1866 - Carter, C. R. Life and Recollections of a New Zealand Colonist Vol. II . [New Zealand sections only] - APPENDIX, p i-lxxx

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APPENDIX.

No. I.

[From the "Wellington Provincial Government Gazette," October 17th, 1855.]

Provincial Secretary's Office,
Wellington, October 6th, 1855.

HIS Honor the Superintendent directs the publication of the following Report of the Commission, appointed to enquire into the amount of damage sustained by the City of Wellington and suburbs from the late earthquake, for general information.

By his Honor's command,
WILLIAM FITZHERBERT,
Provincial Secretary.

REPORT

Of the Commission appointed by his Honor the Superintendent to inquire into the amount of damage sustained by the City of Wellington and suburbs, from the Earthquake which occurred on the evening of the 23rd January, 1855 (and if any individual distress was occasioned thereby); also to report on the material and mode of building best calculated to resist the effects of the Earthquakes peculiar to New Zealand.

THE Commissioners, after a careful inspection of the

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whole of the buildings in Wellington, beg to report:-- that they estimate the loss sustained from injuries to buildings of every description and also to merchandise and household effects, as near as they can ascertain, at the sum of £15,408. In respect of individual distress, the Commissioners have much pleasure in stating that none whatever has come under their notice, though personal loss, in some cases, they regret to say, has been severe.

As regards what may be considered the most important part of their duties, viz.--the materials and mode of building best calculated to resist the effects of the earthquakes peculiar to New Zealand, the Commissioners would premise by saying, that chimneys have sustained the most damage, the greater part of them (about three-fifths of the total number) had their tops thrown down, or were so dislocated as to require taking down, about one-fifth were entirely down, and about one-fifth remained uninjured.

Those chimneys which were the most massive, built inside the buildings, and carried through the ridges, stood the best, the lower portions of them being in most cases uninjured. The Commissioners are therefore of opinion that the safest plan is to build chimneys inside the houses, and carry them up through the ridges, at the same time building-in, in the external angle of each chimney-jamb, a piece of by 4 1/2 by 4 in. red pine with the chimney bar and two side 4 1/2 by 3 in. cross-pieces secured to them; the angle pieces being also firmly fixed to the joists, above and below; the jambs ought to be 14-in. work, and the backs the same; the shafts may then be carried up in 9-in. work to 18-in. or 24-in. above the ridges of the roofs, and ought to be cased up to their junction with them with scantling and boards; the chimney breasts ought to be built up square to the first floors.

Double chimneys stand better than single ones, and their larger base, weight, and solidity assist very materially to retain a wooden building in its place.

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Roman or Portland cement should be used in the construction of the brickwork. Chimneys built in the angles of rooms are also recommended.

Outside chimneys are least to be relied on if placed against a gable, their narrow bases, slender shafts, and non-protected state on one side, added to the oscillating wood work on the other, makes their downfall a matter of certainty; if the shafts were built in 9-in. work in the centre of their bases, and carried up clear of the wood work, their chance of retaining their perpendicular would be much enhanced.

Chimney shafts with circular flues are recommended from the strength the circular form confers on brickwork: they may be further strengthened by square iron straps girthing the shaft and attached to the boxing of the chimney.

In reference to buildings in general, the Commissioners have not been solely guided by the fact that they are required to withstand the effects of an earthquake, but have also taken into consideration that they should be built in such a manner and with such materials as will lessen the danger from fire and retard the progress of decay.

Had earthquakes been their only study, buildings entirely constructed of wood would have been recommended -- for sound and well constructed wooden houses receive no damage from New Zealand earthquakes; but timber being very combustible, and often subject to rapid decay, it becomes a matter of urgent importance to a city like Wellington, daily increasing in size, and the buildings once detached now being united in block, or in street line, to be provided with building materials of such a nature as will combine three properties, viz., strength, durability, and incombustibility. Stone or brick naturally present themselves as likely to resist decay or fire (and earthquakes if bound together with iron and good cement), but that they are more brittle than iron or wood, the following data shew:--

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Specific cohesion and strength of materials.

From the above we learn that iron is about ten times stronger than yellow deal (a pine of great strength), and yellow deal is ten times stronger than Portland stone, forty-one times the strengh of common freestone, and thirty times stronger than brick.

This, and the recent earthquake, leads us to the conclusion that brick or stone used with common mortar for the high walls of a building are unsafe, and therefore ought to be discontinued, unless combined with cement and iron or wood, so as to form a fire-proof covering to a building.

Buildings with their sides and roofs covered with slate, offer some protection from fire, and are not subject to decay; but from their brittleness they are only serviceable on the side of a building on which there is no traffic.

Galvanized corrugated iron is stronger than slate, affords protection from fire, is very durable, and keeps all internal timbers dry and well ventilated--which is the best preservative they can have--it affords protection from fire up to a certain degree of heat, that degree attained, it warps, bursts the rivets, and leaves the frame a prey to fire--as in the case of the great fire at San Francisco; but irrespective of this one disadvantage, as a covering to buildings, it is far superior to boarding.

The common sheet iron, corrugated only, is not recommended. Even with careful painting it corrodes, and as there are parts beyond the reach of the paint brush, there it corrodes as rapidly as a red pine board

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would rot. An instance of this may be seen in Mr. Warburton's iron store, where the ends of the corrugated sheets resting on the ground plate are eaten into holes by corrosion. Iron houses (such as imported from England) are, in nine cases out of ten, so deficient in the strength of their timbers and bracing as to be unfit for a windy country like New Zealand. In England they are stronger and used as sheds and railway stations only. In this country they will be found to be unsuitable. In Australia they have been found not to answer, and have become unsaleable--hence the heavy shipments of them that have been made to New Zealand.

The shape of these iron houses is the most un-pleasing to the eye that can be well imagined.

Were iron houses constructed according to designs supplied from this colony, and all external parts of them galvanized, they would be much superior to wooden buildings, though exceedingly expensive. They ought to have some pretensions to architectural design, and be able to withstand the effects of earthquakes, gales of wind, and a saline atmosphere: the absence of these three requisites are very apparent in Mr. Allen's iron store, opposite the Post-office.

In the course of the enquiries and inspection of the Commissioners, two things have invariably presented themselves in those parts of the town where the most damage occurred, namely, dilapidated buildings and defective foundations; buildings erected on loose gravelly or swampy foundations; buildings with the ground-plates partially or entirely decayed, or destitute of braces--have suffered severely; while both houses and stores where the timbers were sound and the foundations good, have escaped with scarcely any injury--even brick houses on a good foundation have escaped material injury--for instance, Mr. Hickson's private residence, on a foundation of concreted clay; Captain Henton's house; Mr. Eade's store, on rock; Mr. Holdsworth's house in Karori Road, and others.

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From Mr. Bowler's Office to Kumutoto Stream, good buildings have really suffered very little, the foundations along here being rock, cropping out, or within three or four feet of the surface. In one place, the chimneys in three two-story houses are uninjured, and these buildings are plastered on the inside, which is also uninjured. Mr. Laing's two-story building, with plaster front, large brick oven, and chimney, hardly received any damage. From this evidence it will appear that a good foundation assists in no small degree to preserve a house from damage during an earthquake.

Before building, the foundation should be the first consideration. The building sites in Wellington are in many places composed of loose gravel, fine and coarse alluvial deposits, in some instances dry or swampy, in others concreted gravel, hard clay, or laminated rock. The three latter descriptions of ground require but little preparation; the artificial foundations to carry the building may be piles, brick and piles, or all brick, for in nine cases out of ten, where the foundations are all brick, and not more than one foot high, they are uninjured; even in a great many cases where the brick walls are two feet high and the natural foundation good, they are uninjured; for instance, the New Church in Willis Street and the Mechanics' Institution.

In foundations all brick, the ground-plate should always be kept half an inch above the brickwork, and a strip of lead, iron or slate, inserted between the two at intervals of four feet; and the bottom weather-board ought always to have its under edge one inch lower than the under side of the ground plate, in order to overlap the face of the brick foundation at least half an inch, and thus keep all dry.

In bad or indifferent natural foundations, if consisting of loose gravel, the trenches, after having been dug out to a depth of three feet by a width of two feet six inches, should be filled in to a depth of one foot with concrete, formed of the shingle thrown out and Roman cement or stone lime, and then built up to the required

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height in brickwork. If the ground is new-made or swampy, a sill of the heart of Totara, 24-in. by 7 in. may be laid level at the bottom of the trench, which has previously been prepared by ramming; a brick wall may then be built on the sill, or piles tenoned into it, the tenon being dovetailed, and wedged (after being inserted in the sill); the spaces between the piles can then be filled in with brickwork.

Piles, of themselves, fixed in the ordinary way in ground of a loose or yielding nature, are useless for heavy buildings intended for warehouses; they do not afford bearing surface enough, and when charged with heavy weights, are liable to sink, oscillate, and if Totara to split. They will do if driven with a piling engine, or placed near together--for ordinary dwellings or light buildings they answer very well. For some years to come, timber will be the principal material used in building, but the time will arrive when the colony is richer, when more experience is gained, and when labour and talent are more abundant, then massive and durable erections, with thick stone and brick walls, will be both numerous and safe, as they are found to be in countries subject to much more violent earthquakes than this. Rome, remarkable for the grandeur and number of its stone buildings, has been subject to very violent earthquakes, yet its buildings were very high. The Coliseum was 167 feet high by 627 feet in diameter, and held 87,000 spectators. In 439 A.D., a tremendous earthquake damaged this massive stone edifice, and another earthquake in 496 A.D., again damaged it and shook down the Podium; other earthquakes occurred of a subsequent date, yet this immense building, though about 1900 years old, has survived earthquakes, fire, and barbarian spoliation, and at this day, one side of it retains its original height, and-- though dilapidated -- some of the grandeur of its ancient proportions.

