Taranaki.

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 4, Issue 222, 27 December 1860, Page 3

Taranaki.

[From the Herald’s * J.ourriaibJ Fverits.’j , .■ Saturday, .Nov. 17*r—;We are informed ,that 200 ■ Taranakis, wider Par,enga,i/Cingii > are,at /fauranga;an(l..Tataraimakß, fl*).d:that Bpiha, one of the JFaikato chiefs, is to meet-t-heni to confer about |ftiture; We liear that the Waikatos have wvlttjsp|twp.les|tC!iri to the friendly natives inviting--them go over to them, aud that if tliey the opportunity they \vifl be treateil aV'white skins.” .7’wo natives. Hone and Te .baye tjfttie' over to the enemy during thfe yvjeek, Mritiu has been with 'thri' ,MShoe--tahi fight, w]rich he. saw ; he werit ' OVelr on the ‘fellriwitig day—-qo give, them every particular respectingthe ' battle; /Flietber Mati’u used , his'gTiri'bri" that'day we do not know., We/should, like mueb/to know; in what/ Hgh'i these liativei v ‘aife r %qrisidered. : As ‘fari ai they are * cniteeriled Hhfey belifeye can come and go when"’ they choose. Common'justice be ;i tblU :; that 1 If tmffi gH ? Wri fenemy, l alter' ; jbiriiii^ M 6ur ii: Siii'fe 1 - Rnd' I takihg the'dalh'rif ! aTlfegiaricfe;i‘triey 'will' tie considered arid 1 treated aIS-’-fHHto'lsf. 't- « rj: 'V v -‘ w

i Nov: l3~The Tasmanian Maid fr6irilWait|ra' to-day; ' Slie 'reports the %atives “’busily feriVplbyed ; 'cultivating' -at /hdtokdhe 1 "/fulrariigi '■ JFaikatos are planting potatoes fine. Tlie trerichfes:riiariri'ed a,s usual;'and visite'4'“l>y Coloriel' Wyatt, 65tii/' i?,egtr ‘ ’TuesdayfT^m?-' z iS()^\\ r ßkmpt : \ fine. The gunboat,Caroline, frpni , Manukau,. the. 18th instarit, arrived this ,; :morning! : . with de-spatches for the C erierai; v s , he ' l bri'rrgsi;, Intfelligerice that 800 Waikatos were about, leaving/Upper JFaikato "for' Waitai-a.. It is reported in town that- '.theWrijkato' ; biiye occu-, pied -’Pukeraugiora, an old fortification where the Waikatos in' 1832 killed, great numbers, of iVgaliau-'a.tribe, who were, driven, pyfer a liigh preriTrceJri hundreds// i^iikerangidfa 1 is a Strorig/p'qsition about' three miles beyond Huirarigi. It" is said this will be the head quafters of the Waikatos; From Makhetaiii we ' hear that rifle pits,J of holding -1000 - men/" have been' discovered fin- the small bush on the south 'bank of tlie . fFiaionigariJ, -arid about' 400 yards iiv' rear of Mahoetahi. 1 The bush J is‘’being cleared and 'the’.rifle pits filled .in. Had a t reserve ,o| natives occupied this 7 bush the 6th i’nst; the fparty 1 havri tieeri flank;. The Fararialifs-ai Haurarigaliave returried.' The natives inform us tliey cape : pp, according to ancient custom; to sbow;rtlie Waikatos theiii readiness, to'-assist -'them fin avenging their fallen at Mahoetahi. r#p . ;: Friday, ’.Nov. 23 —The. Xpwri/was- surprised this morning, by the intelligence that the Waikatos were -at JFaliwakaihi), and had fired upon and wounded a k young man named John Brish®pv^-3frUd*‘-Wa^s//gEi Vf '*£^f^flCth‘fer ? s i farm Contiguous to the bridge..' Bislibp ? and a native boy''were'swalkirig' ori/lheflat 'Cri/tliC' town side of tnfey deceived a volley behind a-risjiig 1 .abbiit" 15 yards from "whfeic/tliey wefe' ’ (ari old Maori entrenchment); Bishop was Kit’/through the The two iranie/liately,; jran . intq, ;a. hooded swamp under the paj.C’aod:fefucceeded in escaping; the town, where he fainted from loss of blood. Frqm/the number of shots-firedj-aHarge party must, have been in ambush.

