EMPLOYMENT OE IMPERIAL TROOPS.

7

A.—No. 9.

" Islands, but you will see that those endeavours failed. No doubt the mere act of escaping from " there is such as no one will blame them for, for they only olieved the first law of nature. But they " brought guns from there which were not their property, and they used those guns afterwards and " took other guns. The case does not, however, stop there, for we have positive evidence as to the " intention of Te Kooti, from what he repeatedly said in the hearing of persons at times antecedent to " that at which these men voluntarily took a part, in his acts. Gentlemen, if there were no other "purpose that this trial could serve than this, it is well that the Colony, the Mother Country, the " world, should know that the deliberately avowed and repeated intention of Te Kooti was, as it has " been expressed, —and I shall use no language of rhetoric to characterize the expression,—to annihilate " the momokino, the ' bad breed.' On pressing the matter, and questioning the witnesses as to what " Te Kooti meant by the ' bad breed,' and what was understood by it by his followers, it became a clear " matter of fact that the ' bad breed ' did not mean this man or that; it did not mean the Pakeha, the " foreigner, merely, but the Government people of both races. Throughout the whole disastrous " events, both the language and the actions of tin's party showed that their attacks were levelled " against those who supported the Government. What Government that was, there can be no doubt. "It was the Government of Her Majesty in the Colony. Therefore, I say, this is so pregnant and " important a fact, that if nothing else resulted from this trial, your long detention from your homes, " the inconvenience you have been put to, and which you have borne so patiently and intelligently, " would be but little in your estimation compared with establishing the fact before the world that " such are tho intention and meaning of those persons who, 1 am sorry to say, are still, as far as "we know, in more or less active insurrection against the Government. The importance of the trial " in this respect, of course, so far from tending to prejudice the prisoners at the bar, would have rather " a contrary effect, for I say, notwithstanding the perhaps justifiable observation of the Attorney- " General, that, to my mind, what becomes of these three men is comparatively insignificant to the " great fact which this trial will probably establish, that, as far as regards the circumstances of that " portion of the Colony with which this case is connected, the Government has not been acting other- " wise towards the hostile Natives than for the maintenance of the peace of the country, and that Te " Kooti and his followers have not set up the pretence of a grievance done to them." ffi W "7? »5P -T? W " No possible suggestion can hereafter be made with regard to this portion of the Native race, at "all events, that their object was to get back land of which they complained that they had been " wrongfully dispossessed. No suggestion can hereafter be made that their conduct was even retalia- " tion for some oppression or injury which they even pretended to have received at the hands of the " British Government. No suggestion can be made that the insurrection in this part of the Colony " was the result of misconduct, ill-feeling, or mismanagement on the part of the European settlers or "of the Government. With matters which are called political we have nothing to do here. It may " be that some persons may think that if these prisoners had been better guarded these events would " not have occurred ; but what justification can that be to them for anything further than their " escape, which undoubtedly the law of nature suggested to them ? If it were necessary to show " distinct motive more clearly, does it not appear that the mode by which they sought to shake off the " yoke of British rule was by annihilating the British people in this Island ? Ay, and that so little " was there of anything like a national spirit in it, that they were ready to sacrifice persons of their " own race; and not only those who, in assisting the Government, might bo said in some kind of sense " to be traitors to the Native cause, but harmless women and children of their own blood, merely " because they were under the protection of the Government." With regard to the non-recognition of Maori authority, on which Earl Granville lays some stress, Ministers fail to perceive, if they understand the expression aright, in what respect the Native policy is open to objection on that account. In 1858, an elaborate series of Acts was passed by the Colonial Legislature, in order to give legitimate effect to that authority in Native districts, and one of the most important of them, " Tho Native Territorial Bights Act, 1858," was disallowed because (see Despatch, 18th May, 1859, signed by Lord Carnarvon in absence of Sir E. B. Lytton,) Her Majesty's Government could not "either for the sake of the Colonists or for that of the Natives, or for Imperial interests, surrender the control over Native affairs." In 1862, Governor Sir George Grey strenuously tried to introduce local institutions into Native districts, and the General Assembly appropriated for three years the annual sum of fifty thousand pounds (exclusive of appropriations for Native schools), such sum to be expended for purposes of Native government in such manner as the Governor may direct; and this appropriation was made at the time that the Legislature refused to assume responsibility for Native affairs, and was therefore subject to the Governor's personal control. Every successive Administration since the conduct of Native affairs was transferred to the Colony, has been anxious to avail itself of every opportunity to induce the Natives in the disturbed districts to resume their friendly relations towards the European race, and thus open the way to their participation in local institutions. Nor has the Legislature neglected to provide for the special interests of the Natives generally. Tho Native Lands Acts have enabled them to dispose of their lands. " The Native Eights Act, 1865," has given them all the rights of natural-born subjects of Her Majesty. "The Maori Beal Estate Management Act, 1867," provided for the management of real estate belonging to infants and others of the Maori race under disability. "The Native Schools Act, 1867," made provision for the education of Natives. " The Maori Bepresentation Act, 1867," made special provision for Native representation in the Colonial and Provincial Legislatures. Unfortunately, in the case of the (so-called) King Natives, to whom no doubt Lord Granville principally refers, their consent to any negotiations wit h us has not, until very lately, been obtained. If, however, the recognition of Maori authority is intended to mean a recognition independent of, or inconsistent with, the authority of Her Majesty, Ministers at once state that such a recognition was never entertained, and could not, even if it were desirable, have been granted by the Colonial Government.