Poverty Bay Herald. PUBLISHED EVERY EVENING GISBORNE, THURSDAY, JUNE 25, 1896.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XXIII, Issue 7663, 25 June 1896, Page 2

Poverty Bay Herald. PUBLISHED EVERY EVENING GISBORNE, THURSDAY, JUNE 25, 1896.

The Matabele rising has turned out to be a much more serious affair than was at first anticipated, and latest advices from Rhodesii telling of the treachery of Mashonas to their British protectors, and the revolt of the native police, are very disquieting. It seems also as if there havo been miscalculation? as to the number of Matftbele warriors in the field. The last war, it was thought, had practically destroyed the royal regiments of " Lo Ben," the Imbezu, Ingobo, Insuka, and Inyati. It was believed that in the two great engagements they bore the brunt of the battle, uud that afterwards many of the survivors perished iniserablj' of small-pox on the Zambesi. It now looka us if there are more of them than had been reckoned for, and that it will not be without further reinforcements that Mr Rhodes will be able to give the rebels what he has promised them, "an everlasting lesson." The desertion of a great part of the black police has been an unfortunate and notable feature of the rising. To enlist the best of the Matabele in such a force (writes Mr H. L. W. Lawson in the Fortnightly) seemed a wise stroke of policy, but it now appears to have been premature. Anyone who knows Natal will say that it would have been impossible to find a more efficient or a finer body of native constabulary than is drawn from the Zulu nation. It seemed, therefore, natural to try the experiment with their Matabele bin, and the men I saw about the country looked small and well chosen. Probably they had not yet had time to be imbued with the Bpirit of discipline, as the corps were only formed a few months ago. Tho disloyalty of the Mashonas is still more surprising. Twenty years ago, before the advent of the white man, these people were hemmed in on their territory of Moshonaland, living in continual dread of the Matabele, who made murderous raids upon them, robbing them of their cattle and crops. The Mashonas proved a helpless prey to the cruel Matabele, and when the Chartered Company came and conquered their oppressors, although at first insolent and often aggressive to the new comers, they soon came to recognise that the British were there as their friends. The sesult was that a long stretch of country between Mashonalaud and Matabeleland, which before had been neutral territory upon which the fearsome Mashonas had never dared to venture, gradually became occupied by these people, who said that under British rule they felt that their lives and their herds would be safe. How they have come now to revolt against that rulo and protection and joiu hands with their former enemies remains to be explained. The serious turn which affairs have taken will probably lead to a call for Imperial assistance, though it is stated that there are ample reserves in South Africa without calling on the Mother Country for any large number of regular soldiery. At the Cape there are the Mounted Rifles, 1,000 strong, besides the Cape Mounted Police, and besides these in the floating population of young men Becking a future there ia a constant stock of recruiting material at hand. The immensity of the country is the great barrier to immediate assistance being forthcoming. The distance between Mafeking, the terminus of the railway, and Bulawayo is SCO miles ; the roads aro still very bad and heavy for traffic, and the supply of forage is limited. It must therefore take some titr.o Ijeforo reinforcements can reach the Chartered Company's volunteers who, it would seem, aro now sorely in need of help. Meantime it is reassuring to learn that Earl Grey, the new administrator, has said that Bulawayo is as safe as London. This, however, applies only to within tho laager, and in the present disturbed state of the country it is unsafe for tho settlers to venture far from tho citadel. Bulawayo, it may be interesting to know, contains at the present moment a white population slightly less than Gisborne, and 1,800 natives, a census taken six weeks ago having shown 1466 white men, 328 women, and 400 children. Imngine the anxiety of theso people hundreds. of miles away from civilisation and outside help, in a country infested with rebel bands of natives, an impi 4,000 strong assembled six miles to the south, and another 3,000 strong eight miles to the west. A recent despatch states : "The effective force attached to the Bulawayo camp is now disposed as follows : Thirteen meu have been detached to build a fort at Wilson's store, 12 miles out, and another party of 180 are building forta in the Maugwe Pass, aud patrolling the road to the south for 30 miles, as well as patrolling the pasa itself. Of the remaining troops about 300 hold the luager, ami patrol the immediate neighborhood of the town. The murder of the coolies in the gardens two miles away has seriously curtailed the food supply, particularly in the matter of vegetables and milk. The friendly natives, who have taken shelter in the town, are afraid to venture near their homesteads in the outskirts."

When it was stated the other day that Mr Ward intended circulating the report of his speesh broadcast throughout the land, we wondered how he was going to do it. In 1890, when Mr George Hutchison made a severe attack in the House upon Sir Frederick Whitaker with reference to thelatter's bauking arrangements, to show that he had the courage of his opinions aud to give the person accused an opportunity of reply in a courr. of law, ho published his speech and circulated it as a private document. Sir Frederick brought au action against him for libel, but died before the case came on. In . his recent speech, Mr Ward made a number of charges of so serious a nature against various people that the press cf the colony dare not publish them, aud people outside the House are half afraid to whisper them. Of course when spoken in Parliament or published in Hansard these charges are privileged, and when Mr Ward announced his intention of publishing them still further we wondered whether he would come from behind the shelter of Parmentary privilege and give the persons he lias so severely attacked an opportunity of defending their characters from tha aspersions cast upon them. It is now stated lhali thousands of extra copies ot Hansard aro being printed for circulation far and wide. Mr Ward thus chooßes to remain Ixihind a hedge iind fire his shots, and when it ia known tliul ho is ufraid to come out into the open und take the responsibility for his statements, his charges will loae their sting mifl very likely recoil upon himself. There is another question which might be asked : Who is going to pay for all the extra Hansards ? Surely not Mr Ward, who professes to have given every penny he possesses for the benefit of his creditors. Not the colony, we hope, though the Government may find some way of working in the cost as " unauthorised expenditure."