ORIGINAL CORRESPONDENCE.

Otago Witness, Issue 31, 20 December 1851, Page 2

ORIGINAL CORRESPONDENCE.

No Communication will receive any attention unless accompanied with the name ami address of the author, not necessarily for publication, hit as evidence of his good faith.

To the Editor of the Otago "Witness

SlU;_TheS lU; _The assiduity and energy with which you have all along, since the commencement of your mostvaluablepaper, exposed the secret machinations of the enemy, together with the notorious abuse of authority here, is having a beneficial and salutary influence upon our people in arousing them to a sense of their duty to themselves and their posterity. But there is a class of individuals to be found, more or less, in every community whom it, is no easy matter to awaken. The moral principle of action which may once have been implanted in their breasts has been completely exterminated by the cherishing of other mean and grovelling 'propensities ; so that, were it necessary to the gaining of a single shilling, they would sacrifice every right principle in order to obtain it. Such persons are not -\ery numerous in Otago ; but still there are some even here who could see the banner of civil and religious liberty cast down, and the flag of despotism unfurled, without being in any degree moved by such a catastrophy. Some of them say there is no use in petitioning to have our grievances redressed, for our petitions will do.no good ; and that we would just be as well off at the end of the year not to interfere in the matter. These men forget that they owe all the liberty which they now have to the independent exertions of their countrymen. I would ask what it is that constitutes the present glory of the British nationi What has made her an object of emulation to every other people in Europe ? What has caused slavery to be abolished throughout her dominions ? How came the Reform Bill to be passed ? How is it that the Corn Law duty has been done away ? In short, What is effecting every improvement in the policy of the British .Government ? I answer, that it has been the agitation of the people that has effected every reformation recorded in the annals of British history. It is to the indefatigable zeal of our ancestors that we are indebted for the privilege of agitation we possess. Let us cease to use" them and our freedom will sron be annihilated. Let us, then, cease not to publish to the world all those acts of tyranny and oppression exercised upon us by our rulers here, with our abhorence of them, till the sound of our voices has been heard from the one corner of New Zealand to the other, and it has been echoed back to us from the distant land of our birth. Let us tell those conservatives of despotism that their doom is fixed, and will come speedily ; for we will not rest till the disturbers of our peace have been spoiled, — till these puny, ignoble, and ignorant " gentlemen by birth and education," — these functionaries " dress'd in a little brief authority," most

ignorant of what they most assume — have been hurled from their sign-posts into a forgetful oblivion. In a recent number of your paper you called the attention of your readers to the dangerous power put into the hands of the Resident Magistrate over the persons and property of the settlers, by allowing an irresponsible individual to be the adjudicator in important cases, from whose decision there is no appeal. Now, Sir, many of your readers must know from, experience how this despotic sway is used by the present functionary. It would take up too much of your space now to state the whole facts of a case which I would have published at the time had I been able to do so ; but I would call your attention to the arrogant defiance exercised towards me by his worship on that occasion. I prosecuted a particular friend of his for a sum of money which had been due some time previous to my doing so. The only reason assigned for the delay in payment previous to his being summoned was want of cash ; but in order to his retaining the character of a gentleman," some other expedient had to be adopted ; and accordingly some more plausible excuse was . indeed found ; and after allowing my debtor a clear day to collect the money, I had to be satisfied with £4 being deducted off my account, besides paying half the expenses. Of course I felt indignant at such a decision. But need I tell you how my indignation was increased, when, after having stated, at the peril of my being put 24 hours in limbo, my intention to protest against the decision, the Magistrate smiled contemptuously in my face, and added in the most arrogant manner, " What is decided by me on this Bench there is no appeal from/ What security, then, can any one have in going to such a court to • receive justice ? Is this the kind of liberty for which our fatherland is famed ? Is this the liberty she has bequeathed to her offspring ? No. Let us then use every endeadeavonr to purge out the present leaven, and we will be snre to succeed. — I am, Sir, yours, &c, A Lover or Reform.