Bright's Nee Zealand.

New Zealand Gazette and Wellington Spectator, Volume III, Issue 133, 16 April 1842, Page 3

Bright's Nee Zealand.

(From the Spectqtor November 13,A8i1.J

Mr: Bright is a .surgeon/ who 'left.Englahd some years ago to settle in Australia. The Colony he selected does not 'appear; but he speaks of the population of New South Walts as from actual ' knowledge, and he was tvi-

.dently a resident" in :, South Australia."-' His health suffering : from the climate, iacrea.sedperhaps bynervous irritability, he was 'advised, in the autumn t)f 1 839, to try the effects of a voyage to New Zealand!; where he became convalesent,, and remained till his " recent" return to England. The publication -before ( ,us professes to give the results of his- experience ; and besides a history of New Zealand, and aa account of its climate, soil, production, and inhabitants, to contain some .remarks on ■its climate" and the colonies of the Australian continent. • „ ' ' r '• : ! Looking at the opportunities of Mr. Bright .and the length of time he was employed in making his observations, the matter of his .book- is very much below what might have' been expected ; whilst his want of .method, j and other literary deficiencies; . render .his matter, such as it is, less available to the general reader than.it might have been. Smallness is the character of this author's ,mind; and all he has collected and all he says' is vitiated by this defect. Any thing- like distinct results, or a large view of a subject,, it is in vain to look for in the Hahd-Bookfor Emigrants, unless it be as regards climate in a medical sense ; from whicn it seems that New Zealand is. by far the most wholsome," and the freest from annoying, insects, besides being altogether free from dangerous reptiles. ; Of South Australia, Mr. Bright says — " The summ^r/heats of Australia render the frame very irritable, and the extreme changes to which you are there liable endanger health. The European, on landing there,' finds the action of the skins greatly increased ; the perspiration, incessant, relieves at first, but soon frets -the system; in such state. any undue excitmentj_or exposure to vitiated air produces fever, increasing arterial action, to be allayed only by death; or in such state, if "exposed to the causesof cold, a violent dysentery sets in, extremely' difficult to manage ; uncertain, often fatal in its results, or causing chronic affections which" impede efforts for subsistence: Diarrhoea is frequent,^ and a virulent ophthalmia: it is no uncommon thing to witness a blind eye among the aboriginal inhabitants. The North blasts of Australia blow as if from the mouth of a furnace ; the'soil, finely pulverized, owing to deficiency of moisture, is shovelled up bythewind; and in addition to the suffocating heat, you are terribly embarrassed by showers of. dust poured, upon you — eyes, nose, clothes arc filled with it. Iliave known it.blow; through the. shingled roof, and descend, in clouds where no ceiling has intervened, rendering food uneatable and linen unfit, for use. Spasmodic "complaints are frequent : I experienced a severe form of it myself, and the agony was tremendous.. It was followed, after frequent attacks., by ery- . sipelas about .the legs,- and inability to- move! without pain ; at the same time, I attended frequent cases, all, alike to, my own. t I sought, a change 'of climate ; . and a, month , in [New .Zea-: land renovated me entirely. Meat'in Australia becomes blown in a minute. A limb; that was amputated was, previous to the operation; covered with maggots jilike a liver buried in a, pot tqpro.duce maggots for angling, parturition, ro;the, new comer, isnot unattended with danger. The, dysentery and ophthalmia •ai c ;, the disease's peculiar to, the clime, and'are highly, dangerous ; . they attack those who are careful as well as the, intemperate : as elsewhere, the latter ,ar.e ( most-, obnoxious to; disease. The climate;.evidently.tends Jo a premature development andjfcp, early. ..decay;] yet old people, whose. sytems;jar.ejn.ot .sapped by disease, coming fi;om . cold , climes and avoiding exposure to mid-day heat.andj midnight chills, feel- an inyigoration ; and might; if threatened by- ill' health at home, prolong-exist^ • ence in Australia.- I havemet with many elderly persons out there, who hayepraised.the plimate. v> 'l

