THE NATIVE COMMISSION.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 422, 13 March 1880, Page 12

THE NATIVE COMMISSION.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE NEW ZEALAND MAIL, Sir, —The Native Commission was appointed chiefly to enable Parliament to ascertain the exact facts relating to the Taranaki confiscated lands, insomuch as they concern the dealings of previous Governments with the natives interested in them. So far it is proved by evidence that, with regard to the Waimate Plains at any rate, the action taken by the Grey Government was such as to lead the natives to suppose that no reserves were to be made for them. But for the testimony of credible witnesses no one could suppose that any Government could have been guilty of such criminal folly, as in such a case as this, to " make no reserves during the survey, and to advertise the land for sale without any reserves being made, or the natives consulted in any way on the subject." Yet this is in effect what Major Brown says, according to the telegraphic report in yesterday's Chronicle, which I have the highest authority for stating to be strictly accurate. It also appears '" that Maj or Brown would have made reserves while the survey was going on, and was on the point of consulting the natives about it, when he was stopped by a, telegram from Sir George Grey which prohibited him from doing so till the Government had been consulted, and, in the meantime,, the natives were not to know anything about ifc. Later on Mr. Sheehan directed Mr. Brown to disregard the telegram ; but it Was too late. In a few days the surveyors were ejected, and nothing had been done." No wonder that the late Colonial Treasurer and his friends denounced the constitution of the Royal Commission so violently. They dreaded exposure, and would much have preferred the appointment of gentlemen ignorant of the past history of the colony, and only anxious to make things pleasant all round. Such men might have been found, but it was clearly the duty of the Government to appoint men whose work would be a reality, and not a sham. In appointing the present Commissioners there can

be no question in the minds of thinking and unprejudicedmen that the best possible choice was made, and the country owes a debt of gratitude to Sir F. D. Bell and Sir. W. Pox, for undertaking so difficult and thankless a task. This task has certainly been made more difficult by the systematic attempts of the Wanganui Herald to induce the natives to think that the Commission was unfairly constituted, and that its proceedings might be treated with contempt. Fortunately, the Maori mind is accustomed to deal with political intrigue, and quite understood the motives which actuated their interested Besides this, the natives have an instinctive reliance upon the honor and good faith of those they recognise as gentlemen, and all the assertions that the Commissioners, as members of former Governments who had treated them badly, must be prejudiced against them, failed to shake their confidence, in all but exceptional instances, even for a time. Probably before the Commission is closed, every Maori who has a substantial claim or grievance in connection with the lands in question, will have appeared before it, in spite of all the efforts made to prevent this being done. The House and the country should remember, however, that one at least of the members of the late Ministry—Mr. Ballance—not content with having shared in bringing the colony to the very verge of a native war, has for mere party objects done his best to thwart the present Ministry in its attempts to ensure peace. Base and.unpatriotic as such conduct would be in any circumstances, it is rendered still more so by the fact that Mr. Ballance—owner and editor of the Herald, ex-Minister of the Crown—is also, or was, the special personal and political friend of the Native Minister, Mr. Bryce. As a " friend of the people," anxious to relieve present distress by putting people who want bread upon land which will hardly grow oats, he may be excused for sympathising with the lawless proceedings of Major Kemp, at Murimotu, and even for inserting what he is pleased to call "Historical facts," in the shape of " Glimpses of the present from the future." A tribal fight in full swing, and suggestive descriptions of what a Maori war might be if Te Whiti would only say to his West Coast followers, " Now or never for our island, for it is all yours, and the money, and the cattle, horses, sheep, and toangas. All, all is yours ; only do not return half way as Titokowaru did, when by simply pushing forward he could have taken and plundered Wanganui," will certainly tend to keep the hated capitalist out of this district, thus preventing that monopoly of large tracts of native land which Mr. Ballance is so anxious to see converted into small farms. But the fanatical folly of a mere theorist, whose knowledge of economic science is of the most superficial character, cannot excuse Mr. Ballance for his persistent attempts to prevent the Government, and especially the Native Minister, in whose sagacity he has always professed to place the utmost confidence, from at least attempting to settle the native question in the manner they are now doing. Such conduct does not mean merely that he holds rightly or wrongly anypronounced opinion upon the land question, such as " the necessity of returning to the pre-emptive right," but that he is afraid that the present Government may succeed where the late Government failed. However beneficial to the colony, such a result would be most disastrous to his own interestsFailure on the part of the Hall Government would give Mr. Ballance an opening of which he is most anxious to avail himself. Hence his prophecies of failure ; hence his anxiety to cause their fulfilment. It is true Mr, Bryce is most anxious to succeed, but then just now Mr. Bryce does not seem likely to be of any use to him. For my part I entirely agree with a remark reported to have been made by Mr. Bryce, " that asregards the Waimate Plains, everythingisuncertain; wecan be only prepared for any emergency. Only a fool would feel certain as to the issue of this or that point." Of this I am convinced, however, that the course pursued by the present Ministry deserves success, and that every week that passes makes that success more and more probable.— I am, &c, Economist. Wanganui,.March 2.