6 p.m.—"Bishop's wound in the wrist is severe, the bullet passing through the two bones, the ? in the' is J superficial.; 'He hM K i(t''Bingle-iran%l ! ifi his hand when, the bullet ,strii6lc’him f’ ’fie; dtbppeil it aM it 1 wdS 1 takcih During the . afternoon, f a' * hativdVonhm saw aboht 2tio Of them abross the river, and when they saw her, they passed, Bishop's guii ohe to another, with exultingybllsi T afterwards waved to her* to returg toljer pah. ~ Jt is said the JFaikatos are Mr. Smart’s farm. An officer and a mounted volunteer tdWn to day frohrvWabbetahi.V iFrom him jwe are informed tmththfi stockade is not erected on ;Mahoetahi, bjit/on- a bill in the bush, before- xnentipned', where-the,; rifle pits were- founds This. roa) is much: stronger .than Mahoetahi, : and-was a Maori pah of ancient date, and: haying ho less than-iieven terraces. Tins was not known before from its peing tjhickly covered with : Karaka trees, now

cleared away" ami" the stockade” li'earlycompleted. The enemy are occasionally seen, but keep out of range. . • r r . Sa r uT(fey, Nov. 24—A party of Waikatos, estimated at 100, passed through the forest, ou their way, it & stated, to Taranaki, but it is mpre likely: to. extend themselves to the south of the town. A party will occupy the country iu the vicinity river.

Sunday , Nov. 25—r-The Tasmanian Maid came up this morning from Waitaxa, with the intelligence that the Wuffqitos had erected two nalis, one almost 13()6 yards from/Puketakauere. Both are in open -country, the first, Matarikoriko, being nearly in a line with Ngatiparir.ua; and the .river Waitara, situate on the top of the slope to the river. The second, Kerikeriruamati, is a short distance outside the small bush to the left of Huirangi, and about 50 yards from Matarikoriko. .Both - -it is -be! ieved, intentionally so, as a ruse to entice the troops to attack theni while ilrbm numerous rifle pits and flanking barties in the vicinity, the chief resistance would be offered. Tire rebels, amongst whom are Wi Kingi’s.party, .are still at Wuiwakaiho, and others are iri rear of the 'tbwn,'%nd'' s iit’ 5 - ; '’Oma'la and Ratapihipihi. A number of cattle and sheep .have been driven off the farms, ' ■. .

We are ..informed*, that ,the ?j natives }yhofired at «T. Bishop on Friday last are— Tamihana [the same who killed /fawlcen.) Tarnrutaugi C one of those who -shot R. Brown.) Erueta ( W i Kingi’s soil,) and /feta, a: hative-lwho came over with Hoera, &c., but was let free at Jfaivvakailio, and returned to tlie enemy shortly afterwards. Monday , ' Nov.! Tasmanian Maid from W aitara this mjorning, brought up the Auckland; ..at ‘Mokate on their way lferd %3 tbo.:,advance.-guar<j[« lie says, of a, large part}% on their way, after having heard of the Mahoetahi disaster, . From a reliable source iii’ Waikato we are favoured with the follow ing interesting information South of the

junction the Waikato < and Waipa line nearly every native in Waikato ami part Of Mokau and Taupo, are either inarms or ready to take them up: Reinforements will be sent to Taranaki-some are expected to start this week. Wetini is very much blamed by his tribe -for having been foblttardylii leading -his menirtto danger. They' say there were only fifty Mabries in the fight at MalfOetiihi T f r olij allies from Taurangi; if they join, it : increases much' the ‘bounds of the wan ■ • There 1000 men at that place." "I do not think ihahy will join in the first instance; still it is ti commencement. The not at all uppear to be"; I’hey imagine tbit'victory wilf finally crown their arms. Poor creatures,whit misery they brihg'Upotf aSd - ! * I have spent some time during the hist 7 "few-ilays amongst the friends of those who have fallen, and have sounded them as to terms of peace. Some natives proposed that the disputed block should be divided between the Governor and King, that the horses, cattle, #c., should be restored, and that a block of laud should be given up for the property destroyed.' I do not think that Wetini’s tribe, wouidlisten to any terms at present.” f

