The New Zealand Herald AUCKLAND TUESDAY, APRIL 26, 1864.

New Zealand Herald, Volume I, Issue 141, 26 April 1864, Page 3

The New Zealand Herald

AUCKLAND TUESDAY, APRIL 26, 1864.

SFKOTKMI'R AGENDO. Cive every man thino ear. but lew thy voice: Take twh man's eensuro. but ivscrve thy Judgment. Thi.s nbovo :iU.—To thine ownself bo true ; Ami it most follow, &n* the night the day, Thou canst not then be fake to any man."

lx our issue of vesterdav we presented our readers with one of the most import;• ut despn I elies which lias yet boon received ill New Zealand from ILer Majesty's Secretary of State for the Colonies. This despatch is in answer to that of his Kxoellencv Sir C! cor no CJrev. who in August last transmitted for tile consideration of the Imperial Government the details of the plan which eventually found a torm in the last session of the ("Senerai Assembly iinder the title of the "" New Zealand .Settlenients Act. 1 wherein it is provided to coiiiiseate the lands of those natives who have taken part in the present rebellion. to ;i|iplv a portion of the same to purposes (if military settlement and to oiler the remainder bv public sale, as a means of providing a fund whence some part at least of the expenses of quelling the rebellion may be formed. "MV arc hciinilv L, r lad to record so uiHjualilied a deoree of ;i]iprob;H ion on the part of her Majesty's Government to the principle of this measure as that contained in tho despatch. The question which has been raised by those in the colony and elsewhere opposed to this measure, that the relation in which the 31aori stood to the Uritisdi Government could not render hint liable to eoiiliscation of lamb ibr the part winch he has taken in the present in henceforth at a:: er.d. The words of the imperial de.-patch :iiv plain a:;«i " 1 toitik that

J '* any boii\'oi'liMtivoK wiiii-h t:i:uv> up anus i '• a gainst her Majesty on such grounds as I "these which arc alleged by tin. l \\ aikatos ! " mav properly In.- punished by a confiseaj " tion dl'a lari;e part of their common pro- ; " per! v." The purposes. too. lor which tlie.se , lands are proposed by ihe Colonial (!ovcrn- ! nieiil in lie applied equally meet with the i approval of the Duke of Newcastle. The | full settlenient of the country by Europeans. I in addition to the mere dotting it over with i military settlements as a moans ot security auainsi future insurrection. is clearly pointed out in the remark that such military settlements "mast soon lose their distmc- "" tive character, since it is probable that the "districts, unlike those in Ivatl'rnria, will "soon become an unimportant minority of " tlie inhabitants." There is also another noticeable feature in tlie first sentence which we have quoted, namely, thai the rumimn property of the 1 ribe should* be confiscated —that where a tribe has become generally implicated in rebellion the common lands should be held responsible. care beini; taken that if any member or hapuoi'thc tribe should remain loyal and take no part whatever in the crimes of their friends, their individual rights should lie respected. This is no more than just. Care must however be taken lest any lari;u landowner should claim immunity from the general punishment because he perhaps with a lew other landowners, stayed quietly at home while with their consent and witnout any etibrt made on their part to prevent them, ihe fiu'iitiiiL; men were allowed to proceed to the seal of war and lake up arms against us. To admit of such claims of immunity wuijld be virtually to nullify the working of the act. Jhnt j>rr alterant J'nrif per sr. The native landowner holds tracts of country, like the old highland chief, as trustee as it: were for the whole tribe. Jle but holds these lauds as the representative of his vassals or clansmen, ami where it can be proved that he has sanctioned and countenanced the rebellion of las vassals, while lie himself has craftily remained at home, the lands which really belong in common, though nominally held by him, must pay the penalty of their rashness and indiscretion, always excepting the individual rights of those v. iio have really held themselves neutral. We have an instance ot this in Scottish history, for though Lord Lovat was not "out" with his clan in " l-V yet his estate's were confiscated, for it was known tiiaL though he himself did not draw the sword, he secretly encouraged the rebellion, and he was held equally responsible as those who were proved to have been openly in arms. This is e.xactlv the position with winch we stand with many native tribes and hapus,

as ;i notable instance ot' which wo may lneiition the Chief Taraia, ot'tin; Thames district. Jt is satisfactory that the Secretary ol ►State, the JJuke of .Newcastle. has so clearly settled the ]>oiiit. as it was a loophole which has been cunningly pointed out by t he philo-.Maot-i party here before now, to whom the word "" conliscat ion " is one ol'terri blc import", and would, as we have before said, ii leit nilsettled, have formed it serious obstacle in the working of the act. The despatch in question is most important, inasmuch as it, virtually leaves with the colonists tint entire control of JN'ew Zealand affairs even to the determination of when and how this unhappv simple in which we art; now engaged shall be terminated, it leaves with the Colonial Government the dictation of the terms of peace and the future settlement of that peace on a sure and lasting foundation. Tin: Imperial Government rccogni/.es the ability and decision of the present Ministry—which carries witli it, in this question of the New Zealand war. the voice of almost the entire European population of the colony —and cordially entrusts to its charge the application of a scheme which tin; JJuke cannot but acknowledge "as ;i " matter of great danger and delicacy lor " which the Colonial Government musL re"main responsible." That this danger and delicacy has been duly appreciated and weighed by the New Zealand Government we have ample testimony iu the action which they have taken

since the coininetieetnent of the war. Opportunities of conciliation up to the very last have been allbrded to the rebels now in arms. The natives in the Northern districts have, in company with a resident magistrate, been made personally acquainted with the actual state of all airs in the Wuikato, and have returned to tho North confirmed in their intention of remaining true to their allegiance —while throughout",the Northern Island, in Wellington even and iii Hawkes Bay, the intentions of the Government with respect to the nativcTace have been fully. :uul clearly, and widely published in the native lautjuaoe. The distinctions between the punishment of those openly in arms and who have actually fought against the soldiers of the Queen, and of those who have been associated only with the rebels and who now wish to return to their homes is clearly drawn, while those whose complicity is of a less heinous character still, and who have gone no further than in establishing and supporting the king movement are cautioned to desist from so doing on pain of being delivered over to death. It cannot then be said that the natives, from ignorance of the intention of the Government, or from any dread that one. general sweeping system of cou-fiscation is about to be introduced, are being driven in desperation into rebellion. Tho words and clauses of the " New Zealand Settlements Act" arc themselves clear enough to be understood. The landonlyof theaet ttal rebels will ho taken, and if for purposes of military settlement the Government should require to take a portion of the lands of loyal natives, it will lie done only as it would be done in the case of Kuropcans, by giving them fair compensation for the same. That no such feelings are entertained by the really loyal natives is instanced by the freedom from apprehension shown by those whose fiddly is undoubted, men like Waata Kukutai and A\ r . Naylor.

"With the Now Zealand Government then rests entirely the carrying out of this important scheme, the only practical measure which has yet been brought forward for the establishment of law in the Northern Island of New Zealand, and for the redemption of the Maori race from a state of barbarism. So far its application lias worked well. Those natives who have not in any way or at anytime been implicated in the rebellion still hold cautiously aloof. Land in the North and in ILawke'a Bay is too valuable to risk, ami to the knowledge of tin's alone may we attribute the fact ilmt wo hjxj now fighting against only a section of the Maori r.i<v instead of against the whole, undivided people. AVhat the New Zealand Ministry have so well and discreetly begun, there is little dwubt but that they will as thoroughly carry out, with all proper regard for the real interests of both races.