It is quite easy even at this time to demonstrate that the more massive brick or stone works are, the better

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they will stand, provided the material and foundations are good. It is obvious that if we can build a block of brickwork in cement, so as to make it a solid body, adhering together in all its parts like stone or wood, and give it a large base or the form of a pyramid, it will neither fall to pieces nor turn over. Freestone is only composed of silica and other particles cemented together with a calcareous earth. The pyramidal form is an important one in nature: the high conical hills which surround us partake of it. yet they never overturn--there they stand for ages. We see many pinnacle rocks with their bases sunk in the earth and their tapering forms rising high in the air; also the beacon at the heads, half rotten, and 40 feet high, yet these remain as they were before the earthquake, incontestibly proving that solidity, cohesion, and the pyramidal form offer most resistance, and are the three conditions which, when combined, are most capable of withstanding the shock of an earthquake.

During the continuance of the late earthquake, the earth was upheaved; a wave-like motion was imparted to it; all bodies on its surface partook of that motion; they oscillated from side to side; all vertical bodies became inclined--at what angle it would be difficult to state, had not a trivial occurrence been noticed which enables us to form some idea of the angle to which rectangular bodies, buildings, &c., were elevated.

In one house, a chest of drawers, standing with its front or narrow part in the direction of the shake, was upset, while in the same house another chest of drawers standing with its end or length in the line of the shake, was left standing.

The depth--that is from back to front--of the drawers which turned over, was 1-ft. 7-in., and the height 3-ft. 7-in., or rather more than double the depth.

Now, with these simple facts before us, aided by a reference to the laws of gravity -- which inform us that when the line of the centre of gravity of any body falls without the base, that body over-balances itself

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and falls--we are enabled, by finding the centre of gravity of a chest of drawers, and placing the chest so that its perpendicular line falls outside its base line, to define the angle to which it and similar vertical bodies were on one side raised, and as it were jerked, from their horizontal position during the late earthquake, and that that angle appears to have been about 45 degrees, as the diagrams below explain.

a Centre of gravity.

b b End elevation of a chest of drawers in its horizontal position.

a Centre of gravity.

b b Angle of 45 degrees to whioh the chest of drawers was lifted from its horizontal position and at which it turned over.

Scale--half-an-inch to a foot.

This angle may be termed the angle of inclination, and from it we are partly able to give the proportion the height of a building ought to bear to its base. High buildings with very narrow bases are unsafe-- the broader their bases the better they will stand.

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We may lay it down as a general rule, that the height of a building should not exceed the width of the narrowest portion of its base. The bad effects of inattention to this rule have been exhibited in the Council Chamber and Mr. M'Kay's house at the Hutt, which were high buildings standing on a narrow base, at right angles to the supposed axis of the earth's oscillation--while the two long buildings which were respectively joined to them at right angles, and consequently had their long bases parallel to the line of movement, remained, comparatively speaking, uninjured: a proof of the correctness of the views just advanced.

The figures of solids annexed, and numbered 1, 2, 3, 4, show that bodies lifted from their horizontal position to an angle of 22 degrees, if 4-ft. high, are thrown 1-ft. 9-in. out of perpendicular; if 8- ft. high, 3-ft. 6-in.; if 12-ft. high, 5-ft. 3-in.; and if of a pyramidal form 6-ft. high (as shown in Fig. 4), are only one foot out.

Another illustration of the correctness of this theory was seen in a brickfield, where rows of bricks were drying in parallel rows, within two feet of each other, when those 4-ft. high were thrown down, while those 2-ft. high remained standing. The rows were at right angles to the supposed line of direction of the shake. Respecting the horizontal form of a building, a square or parallelogram is suitable; and for the elevation of public buildings, for a high one story building, the pyramidal or Gothic is recommended; and where a two story building is desirable, the same style with a clerc story; but for a one story building, the Grecian proportions will be found to answer. Where heavy fireproof stores, or a solid brick building is required, the mode in which the gaol is built is recommended; the whole of the brickwork of this building is with the exception of a trifling crack, uninjured; the massive stone base, the stone quoins, and the window stone dressings, are not injured in the slightest degree; the stone entablature was injured and was taken down;

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Solids inclined 22 degrees. Fig. 1.

* Perpendicular line.
Scale quarter of an inch to a foot.

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this portion of the stone work was top heavy, some of the stones were nearly on the balance, and others of them had not, as specified, an iron rod passing through them at all; whereas, if two iron rods had passed through the two ends of each stone, the result would have been very different.

The first brick buildings erected in Wellington were in general entirely built of brick; the mortar generally used being of a very inferior description--clay being the principal ingredient; and in the specimens examined by the Commissioners, all traces of material of a cementing nature had entirely disappeared, and were in constant contact, at the foundations, with wet and damp. This substitute for mortar was found to have changed to a dirty yellow substance of a soft and yielding nature, merely affording a bedding to the bricks; whereas, if it had been made of proper material, it would gradually have hardened till time had changed it to stone; but this process is exceedingly slow, and if a good hydraulic lime could be found in this country (and it is said to exist in the north), it would be invaluable. Roman and other cements are cheaper in London than stone or shell lime is in Wellington; and nothing but the high price of English cement here prevents it from entirely superseding the ordinary lime now in use.

The use of clay in the preparation of mortar ought to be entirely discarded, as it tends to eat away the adhesive properties of the lime, and is well known to possess no properties of a cementing nature. The buildings above alluded to were constructed of thin brick walls alone, wood not being used to strengthen them. In the earthquake of 1848, many of these erections suffered severe damage; since then, heavy two-storied stores were constructed by erecting a wooden frame and casing it with brick, there being in general 4 1/2-in. of brick outside the frame and 9-in. built in between the studs; these stores have again suffered, and the timbers--red pine and matai built in

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the brickwork -- are found to be decayed, but totara forming the ground plate, though dry on its upper surface and wet on its lower one, is perfectly sound: as may be seen in Captain Rhodes's brick bonding store.

From this it follows that the timbers from decay and original lightness were not strong enough to retain the brickwork--when the side of the building was perhaps 4 or 5 feet out of the perpendicular. An inclined mass of brickwork, like the side of Messrs. Bethune and Hunters' store, weighing about 26 tons, exclusive of the heavy goods shifting to the inclined side, was quite sufficient to partly tear the side away from the angles of the building.

Now, if a one storied building were cased with 14-in. brickwork, with here and there holdfasts driven into the studs, and turned down over the outer face of the brickwork, and if the timbers of the framing were all Totara, the studs and braces 9-in. by 4-in., and the plates 9-in. by 6-in., there would be little to apprehend from decay or earthquakes. Mr. Stoke's printing-office, though only brick nogged in a totara frame, exhibits not the slightest symptoms of decay or damage, and it is not weather-boarded. Where a two storied fire-proof store is required, it has occurred to the Commissioners that a building of the following description would be found to answer:--

First.--That a strong 9-in. frame of red pine, matai, or black birch should be erected, with posts 10-in. by 10-in. passing through the centre of the building towards the ridge, having short girders to carry the first floor tenoned into them, and the posts tenoned to receive a plate at the bottom and a beam at the top on which the collars of the rafters could be notched. The ground plate to external frame should be Totara, 9-in. by 7-in. Bands of iron 2 1/2-in. by 1/2-in. should be fixed 4-ft. apart and 9-in. from the studs, and extending all round the building: thus, for a building 17-ft. high, it would take five of these horizontal bands, at the

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same time vertical bars of 2 1/2-in. by 1/2-in. iron should be fixed, having five-eighth-of-an-inch bolts passing through them at their intersections with the horizontal bands. These bolts would also pass through every third stud, and be screwed up with nuts and washers from the inside; a casing of 14-in. brickwork might then be built 9-in. of it outside the wooden frame, and 4 1/2-in. inside, at the same time inserting and nailing pieces of zinc, 8-in. wide, on the outside edge of each stud, and doubled in on each side of it, which would prevent contact between the timbers and the brickwork, thereby preserving the former from decay. The outside might be cemented, and consequently the ironwork would be hidden from view.

The top plates may be strengthened by diagonal iron ties at their angles, and the first floor by timber ones, let in flush with the upper edge of the joists.

[A two storied brick building may be considered safe, if nearly square on plan, provided with a hip roof, and built on solid foundations and footings, with hard bricks and compo; the latter formed of three parts of Portland cement to five of clean and sharp sand. The outer walls should be about 10-ft. 6-in. in height from the ground, or first, floor joists, and 18-in. in thickness, and the upper walls from top of second-floor joists to the pole or rafter-plate may be 8-ft. 6-in. in height by 14-in. in thickness. Every fourth joist of the second floor should be in one length, and at each of its ends tied by an iron tie (turned down at its ends) to the 18-in. wall. The pole-plate to be secured by five-eighth inch upright bolts fixed near the centre of the 14-in. wall, to one of the two--2 1/2-in. by 1/2-in.iron bars, which must be placed--two of them over all the windows of each story, and extending right round the interior of the external walls of the building; being bolted together at its angles, and serving the double purpose of lintels to the windows and longitudinal ties to the walls. The ceiling joists to the hip-roof should be in one length, and well spiked to a 9-in. by 4-in. pole-

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plate, with its outer edge flush with the brickwork, in order that a large totara wood cornice spout might be fixed to it.]

When a new wing or part of a building is to be added to an old erection, it ought to be as strongly-connected with it by means of iron ties, as though it had originally been one building. The want of this precaution may be seen in more than one place. Plastering externally has generally failed, and has received general condemnation. Internal plastering has been found to stand, except where the frame-work has given way from deficient bracing or shrinking; if the side or end framing of a house but move half an inch from the position in which it was fixed when plastered, the keys become injured or broken. The same result is produced in external plastering, and also by the plaster being soaked by heavy rains, which causes the laths to swell and break the key, at the same time rotting the laths and timbers. If a building is constructed of strong and seasoned timber, well braced and externally boarded with inch boards, and then battened with totara battens, lathed with Totara laths, and plastered with good stone lime, mixed with 25 per cent, of Portland cement, in the autumn, winter, or spring, and then in the summer painted four coats in oil, and every summer afterwards two coats in oil--plastering will have been fairly tried, and there will be little doubt of its standing.