Tuesday, Nov- 27—The rebels were in Mr; L. : Hammfertou’s house onvS^tur^ayplg? 500 yards from the Bell blockhouse, pulling down the lining and ceiling, On a small party proceeding out to reconnoitre, the euemy decamped,—the , recently erected" pahs "at ; Matarikoriko are' described" as ' having "'been made into one, and are now of large dimensions. We ar^.;giyep;to understand that the recent partyi of marauders at .Henui and /faiwakaiho were principally Wi Kiugi’s men. Wednesday. Nov. 28.—-At about five ai.ra., the following houses were fired at Henui: Messrs. A. King!s, M'Kechney’s, Shuttleworth’s (2). Dr. Neild’s, and Marsh’s, and burnt ‘to the ground. It is stated that tlie incendiaries are not Waikatos, and the circustance. of the fires following so closely on the destruction of the. Katere pah, favours the belief. The 12th and 65th left at Mahoetahi on the 6th inst;, under Major Hutchins j who have been busily employed fortifying the position at Ngapuketurua, inarched into town 10-day and arrived at two ip. m. Tlie 'Stockade is completed, and is garrisoned by a detachment of' .the. 40 under Lieut. Rees.—The Waikatos are still employed on the pas at Matarikoriki,< and? appear to be .concentrated there. is : .:a ill

Friday , Nov. 30.—Fires were seen last eveuiug in the direction of Patterson’s Saw Milk Parties of natives have been seen-6if Burton’s Bill; and this morning .we^-are informed that 40 Waikatos under Tapihaua went through, the bush yesterday, .on tlieir way to meet tlie Taranaki and Ngatiruanui at a large meeting about to be held. It was rumoured yesterday, that the southern ..natives are coming up in force to occupy Burton’s /fill and Waireka again. A party of Taranakis under Parenga Kingi, came up as far as Tapuae yesterday, and fired several shots into Mr. W., Carrington’s house. The Airedale with the English mail arrived this morning. A passenger reports having seen a number of. natives at Hauranga. The Victoria left shortly afterwards to reconnoitre, and returned at 4 p.m. She went off as far as Kaibihi, and’ returning saw at Oakura, about 200 natives proceeding southwards. Saturday, Dec. I.*~H.M.S;S; Niger unexpectedly arrived this morning from Manukau, with the draft of the 65th, who left this on the 12th ultimo, with the addition of 100 men, in all 340 rank and file. Their return will doubtless lead to a resumption of those active ' operations against the rebels which were inter- : rupted by their withdrawal.— The s. s. Robt. 1 kQwe, after a rapid passage of 81 days, ar-

rived' in Aiickland- on Wednesday. with 0 head-quarters:.imV 500 men of H. M. 14t: Regt., and on lliursday, at 6 a.m., theOotl; were on the march for Manukau, to embarl: on board the The Airedale for Mann kuu (after having discharged 200 tons o; cargo ) left at 2 p,m., followed at 4 by tho Victoria, and at 5 by the Niger. The three Maori prisoners, Hoera, Renata, and Poari, were put on board the Niger for Auckland; the fourth prisoner, 'i’e One, who was not well enough to be moved, remains in hospital. The news from Waikato by the Niger,, reported in the “ Postscript” tb the Herald of. this date, is that the Nagatihau. had not left for Taranaki, but were tb have a great meeting; and ta»gi at owfng.to the fall* of r J’e Wetini Taiporutuat Maboetahi. Wednesday. Dec. s:—-fLM. colonial steam sloop Victoria arrived this morning from Munn'kau with the detachment of the 40th. The)r were all landed, > t!o.t.\vj ; t].i.3taudiug^he..« ! ittcle--mency of the weather, at 9 a.m.,.and proceeded to their’old quarters:: at ihe Market-place., /’he news from Auckland by the Victoria:is of a most satisfactory nature as regards theintelligence from the Hume Government regarding the war. ■ despatches, luive been;jreceiyed! by liis Excellency fr<4i the Gblbiiial; Office .approving of his policy, and assuring him of the support of the Home Government to quell the,insurrection. They,.will be found iii another coliimn. It is also intimated that another regiment from "India or China will be despatched to this colony.— Z’amiliana and Tarurutangi, of-Wi AyngiV party, were two of the murderers of the buy iSarten. They had also called; out to the natives in the pa that 100 Waikatos were in the bush, but that they should not be touched, hut cautioned them to be on the alert. This morning several shots* werefired at.«the pa, near the bridge. , Thursday, Z)cc 6. Ihenatives seem»nbw ~ determined upon carrying on a systematic; guerilla warfare. It is said that there are no. less than seven different parti: s out, i.i the. vicidity of the town, ready to pounce upon stragglers. . At Wuitara the natives occasionally come within 800 yards of the new stockade ; and bn Tuesday, during the fog, came to Putetakauere (the stockade being erected ou the second mound, called Onukukaitara) and endeavoured to fire an old sentry box there, which they failed to ignite from the dampness of the fern of which it was com fcructed. On another occasion a large party, came, within rifle-shot, when a soldier who was out-. side the stockade held ,up a spade lie, wasusing, and they all ran off as fast as they, could. The Airedale, arrived at 9 this morn--ing from Manukau. She brings, yesterday’s papers.. The three .prisoners, //oera, Renata,, and Pb.ari, have been sent back in the:/fire--dale, to lie dealt "with by the authorities here..

