EVENTS OF THE WEEK.

Wellington Independent, Volume XVII, Issue 1772, 27 September 1862, Page 3

EVENTS OF THE WEEK.

Sic transit gloria miundi might now be the appropriate and philosophic reflection of the journalist in the Empire City, whose province scarce ten brief days ago, it has been to chronicle and eiiticise the doings of the " Great Runanga of the Pakehas," and deal wilb salaries which for good or for evil, will affect the meisures and the welfare of the whole of the denizens of her Majesty's colony of New Zealand. But now " a change has come oe'r the spirit of the dream," the Halls, which but lately were crowded with the representatives of the people, are now dark, dull, and silent, the rooms in which Committes were wont to assemble, are once more deserted and cheerless, the Reporter's Gallery, is vacant of its brain tortured occupants, and even " Bellamy's " the field of many a scene of virtuous jollity, has had its ameuities outraged by the presence of a profane crowd, and its materiel scattered to the four winds of heaven, by the hammer of the auctioneer The first instalment of our Legislators took wing in the Airedale on Tuesday, week the day following the prorogation, and the remainder, with the sole exception of the Chief Secretary, Mr. Domett, were up and away on Tuesday in the good steamship Queen for the;, centie of circumlocution and red tape, the City of Auckland.

Now that the great eveut of their meeting has come and gone, it may be well to enquire what have been its results, and truly, it must be confessed, they are but barreu. One Ministry has gone out on the question of llerponsibility ia Native affairs, because they wished to assume it, and their successors (maiuly, be it observed, composed of the former office holders,) have initiated and earned through a Bill to deal with the very subject that proved a stumbling block to the other Cabinet, — a Bill identital in princi*

pie with the former one, and carrying into effect that very principle of Responsibility, which was two months ago rejected. Some men seem to be born under a happy conjunction of the planetary influences, and Mr. Domett and his colleagues, certainly afford such an instance of good fortune, as the recent action taken by the Imperial Government, the result of former representations, has removed the obstacles and smoothed over the difficulties, which otherwise woufd on h. preliminary plea, have completely fiustrated their Native Lands Bill. This is neither the time nor place to detail all they have done and left undone, but the conclusions are irrestibly forced upon the mind that very little benefit has accrued to Wellington, that the Seat of Government question was settled by a disreputable dodge, and that the time of the Session lias been so long taken up with Native affairs, as to warrant the supposition that the members have been rather the representatives of the New Zealand Maories than of the British Colonists. Be it so, everything must at some time come to an end, and mayhap at some future period hon. gentleman will have fairly exhanst. Ed Native questions, and may then condescend to biing their concentrated wisdom to bear upon Colonial interests.

The Queen arrived in this harbour e.irly on Sunday afternoon with the English mails on board, and immediately the greater portion of our citizens were on the gui vive for news. Tell it not to the puritans of Otago, whisper it not in the ears of the elect in Dunerlin, but, nevertheless, accept it as an indubitable fact. that' Sabbath desecration becauie the order of the day, that newspaper proprietors with their attend " ant satellites were seen hurrying eagerly to the landing stage, taking boat, aud boarding the arrival, bent on securing the earliest intelligence from the land of our nativity. Meantime, eager groups might be .seen collected round the newspaper offices, and as the purveyors sf intelligence returned, they were followed by a tail of citizens, and beset by questions from gaping political quidnuncs, as to the American War, the proceedings of the Imperial Parliament, what that man of mjstery the French Emperor had been about, was the news from Otago good, and in fact, about everything else on or above this sublunary sphere. By and bye, summaries of European intelligence from the Otago press, were pasted up outside the office doors, and greedily devoured by the crowding spectators, copies of the Home News began to be circulated, and in the course of a few hours the streets resumed their former quietude.

The main interest here has been centred on the fearful struggle raging between the Federal and Confederate parlies in America, and horrible and appalling though the loss of life has| been, yet a certain feeling of satisfaction has been generally felt and expressed, that the fortune vi the day has recently been with the South. The spirit of a free people like ourselves, naturally revolts against the tyrannical attempt at coeicion of their brethren, attempted by the Northern States, and whatever of chivalrous feeling, or a sense of equity and justice dwells within our hearts, is aroused in favour of the oppressed against the oppressor. What an expenditure of blood and treasure has been made in this fratricidal war, what a mortal blow has been dealt to the cause of civilization and progress, and what an incubus of future debt the people of that unhappy country have by their own act fixed on their shoulders.

