The Sun.
London, England, 1861-08-16 00:00:00

` Tena koutou? (how are you all ?) and made friends
with us, and then we said l'ena koe e kawana?,
aim. Then the second Governor came and sai
(how are you, 0 Governor ?) and made friends with
_d
'Lena koutou e hoa ma ?' (how are you my friends ?)
and made friends with us, and we did to him as we
_
had done to the other. All the Governors, said
Tena koutou?' and we said 2 ena koe ?' Then
this Governor (Browne) came and said
Tena
koutou ?' and we said' Tena koe?' and now we are
trying to discover what it means. When we have
found it out then we shall know."
It has been the constant effort of Governor
Browne and his advisers to confuse the boundaries
of this King question and of his own war at Tara-
naki. Naturally enough, Wirimu Kingi sought
aid from the Maori King party, and they watched
his proceedings with great interest ; but the Tara-
naki question was a distinct issue, not so much for
the paltry bit of land as Wirimu Kingi's claim as a
chief—the tribal right, as it has been called. Again
in the proclamation given above the Governor seeks
to confound the two questions simply because a few
hundred Waikatoes aided Wirimu Kingi. But this
is a new war on a new issue, and I fear it will be
much more disastrous, protracted, and costly:
However, it seems too late now to recede, and
whether this course might or might not have been
prevented by a more statesmanlike policy—whether
her Majesty's command has been brought forth by
erroneous information or not—the war must be pro-
secuted with effect.
There are now nearly 5,000 troops of all arms in
New Zealand. A regiment is expected from Eng"
land and another from India, and by the middle or
end of July the land forces will amount to 7,000
men. There will be also four or five ships of war.
General Cameron is said to be a good soldier, but
without experience in Maori warfare, and rather
disposed to undervalue such experience. He will
be ably seconded by Colonel Warre, from India,
every inch a soldier. He is believed to have been
mixed up with the design entertained in March last
to proclaim martial law and carry the war into the
Waikato country—a design which was defeated
as mentioned in my last. What is now to be dreaded
is the slaughter of numbers of outsettlers by war
parties of the natives. The authorities in New'
Zealand call these "murders," but the natives have
no distinction among themselves between combat-
ants and non-combatants. It would not surprise
me if the settlers should organise parties to retaliate,
and they will soon become as skilful and unscrupu-
lous in the bloody work as the natives themselves.
In New South Wales and Port Phillip the early
settlers were forced to become murderers, in self
defence. Thus the war will become a war of
ex-
termination. Suffer, the Europeans must, but in
the end the natives are certain to be subdued, and
then to be neglected and illtreated until they die
out. Ido most firmly believe that if the adminis-
tration of native affairs had been handed over to
the general Government and Legislature of the
colony this dreadful crisis would not have hap-
pened, but the theory of the Colonial-office, sup-
ported by missionary and aborigines protection
societies, always has been that the settlers were
prone to oppress the natives, and were not to be
trusted ; and now we reap the fruits of that theory.
If hostilities commence in the Waikato district,
they are Very likely to be renewed at Taranaki,
but on the new and larger issue. Most of the news-
papers of late have admitted that the natives were
humbled, and the turbulent natives south of Tara-
naki, not many in number, would easily have been
put down, especially as they were discountenanced
by the friendly chiefs at Wellington. But it is nor
said that Wirimu Kingi will return to Waitara to
organise the natives there. He will be accompanied
by a body of Waikatos, and the Maori flag will be
raised, and.the principle of the organisation is to be
resistance to the Queen's authority. This rumour
comes from Wellington. The East Coast natives
also report that Naylor of Wangoroa, a staunch
Government man, has declared in favour of the
King movement, and certainly this movement itself
has lately assumed a more consistent and substantial
character than at first, for the King has establishea
four regular mails from his head quarters. The
contractor, as he may be called, has £3O for each
mail and 6d. for each letter. One goes down the river
Wanganui, to the town on the left bank of that
rivor: another awn-. We Rangitikai, to an linpor-
tant pastoral district, a third to Akuriri (Napier),
and the fourth to the Bay of Plenty.
Governor Browne and the Waikatos have always
been suspicious of each other. They were alarmed
at his war against the " tribal right." What was
Wirimu Kingi's case today might be theirs to-
morrow. The governor has never been sufficiently
open in his communications with the tribes in his
own neighbourhood. He scarcely took the trouble
to say " Tena koutou," and receive their " Tena
koe." He has never comprehended the King move-
ments. In his eyes it is simply an attempt to set
up a sovereignty adverse to that of the Queen, and
under his management it must become what Le
makes it. No doubt he has been able to make good
his own views to the Secretary of State by quota-
tions from Maori speeches and references to Maori
acts, and hence the Queen's command to put down
the King movement. There is plenty of evidence
the other way, and it was certainly incumbent on
him to institute an analysis of Maori feeling on the
subject with, if I may so speak, almost chemical
accuracy. There are many men in this colony from
whom he might have received important assistance
—men who have studied the native character for
years. Ido not mean that he should yield up his
Judgment to such men, or, indeed, to any men ; but
he should have used them as witnesses, he should
have compared their testimony one with another,
testing the whole by his own observation. Some
of these men, and these not the least able, hale
opposed him on the land question ; and, regarding
them as hostile, he has rejected their evidence alto'
gether. Let it be granted that they are hostile to
his policy, they are unimpeachable as witnesses;
and, if he rejected their advice. he might at least
have listened to their opinions and their evidence ;
fas est et ab poste doeeri.