HOUSE,OF representatives: :

Wedxesiiav, Oct.TO. " ;; In replyTo a question. from Mr. Fox, whe* ther the Minister for Native affairs would lay on the table the despatch to the, Home Government, in which his Excellency referred to the article in the Examiner headed “Blood for Plood.” Mr. Richmond said, that his sExcelleiicy h'ad declined to produce the despatch, which was of a private nature, and could not therefore be ma le public. J T)r. Featherston h.«ke-l tlie Colonial Secretary, whether, during the period., between Ist July 1856 and 30th Aept. 1860, any part of her .Majesty’s revenue 'in' JVew Zealand had been issued, except in pursuance, of warrants under theTand of the Governor signed by the public Treasurer. The Colonial Treasurer replied, that several sums liad been taken from the" Treasury; without tlie Governor’s warrant. Ou the motion of Mr. Domett, the report of the select'; committee 1 on Crown grants" was adopted. .• Mr. Kelling , moved the adoption of the report of the select • committee oh distillatipn, and after some discussion-the-report was negatived without a, division;- J : : : - : “ The consideration of the Estimates was con-, tiiiued till a late hour. ■;> . jE>Cfc.'il, . Mr. Carter moved, “ that a respectful ad-. dress be presented to his Excellency, requesting that Mr. A'erancke’s report on Native, lands in the NVairarapa, and the surveys, connected therewith, be laid on the table. Agreed t 0.... . /. T "f Dr. Monro-moved for Copies of any. correspondence between the gOVeinmeut' tind Mr. Justice Johnston. -Mr. Stafford moved thhsecond reading of the Militia bill, without remark..; 'Mr. Fox criticised, its, provisions in a speech of above two hours’ ' length, which produced a great impression, and the ministry-afterwards withdrew the biil. ; . V ' T j- k f Friday, Oct. 12!

Mr. Fitzgerald moved for . . leave to bring in a biil to enable tlie Governor to appoint a.. Commission to inquire and report as to wlmt would be an equitable apportionment of thepublic debt of the former province of Welling--ton between the provinces, of Wellington and //awke’s Bay. This motion was opposed by Messrs. Fifzherbert, Sewell, Fox, and d/oorhouse, and the debate was adjourned. Mr. Gillies moved the second reading of the New Provinces Amendmeiit bill. In doing so. he disclaimed ..being; actuated by party spirit. He considered, the passing .of. the, New Pro* vinces act as a great political blunder, and that. . if it continued on the statute book it would bemost injurious to the colony. It was introduced without any : previous notice to thecountry. The Colonial Treasurer introduced it when a.large number of members were absent. . It was carried by a majority of 5-when. 21 members were present, //e could not say