Our own countrymen at home, too, are already innocent and helpless sufferers, from, the stagnation of trade and depression of the labour market flowing from that cause ; but the recent iusane and suicidal tariff adopted by Congress, will make the evil be more bitterly felt still and tend to strengthen even further the sympathy which already exists in favour of the Southern States. If a sum equivaleut to a tithe of the monej that has been already uselessly expended in this unholy war, were applied in removing the surplus working population of England to this and other colonies where there is room and work enough for all, what an immense mass of want and misery would be removed, and what a great gain would accrue to society in general*

Sir George Grey has been meeting the King Natives at Ota&i, during his semi-diplomatic tour up the West Coast Districts, but judging from the accounts we have receired, and which appeared in our last issue, he does not appear to have met as yet with much success. Nothing could be more decisive than the speeches of Wi Tako and his coadjutor Heremiah, at the interview which took place at the half-way bridge between the King flagstaff and the village. Two days previous to this taking place, Mr. Buller made a series of demands that the King flag should be given up, viz.. that the Flagstaff (Tainui) should be cut down, that the King Movement should cease, and that the Runanga should mccl the Governor at the town of Otaki, (o all of which refusals of ihe most unmistakeable character were returned by Heremiah ; while Tako though evidently unwilling to give any reply at all, was at length prevailed to say generally, that he now considered the Governor childish, and that he would only consent to come half of the distance to meet him. At the meeting itself on the 17th, in the presence of upwards of a thousand natives, nothing in the way of concession could be gained from the wily chief, and the Governor's thiee offers, would appeir to have been rejected with a force and emphasis almost cmteinptuous. There is something ludicrous, were it not painful, in the spectacle of a savage like this, compelling the Governor to come half way to meet him and after all treating the Representative of Royalty in such a cavalier fashion. "If you want to destroy the King Movement," says Wi Tako, you must dig up the seed potatoe (i.e., the King himself),aud then all springing from that source will be destroyed also." It will, we think, be admitted, that whatever object this visit may have been intended to serre, has certainly not yet been attained.

Recent local events have been few in number, and, with perhaps one or two exceptions, rather barren of interest The presentation of a Color to the Hutt Rifle Volunteer corps, which took place towards the close of last week, was made the occasion of a convivial gathering, the like to which in social fun and hearty enjoyment has rarely been witnessed in the Province, Mr. Judge Johnson has been delighting a select audience at the Atheosum with another Shakspeaiian reading, and in the field of music and the drama, Miss Harriet Gordon and Mr. Hyde have been playing almost nightly in th» Odd Fellows Hull. The lady has a maeto soprauo voice of wonderful compass and power, besides which, her abilities as an actress, especially in farce aud burlesque, are of a very high class, while the gentleman in low comedy, displays a peculiar order of talent almost inimitable. Miss Guidon's farebenefit came off last night, at which she was received with the greatest enthusiasm, and her singing applauded to the echo. A most daring robbery was attempted during broad daylight, on the afternoon of Tuesday, at a Jeweller's shop occupied by Mrs. Fredraan. A soldier belonging to the 14th

Regiment, at present stationed here, after loitering about the door for a few minutes, suddenly dashed his hand through one of the panes of glass in the window, and abstracted* three watches, two gold and one silver. Mr. Fredman who saw the act, ran out of the shop, aud seized the perpetrator, who, with the assistance of a neighbour, was secured and finally handed over to the police. The motive for this almost insane act, so cettain must detection and punishment have appeared, was, if rumour be correct, that the soldier in question iiad just undergone a sentence of confinement for some military offence, and was determined for a time, to get beyond the control of his officers, an object he has certainly attained by exchanging the discipline of the ranks, for that of a prison.

ISonie local improvements of considerable importance are at present being rapidly curried out. The ten-lers for the erection of the Custom House, Post Office, Queen's Warehouse, Supreme Court, Resident Magistrate's Court, and Police Office, having been accepted, a few weeks ago, the enterprising contractors, Messrs. Rollo and Humphreys, C. R. Carter, and Gill, have commenced operations with such celerity and promptitude that already close to the sea shore, where but a brief time agone, nought was heard bnt the roll and break of the advancing tide, the scene is now one replete with life, bustle, and animation, and the skeleton of a new building fast advancing to completion, already meets the view. The other buildings intended for the accommodation of the functionaries of the law, in their administrative capacity, are to be on Lambton Quay in a line with the street, and already tbe ground has been cleared, and piles driven for their erection. The Deep Sea Wharf is meantime slowly — indeed very slowly advancing, mid judging from past progress, will likely be completed somewhere about the period of the " Greek Kalends."

There is not another harbour in New Zealand possessed of so many natural advantages as ours, and when those important improvements are carried into effect, the only Anther requisite to ensure it every perfection, will be a slip dock for vessels requiring repairs. It is possible that in tUe present time, this project could hardly be effected through private enterprise, but it might be feasible for tbe Provincial Government to take the matter in hand, and put the community into possession of. such uu important advantage. If this were done for a lime, in the gradual advancement of the province, there would soon be found some private company who would pay a rent for the speculation, and very probably ultimately take over the whole plant by purchase. Meantime, vessel at enormous cost and expense, have to be sent to Sydney for repair^ and certainly the sooner the necessity for jspch a proceeding is obviated, the better be for the Colony i n general and the produce of VVellington in parcular.