Of the soil arid productions of 'New'Z^a-s" land, Mr. Bright speaks favourably ;"'B 1 ut 1 1 .he, adds little or nothing'. to what ./was, already, known, unless, perhaps, to. impress :more' pro-, minently upon the mind the hilly character, of -the country, ; and the, 'consequent ab'se'n'qe i|: '6f extended plains ; though* he .'merely! mentions it as' a fact, not 1 adducing it as an impediment to ' cultivation. r Upon the most interesting subject, the manners and' characters ,of the people both natives, and' foreign settlers, ! ; he is vague, general, and unsatisfying. Mr. -B right's particular examples, among the "settlers' at 'the Bay of Islands, are 7 - taken ,from ! some, extreme cases of profligacy and ' debauchery,"; , jand-his, .chief native sample, is an 'old.' chieftain, 'a patient of his, who, though first professing" Wesleyanism, "and ' turning Catholic on the arrival of the -Apostolic Vicar, 'recurred; to his native superstitions when sick, and was : only driven from them by- Mr.^ Bright withholding his medicines; * So. far: as any general conclusions can be drawn' from -his general'descriptions^'the state ~of morals in" every "point of view is very tow. among ;the settlers. Crime, is not common,; but 'every thing' short of' 'it* is • an every-day affair • money, by any means .iiot felonious, being the object both ,at Newj-Ze'a-land and in 1 Australia.' The native -NewZ'ealanders, it. would -appear,- are quite competent to protect themselves "in' matters Within their experience— which; (a ,'yei-y " gre^t . matter)' the ' sale of Itheir.land.is not j and-this, I . now- they are become our subjects, requires carefulJopk-ing-to by the^ Home as well 'as' the v Coloniar authorities. Of the effects "of the Missions' Mr. Bright speaks in high terms, and, defends, the Missipnariei from /the charges' brought against them: his defence, however,. amount's to little more than this, that -they-have pursued their worldly interests in a moreTguarded and respectable way than the escaped convicts''

I and retired baler's/ and Jess* inju'ry^to 'the character of the natives.* s "'' : • '-'>

Although occasionally visiting other ''parts* of the, country, Mr. Bright's domicile was-the-Bay jjp.f , Islands, the , irregular,^ settlement,, effecte.i-at.the Northern part 'of the Northern island^ v by .such floating -population as- found- arefug'e r in New Zealand 'from, law'or the o'c.ean'.", And lie defends Governor, Hobsdn for hot fixing the seat of government at the infant settlements of the .New , Zealand- Company ; because, he intimates, x the population was not then so, numerous,, the'tradei little or none, the harbours neither so safe nor' so convenient, and the success of the colonists not yet proved. On the other handj he attaches, great blame to the Government at home, or in New South •Wales, or to Governor } Hpbsonj" for the un-business-like and .dilatory way.tliey set about the investigation of titles qf,land,; r and, so far as he can be understodjflT^rtll"; justice.. The whole management appears that of "people whose capacity consisted iri forming paper plans, without any thought of their execution : a 1 determination to. iuyestigate- the titles of British subjects to. lands acquired in NewZea,land, and a commission thereupon, seems to have been the extent of their reach. . .When the "announcement of the fact- reached New •Zealand, it caused great consternation ; and such is the sensitive nature of .property, that ,it might have induced anxiety ejven among far more bona-fide purchasers than any' in the island. The first, effect was to,. stop speculations and (Sales in land, and Jo drive, away many Australian people who had come to purchase or settle ,; the. next was to put a stop to, trade — though we do not trace a sequitur here, since ships would still want supplies,' and'th'e actual holders of land could still furnish them ; and lastly, says Mr. Bright,, the purchasers of ■allotments from companies in England cannot be sure of their titles when they get o,ut. 'Notwithstanding all "these evils — easily foreseen — the Governor came without the Comimissioners of Inquiry jfthejannoencement was made whilst the Commissioners were still at New South Wales, and no, steps _were. taken to hasten their arrival: a wantqnjand mischievous ■ tampering with interests, .which the .slighest forethought could, have; prevented. At the same time, the investigation in itself was highly proper:, now that the New Zea-, .landers have acknowledged the sovereignty : of ( Great Britain, one of ( tlie { first, .duties of the Colonial Office is to protect )them from fraudulent purchases of thei.r. territory, whether by imUvidual f ort3'oint-stock: land-s]iarks : and the "most effectual mode of serving them would be, .to extend the plan of reserving a certain portion of any land sold, for its present possessors, Tendering all sales^ beyond that proportion in- ' valid at any price ; and rigidly to enforce the ' rule -" .'.' '\ 0 \'"A '.'.