whether the absent members had been jockeyed, but the circumstances were suspicious. Resolutions condemning the measure were passed by the Otago Provincial Council, and forwarded in Nov. 1858 to the General Government for transmission to the /inperial authorities], but they were not forwarded from Auckland till a year thereafter, and so were not laid before the Ilome government till the act was in operation. Then, with respect to the act itself, he approved of local self government; but was this act fitted to promote such a mode of government ? He thought not; it merely ■weakened the provincial governments. He would read a sentence by Lord Coke on this subject,—“ Undermine and shackle, as far as possible, the action of all institutions of local self-government, fettering their jurisdiction with many limitations till their authority by little ami little vanishes, and then hold them up to ridicule for their inefficient action, and proffer the protecting mantle of a central interference against their inefficiency.” He was aware that reasons had been given for passing this act; one was, the neglect of outlying districts. Admitting the charge —although he considered it in Inany cases made on insufficient grounds—was this the proper remedy ? on the contrary, the grievance would be multiplied ; the small provinces would do with their outlying districts what the present provinces were now said to be doing with theirs. The clauses lie proposed to repeal were Nos. 1,3, and 5. The first clause mentioned the conditions requisite to the formation of a new province : —lst, the application must be signed by 150 electors; 2nd, there must not be more than three million acres of land; 3rd, there must be 1000 residents in the proposed dis trict. A petition might be got up privately, signed by the requisite number; the other members of the community, although a majority, might know nothing of it until the new district was formed, when it would be too late to make any inquiry into the genuineness of the signatures. Such a change could be made at the instigation of noisy demagogues, and without any apparent reference to the wishes of the majority. He had known instances in which persons had signed petitions for new provinces, and in a few days after signed a counter petition, begging that they be not ineluded in the districts to be proclaimed a new province. The lion, member then criticised the other two clauses, and in the course of bis remarks said, there was no option left to the Oovernor; he must give his assent when the conditions mentioned had been complied with. What lie proposed was not intended as a final measure. He merely wished to stop the operation of the present act until the sense of the country should be taken on it. He had no objection to new provinces in certain circumstances, but this house should decide on each case according to its merits. If real local self-government was wanted, lie thought the county and municipal system of .England should be introduced. Rut he advocated the continuance of large provinces, which could much better foster the various interests of the country than small and poor communities. He concluded by moving the second reading of the bill.

Mr. Moorhouse spoke in favour of the A mendment bill. The New Provinces act he considered was a sudden trick of ministers played off upon a thin house by an unfair majority. Ministers kept the house in ignoranee of what they intended to propose notwithstandangjrepeated questionings, and it was not until it was certain that none of the members from . Wellington—the province it was intended to ; plunder, the province most interested in the measure—would be present, that the real bill was produced. He advocated the suspension of the New Provinces act until the opinion of the country was pronounced on it. The carrying it out would cause vastly increased ex- i pence, and would stop tlie carrying on of public works. Already Ahuriri had been hurt by it; a large sum of money had been expended in a vain attempt to deepen iVapier harbour; the idea was quite preposterous ; it was like sending a servant girl with a dust pan to dredge for oysters as big as a barrel of beef. If the money so squandered had been spent in extending the great road through the available lands of Ahuriri, which the public spirit of Wellington had commenced, the occupation of the country would have gone on at double the speed. If the present provincial governments were allowed to go on perfecting the means of transit and communication, our New Zealand estates would soon be as valuable as any in Europe. But in small provinces these great public works could not be carried on ; neither was there any political advantage to be gained from them. Political squabbles, already so injurious to the interests of this country, would be increased. To political hatred of this kind the act owed its origin. The supreme executive of the colony bad a most thoroughpaced political hatred for the executive of a particular province, and this act wa3 a blow inflicted on absent antagonists. Mr. Fitzgerald explained, that the movement for the separation of Hawke’s Bay had been gone about openly, and had been all but unanimous. 7/e defended the expenditure of the provincial money, and had no doubt that in a short time the harbour of Napier, which was so essential to the prosperity of the province, would be greatly improved. He contended that by the Constitution act the General Assembly had power to create new provinces, and in consequence Hawke’s Bay was established. But they had been driven to petition for separation by the unfair way in which the "Wellington Council had treated them. As to the principle of the New Provinces act, it was not intended, and was not likely, to produce endless subdivisions. There were very few districts in the middle island that could be

(formed into separate provinces, /a the north -j era island there might be one on the east! j coast, in the present province of Auckland;; but that is the only one, as Wanganui was not likely to separate. It had a good river for small vessels, but there was no place for large ships lying off it in safety; and as it must always be muie or less dependent on the port of Wellington, separation was not likely to be demanded.

Mr. Fitzherbert spoke in favour of the Amendment bill, chiefly dwelling on the impropriety of passing such, a measure as the New Provinces act without a direct appeal to the electors. Wednesday, Oct. 17. Mr. W r eld spoke at some length against the Amendment, bill, and concluded by moving that it be read that day six months. .. Mr. Carleton, after denouncing the policy of ministers, especially in connexion with Native matters, felt bound to give, though re luctantly, his voice with the “ ayes.”

