NEW ZEALAND SPECTATOR AND Cook's Strait Guardian. Saturday, January 29, 1853.

New Zealand Spectator and Cook's Strait Guardian, Volume IX, Issue 782, 29 January 1853, Page 3

NEW ZEALAND SPECTATOR AND Cook's Strait Guardian. Saturday, January 29, 1853.

Wb understand that, owing to the reaction that has been occasioned at Melbourne by the falling off in the weekly amount of gold found at the diggings, and the increasing arrivals of fresh coiners eager to share in the lottery, but who find too late that all the prizes have already been disposed of, numbers are already leaving to try and better their condition in the neighbouring colonies. Owing to the facilities of communication, and the lower rate of passage money, the greater part of those who leave Port Phillip betake themselves either to Sydney or Van Diemen's Land, but we are told that if equal opportunities of communication with New Zealand existed, and the amount of passage money was the same, a decided preference would be given by these persons to this colony. This appears to be an instance in which an emigration fund (if such a fund existed in the colony) might be used with the greatest advantage, in which the greatest amount of labour might be introduced into the colony at the cheapest rate. Hitherto in giving free passages to the labouring classes, the cost of emigration from England has usually been reckoned at from £15 to £18 a head. But in this case, if the emigrants (being fona fide emigrants from England, not emancipists and ticket-of-leave men from Van Diemen's Land) were assisted from the emigration fund to the extent of the difference between the cost

of their passage to Sydney and New Zealand, i great numbers would avail themselves of the offer, while the cost of increasing the population by introducing fresh labourers, who would eventually become purchasers of land, would be reduced from £18 to £3 per head. But however promising such a scheme might be, the present disposition of the land fund effectually puts a stop to any application of it to any purposes likely to promote the interests of the colony. Whatever is realised from sales of land, one-fourth the gross amount is to be paid over to the New Zealand Company. What with*the amount of land already granted in compensation to resident land purchasers, the special cases of jobbing under Mr. Fox, the amount to be granted to the absentees, and the amount to be paid out of the land fund to the New Zealand Company under the Act of Parliament, but little prospect remains of getting a fund for any objects connected with the advancement of the colony. It behoves the electors then, particularly the working classes, (who have the most direct interest in the proper application of the land fund) to guard what is left with jealous care, and in the exercise of their electoral franchise to vote only for those persons, as representatives in the General Assembly, who have no private interests to gratify in the disposal of the waste lands of the colony.

Cricket. — The return match at Cricket between the Settlers and Staff, and the 65th Kegt. took place at Te Aro, on Wednesday last, and was decided in favour of the 65th Regt., the result being as follows — Settlers, Ist innings, 26, 2nd do, 54. 65th Eegt. Ist innings, 66, 2nd do. winning the match with nine wickets to go down.

By the overland mail we received Auckland papers of the 25th ult, but beyond the information contained in the gold circular, that gold still continued to be found at the diggings at Coromandel, they contain no news of local interest. At New Plymouth a severe shock of an Earthquake had been experienced on New Year's Day which did considerable damage to the buildings, and appears to have caused a good deal of alarm to the inhabitants. The same shock seems to have been felt at Wanganui, Nelson, and also at Wellington, but with the greatest intensity at New Plymouth. His Excellency the Governor-in-Chief had arrived at Wanganui, and had gone up the river to meet the Bishop, who had had not | reached that settlement when the overland mail left.