THE NATIVE POLICY.

Saturday Advertiser, Volume III, Issue 124, 24 November 1877, Page 8

THE NATIVE POLICY.

(Lyttelton Times.)

A careful perusal of the Ministerial Statement of Mr Sheehan on Native Affairs—as telegraphed to us last week— confirms the satisfaction produced by the first hasty reading. The Statement was well received, by the House of Representatives; and, we are sure, it will generally be well received

throughout tlieloolsny£t that Mr Sheehan, 'has a .thorough JmowJLehge of his subject, and--whati,s more .gratifying/—: his' speech, 1 as' a ' L spirit of cautibn« ! and= ( d£f» common sense. Whatever he rpr some of his Tnay have said in th® hcedle.sil!rhetQricJd£io|)position speeches, savouring of radical and revolutionary tendencies in the man agement,of Native hffmr-s, 'disappears when theory to practice, and the expression of views must be followed-sup with,' the -responsibility r of action. The result is the presentations of a statesman-like Native policy, based upon principles which, if ; tact and prudence, characterise administration, will continuously tend to the y removal of > Native: difficulties and to the union .and prosperity of both races.' .-V (■■(•} -jut :r .hoa

(Press.)

The first formal; statement''made; on the part of the new Ministry was the statement on Native affairs addressed to the House on Thursday by Mr Sheehan. So far as we can judge from the telegraphic report it appears to have been a very creditable performance. Mr Sheehan exhibited a perfect understanding of the kind of information which* it was his duty to lay before the House, and explained both his opinion as to the past management of Native matters, and his intentions for the future, in a way quite calculated to satisfy the opinion entertained of him. by his friends. - . ( On the whole, Mr Sheehan’s statement is much the best we have had from the Government Bench. It-has the merit of being free from all the evasiveness, and gross .exaggeration in which Sir G. Grey so habitually indulges. Whether he will be able to perform all he promises is a doubt that is commonly applicable to all Ministerial statements. But at all events we believe it may be said of Mr Sheehan that he has not intended to promise more than, if he remains in office, lie may fairly expect to accomplish.

(Wellington Post.)

The days have gone by when a statement of native policy was regarded as possessing paramount interest and importance. Only two policies have hitherto been adopted,towards the natives, viz.: “the peace at any price,” or “ sugar and flour ” policy, and the suppression of rebellion policy. On the •whole, experience has shown that it is cheaper to feed the. natives than to fight them. In the statement made by Mr Sheehan last night, no special new policy was put forth. From 1869 up to nearly the present time, the late Sir Donald M‘Lean contrived to keep the natives quiet by a sort of modified “ sugar and flour policy.” He made many presents, and spent a good deal of money upon them, but the Colony on the whole was satisfied because peace was maintained. Apparently, the present Government intend doing pretty much the same. They will, however, reduce the number of underlings of the IN ative Office who swarm over the Colony, and generally, they promise to retrench as much as possible. One kind of retrenchment was alluded to by Mr Sheehan, viz., the immediate stoppage of all land purchases by agents on commission.' The whole system, it appears from the figures quoted, was one of large expenditure, with no adequate results to show for it. The Colony has spent £540,000, and nominally has obtained 6,000,000 acres of land, but only 1,500,000 has been completely purchased, the negotiations for the rest being still uncompleted. We hope the proposed new system of trying to complete the negotiations for the rest of those lands, by means of respectable paid officers will work better. Mr Sheehan informed the House that their native policy would take a social direction in efforts to educate the natives and suppress intemperance amongst them. This, of course, is perfectly right, but we are inclined to think that a good deal of the money spent on the natives is entirely needless expenditure. The time has come when almost all danger of any serious native outbreak on a large scale has passed away. It is not now, therefore, necessary to be continually bribing discontented natives to keep quiet. A policy at once firm and just, which, at the same time, fully recognised that we owed a certain duty to the natives in the way of helping to civilise them, would be the trueione.

('Wellington Argus.)

The Minister for Native Affairs made an excellent statement to the House last night. It was interesting and even lucid in its account of the present social condition of the Maori race, and coming from a gentleman intimately acquainted with the subject may be accepted as quite reliable. It was also satisfactory on the whole as an enunciation of Native policy. He pointed out that we are not likely to have a further outbreak, at least of any consequence, among the Maoris. They are yearly decreasing—a fact which is sometimes denied by their European friends (and correct statistics are not easily obtainable), but which, so far as careful inquiry has been made, would appear to be fully borne out. They are settling down to civilised habits, and betaking themselves to agricultural and pastoral pursuits, investing money in stock and implements. Besides, of the whole native population, numbering about 48,000 in the North Island, Mr Sheehan reckons that only the moiety of that'

number withipi tfiefKjng/s nukati captbe cpn--sidered a#uhfrieihdly portion comprises about 5,000 men, women, ' and children—no,, terrible contingent under any circumstances. ’ Taking into consideration the insecurity arid personal volved in a Native outbreak—the loss of >life and property it would entail—and only those who have gone through the. ordeal can -fully enter into the'experience of the thing —it is reassuring to have it on the testimony of the Native Minister that no such catastrophe is again likely. : . . . . ~ It is clear, then) that weaire 'entering)upon a new era. The goldebi time-wlieh wild in woods the noble savage ran ” seems about rover, and all siensibleipbople will rejoice that it is so. His nobility o existed only in the /imagination; it was distance that lent enchantment to the view. There may yet be .some ineffectual struggle made,by the Xing, Natives—" a sunburst in the storm of death’’; —but British supremacy is secure; Our increasing numbers and modern arts will accomplish all that is now desirable in placing the Maori in his right position. And, never was a savage ,r,ace better or more liberally treated than the colonists of New Zealand have treated the Maoris. It is pleasing.to note' this fact... They have been,our, sppcial pets. . "We have borne, with , their- follies, on account of their knowing no better.. ? Theirr freedom, of which enthusiasts speak* is but an ignorant impatience of the restraints of law and order. And we are getting rid of the nuisance. iiThe more intelligent l Maoris know it ; you can read the conclusion in their faces as they walk along the streets or wharf of the city. The bustle of commerce, the roar of steam, the various displays in the windows Of our stores/ all ' indicate ;to them most unmistakeably that a powerful people is among them—that their land must come into cultivation—and that their barbaric life must pass away for ever. ‘