Mr. Clifford, in the wing he built some four years ago, to a great extent complied with these conditions, and neither the weather nor earthquake has injured the plastering or cornice internally or externally.

To plaster a building externally without painting it, is money thrown away.

The upper surfaces of all external plaster cornices should be covered with lead, wood (totara), or slate, in such a way as to form the upper covering member of the ordinary cornice moulding (cyma recta), so that in case of shrinking or swelling of the wood the cornice

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will not be forced away at its upper part; if slate is the covering, it may be worked in cement with, the uppermost member.

The bracing of a building is one of its most important details: braces let into studs the general size, 4-in. by l 1/2-in. are not recommended; solid braces are much superior to these, as can be easily proved--for in 6-in. framing the brace would measure about 6-in. by 4-in. A section of this represents an area of 24-in., but a let-in brace of 4-in. by 1 1/2-in. gives a sectional area of 6-in, only; it is therefore four times weaker than a solid brace is. The defect in a solid brace is, that by cutting the studs in two, the building is weakened laterally-- to a certain extent this is correct; but the main use of a brace is to hold a building in its place in a direction parallel with the line of itself, if in a shake a building is inclined at an ankle of 22 degrees, the braces have then to retain the building in its proper form; but for these braces the building would be dislocated in all its parts, or it would assume the form of a rhombus, as Mr. Watkin's old shop did during the late shake.

To make a let-in brace as strong as a solid one, and avoid weakening a building laterally, the following is recommended:--the studs should be 7-in. wide, and the braces 8-in. by l 1/2-in. let in flush, one on each side of the framing, and opposite each other, these two braces forming a double brace, and measuring each 8-in. by 1 1/2-in., together represent a sectional area of 24-in., being thereby the strength of a solid brace 6-in. by 4-in., and leaving 4-in. in width in the centre of each stud. In shop fronts it is very injudicious to leave them without braces; for the sake of having a front nearly all window, two spaces, at least 2-ft. 6-in. in width, should be left for braces: any unsightliness may be easily hidden by a pilaster in the centre of them. The absence of these braces has been felt in the shops of Mr. Watkin and Mr. Pickett. Timber being the principal material used in building here, has induced the Commissioners to consider as part of their duties,

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the testing of the various sorts of Australian and New Zealand woods, in order to show their comparative strength. The specimens selected for the experiments were first split from straight-grained pieces, and then planed up to bare one inch square, and cut into lengths of 2-ft. 2-in. long; the pieces were perfectly dry, and had been seasoning for six months. The ends of the specimens rested in a notch one inch square; there being a clear length or space of 2-ft. for testing them; an iron loop was made, with the upper end of it square, and just large enough to admit one of these pieces of wood, and the lower end rounded, in order not to cut the cords which passed through it for the purpose of supporting the scale which held the weights below; the iron loop was then slided to the centre of one of the specimens, and weights gradually placed in the scale till it broke.

The results will speak for themselves and may be depended on. The first specimen of black birch taking 472 lbs. to break it, excited some surprise, and, as the Commissioners felt that it perhaps might be a chance piece, stronger than the ordinary timber of that kind, they procured another specimen which broke with 472 1/2 lbs., thus not only establishing its reputation for strength, but its durability; for the last-named piece was a portion of a fencing-post which had been in the ground wet and dry for a period of ten years, and which latter is now still there perfectly sound and hard as a bone; of course it was the heart of black birch, and, when split, had that sour or acid smell so peculiar to English oak -- in fact it always has that sour smell, and, for strength and durability, appears to be the oak of New Zealand. Two specimens of English oak were tested some time ago in England; one broke with a weight of 455 lbs., the other with 482 lbs. The specimens were 2-ft. long and 1-in. square. As to the durability of these woods--blue gum, iron bark, black birch, and totara, are very durable where exposed to wet and dry alternately. Red and white pine, matai,

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Sydney cedar, kauri pine, and stringy bark, are of very little use in wet or damp situations, or where excluded from the air, but if kept dry and well ventilated will last a great many years--excepting white pine, which is so subject to become worm-eaten that it should never be used in house building. One slight cause of the decay of timber is its not being cut at the proper season, and when cut not being dried before use. All trees for building purposes should be cut down in winter, and have six months drying before being used. Painting unseasoned timber only hastens the progress of decay.

In the act of breaking, the deflection was least in totara and cedar, which are the most brittle of all the specimens; matai sustained a heavy weight, then snapt suddenly; matai, white pine, kauri, red pine, rata, and stringy bark, stand next in strength; iron bark, blue gum, and manuka, showed the greatest deflection, and

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broke gradually; the strength and toughness of the fibres of iron bark and manuka were most surprising.

The Commissioners having thus far, to the best of their judgment and ability, collected and collated all the evidence they could respecting the late earthquake, have now to bring their labours to a close In doing so, they consider the present opportunity an appropriate one for concluding their report by making a few general remarks connected with the late earthquake.

Our fellow colonists in the other Provinces of these islands, appear to have been extremely anxious to attribute to Wellington an exclusive property in earthquakes; but without any desire to abdicate our rights, we do not see how we can honestly claim the monopoly in a property which appears unfortunately to be the partnership property of all New Zealand. The Taranaki Herald has adduced as a proof of its mildness there, that the church, built of stone, is still standing. We can show here in Wellington, four or five brick-built buildings which stood the earthquake of 1848 and the late one, and which are still uninjured; some of them have been mentioned in the course of this Report. Another remarkable fact connected with the earthquakes in this country, is, that they are eccentric in their movements; that they move in different lines, at times leaving Wellington uninjured, while other places suffer severely. This statement may surprise some of our neighbours, but such is the fact, for the shock of an earthquake felt in Wellington, on the 1st of Jannary, 1853, although considered a very long one, was yet so mild and slight as to be only felt by those sitting or standing, and of course not the slightest damage was done. It was felt in a slighter degree here, than the last one of 1855 was said to be felt at Auckland.

But, from the following paragraphs, taken from the Nelson and Taranaki papers, it appears that at these places it was felt severely.

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In Wellington there were no subsequent shocks.

Now, had any person, anxious to make a book, or fond of appearing in print, been on the spot to witness the temporary alarm, confusion and excitement consequent on such a distressing occurrence, he might have written an account as long as that which has been published wiih reference to the late earthquake in January last.

This Nelson and Taranaki earthquake which has been alluded to, was no ordinary affair; the brig Marmion felt it off Cape Farewell, and her passengers fancied she was bumping on the rocks.

These facts are adduced to prove that the earthquakes of this country change their line of direction and their centres of action, and that the whole of these islands are subject to them more or less. In 1848, Auckland

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and feel the shocks that were felt here; but in 1855 they did feel them, and Auckland and Canterbury in a very sensible degree.

There are parts of the Province of Wellington (the Ahuriri) which during the last earthquake of January 23rd, felt it very little--in about the same degree that Canterbury did.

Since January 23rd, a shock has been felt at Otago; this was in last April, according to the Otago Witness, which was somewhat sharp, persons standing being conscious of a reeling sensation.

This evidence the Commissioners feel convinced will satisfy all unprejudiced minds that the earthquakes of this country are not confined to Wellington and its neighbourhood, but that their ramifications extend through the length and breadth of these islands, every portion of them being more or less subject to them.

[In confirmation of these views, I have now (1866) to state that in the year 1861 several smart shocks of earthquakes occurred in Auckland--one of which happened during the day on which Sir George Grey was sworn in as Governor. Mr. Fox (who had just returned from the formality of swearing in the Governor) at the time was leaning against the mantle-shelf in the house where he was lodging, and started away from it, fearing the chimney might fall--so severe was the shock. This shock was not felt at all in Wellington. I may add a still stronger confirmation of my theory, as indicated above, namely -- the Ahuriri 1 earthquake of 1863, which though felt (by myself and many others), did not do the slightest damage in Wellington--not even causing loose articles to stir from their places.]

The following account of it is from the Hawke's Bay Times of February 23rd, 1863.

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The undermentioned slight earthquake at Wellington is of recent occurrence. The same one felt at Marlborough, in the Middle Island, being so much stronger

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shows the movement as if extending southwards, or at least having its main action at Picton.

The W. Independent, of August 22nd, 1865, says:--

The Independent, of September 5th, 1865, contained the following extract:--

One fact, then, is now clearly revealed to all New Zealand, which is that we live in a country subject to earthquakes--generally of a description hardly noticeable, but occasionally, at lesser or greater intervals, of a violent nature. It is in vain to disguise this truth; our country abounds with evidences of volcanic agency, which everywhere present themselves from the Trap Rocks off Stewart's Island, to the Three Kings off the North Cape, and which proclaim its igneous origin. We may, therefore, correctly assert that the whole of the colonists of New Zealand are interested in this matter; for, though some Provinces have, of late years, sustained no damage, yet they have been warned by the slight shocks they have already felt, that they are

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within the orbit of those mysterious and subterranean forces which have inflicted severe loss on their less fortunate fellow colonists in the other Provinces; and it behoves all to adapt their dwellings and other buildings to the country in which they live: for though the earth does not sink or open as in South America, or engulph the people, as it did at Lisbon or Jamaica (on the contrary it appears to be undergoing a gradual upheaval, in the neighbourhood of Wellington in a perceptible degree, it having been raised from two to three feet during the recent earthquake), yet serious damage, and even loss of life, must be the result if this precaution in building is neglected.

