during the quarter ending March 31st ultimo, 24,018 acres, 2 roods, and 37 perches of land were disposed of by the Provincial Government; that £4166 16s. was received in cash; that the sum of £2582 7s. 6d. in scrip of the Land Claims Court, was taken, and that Land Orders for 18,576 acres were exercised; There remained on the 31st March, 55,656 acres surveyed and open for sale or selection.

It will be evident from these figures that, notwithstanding the large requirements made upon the "Waste Laud Department, the supply of surveyed land has been kept, steadily and unceasingly in excess of the demand. On the 30th April, 1859, the quantity open for selection was but 27,760, and now, after so many months of active operation, during which 62,939 acres have been disposed of, the quantity of land remaining ready for sale has been more than doubled.

From these figures it will be also seen that the process of settlement goes steadily on, unaffected by the untoward state of the relations of, the Government of the colony with the native tribes at Taranaki. Northward from and in the neighbourhood of Auckland, where at present the work of forming new settlements is principally carried on, the natives are perfectly loyal and peaceful. Tamati Waka Nene and his friends at the Bay of Islands have even offered to take up arms on behalf of the Queen if necessary.

The event of the month has been the demonstration on Her Majesty's Birth-day. Within the walls of the Albert Barracks, on that day there were assembled at least five thousand people to see the Volunteer Riflemen, the Volunteer Cavalry, the Volunteer Coast Guard, and a portion of the newly levied Auckland Militia parade before Her Majesty's Representative, fire the customary feu de joie, and. give the usual hearty loyal cheers. There were more than 1000 men under arms; and, as a display of force, not anything that we had previously witnessed on that ground approached it. The Birthday Ball was given, as usual, at Government House on the twenty-fourth, and the festivities were kept up far into the small hours.

Items of local intelligence will be found elsewhere, from which it may be gathered that, notwithstanding our military preparations, or perhaps in consequence of them, the people of Auckland go their usual round of business, pleasure and amusement, with undisturbed confidence. Sympathising deeply with the sufferings of their fellow-colonists in the disturbed Province of Taranaki, —a sympathy which lias taken the concrete form of a money subscription, and has not evaporated in mere sentiment, —it is hoped that the native disaffection may be confined to the place in which it first showed itself in action, and that out of the evil now existing may come ultimate good to the Native people themselves to Taranaki, and to the whole colony.

From the 'Southern Cross' we take the following extracts, which contain certain peculiar views on these important subjects :■—• TAEANAKI. . One fact forces itself upon attention, that our land forces are far superior to the enemy in numbers, in all means and appliances, and that only a series of failures has yet to be recorded. The commander of the forces can never be better off than he is now. The cry is, for more reinforcements; but, if two to one, with all his superiority of arms and implements—his artillery and rifles against shot guns be not enough, then we say unhesitatingly, three to one—five to one is not enough. That there is error or incapacity somewhere, no man in his senses can any longer doubt. We do not attempt to say where : possibly there may be a jealousy of civilian "irregulars;" possibly there may be too rigid an adherence to routine military practice, framed under conditions which do not apply ia the present instance—under the assumption that artillery is brought into play on the enemy's side; possibly there may be a want of that ingenuity or constructiveness which adapts itself to novel circumstances; but in one thing—in want of pluck, we do not believe. Meanwhile, however, the colony is retrograding by great strides. Where is alb this to end? The war fever, in Auckland, notwithstanding the efforts made to keep it up, is subsiding. Disappointment of success, excepting in one dashing exploit of the Niger's, is doing its certain work; so is the continued depression of trade, and the unwillingness to invest. Even the military service, cheerfully and even ardently as it was entered into at first, and is still persevered in, must end by becoming irksome to civilians, especially to those whose time bears a money value. And lastly, comes the most important consideration of all, —who is to pay the bill P The Commissariat chest will have to answer for much, but let us not delude ourselves into the idea that the colony is going to escape scot free. We can clearly foresee a reaction; still, it is now too late to dream of going back. At whatever cost, the war must be brought to an honourable conclusion. The truth is, that at first it was supposed that there would be no fighting at all —that the natives would be over-awed by our superiority of force; then that the war would be over in a month; and now, it looks very like winter quarters. All this we attribute to the neglect to take early advantage of opportunity. We lost our chance of ending the war at a blow, and cannot now recover it. • , PANIC. Again we have to ask—if the present re-emigra-tion be really in conseqence of a panic—what is it all about? One hundred and eleven, we believe, left yesterday by the steamer; more would have gone had there been more accommodation; while others would have gone without any accommodation at all, making the best of it on deck, had they possessed the means to get away. We could name one, if we choose, who expended his last shilling in passage money, and borrowed five more to pay for the carriage of his luggage to the wharf. The Red Jacket, for Melbourne, is taking many more, although we do not expect that a ship of that great size will be filled. A reference to our shipping columns, for the last few months, will show how general the movement is. To those who are intending, to leave simply on account of the war, and not of its consequences, we say, remain. 'It is well known that we adhere to precise statements of fact, whether such may tell for or against the occasion; and that we never express an unreal opinion, notwithstanding the temptation which all journals labour under, to chime in with the public feeling of the moment. Consequently, we are listened to by all who desire such information as will enable them to judge for themselves. Prom the first, we have expressed our confident belief that there neither, was, nor was likely to be, any ground for fear in Auckland, As to. the outsettlers, an army could not protect them, unless numerous enough to garrison each homestead. But we have as little fear for them as they, generally speaking, have for themselves. ' On the other hand, if the cause of the Exodus be want of employment, we are unwillingly obliged

