NEW ZEALAND AFFAIRS.
Tl , ofol ,„v; ns « er .. P1 »e aKllil .tho^ N : ~,1 which !<ppci\ rt ' ( * ,■ ninn y who are ?!f, .ill '#'' J TXne'truth »l«> llre I""*' 1 """ ih remarks hy Mr Fill . Tl.r most i»^ r,l "?J* . not w IUI opinion, but as r , ri H, I**' B "*' fo'twhicli involved New Zealand f,'.t ind thc ,! » sir G Grey, although he its- rss?^ l; :u l ukuiv month*, to ilo justice in it. proceeded, Waiura 0,1 s0 ' „ r rh an' armv into the latarai--rlv 10 .!"JJitfr tun-inv **< {e <,nv " i- >c : / IIV (he author of the Case of nt lio is supported I'J ' 4iJu . t or u „just, necesV,,,. Zrdml, w.uch * " war wflS (he Governor 8 yrv >* uI,IK T"i *«n,t that '.hey (the colonists) ; j liot t!H'coloni^. participation or conor lhepo,icy^ v rod IKHHI , • .„ f ,>ment if it wore t ' ie ' act Sow. Sir. this suti m ;, nsilk , nlh le weight to the u*i* t" b <> 7 n i r( J in which Mr. FitisGerald inr t ; the unjust retention of the 11 {11l Tuaraimaka was occupied, was G <KS •".** ««irt.|yiothe 1115 a f rl the Assembly, and who showsh.mif a mcmKT ot t blue-books, n"™?', Imiiw «">' in I mry "5 occar-it-Hl k ' ,ot ),. \Vait ira." Before troops moved fools ofthe«»w» i|icj , cumfc, ' r»';'™" ,ak "' ° Bdl,«l» were «( Si; G. Grey tlmt Ne w i lyma.it.hh. and - t WM the lhe \V:ui3ra v iu> J o{ , he Governor and Tnwrainmka .ndemml. , V Vai Tto'*S C 4111 *!•»> «"'**• , UVout • the Ministers had not yet mVF giving effect to their deprepsreii the I an d it was solely ci; '-° n n'tJcir not having done so that the one block pWH ig o their ))ffore t|)e otherwas evacuated. of land v.i>\ II)V ot t } lo fcTen ts which have 1 ken i>l ice in New Zealand since that have caused 1* rro firev or Sir Duncan Cameron so much S ' dekyof the Ministers in issuing io which it is entirely r fIS) e that we were placed in the false position »P the Waitara from fear, bel 2; after the murders were V-.1 facts are witent to all who were T m V Ihe ti lie and I can further state that several chief, were told, before the murders e ' that the Waitara was to be given uI bu: ;is dav after day passed, and no proclamation mci" forth, tiiev began to disbelieve it, and «jien_a month and still no proclamation appeared, lsit Mbew..nJrtvd at that the natives came to the conclusion that *e did not mean to keep our word about th s U'ai f 3rrf because we had been allowed to occupy the Tauraitiiaka in peaee-a conclusion to which some of our own party were also brought by the un , m , ;; :itabk- dtlav ? Agam, Mr. FitzGerald, with a wan; 'f knowledge mos-t surprising in a man who undertake# to instruct the British public, states that the rt> «u!Mi to invade Waikato was taken long before inert was anv rt-|M)rt of a Maori invasion of Vacklaud. and as a proof of this resolution, he gives the formation of the road to the bend of the Waikato nearest to Auckland. But what is ;he true state of the case? in 1861, when Sir G. Grey re turned to New the Waikiu i tribes were in such a state that, though thtv lu; int murdervd the settlers, they levied auch biack uiu'.l up >u ihem. and treated the white population fruro the Governor down, with such saprenk- contemj't. that it was evident they were quite ready f*r a quarrel. It was well known also thai, aliliuugh the actual fighting in 1860-61 was conSinu to til- district of Taranaki, or New Ply-m-jush. ;he natire reinforcements were drawn from the Waikato. aud that it was owing to this outlet for liirlr pugnacity that they kept quiet in their ::-:rict. :nr G. Grey knew the country; he kne* ;:.at between Auckland and the Waikato there f,;> 2 i.iise forest, but that beyond the Maungataviiiri ;::e country was clear, and his most proper decision was to make the road while we were at prace wi;h Waikato; for to have waited till war was ! would have been to subject our troops to be >b<)\v~ i.iyoiiein the thick junkie through whicli they could hardly cut their way, but which was better than a rxid '..i tlit Maori. Why should the natives assume th- r'ja i was for hostile purpose if they remained quit: i- Hut they had no intention of remaining quit:. a::d they felt they were outwitted. They fo.J iu-;.riv drawn Governor Browne into a war in Wsik.ito, which would have resulted in half OUT men Wing shot btfort they could have got to the W 2!kat>j at all, and their feeling was far more one of atisTt-r at having tlie way to their country made as tsisy to i:s as tlieinselves than a sense of injustice. I tbink no one who knows the country can dispute the wis.; irn of sir G. Grey in refraining from blowin? on any of the smouldering embers at New Plymouth hefure this n ai was made ; but even Mr. JitzGeraM cannot call the formation of this road the invasion of the Waikato, for it did not extend to ti aika'o territory. It must therefore be the cross»i2 the Maurjgatawhiri by the General that he says *as dttennined before any report had arisen of a native invasion of Auckland; but, so far from this hting the case, I saw letters from magistrates, sett'fcrs. and several well known chiefs, written in ilardi. iso'J. Harnimj the Governor and Native '-e«:rttary of the intention of the natives to invade Au>.k!a!:d. bonii- of the native letters telling the Go-, *er«.',r not to allow ii:itbx:lf to be lulled intocarelessnes« if the attack were postponed, as it would surely take jii.'.i'e t>oontr or later. These warnings conkinutd to come in faster and faster, and yet it was not till June that the Governor left New Plymouth, an ' J ; 10t Mhe had l>een some days in Auckland, d ; n , lia '' '- ar efully examined the reports from all , ' rS t!la ' he sent for the General and that the WaiKa to was invaded.
