THE WAR ON THE EAST COAST.

Lyttelton Times, Volume XXXI, Issue 2605, 11 May 1869, Page 3

THE WAR ON THE EAST COAST.

' TO THE EDITOR OF THE LYTTELTON TIMES. Sib, —Having about six years since travelled overland from Napier to Mohaka (the settlement lately laid waste by the Maoris) for the purpose of looking over a run at the head of that valley, I will endeavour to give a description of the settlements on that coast, which have cost the colony such large suras for their protection, and are likely to continue to do so. By following the coast four miles north of Napier we have left the rich Fakowai plains and other fine and peaceful settlements to the south and west of us ; about two miles further we come to the Petane valley, which was occupied by about half a dozen farmers. By keeping the Government bridle track (for there are no roads up this coast) over a succession of steep and rugged hills, part native and part Government land, we come to the Arapawanui valley, in extent about 500 acres of bush and grass land, part of which be'ongs to a few native residents. Mr McKinnon, hotel-keeper, has a great part of the other. In this valley there were not above a dozen Europeans. By following up the zigzag path over a very steep hill for ten miles over native land we came to the Whaikare river, and were taken over in a canoe by the Dative residents there. The country between this river and the Mohaka is Government land. Mr Harding bad a large station here. Perhaps, I cannot give a better idea of the nature of the country between there and Mohaka than by giving the number of stock on this run, in extent about 20,000 acres ; 900 sheep were all that could be mustered, and what cattle were placed on it had gone wild in the bush gullies. No wonder the owner said be was losing money by it, as his cattle had gone wild and his sheep did not increase. On arriving at the Mohaka, 40 miles from Napier, a valley on the European side of the river, in extent I should say about 1500 acres of land of the worst description occupied by about a dozen settlers and their families. I rode through these farms to the head of the valley, to Captain Allen’s run—the one I came to see—in extent 10,000 acres, with 200 freehold. There had been a considerable quantity of grass seed sown on those bills, which came up well in autumn, but died out in summer, to appear no more. A person took this run afterwards, and placed 600 sheep on it, and I was told he could only muster 400 on the following year. The greater part of the country 1 have described is.qajled a pumy or pumice soil, a thin coat- ■ ing of earth, underneath which is a kind of loose sand, about tbe size of duck-shot, and if disturbed runs much as shot would do. The country inland to the mountains is very much of this nature, the greater part being taken up by two runholders. On the north side of the Mohaka, there were a considerable number of Maoris on somewhat better land. I did not travel farther than this, but was informed then and afterwards that the country between there and Wairoa is native land of the same hilly nature. The much talked-of Wairoa Valley, about 60 miles from Napier, is about 1200 acres in extent of, I believe, good land, one-half of which and several thousand acres of the adjacent hills was purchased from the natives for the Hawke’s Bay Government. On this little valley a township was laid out, and, strange to say, the allotments were all bought up at a high price—for what reason 1 could not make out. as there is no back country to supports town; but of late, owing to a number of natives being on Government pay, and numerous expeditions to and from there, from true and false alarms of Te Eooti and the Uriwera movements, I have no doubt the people in

the township are doing well at the expense of the colony. From the Wairoa to Poverty Bay there is no settlement of any importance, the best part of the hills being leased by a few Europeans from the Maoris. About Poverty Bay there is, I believe, some very fine country, but not fine or extensive enough to warrant us in holding it by force of arms. I believe the flat lands owned by the resident settlers in the valleys for 100 miles north of Napier will have cost the colony, before the end of the present year, over £2OO per acre for their protection. The mountains inland from the settlements I have described are inhabited by the Uriweras, the most wild and savage tribe in New Zealand, and although they have made several raids on our settlements, we have never yet ventured to cross their frontier.

To save the country a large expenditure, and prevent the few isolated settlers from being murdered on that coast, I would humbly suggest, on condition that we get a financial separation from the other island, that the land of the settlers in tiie valleys from, say, ten miles north of Napier to Poverty Bay (exclusive of confiscated land) be valued, and that we give them the amount of such valuation in land at £2 per acre in this province, on condition that they give up their former holdings and settle here. By following such a plan we should put a stop to the war on that portion of the east coast, and south of which we have had no wars hitherto. If we should lose £2 per acre for our land we should add to our population by taking settlers from the olher island, where they would be the cause of constant war. Besides, we would have the satisfaction of knowing we have done a great good. I would be glad to hear of two or three of our representatives going over the country I have proposed should be abandoned, and I think they would agree to some such scheme as I have proposed, if the other provinces of tliis island were to give the isolated settlers of the west coast of the other island land on the same conditions, we might all unite in requesting a financial separation, as the remaining and more thickly populated settlements would be more cheaply defended from the attacks of the Maoris, even if they should have to pay £4O per man for two or three regiments of Imperial troops to protect them (it costs £BO, half of which is paid by the home Government). Now, as the greater portion of this sum is spent in the other island, I consider the settlers there would be protected almost free of cost, without our contributing, but while we remain united as at present with the other island, we shall be called upon to pay £2B out of the £4O per man required, for which we should get no return; therefore, on the grounds of justice, we have a right to demand a financial separation. We are told, however, by the English Press, that we must not expect any aid from the home Government in our war with the Maoris ; if these journals were expressing the thoughts of the British nation, I would say we should have to ask the Turkish Government to request the English Government to send us help. For this reason : Most of us may remember or have heard of a massacre of Christians by the Druses at Damascus a few years since, when the English and French Governments sent a few raen-of-war into the Turkish waters, and insisted upon the latter power protecting the Christians. I cannot, however, believe that a nation that compelled the Turks to protect their subjects in what 1 will call their colony of Turkey in Asia, would refuse assistance to her own colonists in New Zealand, where they are being massacred by the Maoris. We have been told from time to time by the English press 1 have alluded to that we ought to be more than a match for the Maoris, who are only 38,000 in number, whilst there are 220,000 Europeans. These writers forget, or make a point of doing so, that the Maoris are savages, and the adults, not only can be, but are all soldiers, and that the colonists are civilized, and therefore comparatively speaking cannot become so. If they cannot realize our situation by that explanation, let me bring the case home to them by comparing England to the Middle Island, and .Scotland to the Northern, the joint population amounting to about 24,000,000. Now suppose the interior of Scotland was forests and mountains, inhabited by 4,000,000 savages who kept an army of 1,000,000 men. If a portion of these savages were constantly attacking the settlements on the coast, and if they attempted to follow them up, owing to the nature of the country, they would require three times the number of the enemy to do so. Such I consider would be a somewhat similar situation to our own with the Maoris. Your obedient servant, SETTLER.