The phenomenon of this country being in course of upheaval, is not confined to New Zealand. Norway, at this time, is being gradually upheaved at the rate of four feet in a century, and other places at a more rapid rate. The recent sudden upheaval of part of the Province of Wellington, there is good reason to believe, is a very rare occurrence. No white man that we can learn of has ever witnessed it before. One of the oldest inhabitants of Cook's Straits, Mr. John Guard, says-- "The last earthquake was the most violent one he ever knew in this country;" and be has lived in it for a period of twenty-two years, and he never before witnessed a perceptible rise of the land after the shock of an earthquake. But this ought not to make us less careful in the erection of buildings; for we must bear in mind that nothing will prevent this country from being rapidly peopled--its unrivalled climate, its vast natural capabilities and immense resources, are temptations too attractive to be resisted by enterprising Englishmen.

It is a remarkable fact that the two most favoured countries on earth in point of climate and soil, and almost insular in position--Greece and Italy--with their renowned and magnificent capitals of Athens and Rome, where liberty, the arts and sciences and literature were nurtured, and where they flourished and

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were brought to a state of perfection which modern civilization is still proud to acknowledge as worthy of imitation--in fact the source of its own origin--were, and are now, subject to earthquakes in comparison to which those in New Zealand sink into insignificance. Subjoined is a list of some of them, and also a number of minor ones, which have occurred in England from a very early date.

A.D. GREECE.

107. .150 cities swallowed up.

ITALY.

370. .Nice destroyed.
1186...At Calabria, a city sunk in the sea.
1222. .In Lombardy, 200 lives lost.
1456. .One in Naples, 40,000 people perished.
1688. .Naples again, a third of the city destroyed.
1789. .In Castello, 30 houses swallowed up--100 destroyed.
1794. .Near Naples, city of Torre del Greco nearly destroyed.
1832. .In Calabria and Central Italy.

ENGLAND.

1076.. One.
1089. .One again.
1090.. One.
1142...One felt at Lincoln.
1175. .One felt at Oxenhall.
1179.. One.
1185. .One that overthrew the church of Lincoln and others.
1199..One in Somersetshire.
1247. .One, a church thrown down at Glastonbury.
1248.. One.
1249.. One.
1250..One at St. Albans.
1551. .One at Reigate, Croydon, Dorking, and Surrey.
1571. .One in Herefordshire, which overthrew Kingston Church,
1574.. One in Yorkshire, Herefordshire, Worcestershire, Gloucestershire, &c.
1586. .One felt in London and Westminster, when part of St. Paul's and the Temple Church fell; it was also felt at Sandwich, Dover, and in Kent.
1583.. .In Dorsetshire, when it removed a considerable portion of ground.
1596.. In Kent, where the hills became valleys filled with water.
1677 and 1678. .One in Staffordshire and Dorsetshire.

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1679. .In Oxfordshire and Staffordshire.
1683. .One at Oxford.
1689. .Lyme, in Dorsetshire, nearly destroyed.
1734.. One at Arundel.
1734. .In Ireland, which destroyed 5 churches and 100 houses.
1745. .One in Somersetshire. 1750. .Two felt in London.
1786. .One in Scotland and different parts of England.
1790.. One in Westmoreland.
1791. .One in Scotland.
1792. .One in Bedford, Leicester, Lincoln, and Nottingham.
1793..One in Shaftsbury and Salisbury, but not much damage done.
1795. .One in different parts of the North of England.
1808. .One at Dunning, in Scotland.
1816. .One in the North of Scotland.
1822.. One in Ireland.
1852.. Sept. 2.. A shock of earthquake felt at Liverpool, Holyhead, and at Manchester, about 4h. 30m. a.m.
1853. .April 1.. A shock of earthquake felt at Havre, Constance, Caen, Southampton, and other places. At Caen barrels on the quay were set in motion, and rolled along.

From the following paragraph taken from the Melbourne Argus, of March 5th, 1855, Australia appears to be subject to slight earthquakes:--

The shock of an earthquake, such as described above, would in New Zealand be considered a sharp one; the movement appears to have been strong, and had it continued for one or two minutes, serious damage to

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buildings must have taken place: nothing but its being a momentary one prevented such a catastrophe.

The Commissioners having now arrived at the conclusion of their Report, trust, that though it will be found to be neither free from imperfections, nor so complete as it might be, yet, that notwithstanding these defects--a portion of the information contained in it may be found useful to the community at large.

CHARLES MILLS. 2
CHARLES R. CARTER.
Sept. 4th, 1855.

ADDENDA.

In Chambers' Journal, for March 14th, 1840, which has been kindly forwarded by a gentleman for the perusal of the Commissioners, is a paper on "Earthquakes in Great Britain," one portion of which bears such a striking analogy to what we know of the more marked features of a violent New-Zealand earthquake

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that, at the risk of being tedious, the Commissioners cannot forbear giving an extract therefrom:--

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The following paragraph is taken from the Sydney Empire, of September 21st, 1855.

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ERRATA.

At page xi., bottom line, read one-eighth for "one-quarter." At page xii., 13th line, read where for "were."

No. II.

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No. III.

To His Honor the Superintendent of the Province of Wellington.

The Memorial of the undersigned Inhabitants of the Taratahi Plain and Three Mile Bush, in the District of the Wairarapa,
Respectfully showeth;

That it is desirable that that portion of the Wairarapa in which your Honor's Memorialists reside should be proclaimed a Township; and in the event

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of your Honor being of that opinion, your Memorialists respectfully pray that the Township should be designated "Cartervale," and the village in the Three Mile Bush, being the most considerable place within the Township, should be named "Carterville" in honour of the principal promoter and friend of the Small Farm Settlements in this district, and of our Representative in the Provincial Council, C. R. CARTER, Esq.

And your Memorialists as in duty bound will ever pray.

Richard Fairbrother, Samuel Oates, Andrew McKenzie, Jas. Hannah, Humphrey Callister, and 45 others. 4

No. IV.

From the Wellington Independent, Sept. 1860.

GENERAL ASSEMBLY.

The following speeches from the debate which took place on the 16th of August, show the views of several of our members on the war question,

Having already given Dr. Featherston's views on the subject, we now give those of Messrs. Brandon, Fox, Fitzherbert, and Carter. The motion before the House was the following:--

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* * * * * *

Mr. CARTER said--Sir, The time of this Assembly is precious: by law its duration cannot extend to more than between three and four months from the date of the opening of this Session--yet the business of the House has hardly commenced. And when I say, there never has been, in the history of this Colony, a period so fraught with peril to settler, to native, and to the prosperity of the whole Colony, I think I shall not be overrating the difficulties of our present position (hear). We have had Maori disturbances before, but, then, our wealth and population were small, and in considering the present state of the Colony, its importance is greatly augmented by the increased magnitude of the interests at stake. It must be remembered, taking only the last ten years as an example, that the New Zealand of 1860 is very different to the New Zealand of 1850 (hear). At the close of 1850 our population was only 26,707; in 1860, it is upwards of 71,000. Our live stock in 1850 numbered about 300,000; now it numbers two millions (hear. hear). In 1853 the total revenue of the Colony was about £149,000--while for the year 1859 it amounted to nearly £460,000; and other sources of wealth have increased in a proportionate degree (hear). Yet while this rapid progress has been achieved by the British Colonist, the aborigines have decreased from a supposed enumeration of about 100,000 souls to about 56,000 souls; and while the former are full of hope for the future, the latter have become gloomy, discontented, suspicious, and apprehensive -- nay more, an actual state of war exists, which at first only counted its hundreds of sable warriors, but now numbers its thousands, and which is hourly being increased and fed by adjacent tribes; and if not speedily stopped, must draw

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into its vortex tribe after tribe, until all are swallowed up in a general state of rebellion, when the destruction of life and British property will be something fearful to contemplate (hear, hear). Sir, the Ministry have laid on the table of this House a mass of valuable information: they have had it some time in their possession, yet we have been favored with no complete or general statement as to the real condition of the colony, or what they propose as remedies, in the shape of a policy for its present diseased and depressed state. When the Colonial Secretary rose to propose the resolution now before the House, he seemed to treat the subject very lightly. I listened with regret and disappointment to his speech, which simply introduced the subject in a style somewhat flippant, not becoming the high position he holds. One would think from his manner that the war would be finished to-morrow, or the next week, instead of knowing as we and he did, that three thousand armed men--our brave soldiers and settlers--were hemmed in at Taranaki by a horde of Natives. We have also been left without explanations of their policy as to the past, present or future conduct of the war (hear). This House will bear in mind that the Colonial Secretary and his colleagues--the Ministry responsible to this House--have by this House been treated with great forbearance. We must not forget, the fact that they entered on this war on their own responsibility and unprepared for it: --they have continued it for six months without calling together the representatives of the people; at each new step taken, they have plunged deeper into the slough; they have been worsted in the conflict; they have been driven off British territory; they have shown us the way into a war, but not shown us the way out of it (hear, hear). Sir, I trust, in the grave situation in which we are placed, they will not long delay or conceal their intentions as to what is their war policy. We are, I think, all agreed that the war should be prosecuted vigorously --that W. Kingi has taken the law into his own hands,

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and that we cannot treat with him till he has laid down his arms. In the Province to which I belong, there is a deep and heartfelt sympathy for the settlers of Taranaki. Wellington knows what a Maori war is on a small scale. The Hutt settlers have not forgotten the time when their homes were plundered, and six of their fellow settlers murdered by natives; and while I thank the hon. member for Lyttelton (Mr. Ward), and the hon. member for Dunedin, (Mr. Gillies) and other members of the Middle Island, for their kind offers of support, as regards the expenses of the war, I would ask them to excuse Wellington members for feeling more deeply, and speaking stronger than themselves on this war, living as we do on the confines of the seat of it, and believing that if the war continues, there is a great probability of its extending first to Auckland and Wanganui, next to Wellington, and then to Ahuriri. I may here mention that in the Wellington Provincial Council, I voted for a resolution supporting His Excellency in the vigorous prosecution of the war, but I guarded myself against giving an opinion as to the justness of the war; and while I rejoiced at the spirit of His Excellency in taking up arms, as he said, in a just cause, I assumed three things,--first, that W. Kingi had no right to interfere in the sale of the Waitara land: but from what I have heard in this House, I have now my doubts about this; secondly, I concluded that the Government were prepared for a war--such was not the case, but just the reverse; thirdly, I supposed the war would be prosecuted with judgment and energy; but instead of that it appears to me to have been completely mismanaged; still after all this, I am willing to take it as I find it, and afford the Government support in bringing the war to a successful termination. At the same time I think it is very important, that this House should understand what the Ministers mean by prosecuting the war with vigour--by what means the war is to be carried on--and where the money is to come from (hear). I was glad to hear the Colonial