We perfectly agree with Lord Elcho, that physical training and athletic exercises are of the highest importance, as a mean for preserving the health and developing the muscles of the rising generation, and we hail with the most unalloyed pleasure, the systematic initiation of a movement in the old couutrj with such an object in view. Mensnana in corpore sano is a maxim which is now getting better understood there, and people begin to see that there is such a thing as developing the mind overmuch at the expense of tlie body, and that the golden rule esteemed and approved by the united wisdom of sages of by-gone times, is to bring all the human facilities, physical, intellectual and moral to the highest possible point of perfection. That being our opinion, it is with gratification we are enabled to record that at least one manly exercise, we allude to the game of cricket, is still supported by a devoted and enthusiastic band of amateurs here. The members o£ the Wellington Cricket Club held a meeting \on Thursday evening, to review their career during the past year, and to resolve oq a plan of action for the ensuing summer campaign. From the report read at the meeting, we gather that hitherto their operations have been highly successful : that their "budget" presents a balance, though a small one, on the credit Side, and that a sum of money had been transmitted to England to purchase a further stock of mi terial to supplement what they have already in hand. There is however a want sorely felt by the members, of a proper cricket ground on which to play the forthcoming matches, and the members are emphatically called upon to put forth all their energies to procure that desideratum. We humbly suggest, that this affords a fair subject for a public and more general effort, and doubt uot, if the proper means are used to bring it under its notice, that the community will respond with both heartiness and liberality. Meantime we wish all success to the devotees of the " but si'id ball," and trust that New Zealand will soon emulate and rival the sister colony of Australia, in the pluck and proficiency of her cricketers.

The uews from Otago, received per Storm Bird, on Thursday night, do not, so far as the gold fields are concerned, possess any features of special interest. At the Nokomai diggings, operations had only been just commenced, and little could be said of the general prospects of the miners. One or two parties, including that of the original prospectors, were, however, getting liberal returns, and probably in \ view of the rapidly increasing number of people crowding to the place, we may soon bave intelligence of other fresh and payable ground being opened up. The gold fever had once more attacked the denizens of Victoria. Shippiug agents were reaping a rich harvest from enthusiastic gold seekers bound for the new El Dorado ! and 750 had arrived at Dnnedin in the clipper ship Lightning, shortly before the departure of the Sturm Bird. Meantime, if ptivate reports are to be credited hosts of gaunt hungry looking individuals, are perambulating the streets of Dunedin repenting their haste aud lolly, and tryiug the interesting though rather unpleasant experiment of living upon suction. We do not for a moment question the ultimate productiveness of those new rushes, but we would earnestly impress uiuition being exercised for a time on the part of all our citizens, who are in haste to get rich by trjing" their luck in the golden lottery. The high price of Butchers Meat in the South, and fust decreasing supply, have induced the Provincial (roremment in Otago to permit importation of cattle from Gipp's Land. It is stated the disease of Pleuro-neumonia has never existed amongst the stock of that blessed locality, but we feel very much inclined to doubt the assertion, and to cousider the present step hasty and unaclvisable. We shall not further comment on this at present, but trust that any disastrous consequences in the future may be averted. What is to be done about the wreck of the "Lord Worsley," which -at present lies stranded on the coast within 42 miles of a British Settlement aud a garrison town r 1 Are the Natives in virtue of the ancient privileges of Cornish wreckers, and time honored rights of

"flotsam and jetsam," to be allowed to claim the prize as their own, or is the Queen's supremacy to be practically shown by measures being i^ken for its recovery ? We shall see. Tho barque Princess, from London, arrived in this harbour yesterday evening, after a protracted passage of 138 days. She brings a full cargo of general merchandise, has thirteen passengers on board, and is consigned to Messrs. W. .& G. Turnbull & Co.

The Cionshee which recently started from here bourn! to Auckland, laden with cattle, returned last night, and brought a mail from that place, by which we have dates to the 13th instant. She lost 26 head of the stock on board during the passage, The intelligence fiom Auckland contains amongst other items, the announcement of the arrival of the Matilda Wattenbach, with 340 of the Nonconformist settlers on board. An open air public meeting 1 of the citizens of Auckland was held on the 10th instant, when an address of welcome was presented to them, and three columns of speeches delivered iD their honor. Some of the Coromandel quartz reefs are yielding good returns, relative to which the New Zaalander has the following. "I saw yesterday, about sixteen pounds weight of quartz crushed, and the yield was enormous: the stone was taken from the leader in claim No. 13, the property of Thomas Gibson and party. The result was truly splendid ; there being a pint pannikin rather more than three parts full of pure clean gold. I had it in my hand, and should ssy it could not have weighed less than 10 lbs.

" From Dwrt's claim six ounces of the leader were crushed, and yielded upwards of 2h oz. of very beautiful clean gold. These facts seem rather startling, but are not the less true on that account, and are no secrets here. When machinery comes I imagine we shall be even more surprised. One party have in their possession about two tons of stone in which the gold is to be seen in considerable quantities with the naked eye. There will be most cer tainly among the miners here, men who wil' make their fortunes from the claims which they are at present holding."

By private intelligence from Wanganui, received by this morning's overland mail, we learn that the Wonga had arrived there on Wednesday, after a rough passage. His Excellency Sir George Grey had arrired, and was detaining the Wonga Wonga for the purpose of returning in her. The Chronicle has not come to hand, neither this week nor the last. Can it be that our contemporary is defunct ? Is its Editor nan est ? Or have the printers joiued the exodus to the South ? Which is it ? We pause for a reply.