Mr. ZJaldy had no hesitation, but great pleasure, in giving bis vote in favour of the second reading of the New Provinces act //memiment act; he had no confidence whatever in-ministers.

Mr. D, Bell, who spoke more particularly on matters pertaining to Otago province, supported the amendment. Mr. Sewell (who said he was prepared to accept the ministerial challenge, that this was really a vote of confidence or no-confidence) denounced the New Provinces act as a dis? grace to our statute book, which he would do his utmost to have removed, and questioned the legality of the act. Mr. Forsaith followed on the same side, and declared his want of confidence in ministers.

Lh\ Monro followed in support of the New Provinces act.

The debate was brought to a close for this day by Mr. Renall, who, if he wandered from the precise point at issue (as some other speakers also did), considerably enlivened what had been a rather heavy debate; and Mr. Brandon moved the adjournment to the following day. Thursday, Oct. 18. 11l reply to a question from Colonel Haultain, Mr. Stafford said, that an application to the Imperial authorities had been made and refused for heavy guns, but they could now make another application for both heavy and field guns.

Mr. Renall asked what, was the position of the Militia bill.

Mr. Stafford said, that though be believed a Militia bill was absolutely necessary, yet it would not be effective unless it were a popular measure (bear and laughter). He did not think the bill introduced was one of this character (hear, hear). He had looked at the various Colonial Militia acts, and thought that of Nova Scotia was preferable (hear), giving a deserved preference to volunteers, and lie intended to propose certain resolutions in the matter.

The order of the day for the adjourned debate on the second reading of the JVew Provinces act Amendment act was resumed by Mr. Brandon, who spoke in support of the second reading. He was followed by Mr, Domett and Mr. //eale in opposition; Mr. Carter in support; Mr. Richmond (Colonial Treasurer), who was greeted with warm counter cheers as he rose, and who spoke at great length in defence of the New Provinces act; Mr. Moorhouse, who strongly denounced the ministerial policy on this question; Mr. Fitzherbert, on the same jside; Mr. R. Graham, who explained his reasons for changing his former views and now voting against the New Provinces act, and wlio was very severe on the member for the Bay for declaring his intention to vote with ministers after so loudly denouncing their policy ; Mr. Williamson, who strongly advocated the repeal of the New Provinces act; and Mr. H. Brown and Mr. Crosbie Ward, who spoke in condemnation of the course pursued by ministers; Mr. Curtis, who supported ministers, though declaring that Marlborough had been improperly constituted a new province ; Mr. Fox, of course, in de nunciation of the New Provinces act; followed by Mr. Stafford in support of it. Mr. Gillies replied at considerable length, and was succeeded by Mr. Fitzgerald, who replied to certain personal and other statements made by Wellington members. A division took place about half-past 2 on Friday morning, with the following results, — for Mr. Weld’s amendment, 17; against, 16. The house adjourned at a.quarter to 3 a.m. Friday, Get. 19.

The Census act Amendment act was read a third time and passed. The amendments by the Legislative Council in the Savings Banks act Amendment bill were considered and adopted. The Barristers and Solicitors admission bill was read a second time and amended. The Public Domains bill was committed, reported, read a third time, and passed. The Supreme Court . bill was committed and amended. . The house resolved itself into committee of supply. Tuesday, Oct. 23.

The hon? Mr. Stafford moved for leave to brin<* in a bill to provide for the establishment and maintenance of Lighthouses; bill read a first time. The lion. Mr, Stafford moved for leave to bring in a biU for establishing and regulating a Colonial force within New Zealand ; bill read a first time.

The hon. Mr. Richmond moved his notice of motion to move in committee of ways and means, that it is expedient to raise a loan of £150,000 ' for the, service of the colony; carried.

1 The Public Domains bill, the //ucklaml Waterworks bill, and the Nelson and Marlborough bill, wore read a third time, passed, and ■transmitted to the Legislative Council.

