The Lyttelton Times. THURSDAY, MARCH 18, 1880.

Lyttelton Times, Volume LIII, Issue 5947, 18 March 1880, Page 4

The Lyttelton Times. THURSDAY, MARCH 18, 1880.

The Native Commission is appearing in a slightly better , light; the official correspondent of the local Government organ in Christchurch having pondesoended to supplement some of j the accounts he, has been’ forwarding i with something that .is entitled to rank as informations These previous accdiihts, as we took the liberty, of pointing,out a few days did > hot. though highly coloured, make the • Commission appear, in a very brilliant light. Analysing the various descriptions of the Commission’s doings, which-the, readers of j the Government organ owe to his somewhat sketchy pen, we showed that from the story as told, there' could be but { one conclusion. The smallness of the numbers attending at Hawera; when qomr pared with those which at Oeo,| by the official correspondent’s; own account defied the Commission, was, ominous; and the absence of any mention of the presence of Hone Pihama and Katene did not encourage any -belief in j the permanent good results of tho Commission’s labours. The artide in which criticisms to this effect were embodied; has not met with* the approval of i the official cOrrespiondent.' He 1 has taken an early opportunity of differing from its conclusions. As he admits, that the article.' was -written without “ exact informations as ~to the doings of, the Cemniissipn in* full' detail ’’—the information supplied by himself that is to say —we cheerfully accept his explanaWhen he tells us, as he proceeds to do at once, that both Hone Rihjama and Katene were piresieht at the sitting at Hawera, We afe happy to express our ■pleasure at the information. The‘service rendered by those influential chiefs at that sitting is a very encouraging sign. The Colony can how: judge that whatever the lino may be which Te Whiti,eventually takes, a compact 'section of the , tribes, influentially led, is sure to be satisfied with, the report of the Commission, should it receive prompt practical-attention at the hands of the. Government. As vye wish to See the - Commission successful, haying originally, recommended the- adoption of a course similar to that which led to theappointment of the-Commission, we can safely say that, we accept the information of the official correspondent of the local Government orgatt with unaffected pleasure. ■' f While so expressing ourselves, we cannot avoid astonishment at the absence from previous communications of the information, now supplied.- The official correspondent says that he| has “ not pretended to report the proceed? ings as a whole.” He has “ merely given such items as are of interest.” As he writes for general information, we wonder why, when “ merely ’’ .giving “items of interest,” he should have omitted the most, interesting of all.; If a man, writing a -description of a steamboat, were to leave' out the boilers, he could not complain of a criticism pronouncing his ship to be , dependent entirely on the wind. It is evidently not for want of : industry that the accounts of this \ official correspondent, have not teens exhaustive. He has dwelt a great deal for example on the alleged shortcomings of the former Government. Hot has been quite prodigal of the inferences to their discredit, which may be drawn from evidence, which is not forwarded to justify tho assertions. He Mis the readers of the Government organ how the late Government has been proved either to have acted from the despotic motive of one, or from, no settled motive at all; how it has been shown that some action of theirs precipitated the troubles, and how some order of theirs, if carried out, would have landed the Colony in a slough of indignity. Nor does he forget to hint that the : discoveries made in other ways are damaging to the powers that wire. In! his zeal for the service of his patrons,' and in his desire to trample on the fallen, he forgets that in connection with ; the Commission these are not, even if all the inferences from the unpublished evidence are correct, the most important matters of interest in connection with the working, of the Commission. It is not so much the business. of the Commission to find out who got the Colony into the Waimate mess, as to discover the proper method of getting it out again. The chances of the Commission’s success form the chief interest of the situation. Everything bearing upon those chances is therefore of first rank in point of interest. To have omitted from a description of the Commission’s sittings, all mention of the attendance of such important men as Hone Pitiama and Katene, as not of interest, is a strange error of judgment. When the readers of the Government organ are anxious to know how the Commission is getting on with the Natives, they are treated to diatribes of a partisan character. Under the circumstances misconception is the most natural thing in tho world. As the official correspondent has probably been made aware of this fact, he will perhaps abandon inferences, and stick to facts in the future.

It is satisfactory, we repeat, to learn, that the Native Commission is likely to be even partially successful. At, the outset the. Commission was set at naught, its personnel criticised, and its powers contemned. For a time it seeme’d as if this would be the general verdict of all the tribes of the Taranaki Coast, Now it appears as if some of them, under the two noted chiefs to whom we have alluded, have recognised the Commission, and laid before it their grievances. Regarding these the Commission, it is said, have sent in an interim report to the Governor, with a view to giving it immediate effect. This report, every well-wisher of the Colony will hope is true. At this juncture it must be evident that the least delay, in dealing with the proved grievances of those Natives who have laid them.: heforetheprpporaufchoritysenttothem for the purpose* must be fatal to all hbpes of a peaceful settlement. On the opxer hand promp tnesf will not only consolidate

the Biipjiorti which ’the Oonitmeeioa hfia already obtained, but cause it to spread considerably. When claimants have their just demands acceded to finally, irrevocably and promptly, the , distrust of the Commission on account of its possessing merely recommendatory power cannot endure. For the same reason distrust of the bona fidea of , the Oommission must in like manner disappear. With a support based on confidence so obtained, the prophet will find it bard; to raise a general 'NotiVb; desire to, fight for bis side of the burning question of confiscation.. We should therefore recommend that the repovt of the Oommission should be given effect to, as far . as posaible, on the earliest possible; opportunity. Wo must jnot conceal from ourselves that still there is' considerable danger in the situation. Though ;an influential party; supports the Oommission, its loyalty depends on the promptitude of the Government. Moreover the bulk of the Natives ofj the coaafc so far incline' to the support of : Te Whiti, who. has never recognised; the Commission. The prophet has a Very large* following which believes in ;hini' implicitly, many of the people bring not by any means well disposed towards' the Pakeha, The best way: to weaken that following is to give practical proof that th.e recommendations; of the Commission are powerful for good.