to say,—go. There is not a sufficiency of employment now, and in the winter there will be less. Tlie wastefulness of the Provincial Government has led to a stoppage, almost complete, of the public works, while the unsettled state of tile country disposes private individuals who have money at command to keep it under command. Until some prospect of bringing the war to a conclusion be seen, stagnation of business, both agricultural and commercial, must be expected and borne with. The banks, we hear, are also contracting their operations.

Some are leaving on account of the compulsory service in the militia. It is difficult to believe that many break up their homes solely on this account; but it is certain that there are some who say that they will not bear with compulsory service. ; Be this as it may, we still recorded our objeccion, at the first, to calling out the militia. We thought that it caused the danger to be exaggerated; that it was unnecessary as a measure of public safety, and that the burden of it, after the subsidence of a first alarm, would be angrily and impatiently borne. Time has shewn that our opinion was well-grounded. THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY. The Assembly is summoned for Wednesday, 25th, to meet at Auckland. As the Sessions are henceforward to be held alternately, here and at Wellington, we think it rather unfortunate for Auckland that this determi? nation should have been arrived at.,, It would have been fair more convenient for the Auckland members to have gone down to the south for the short session (which, if held as originally proposed, it doubtless would have been) in the winter time, than to have the short session here, arid then go to Wellington for the long one-—not impossibly in/tlSe^ summer season; There is also another reason why we regret to see a departure from the original arrangement. The present Parliament must shortly expire, arid a general election must take place. Now, if the first session after the election were to be held at Auckland, there would be great competition. for seats, and the various constituencies would have the choice of the fittest men in the province. As it is, the choice will be very much narrowed, for only those will present themselves at the hustings whose ordinary avocations permit them to absent themselves for four or five months. It is only right, however, that the convenience of our particular province should, give way to the exigencies of the colony. The Government, it is to be presumed, are of opinion that it is hot safe to quit Auckland in the present juncture; and possibly they are right. We can only say that we do not hold the same opinion, and that we are at least as safe here as at Wellington, where they have had a worse panic than here : notably at the Hutt, where, if reliance is to be placed on private letters, some four hundred persons turned out at night in con&equence of a false report, with such arms as they could get hold of; and' stayed out at the bridge. While unable to see any sufficient cause for the change in the place of meeting, we are. bound to admit that the responsible ministry have acted disinterestedly in the matte.*; the change being manifestly to their disadvantage. For, supposing that they were out voted at Wellington, they would be able instead of resigning, to ask the Governor for a dissolution : not an unreasonable request, at the fag end of a parliament. If granted, they would immediately after the elections hold an Auckland session, of course with a better chance of retaining office than in the stronghold of their principal opponents. As it is, that course of events would.be inverted.