IMMIGRATION FROM THE HIGHLANDS AND ISLANDS OF SCOTLAND.

Wellington Independent, Volume XXVIII, Issue 3916, 2 October 1873, Page 2

IMMIGRATION FROM THE HIGHLANDS AND ISLANDS OF SCOTLAND.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE INDEPENDENT,

Sib, — The all-absorbing tojno in NewZealand, at the present time, is immigration, and the most effectual mode of promoting it with a . view to adequate colonisation. Our dualist Government — General and Provincial — seem intensely desirous of making large accessions to our yet scanty population, and no one can doubt this, for they have already "given abundant proof of their sincerity in the matter. There is, however, a difficulty in effecting a realisation of their expectations, be they ever so sanguine on the subject, which, no doubt, they are. Comprehensive means have been adopted for the accomplishment of the object, but all these have hitherto worked more ,or less defectively, and long-looked-for success appears to be as problematical as ever. All parts of the colony are lustily crying out for labor, but the supply is so far from being equal to the demand that those in urgent need of muscular aid are at their wits' ends as to what to do. Public works, from lack of hands, can only be pioceeded with very tardily, and private enterprise shares the same fate. The*art of civilisation, so far as it relates to the construction of railways, roads, and bridges, and the development of resources, is ruinously impeded, and unless a salutary reaction takes place soon, disastrous results will assuredly follow. We have arrived at a crisis unprecedented in the history of the colony, and our future safety depends entirely upon the course we pursue in the embarrassing circumstances in which we have been placed. That course must, unquestionably, be one worthy of the exalted position we have attained for ourselves ; for it would be unpardonably derogatory to us to recede from so conspicuous a climax. ■ Our last energies must, therefore, be directed towards advancement, basing our. success upon eelfreliance. The most formidable obstacle to be encountered is one with which we are familiar — it having stared us in the face for a long period. That obstacle, I reiterate, is scarcity of population ; and any suggestion which may tend to the furtherance of our immigrational objects, at the present juncture, should be well pondered over by those in high places. The countries principally selected for tne> procurement of immigrants for us, up, to this time, have been England, Ireland, the Lowlands of Scotland, Germany, Denmark, Sweden, and Norway ; but,. strange to say, the Highlands and Islands of Scotland have been all but completely overlooked, although these are well known to have been, for scores of. years, fertile fields of expatriation to the Carplinas, the Canadas, and the Australian colonies. In the Hebrides — the name applied in general to all the islands on the west coast of Scotland — which comprise Lewis, Harris North and South Uist, Barra, Skye, Canna, Rum, Eigg, Tiree, Coll, lona, Collonsay, and Islay, there is, according to the latest census returns, a population of 120,000, consisting chiefly of crofters, or small farmers, fishermen, and agricultural laborers. Many of these~4slanda, including, in particular, the two XTists and Skye, are greatly over-peopled, although moderately large. Numbers of the inhabitants leave annually for the Dominion of Canada, whither they are attracted by the magnetism of kindred and acquaintanceship, which the Celt finds difficult to resist. From an elaborate report of the state of v thja Hebrides, which appeared in the Glasgow and Inverness papers about two yeara ago, I learn that 5000 souls could well be spared from these islands every year,, although it is apparent thai • not more than one-sixth of that number emigrate therefrom 'in a twelvemonth. The inhabitants in general are very poor, but being, as they are, sober, honest, industrious, and economical, they manage to eka out a livelihood ; but the toil they have to undergo and the privations they have to endure in providing for themselves and their families a bare susten- - ance are such as would prove unbearable to people less accustomed to hardships than themselves. Like the Shetlanders, they are robust and healthy, and possess the very commendable quality of< Making themselves agreeably and submissively useful under all trials and circumstances, wherever their lot may be cast. The Highland portions of the mainland of Scotland where immigrants are plentifully procurable are : — Lochcarron, Lochalsh, Lochbroom, Kintail, Glenelg, Knoydart, Arisaig, Moydart, Lochaber, Appin, Ardnamurchan, Morven, Cowal, arid Kintyre — districts which contain, a population of about 160,000, and in which, poverty also reigns, but not to tUb exlent it does in the Hebrides. Here, then, is an aggregate population, of nearly. 300,000 souls to work upon j and as the ties by which the people are held to their natal soil are gradually growing weaker,, it is no exaggeration to assert that,,st least, 7000 could be obtained for us, froia so large a~mass, in two or three years. . A different immigration agency to employed in other parts of thY ;TJni.teJcL

Kingdom -would, however, require to be established for the Highlands and Islands, as, without this, sucaess could not be calculated upon. The Highlander, like the Maori, loves Ins native vernacular and his fellow-countrymen dearly; and, to reachhis heart effectually, he must be addressed in the language of Ossian, and . that, too, by a Gael. He must also have matters minutely explained to him, and when he is able to arrive at what he considers a proper conclusion, his mind at once fixes thereon and adheres to it without vacillation. The agency that succeeded best in inducing the Higlanders to emigrate to the Australian colonies was an agency carried on by a Mr M'lntyre, upwards of thirty years ago. This gentleman, being a native of the Highlands and capable of fluently addressing public meetings in Gaelic, and being also of energy and perseverance, he performed his duties to the unqualified eatifaction of his employers. To use his own words, he placed himself in the position of a recruiting sergeant in the land of the Celt, and was, indeed, frequently designated as -the " Immigration Recruiting Sergeant" by many of his friends and acquaintances. He regularly attended fairs and other places of public resort, secured the influence of the local clergy and parish schoolmasters, and strenuously advocated emigration by public addresses, and even by house-to-house canvass wherever he went. He soon gained the confidence of the people, and this once accomplished his work was comparatively easy afterwards. In less than six years he sent out upwards of nine thousand statute adults ; and hundreds of these people are now in affluent circumstances in Australia. The Highlanders have uniformly enjoyed the reputation of being a virtuous and industrious class of immigrants, as well as of being friendly and hospitable to a remarkable degree. Were an itinerant agency of the same description as that of Mr M'lntyre's inaugurated in .the Highlands' 1 at the present time, I am confident that our immigration difficulties would be considerably obviated thereby, and not only so but the condition of those whom such agency would be instrumental in introducing to our shores would be materially bettered. The climate of New Zealand, is admirably adapted to the constitution of the Highlander — it being in a great measure a climate similar to what he has been accustomed to. Canada is too cold, and Australia is too warm for him ; but the Britain of the South is just the country for him. As all parts of the Highlands and Islands are in regular communication with Glasgow, by steamers and other public means of conveyance, the emigrants could, at little expense and inconvenience, embark at that port for this colony.

In conclusion, it is proper to state that several local agents have been appointed in the Highlands of late for the purpose of inducing emigration to New Zealand, but these scarcely render any effective service. In the first place they are irresponsible persons ; in the second place they do not possess the requisite qualifications ; and, in the third place, they are not sufficiently active and energetic ; and for these reasons we need not expect much from them. Knowing "what they are, I am in a position to speak from experience concerning them. Respectfully commending the foregoing suggestions to the favorable consideration of o\ir immigration authorities, — I am, &c, Fiob, Ghaidheal.