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Secretary say, a few nights ago, that the amounts paid out of the Colonial chest had been small as yet, but he did not say how much we shall have to pay, on account of the pledge he has given, if the Imperial Government refuse to pay the Militia expenses, &c., the cost of which up to this time cannot be far short of £20,000. --(hear) The House would like to know if the war is carried on with vigour to establish the Queen's supremacy, whether the Government intend to put down the King movement--execute the Omata murderers, and make the rebel natives pay the expenses of the war in land (hear). This is desirable, but the Ministers must first shew the feasibility of the scheme, if they intend to do so. In the district that I represent, we shall require five or six stockades, and every settler a rifle-- and pay. Thus far, Sir, I have endeavoured to confine myself to the question before the House, the war, to the discussion of which I have listened with pleasure, except in one or two instances, when I felt pained when the speakers alluded to, and found great fault with, Sir George Grey's native administration. Now while I admit that I never did agree with Sir George Grey's political principles, yet I will do him the justice to say that he restored peace, he maintained peace, and left the Colony in peace. And how was it done? He travelled through the country enduring privation and fatigue; he interested himself in the social affairs of the natives; he studied their language, their manners, customs, and traditions, by personally visiting them; and when he left the country his policy ought to have been continued, or a better one substituted for it (hear). The Natives in the district which I represent, complain very much that they have never received one visit from His Excellency; I say this with all due respect for the Governor; I say it believing that it is the duty of a representative to state frankly the wants, wishes and complaints of the district which he represents (hear, hear). The Government, too, have sadly neglected the district I represent. The Natives have in two or three

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cases taken the law into their own hands, and when remonstrated with reply, "We have no court of justice to appeal to, what are we to do?" The natives and settlers complain of the inefficient state of the administration of justice. At one time we were entirely without any; now the district Judge, I believe, has only been once since his appointment, and instead of going at fixed periods, cases or no cases, like a judge on circuit, he considers it his duty to go only when there is a sufficiency of cases to be tried. Recently a gentleman has been appointed as Resident Magistrate, principally I understand to adjudicate in Maori cases, yet I believe he labours under the disadvantage of not speaking the native language. I think it must now be apparent to this House that the present system of managing native affairs has resulted in a war; and that a new system is required to initiate, to restore peace, and prevent future war; and I take this opportunity of declaring that so long as the Imperial Government persists in retaining in its hands the exclusive control of Native affairs, so long must it be held responsible for the payment of the cost of native wars; and this was an imperial, not a settlers' war. Sir, I trust as this debate is about being brought to a close, that all angry feeling that may have been engendered in the course of it, and of the preceding ones, may subside into a general desire to expedite and get through the real business of the Sessson--so important to the future welfare of the Colony.--(Applause).

No. V.

Wednesday, October 17th, 1860.
Debate on the "New Provinces Amendment Act."

CONCLUDED.

* * * * *

Mr. CARTER said--Sir, I have waited with great

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patience to see some member of the Ministry get up and explain their reasons why they introduced during the Session of 1858 a measure so important as that of the New Provinces Act, initiated at a time when seven out of the eight members for Wellington, the Province most interested in it and the soonest likely to be brought under its operation, were absent. But, Sir, I am sorry to say I have waited in vain for a justification or an explanation of the conduct on that occasion of two out of the three hon. gentlemen who now occupy the Ministerial benches (hear, hear). Sir, I cannot help saying that such conduct appears to me inexcusable, for when I recollect that this New Provinces Bill was framed, was introduced, and, I may say, forced through a thin House, in the Session of 1858, without the country--the people of this Colony--being consulted-- without their having the opportunity of being heard on a great question of Colonial policy, such as the New Provinces Act, one of the clauses of which makes a fundamental alteration in the Constitution--namely, that it takes away the right of the people to elect their own Superintendent (hear, hear),--I must say, if such measures are allowed to pass without being noticed or protested against, I very much fear that a precedent will be established, which unscrupulous Ministers, anxious to make Provincial Governments, departments of the General Government, may, at some future day, quote and use the passing of this clause in the New Provinces Act as an argument for the purpose of effecting some further alteration of the Constitution, without the consent or knowledge of the people. They might even go so far as to raise the qualifications to vote, or to establish a property qualification for members of this House of Representatives. This principle, once acted on, [as it has been in the New Provinces Act, in depriving certain electors of their privilege of electing their Superintendent], is a dangerous innovation in the Constitution, and an abridgement of the rights of electors of this Colony (hear, hear). Had the electors been

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appealed to, had they understood the nature, or known the effect of the New Provinces Act, I feel quite certain it would never have been placed on the statute-book of this Colony, and I venture to say, that in a few weeks, or perhaps a few months, when the force of circumstances, not the will of Ministers, compels an appeal to the country, the verdict of the colony will be for the repeal of a Bill--conceived, I fear, in a spirit of hostility towards one Province, and which is an infringement of the Constitution, and also a failure, so far as its ostensible purpose is concerned -- namely, the establishment of an economical form of self-government for outlying districts (hear, hear). Sir, the hon. gentleman, the member for Wairau (Mr. Weld), a new member of the Ministry, and who is, therefore, not responsible for what was done in the session of 1858, stated in the speech he addressed to this House, that the great advantage of the New Provinces Act was, that it conferred the blessings of local self-government on outlying districts. Now, one of my great objections to it is, that it does not do so; and a greater fallacy than that expression of the hon. member has not been uttered in this House (Oh! oh!). I do not say that the hon. gentleman is not really in favour of local self-government;--most people are; and I think if that, as a question, were put separately to each member of this House, the answer of each would be, yes. The principle is dear to every Englishman; we inherit it from our Anglo-Saxon forefathers (Hear, hear). Another hon. member -- the member for Wallace county (Mr. Bell) has quoted from a letter of Sir John Pakington, as if Sir John were in favour of institutions like this New Provinces Act. But such is not the case; for in paragraph 32 of his despatch, or letter of instructions to Sir George Grey, accompanying the Constitution, he refers to Municipal Corporations similar to those possessed by towns and boroughs in England, which are, generally speaking, nothing like the New Provinces Act. Sir, I have noticed in the

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course of this debate, that most of the hon. members who have spoken have branched off into a variety of topics and matters not strictly connected with the subject really before the House. This may be inconvenient, but it seems to be the inevitable, and, I may say, the natural, tendency of all debates; and if hon. members will introduce extraneous matter or misstatements, relating, in particular, to other provinces, it is only fair and just that those gentlemen representing the districts in the provinces referred to, should notice and correct such misrepresentations. It is in this spirit that I will now call the attention of the House to some of the one-sided statements made by my hon. friend the member for Hawke's Bay (Mr. Fitzgerald) (hear, hear). And I may here state that I have observed the anxiety and the plausible earnestness evinced by my hon. friend, to excite the pity and compassion of this House. This may be right and justifiable: I do not blame him for doing the best he can for those whom he represents, or for putting the best face he can on the curious matters affecting himself and his Province. I have no desire to enter into the whole of the statements made by that hon. gentleman, and which relate to the Province of Wellington, but will confine myself to remarking on the most prominent part of what appears to me as his one-sided statement. In the first place, I will take the Seventy-mile-bush road, the great cause of dispute, which the hon. member for Hawke's Bay would lead this House to believe was designed for the exclusive benefit of Wellington, and of no advantage to Hawke's Bay. Now, in order that the House may more clearly understand the relative positions of Napier (the capital of the Province of Hawke) and of Wellington, and the Forty-mile-bush, I may state that the Forty, or rather the Seventy-mile-bush, which it really is, is a narrow fertile valley, from about two to six miles wide, and about seventy miles long, situated in the heart of the country, and connecting two plains, one on the Wellington side called the Wairarapa Valley,

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which is now connected with Wellington by a good road, and the other on the Ahuriri side, called the Rua Taniwha plain, and which is connected with Napier. The Wairarapa entrance to the Seventy-mile-bush is about 80 miles from Wellington; and the Hawke's Bay Province entrance, to the other end of the same bush, is about 65 miles from Napier, so that the most available portion of this bush is nearer to and more accessible from Napier than from Wellington, and consequently of much more advantage to Napier than to Wellington; for settlers having produce to dispose of would send that produce to the nearest market, on a level line of road to Napier, and not to the farthest market over a range of hills as to Wellington. The Wairarapa settlers were all in favour of this road. Hawke's Bay settlers, principally represented by Napier, were against it--against opening up the interior, which would have been more in favour of them than Wairarapa and Wellington. The hon. member for Hawke's Bay has complained of the small amount of money voted for roads in his district, yet £20,000 was voted for the Seventy-mile-bush road, and would have been expended, but for his opposition and that of others. Yet, Sir, half of this Seventy-mile-bush, with a rich soil, magnificent timber, and dotted with clearings ready for the plough, is now in the recently-formed Province of Hawke's Bay (no! no! from the Colonial Treasurer). The hon. gentleman says no, no; but with all due deference to him, I must again say that such is the case, and my statement he will find correct if he glances at the map of the district (hear, hear). More than that, I may inform the hon. the Colonial Treasurer (Mr. Richmond), that before this line of road was selected, and prior to the Provincial Government of Wellington deciding on making it, Mr. Park made a sketch survey of it and found the line so good that he recommended a tram road instead of a common road. The hon. member for Hawke's Bay and the hon. gentleman at the head of the Government (Mr. Stafford),