At the close of last session the Ministry w5B
repeatedly beaten by the Wellington party, NOW/
is favourable to native rights. On this question
the Ministry has been beaten at the general
election. The Governor may think that they
have supported his policy, whereas he has been
merely working out theirs. It is just possible that
this new war may keep the Stafford Ministry'
beaten generally on the hustings, in power. It is
just possible that the keeping this Ministry in power
may have had some influence in causing this Pre"
elamation to be issued. If so, Great Britain will
have to pay some millions and sacrifice many lives
to keep a colonial Ministry in office under the sys•
of Parliamentary Government.
I think there is yet some hope of better counsels.
There will be a majority in the House of Represen-
tatives in favour of peace, without compromising
the Queen's authority, The natives know that, and
if some of the best of these men get into power it
will have a great effect on the natives. If they re-
main a powerful Opposition they may carry mea-
sures to establish some native administrative autho-
rity in spite of Ministers, and cause the King
movement to die out. Whatever may be the events
of this new war, I believe that it will never be too
late to put an end to it by a wise organisation of
local native authority. Of course we cannot treat
with men who have arms in their hands. I would
not treat ; I would act, and act in such a way as to
bring nine•tcnths of the natives back to their ails'
'
giance. I know them well, and I feel certain that
it is to be done, and I believe a Ministry
might be
found with both the will and the ability to accom-
plish it ; but then " the administration of native
aft' tirs is reserved to her Majesty ;" the settlers and
their representatives are not to be trusted, they
might involve us in a native war at any time ; the
Governor cin alone keep the peace between tqe,
settlers and the natives—a fine theory, which will
cost England a millidn or two.

-
SOUTH LANCASHIRE ELECTION.—The Liverpoot
Courier, a Conservative paper, yesterday evening published
a second edition, alleging, on " reliable authority," that
Mr. Cheetham, disappointed with the results of the canvas
on his behalf, had determined to withdraw from the co'
test, so as to save the expenses of polling booths, clerks, See'
This preposterous fiction was promptly contradicted by the
liberal committee, who designated this statement as not
only untrue, but as a decided sign of weakness on the part
of the Conservative interest. On 'Change, too, much 111
feeling was engendered by this st ttement, especially as none
of the other daily papers had vouchsafed to notice to
rumour.