Again, eten if we allow—though the admission 'oiii'i be against the opinion of the majority in -few Zealand—that an opj-ortunily for making ]> .He wiiii i lk* Waikatos was lo«t t>y the Governor y ot r ol ' 10 Mr. J-'itzGerald goes be- j yoim ti". facts when he gays "no communication of wl" v wiia>< -' Vi '. r W!IS mu( k t ( > tlit Maoris, for 'tii was occtijiied, they were inunntd. through the friendly chief, Te Wheoro, that a* t.„,, who brought in t'.n-ir arms and regis'ffct their names and place# of abode, would not he l oiesttd and if Sir G. Grey i» to blame fur not win nto l t"' Ministers are at least - uauy s „. fur jt Wj> b( . eamt , Uu , y wer(J afrai(l of iting ,!)(, li-iiifut witij tlie imtiveH thut they ex* > tsfifcU Uieir intention of accompanying him, and * did not go because he felt they would ofT) l''«er iii» position in the eye#
/' 1 in't| r *' ' lus 110 owle some f.dfie moves I th(. 'n V | fer * v i U ' 1 ' UJ ' ,as had to play, ami a-mn r y • Sltt -' dl at in lßfrJ is , nil: " !,t ' r > hui i» hM his public act*, up to ' '^ r ' late dispatch, the Colonial whd if. r '\ !r, . llst s ''are the credit or blame. Tho*e torn. u.. ltW - 1 w'" ( " U1 rea(ii l v rtcnil liow <Sjlfereut their f - V ' n "" W ' ,at ' S ~OW 1,8 t0 'lis") ' ' l ' ICi rc '' ll f" l ' cc ' l " ( -'" ,s ; iliey did not then triw . U:iy ," sir( ' f,,r ll,or « ?r(,<l Mr. FitzGcruld **"»«!««« the Middle Inland from that u-i?' ,:i " 0M the war by HtutiiiK ti'-'uilc! llil - v i,(: tll<; K«in to the Auckland Ha 1,1 !... u \ r '-' e tx i»(-iirlitnre, &c., the Middle troiK l " 1(,se v ail <l lie ii'lds that "thediaas•lestr.,!';!.,,. u • V ?', ir policy is that you are ;J 1 he life simony »*;" hut he forget# t( ' Auc'-i- ,! 'i ' !^'e l' !f tnd twmhers came up Mini<f r 'v .I"I 11,1(1 v " u '' l for t,Ui P re9ent liortirnVn " i ih:it two of its most im}aii .-"it ntmhi-rs were a firm of attorneys in AuckIk- tir e 1,111 l, I t ' !lsl;, y interested in the advance trustni ti ' :U ! 1,!lt tiu) Middle Islanders initti'uirs i, ~!?i "r' n "'i' 11 I,!C ' management of their r ' m »fc'l their r" (: ' ' C i lnlw( -' l! hail in any way T...it i,r - FhxGerald is candid ", '™ ? ie "»*" (»«)» good Uitn- is i, I I u ''" s ' t(l 11 purt of the colony." .'-Hi C>u , ,t • \ V J' ,:,ttV( ' r <>f ihe correctness of 1,, K«h t vtlx J? the ! ftst Zealand paper., ,lie Auckim v.,. 1 ,to , ,n Phimt of the losses, &c., of "ahia the u,w,' i" , We ll,uJ t!wt llt tlie Ba * e Ngarua- " The t, ' ,' lol'I ol ' av *™g«l £ 150 each. is an answer to°tl J « 9ale /. BH >' B tl,e Southern Cross) onough in Now y Pn i n Ir!™' wllom there are that the cnlrn-i • Canterbury Press vril\ ale of the confis(L«n 0t { - y t0 lose much the connoted lands in Auckland, and may
become impmsed with the conviction that, after all, with a clear »tage and no favour, the war debt of one million sterling i» not a very formidable burden to thto province." ... , This from a leading Auckland paper i« a pretty clear proof that we need not alarm ourselve* about the colonist* being ruined, especially n» the Snuihttn Crm goes on to inform us that Ngaruawahia is by no means the best town site which the Imperial troops, of course entirely for Imperial ends, have taken from the natives. .
I remain, Sir, yours, &c., C. M. R.
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Bibliographic details
Lyttelton Times, Volume XXIII, Issue 1397, 9 May 1865, Page 3
Word Count
1,642NEW ZEALAND AFFAIRS. Lyttelton Times, Volume XXIII, Issue 1397, 9 May 1865, Page 3
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