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well knew that the grand object of the Superintendent of Wellington was to open up the interior by roads, and first make a country which would afterwards make the towns. But I am sorry to say, the tendencies of the Hawke's Bay Government, and that of another New Province (Marlborough) is to spend monies, raised from the land of outlying districts, in their capital towns and neighbourhood--the very evil they complain of the old Provinces doing; and had those gentlemen, who now occupy the Ministerial benches, been hearty in the cause of the rights of the outlying districts to real local self-government--had they not been over anxious to punish a Province which had opposed their policy, (even if such punishment was inflicted at the expense of the whole Colony), they would not have brought in the New Provinces Act--that wretched misnomer for local self-government on an economical scale (hear, hear). But they would, last Session, have introduced a measure conferring on outlying districts an extended but simple form of Municipal institutions and a share of the land revenues raised within such districts. What these country or outlying districts really require, is--for their principal inland town, or seaport town, as the case may be--a Town Board with its paid secretary, and perhaps unpaid chairman; not a Municipal Corporation in the English acceptation of the term, which I believe could not be successfully worked in our small Colonial towns --a large amount of population, wealth, and endowments are wanted to work out the English Municipal Council system (hear, hear). For large country districts a Board, or a simple District Council, would be required with more extended powers than a Town Board, working at a small expense, keeping the roads in repair, managing commonage and educational affairs, reserves, or endowments, and receiving certain annual payments as its share of its own territorial revenue, and expending them in the formation of by-roads and carrying out the above objects. Of course, everything depends on certain settlers in each town or district

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taking on themselves the duties and responsibilities of managing their own local affairs; at all events, give them the power to do so, and if they decline accepting it, it will be their fault and their loss, and will relieve both General and Provincial Governments from the charge of withholding local self-government from outlying districts (hear, hear). Sir, much has been said by Hawke's Bay separationists as to the injustice done them by Wellington; some of these complaints were exaggerations, as I shall presently shew; others had some foundation--it may have been a misunderstanding between the parties or it may have been neglect to a certain extent on the part of Wellington; but at any rate I do sincerely believe that justice would have been done to Hawke's Bay--but they, mind, mostly Napier town settlers, were in a hurry; they, in fact, said, "stand and deliver," and would not wait for any alterations of a policy or of a law, as is the custom in constitutional England, where grievances are redressed by a course of agitation, lasting till Government finds the leaders of it represent a majority, and the grievances are well founded. As a proof that the Superintendent of Wellington was actuated by an earnest desire to do justice to Hawke's Bay, I will call the attention of hon. members to an extract from a Memorandum of the Superintendent of Wellington, dated April 22nd, 1857, in which he says that he, the Superintendent "admitted as fully as any of them could do, that each district was entitled to its fair proportion of the public expenditure, and to have expended within it, after deducting its contribution to the expenses of the General Government (mind this) the whole of its own revenue; nay, he went further, and maintained that it was wise policy to expend in opening up new districts, a much larger sum than such districts were really entitled to, looking merely to the revenue they afforded." The hon. member for Hawke's Bay omitted to state fully that when he and another gentleman, sitting as members representing Hawke's Bay in the first Session of

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the present Provincial Council of Wellington, were asked, through a motion put on the notice paper, to indicate what kind of local self-government they required--what in short, and in effect, would meet the wants of their district and the wishes of its settlers, they declined to ask anything in that way--they wanted nothing but separation. It will not avail the hon. gentleman to say a redress of their grievances would not have been granted; they were offered it and refused it. When agitation for separation was commenced, Wellington was represented as having received large sums from Ahuriri; a cry of spoliation was raised, of which I will give two instances:--in one statement of moneys received by Wellington from Hawke's Bay I find--and I am now quoting from the Superintendent of Hawkes-Bay's pamphlet, distributed amongst the members of this House--that the total amount of customs up to March, 1857, was £1,369, yet the separationists charge Wellington with having received £5,000 on this head, But how do they do it? Well, they take the supposed amount--mind, the supposed amount received at Wellington, as duties on goods supposed to be consumed in the Ahuriri, Hawke's Bay; this amount, with the real amount, goes to make up the imaginary sum of £5,000--leaving out of the question, and making no claim on Auckland for duties paid at that port (hear, hear.) In the same precious document I find 10,800 acres of land purchased in Hawke's Bay, and paid for with scrip; but this is charged against Wellington as £5,400 received by it in cash, or equivalent to it; and further, at that time New Zealand Company's scrip could be exercised in Wellington or Nelson; and I am informed that Nelson scrip was brought over and used in the purchase of land in the Ahuriri, thus discharging, not a Wellington special liability, but a New Zealand Company's liability. My hon. friend said nothing about land purchases effected in Hawke's Bay with Wellington revenue, prior to 1856; or yet about other large quantities

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of land paid for in scrip, and which the public are led to believe represented so much cash received by Wellington (hear, hear). Sir, I think I have now disposed of most of the charges brought against the Province of Wellington by the hon. member for Hawke's Bay; and I will now enter on the subject of this debate, the New Provinces Act, an Act next in importance to the War question and Native affairs; and as I have already noticed its being passed in the absence of seven Wellington members, I will not further allude to that subject, except to say that the representative of Hawke's Bay, at that time, Mr. Ferguson, who supported the bill at the close of the session, ought never to have sat in this House during that session; as it was, he was illegally elected (hear, hear). As to the New Provinces Act itself, it is a failure; and I can shew that it has disappointed even some of its originators, and deceived the public of Hawke's Bay. As one proof, I need only refer to a petition from some Hawke's Bay settlers, which states that the New Provinces Act does not fulfil their expectations--it has deceived and disappointed them, that it is very expensive, that it does not confer true local self-government, that there is financial difficulty and an empty treasury existing; and more than that is the great fact, that one of the petitions is headed with the signature of Mr. Ferguson, the chosen representative of the separationists in this House, during last Session, the gentleman who came expressly to assist in passing the New Provinces Act, but who now, seeing his error, and having the honesty to own it, asks this House to inquire into the mis-government and extravagance of the Hawke's Bay Government. It may be all very well for the hon. member for Hawke's Bay to pooh, pooh, Mr. Ferguson, or hint that he has no influence, or that he is disappointed about some office; at any rate, this fact still remains, that he was the chosen champion sent to represent the Hawke's Bay separationists; and it is, to say the least, bad taste to repudiate him, even if such repudiation would now

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avail: but it comes too late; Mr. Ferguson's recantation lies on the table, a weighty testimony to the fact, that the New Provinces Act has failed to satisfy the requirements of the Hawke's Bay settlers. Sir, Hawke's Bay agitators, the godfathers of separation, did promise and vow three things: first, that their child should be an economical one (laughter); second, that it should give local self-government to out-lying districts; and thirdly, that this bantling should redress all grievances, satisfy everybody, grow up a creditable boy, and be an honour to the country: but how have these promises been fulfilled? Let us examine the results, and compare them with the promises. The people of Hawke's Bay were assured (I was there at the time--I heard it on all sides), that the Provincial Government would be much--very much cheaper than Wellington; it would be like Taranaki for economy; £1,000 would suffice for the whole expenses of Government--it was even hinted that perhaps the Superintendent might not at first take any salary--they never dreamt he would take his £600 a year, for they (the people) were foolish enough to believe these subtle promises; but what is the case now? Why the Superintendent's department alone costs £950, leaving only £50 to defray the expenses of paid Speakers, Councillors, Auditors, Treasurers, Registrars of Deeds, &c. And when I examine further into the estimated expenditure of Hawke's Bay for 1860, I find out of a total estimated expenditure of £45,444--the sum of about £12,392 is expended in salaries alone. I may remark in reference to this large sum, as I wish to state the case fairly, that this includes the cost of surveys, amounting to £4,775; but taking the cost of the Wellington Provincial Government, including surveys, I find that the Hawke's Bay Government expenditure, under that head, is in excess of it, and if I take the ordinary expenses, including Land Commissioner, of the Provincial Government of Wellington, with 13,000 inhabitants, which amounts to about £2,900, while that of Hawke's Bay, with about 2,600

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settlers, amount to about 2,745; this sum, almost as large as that expended in Wellington for a similar purpose, is altogether disproportionate to the condition, resources, and population of Hawke's Bay, and at variance with the promises held out by the separationists. The money expended altogether in this Colony on Government appears to me truly alarming; what with the enormous cost of the General Government, and these new, or rather bits of Provinces (hear, hear), every other man we meet with is likely to be a legislator, or a paid Government Officer. Why, what with that grand army of General Government officers--state pensioners--numbering about 520 able-bodied men, well paid--in some cases over-paid--with £75,000-- (cheers); and a legion of small and large Provincial Government officers in existence, and those with which we are threatened, the colony will be overwhelmed in financial ruin. Let us for one moment think, let us calculate the magnitude of the evil, and the fate which awaits this poor colony, if the New Provinces Act is carried out in its integrity; and here let me observe that every creek or lagoon admitting a vessel of 150 tons, or even a roadstead with 1,000 settlers, and any part having between 500,000 and three million of acres, will become a new Province, so that, as has been stated by the hon. member for Christchurch (Mr. Sewell), we are likely to have about twenty-five New Provinces (hear, hear, and no, no). There is nothing improbable in this, and if these twenty-five Provinces are formed, and if we reckon twenty members for each Provincial Council--and as there are twenty-eight in the Wellington Provincial Council, and cannot be less than nine in the New Provinces, that is a fair average--we shall have 500 Provincial Council Legislators; and if we estimate the expense of the eight Provincial Governments now in existence, new and old, at £10,000 each, we shall have the sum of £80,000, which added to the cost of that one great overshadowing General Government, namely £75,000, we have the nice but monster round sum of