I)r. Feat.herston moved the second reading of the Land Revenue appropriation bill, No. 2.‘ He said lie'was almost ashamed to again bring forward a question which had been already decided repeatedly and emphatically. He understood that a former decision of the house would have been received as final according to tlie promise of the Colonial Secretary. But the other house had unconstitutionally rejected the bill that had been passed by the house, and he thought that if ministers were not prepared to submit to the opinion of a majority of this house, they ought to resign. lie then went over similar ground to that which was gone over in advocating the first bill.on 2Grh Sept:, and concluded by stating that this bill was intended to carry out the recommendation-made by bis Excellency the Governor, in liis-rep’.y to the address of the house carried by a majority of 21 to 10, requesting him to recommend the refund to the provinces of Auckland, Wellington, New Plymouth, and Hawke’s Bay, of all sums retained under the clauses repealed in the Land Re venue Appropriation act. By passing the repealing act, the house decided that the retention of any portion of the Land fund of the provinces of this island was a violation of the compact of 1856 ; by adopting the address to his Excellency -they declared that the funds impounded ought to be refunded ; and by passing the present bill they would simply carry out their previous decisions, Mr. Richmond, in moving that the bill be read this day six months, said, that the Land Revenue Appropriation act did not interfere either with the principles or form of the resolutions of 1856.- The provision that the bill made for reserving one-sixth of the Land revenue was a provision for recovering a portion of the expenditure for extinguishing Native title. When the General Government expend ,£50,000 or £60,000 it is fair they should be able to recover say £IO,OOO, so as to eke out the funds for the extinction of Native title. It was contemplated in 1856, that the loan of £IBO,OOO should be expended, “ subject to such conditions as to application thereof as the legislature may direct.” And the partial reimbursement of the Land purchase expenditure by the retention of this sixth was one of these conditions afterwards agreed on. The fundamental principle ef the scheme, that each province should have a separate and distinct interest in its own land fund, is not departed from ; because the sixths are to be spent iu the province from whose funds they are retained. Mr. Gillies contended, that the loan of £IBO,OOO must be expended in the extinction of Native title, before any arrangement could be made as to forming from the Land revenue a fund for the same purpose. An<\ the arrangement of 1856, that the Land fund should be held and administered by the provinces—this principle must be adhered to, but it had been set aside by the retention of one-sixth of the revenue by the General Government, Mr. Fitzherbert, Mr. Sewell, and Mr. Moorhouse followed on the same side.

Mr. Stafford replied, and Mr. Richmond’s amendment was negatived by a majority of 20 to 12. Wednesday, Oct. 24. Mr. Ileale (Auckland suburbs) moved a resolution, “ That the just claims of the large population inhabiting the provinces of Auckland and Hawke’s Bay, as well as the convenience and efficiency of the public service of the colony, require that the mails to and from Auckland be conveyed by steamers running direct between the Australian colonies and Auckland, and thence to Napier.” After some discussion, the motion was lost by a majority of 18 to 7. The principal objection was the expense such a communication would involve —not less than £IO,OOO a year. Various bills were read a second time. The iVaturalization bill, the Registration of Deeds bill, the Half-caste Disability Removal bill, and the Land Revenue Appropriation bill, No. 2, were read a third time, and ordered to be laid before the Legislative Council. Thursday, Oct. 25.

Dr. Monro moved, “ That this house has seen with regret tire conflict between the Superintendent and the Legislature of the province of 'Wellington, which has existed for more than a couple of years, and has had the effect of depriving the Provincial Council of that province of their constitutional control over the expenditure of- the public revenue, and further recognises the necessity of taking, at some early period, effectual steps to guard against the continuance or recurrence of such a suspension of local self-government.” The motion was carried by two ayes, without any debate.

Mr. Fitzherbert moved, “ That the report of the select committee recommending the, sum. of £25,000 for the relief of the Taranaki settlers, was adopted on the express understanding, that this sum had been computed so as finally and conclusively to dispose of the question of relief or compensation.” After a short debate, the motion was carried. A motion, made by the hon. Mv. Stafford, “ That it is desirable that the Governor be authorized to make arrangements with the Governments of the neighbouring colonies for the establishment of a line of. steam postal communication,,with Great Britain via , Panama, provided that>New Zealand be,not required to pay more towards it than £IOOO additional to what is now paid for the line via Suez” Was agreed to. Mr. Gillies moved, “ that the administration of justice may be sufficiently provided for without the establishment of District Courts, and that the Supreme Court, Sessions of the

