E—No. 2

12

FURTHER PAPERS RELATIVE TO

Considering the nature and number of these questions, and the practical consequences that might flow from a conflict between the Government and the Natives, —consequences affecting , not only the Settlement of New Plymouth, but the whole Colony : considering also the peculiar relation which the Crown of England has assumed to the Native race, as their guardian and instructor in law and in the arts of peace : it is quite manifest that the occasion demanded the most full and complete inquiry,—an inquiry which should be so large in its compass, so accurate and careful in its several steps, as to leave no room for any reasonable man to question the soundness of the decision. Nothing short of that, could be either just or wise in such a case as this. 2. The persons claiming an interest in the land were numerous. Some only were on the spot: others were at Waikanae, Queen Charlotte's Sound, or elsewhere. These persons too were all British subjects, and entitled to "all the rights and privileges of British subjects," by the Treaty of Waitangi. The assurance thereby given in the Queen's name, has been solemnly repeated many times from that day to this. The last time was only a few weeks agj. "It is your adoption by Her Majesty as her subjects, which makes it impossible that the Maori people should be unjustly dispossessed of their lands or property. Every Maori is a member of the British Ration; he is protected by the same law as his English fellow-subject; and it is because you are regarded by the Queen as a part of her own especial people, that you have heard Jrom the lips of each successive Governor the same words of peace and goodwill." [Speech of Governor Browne, at Kohimarama, 10th July, 1860.] No right of a British subject is more clear or more precious than this : that the Executive Government shall not use the force at its command to oust any man from his land or deprive him of any right which he claims, until the question between the Crown and the subject has been heard and determined by some competent tribunal ; some tribunal perfectly independent of the Government, wielding the full powers of a Court of Justice, and subject to the same checks and safeguards. Two things are needed : Ist, that such a Tribunal shall exist ; 2nd, that it shall not determine the question without giving due notice of the proceedings to the opposite party : so that they may be able to make their answer to the claim, and produce evidence in support of their case. This is a fundamental principle of our English Government ; not only of our English Constitution, but, of necessity, a fundamental rule of all free and constitutional Governments everywhere. For without it, the subject has no security against the aggressions of the Government. If the Government can decide the matter in its own way, and through its own dependent agents, and then take what it claims, the subject is at the mercy of the Government. How, then, were these our fellow-subjects dealt with in this case ? In what precise mode the inquiry was conducted, is at present unknown : but thus much is apparent, that no such inquiry as was due from the Government to the subject, was ever made. 3. Whatever inquiry has taken place on the subject, was carried on by the Land Purchase Department. It now appears that the main part of the business was transacted by Mr. Parris, the local Commissioner at New Plymouth. What degree of supervision Mr. Parris was subject to, does not appear. It now appears that no inquiry was conducted by Mr. McLean, at New Plymouth, except the preliminary inquiry made by him early in 1»59. The regular investigation of the title was left to Mr. Parris. It becomes, therefore, necessary to ask what were the qualifications and powers of these officers in respect to this business. Both of these officers are agents of the Executive Government, ; employed by the Government for the purpose of purchasing land- Both of them were not only general agents for that purpose, but had also been concerned in that very transaction, in negotiating the purchase. One of them, Mr. Parris, as a settler at New Plymouth, had an interest, in common with the rest of the Taranaki settlers, in the opening of the Waitara land. How could these officers, being agents for the purchaser, be fit persons to decide on the validity of all the objections made to the purchase ? (48). Was William King likely to accept a decision, made upon the authority of persons who now denied his right, after having often practically affirmed it, by using all endeavours to obtain his consent ? Moreover, these officers possessed none of the powers requisite for the purpose of conducting such an inquiry. They had no judicial power or authority whatever : nor was their inquiry (whatever it was) accompanied by the safeguards and checks which would attend a public and regular judicial investigation. So far as appears, a man who would have been properly challenged as a juryman, has been allowed to act as Pleader, Jury, and Judge ; or, to speak more correctly, an irregular and insufficient inquiry before an agent of the Government, disqualified in all the ways abovementioned, has been put in the place of that regular, open, and fair trial which every subject of the Crown is entitled to before his property is taken from him. 4. We have spoken of the unfitness of the agents in the inquiry. We now ask, what was the mode in which the inquiry was made ? What was the extent to which it was carried ? We are not in possession of any Minutes of Mr. Parris' proceedings. The only published Keport is dated July 16th, 1860, seven or eight months after the inquiry terminated. \_Further Papers E 8 A. p. 2,] It does not furnish any very clear or full answer to our present question. It is plain that he did not investigate the main question between the Government and William King, viz.,— whether there was any tribal right affecting the land, and whether the tribe or community had consented or not. His statement extends only to the individual rights of the sellers on the spot, Teira and the others. If, as appears, the Government had determined to recognise nothing but the individual right, we cannot be surprised if nothing more was inquired into by the agent of the Government (49.) Still, it is much to be regretted that the Government assumed these matters rather than investigated them ; especially