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£155,000 as the cost of governing New Zealand at this moment; and if we calculate that 500 persons are paid by the eight Provincial Governments, and 520 by the General Government, with the 500 legislators, in perspective, we shall have a fine army of 1,520 well fed and clothed men, capable no doubt of thrashing the Maories (hear, hear, and laughter). Sir, if the expenses of governing this Colony are to keep on increasing at the present rate, it will not be long before we shall have little or nothing to spend on public works. 5 These New Provinces go on very well for the first two or three years, for they force their available lands into the market, and, flushed with the success and excitement attendant on the formation of a New Province, they commence prosperously; but when their waste lands are gone, where are the funds for public works for their own governmental expenses, or their share of General Government expenses to come from? For, as regards the latter, it must be borne in mind, that these new Provinces, if they will take upon themselves what they consider the advantages of that Act, they must also share its responsibilities and contribute their full share to the expenses of the General Government, interest on Loans, Steam, &c., and when their land is done, it must come out of the Customs revenue;--and how is the New Province of Marlborough to do it? Why, for the last month of August its Customs only amounted to £88 (hear, hear),--£88 per month. £1000 per annum is about her estimated Customs revenue for this year. It is true they estimate, by forcing her lands into the market, the current land revenue for the year, at £20,000; but with most of her best land sold, and no very great quantity of 5s. land left, how much will she have next year, and the year after that? Hawke's Bay for a time had plenty of money, but now she is reduced

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to an overdrawn account and an empty chest. In regard to the New Provinces Act conferring local self-government on outlying districts, I maintain that it does not do so; to prove which, I need only point out the large and important district of Rua Taniwha, Parangahau, Waipukurau, all in Hawke's Bay Province, and the Wairau in the Province of Marlborough, which districts are now as destitute of local self-government as they were before the passing this Act. Many hon. members appear to forget that dividing the Colony into so many small Provinces, also divides the capital--the energies--and the borrowing power of the Colonists and the Colony, into so many weak parts, that each in itself is incapable of any great action. They seem not to understand that the great duty of the large Provinces was to people and make the roads in each; and that done, they might then be united and have one General Government for all.

[Here, it being half-past five o'clock, the House, according to rule, rose, and at seven resumed its sitting, when the hon. member continued his speech.]

Mr. CARTER continued: I have not many more remarks to make; but there are three or four subjects I omitted to notice in my previous observations, to which I will now call the attention of hon. members, one of which is, that while the Superintendent 6 of Hawke's Bay appears to be satisfied with the working of the New Provinces Act, he is, I know, on two most important questions connected with it, dissatisfied: and constituted as the New Provinces Act is at present, he considers it difficult to work --for it has well nigh brought on a dead-lock in his Province. The defects in the Act he considers to be two, namely: the Council electing the Superintendent, and the Superintendents not having the power to dissolve Provincial Councils. He suggests as a remedy, Superintendents elected by

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the people, as in the old Provinces, and that Superintendents should have the power to dissolve. This, I think, is another proof that the New Provinces Act is a failure (hear, hear). The hon. member for Nelson (Mr. Domett), in the course of his remarks, objected to the old Provinces Act, because some Superintendents or Councils of Wellington, or of some other place, had exercised the Royal prerogative of mercy, and gone so far as to liberate prisoners. Now, I never heard of that being done in any Province or by any Superintendent, except a Superintendent of Nelson (Mr. Stafford), now Crown Minister of New Zealand, who, I am informed, did graciously liberate some prisoners from goal on his birthday (hear, hear, and laughter). The last objection I have to make against the New Provinces Act, and with which I will conclude my remarks, is, that even if the New Provinces Bill were a good one, it is dangerous and unconstitutional to allow any Ministry the sole power to grant separation to any majority of a thousand souls who might ask for it. This House has delegated--nay has abdicated a power--one of its highest functions--which it never ought to have done (hear, hear). I maintain that this House is the proper tribunal to decide when separation is required, and when, where, and how it shall take place. Sir, this House ought to be as a jury, to take evidence and investigate; and it should also be the judge, to decide in each case of separation (hear, hear). Sir, in the United States, once a colony of Great Britain, as these Islands are now,--the States separately considered,--are but so many large Provinces--some of them small ones,--and there the Executive Government has no such power placed in its hands. The Congress carefully guards and keeps that power in its own hands; for I find that sec. 3 of article 4 of the Constitution of the United States, says;--"New States may be admitted by the Congress into this Union, but no New States shall be formed or erected within the jurisdiction of any other State, nor any State be formed by the junction of two or more

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States, or parts of States, without the consent of the Legislatures concerned, as well as of the Congress." 7 From this we learn, that New Provinces or States cannot be formed without the consent of the original Provinces of which they form a part. Sir, it seems to me that the real question is, whether this House will sanction the Small Provinces Act, which ignores local self-government for country districts, which establishes expensive governments in small localities and in small populations, and which is slowly, but surely, tending to create a distinct and costly government--before its natural time, which grasps at every chance to absorb provincial powers, provincial legislation, and provincial revenues (hear, hear); or whether we are to have large and wealthy Provinces, keeping up a continuous stream of immigration, inaugurating and completing large and important public works throughout their districts, maintaining their credit abroad, confiding the management of purely local affairs to the settlers in outlying districts, distributing their immigrants and revenues fairly over their lands: and in the course of a few years, if then thought desirable, these Provincial Governments, having peopled the country and intersected it by roads, may give way to a strong Central Government for the whole Colony (applause).

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No. VI.

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,

Wednesday, July 3rd, 1861.

The Speaker took the Chair at 5 o'clock.

VOTE OF WANT OF CONFIDENCE.

* * * * *

Mr. CARTER said--It was not his intention to speak at this somewhat early stage of the debate; but seeing the reluctance of hon. members to continue the discussion on the great and important question now before the House, and fearing that the debate might come to a premature conclusion, he (Mr. C.) ventured to offer a few remarks on the subject now under consideration, and he would first premise, by saying that he had expected a more complete statement, and much fuller explanations, than what had been accorded by the hon. member at the head of the Government. In entering on this debate, he (Mr. C.) felt considerable responsibility, standing as this North Island did, on the borders of a war, and representing as he did, a very large district, entirely unprepared for war, and with a population of about 1,500 souls, who with their properties, the fruits of many years' toil, would be entirely at the mercy of the Natives in case of war; yet he (Mr. Carter) at this crisis, would not shrink from his duty, and if war was necessary for establishing the Queen's Supremacy, he would not shirk the responsibility of supporting it, here, or elsewhere (hear, hear). His objection to the ministers rested on no personal grounds, or personal dislike to them. He (Mr. C.) was not one of those personal enemies alluded to by the Colonial Secretary, and which the ministry have made during their five years administration; it was the policy of the ministers that he disapproved of; and his first objection to it would not be the war question. He thought the debate, so far, had been too much confined to the war; he objected to the ministry, because it appeared to him, that their

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desire, their wish, and their policy for the last five years, had been to undermine what he considered to be the people's part of the constitution--Provincial institutions,--and he thought the House would agree with him, that whatever might have been the errors of our Provincial Governments, in launching new institutions in a new country, (which required but experience of their working, and friendly aid from the General Government, to correct their slight defects). He Mr. (C.) thought that it could not be denied, not even by their bitter opponents, that these much abused local self-Governments, had borne the "burden of the day," for the last seven years, in carrying on vast schemes of immigration, and great public works. To these local institutions, and not to the General Government, do we owe the present wealthy and important position of this Colony, (hear, hear)--in fact the whole practical government of the Colony has been executed by the various Provincial Governments: yet, Sir, to greatly curtail their means, and destroy their power, these hon. gentlemen who form the ministry caused to be passed the New Provinces Act, which Act, while to a considerable extent it accomplished that end, it is also assuredly destined to absorb nearly all the revenues of these small Provinces, in official salaries, the bulk of whose revenues ought to be devoted to public works. On the anti-Provincial policy of the present government, the Colony has already, at the recent elections, pronounced its verdict against the ministry, and it now remains to be seen, whether those hon. members who were sent to this House to give effect to that verdict, will conform to the wishes of their constituents by passing a vote of want of confidence in the present Ministry. The Ministry are really on their trial on account of their mismanagement and ultra centralising tendencies. I am aware that the war question cannot be kept out of this debate; though a unanimous agreement had been come to on it, prior to this discussion; yet there was quite enough of materials to condemn the present govern-

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ment, without recurring to their mismanagement of the war, to which I will now, before I conclude my remarks, call the attention of the House. The Ministers have on many occasions stigmatised their opponents, as "Ultra-Provincialists," an epithet unfairly applied-- forgetting at the same time, that they themselves were really and truly ultra-centralists, and true to their creed, had done all in their power to weaken, impede, and render contemptible the various Provincial Governments, as was but too plainly shewn by their acts of the two previous Sessions of the last Parliament. I further object to the present Ministers, on account of their extravagance, and their want of economy in the various departments of Government: it is too much for a young Colony like this, (containing only 80,000 inhabitants) after defraying all the expenses of its nine Provincial Governments, to be paying between £70 and £80,000, to a General Government which performs so little of the real government of the Colony, although it employs 500 officials. Taking into consideration our resources, the settlers of these islands are taxed to a greater extent than any other Colony in these seas; and that at a time when the exports, (which are an index of a country's wealth) of the Northern Island were falling off, as they have done during last year, at Wellington and Auckland. Auckland used to export ship loads of wheat; now, it is importing them; in 1857, it exported 32,000 bushels of wheat; in 1858-59, about 10,000 bushels, and now, in 1860-1861, the year of great ministerial mismanagement, Auckland is importing wheat by tens of thousands of bushels, (Laughter). Honorable members laugh as though bad government had nothing to do with wheat producing; now I beg to remind them, that the present government commenced, and misconducted a war, and, that, that war has almost ruined Taranaki, where quantities of wheat were grown--has caused great numbers of the natives to go a fighting, instead of growing wheat, and that, while it has frightened away emigrants, and prevented