Peace, of' Resilient Magistrates ami the ordinary Justices of the Peace, are sufficient for the purpose, and that a change in the. system should be made by the Government in the ensuing session.” The motion was agreed to. The second reading of the /tfrms bill was moved by Mr. Richmond, who said the object of it was to enable the Government to make sure of bow arms were sold, and to make the disposal of them illegal except under certain conditions. No man would go beyond him'in preserving the fundamental rights of the Constitution, or make a greater sacrifice for principle ; but it was necessary to make a voluntary surrender of those rights for the common good. The government had been blamed for the. suspension of the old act; but it appeared that in 1858-60 only 25 double barrelled and single barrelled guns had beep sold to the natives in the southern part 'of tlip’golqny, and 779 double barrelled and 631 single, barrelled guns to those in the northern part of the island, a great proportion of which had been sold to friendly tribes. The bill might be stringent, but was not, in this inspect., un-English-*-*for even England had itsr tyrannical'restrictions. Mr. Brandon objecteiUto the act both in its principle and its details. object seemed to be to deprive every man of his arms who had any, and it would foster a race of spies, and give rise to constant annoyance and irritation. Mr. Forsaith moved, that the bill be referred to a select committee.

Mr. Gillies spoke against the bill, which operated against the settlers having arras, not against the natives. It would create greater evils than it was intended to amend.

Mr. Daldy could not agree within system which brought into requisition info&ers and spies, and allowed them forcible entryinto the houses of citizens to search every corner for arms, &c.

Mr. Stafford said, Government had proposed this measure believing it absolutely necessary. 7he standard of morality was not high in the colony ; at this time there were men selling arms to the natives; they were known, and a strong check was necessary. Phere w r as no such thing inherent in civil society as the liberty of doing wrong, and there should'be a law to restrain men from acts that would injure their fellow-men. Public opinion in the colony was not strong enough for this; society was not placed in large enough masses to give weight to public opinion. And the press, a great portion of which indulged in personal scurrility, was not able to control public opinion. It was absolutely necessary that the natives should be prevented from renewing their stock of ammunition, and he did not think that the introduction of this bill, though it was a little strong, made them chargeable with a design to undermine the constitutional government of the country. There was no punishment for misdemeanour but before a jury; and while the government kept all the prosecutions in their own hands there was perfect safety for the subject. ' Mr. Fox expressed his surprise at the government bringing in that bill. 7’hey bad not tried anything of the kind wheu Sir George Grey’s proclamation was relaxed, so that the natives had during the last two years ample time to arm themselves. Nearly 6000 stand of arms had been imported during this time, with about 40,000 lbs. of powder, and many hundred lbs. of shot; so that the introduction of this bill was like shutting the stable door after the steed had been stolen. He thought there ought to be restrictions, but not so great. The hon. gentleman who introduced the bill must have in his library, and have well studied, a little book entitled, “ The art of sapping Free institutions taught in three lessons.” The measure was very objectionable in many respects, and ought to be altered. After several other members had spoken, the second reading was carried by a majority of 25 to 15.

Mr. Fox said, that the.members on.his side of the house would use every, constitutional means to impede the progress of the bill; and the government consented to refer, it to a select committee. . ' • Friday, Oct. 2£. The report on the //rms bill was brought up and adopted. The Taranaki Settlers Relief bill was read a third time and passed. The motion ,tliat Mr. Fitzgerald have leave to introduce a- bill to enable the Governor to appoint a commission to inquire and report what would be an equitable apportionment of the public debt of the former province of Wellington and Hawke's Bay, was, on the motion of Mr. Stafford, discharged from the notice paper. JTEDNESDAYj Oct,. 31.

Mr. Brown brought up. the report of the Waikato:committee, which : was ordered to be printed i . % . A motion byMr.Carter, that Mr. Searancke’s report on. iVative lands in the Wairarapa be printed, was agreed to.. A motion by theffion. Mr,AY: e W was agreed to, To move in committee of .supply, that his Excellency the .Governor .be recommended to allow, as occasion may arise, such; a bonus to non-commissioned officers and privates' of militia or volunteers,^—when . called out for actual service, special duty, or extra .training, —as may raise t heir pay to a sum not exceeding on the whole , the following, namely, sergeants, 3s6d; corporals, 3s ; privates, l 2s 6d, in addition to rations. . , = . • The il/ilitia bill and the Arms bill were reported and passed; , ; . ? . The house resolved.itself into committee on the Native Council bill, and among: other alterations and amendments, Mr. Gillies carried the motion, that no member of the house of Representatives, and no Superintendent or member of a Provincial Council, should be. a member of the Nature Board,; ~.