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others from coming to Auckland, who might have been wheat growers, it has deterred both natives and Europeans in this province, during the last twelve months, from growing wheat, which they might never reap (hear). I now come to another important subject-- the Tariff which the Ministers have been asked by several Provinces, over and over again, to amend, but to which requests they have turned a deaf ear, or returned flippant and unsatisfactory replies. I complain that the Tariff is most cumbersome, gives too much discretionary power to Collectors of Customs, and unequally distributes the fiscal burdens of the Colony--in short it is a Tariff the effect of which is, to favour the rich, and fleece the poor; and I am afraid it is likely to remain so, so long as those hon. gentlemen opposite occupy the Ministerial seats. Sir, I have now to complain of the arbitrary tendencies of the Ministry, as proved by the Acts they have introduced, and illustrated by their speeches which they have delivered--particularly by the speeches of the Colonial Treasurer. The arbitrary Acts I allude to are the Native Offenders' Bill, the Arms Bill, and Militia Bill, which the Government introduced during the last session of the last House, and which were withdrawn because hon. members on this side of the House vigorously and successfully opposed them, on the grounds that they--these Acts--were unfitted for a free people, and calculated to undermine our free institutions. Sir, I say that when I saw the Government doing their utmost to place these three measures on the statute book of this Colony, I had no hope of them, I felt that these three Acts were unconstitutional and only worthy of the Czar of Russia (hear, hear). I now come to the war question, a subject of vital and paramount importance to this Colony, a subject in which our Australian friends take deep interest,--a subject now being discussed and considered in England, and a subject requiring the (most serious and dispassionate consideration from this House. I approach this grave question in no party spirit; but with the wish to

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see it solved in a manner satisfactory to the Colony; but I cannot allow this occasion to pass, without expressing my surprise that the Home Government should ask this struggling Colony to bear so very large a proportion of the expenses of the war. Be it remembered always that this House is unanimous in its opinion, that it is an Imperial War, (hear) over which we have no control, and I do think that the Home authorities ought not to claim so much as they do, by a great deal; they are actually asking us to contribute yearly as much per man for troops as is done by Australia--an immense country, with a large population, and an enormous yield of gold, wool, and other commodities--they are requiring this Colony to pay more than the old and wealthy Colonies of the Cape and Canada. Sir, while I feel grateful to our mother country for the prompt and liberal manner in which she has come to our help in the hour of need, I do hope and trust that she will not insist on her present claims, for we have not the means of paying them. There is one thing I would now wish to call the attention of this House to, which is, that it appears to me that the Government wants to confound the war that is past with the war impending; now I consider them two different things, two distinct questions. The war at Waitara was for a small block of land, the proposed war at Waikato is to establish the Queen's supremacy, to put down the King Movement. And here let me observe, that for some time I have held the opinion that the Government ought long ago, before the Taranaki war commenced, to have interfered, and put a stop to the progress of the King Movement; but they allowed it to take its course, even connived at it, till at last the natives believed they were doing no wrong, and the movement gathered strength, in such a way, as to shew its present powerful and rebellious aspect. I contend, and again repeat that Waitara and the land question, and Waikato and the King Movement, are totally dissimilar; it must not be forgotten, that William King was against the King Movement before the

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war commenced, and was driven to support it through that war. The Ministers have only proved an imaginary connection between the two: I challenge them to prove a real one, and while some hon. members may have their doubts as to the justice or policy of the Taranaki war, they cannot have, (I have not) any doubts as to the justness and expediency of a war, if fair negotiations fail, which, God forbid!--to establish the supremacy-- the sovereignty of our Queen, which at all hazards must be upheld (hear, hear). But, Sir, and I appeal to hon. members on both sides of this House, can we trust the hon members who compose the present Ministry, either with the management of the present negotiations, or of a future war, when they have so mismanaged the past ones? It must be borne in mind, that though, during last session, many hon. members censured the Government for plunging the Colony, so rashly, into a war, yet ample means were placed at their disposal to prosecute it with vigour. £150,000 was voted them for barracks, stockades, removing women and children, compensation to settlers and to buy arms, which latter they have not purchased, that is, nothing near the whole of them are in the Colony, though the order for them may have gone home. Now I would ask if this House can have confidence in a Ministry whose motto appeared to be "war at any price," which war was concluded with "peace at any price?" Was it not patent to all, from their sayings and doings of last session, that they would not patch up a peace with the "rebels?" as they were justly termed: but have they not done so? have the murderers of the Omata settlers been punished? have the Ngatiruanui or Taranaki tribes restored their plunder? or has land been taken from them as compensation? No! nothing of that kind has been done; and here I wish to be clearly understood on one very important point, and I speak decidedly, and after calm deliberation, when I say, that if the natives will drag us into a war, and war is unavoidable, then in that case, they, the natives who war against us,

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must be made to give compensation in land as a means of payment for our losses, (hear, hear), for hitherto they have been gainers by war, and until they are losers we shall not have real peace; but at the same time, give them due time to consider their position, and the Governor's conditions of peace offered to the Waikatos, and what I consider a proper time is not six or twelve months: I think three or four months quite sufficient, and then if the Waikatos will not haul down their King flag, it will be for British valour to pull it down. But, Sir, I have no hope that any such things can be accomplished by the present Ministry--therefore I am desirous to see a new one in their places. It is of the utmost importance that neither these negotiations, nor the war, should be trifled with. There are three large and important outlying districts in the South of this Island deeply interested in this;--I represent one of them, the hon. member for Rangitiki, another, and the hon. member for the country districts of the Province of Hawke, represents the third. The safety of the lives and properties in these unarmed and undefended districts, depends on the wise and energetic measures being taken by the Government, [A*] One most important topic seems to me to have been entirely lost sight of in the course of this debate; that is, the probable cost of the war: my hon. friend, the member for Rangitiki, has noticed one item of it; but the Government have hardly thought it worth their attention, and appear to me to be leading their supporters into war, blindfolded. Sir, as men of business, we ought to know our liabilities, and as honest men, if we incur them, we must provide the ways and means of meeting them. If we can arrive at the cost of the war , or a fair approximation to it, we shall then be able to see how much we shall have saved the Colony, if prudent negotiations secure an honourable peace. I believe it to be the duty of this House to prepare for war, but before we commit ourselves to it, we ought to count its cost, and I would here call the attention of the Southern

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members in particular--who have so liberally offered to pay their quota of the expenses of the war--to a statement I am about to make, which will give them, before they finally commit themselves, some idea of the liabilities and cost of a war now imminent. In the first place I will ask the notice of hon. members to a Message sent down to this House by his Excellency, and covering a despatch from the Duke of Newcastle, which Message asks us to comply with the request contained in the Duke's despatch. This request is for payment of the usual Colonial allowance to Her Majesty's troops, men and officers, and is in addition to the £5 per man, rank and file, agreed to be paid by the Colonial Secretary, Mr. Stafford, some months ago. Now this additional demand of extra pay exceeds £5 per man per annum, but taking it at the lowest rate of £5, this, with the Colony's present contribution of £5. makes £10 per annum, and as the number of troops, all ranks, including 600 men now on their way out here, may be safely taken at 6,000 men, we shall have 6.050 men at £10 perhead, which with the £7,000 demanded for New Plymouth Barracks, amounts for this year to £67,000; and I am just informed, that a little account--a back bill--has been sent in, I believe bv the Commissariat Department, for about £60,000. This makes a total of £127,000 we are called upon to pay. But leaving out this arrears account of £60,000--and keeping to my own estimate of £67,000--which will be very much increased if we have two more regiments out. -- Of course, as I have in the course of my remarks said, that the war is an Imperial one, we ought, I think, not to be called on to pay such vast sums,--and if we are, we have not the means to do it. But what the opinion of the Ministers is on this subject, most of us are entirely ignorant; perhaps we may be told the troops will be withdrawn if we do not pay the sum asked; well then there is the demand for men and money made by His Excellency the other night--and I must say on this men and money question, His Excellency has

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adopted a straightforward and manly course, when he requested us, before we were committed to the war, to consider that we must supply the men and money. I wish his Responsible Advisers were equally candid about war expenses (hear). By men and money, I understand Militia men and their payment; and if we take the men in this Northern Island at 10,000 capable of bearing arms--and this is much under the true estimate--we may fairly assume, in case of a general war, that at least 4,000 Militia men will be called out to assist to defend their own districts, and also to aid as far as possible, the operations of General Cameron. And as, by the Militia Regulations of last Session, Militia men receive 2s. 6d. per day, and their rations, it is not too much to estimate their cost per diem at 3s. 6d.; and 4,000 men on duty, at 3s. 6d. per day, and say 160 officers at 10s. per day, amounts to £780 a day, or per annum £284,700, or rather more than a quarter of a million of money for local defence alone. Then there is another war item--removal of women and children, a contingency that might not happen, but it has occured at Taranaki, and it must be calculated for on the same principle as that of a merchant who sends a ship to sea, which, if everything is in her favor, may make her voyage in six days--if contrary winds retard her, she may be twelve days --or she may be lost altogether: but these are the merchant's contingencies, on which he has calculated, and which he has provided to meet, by putting down an extra sum for risks. So it is with our war--it may last three months or twelvemonths, or we may be worsted or ruined. This removal of women and children, say 15,000 in number, to take refuge in the cities of Auckland and Wellington, or perhaps be deported to the Middle Island, would, at 8s. per week, cost at the rate of £6,000 per week, or £312,000 for the year. I do not wish to exaggerate; I shall only be too glad to be corrected by any hon. member pointing out error in my calculations. But I have still another large item to bring before the House.

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My first item was the £10 per head, and Barracks 67,000l.: 2nd--Militia pay, 284,700l.; 3rd--removal of women and children, 312,000l.; and my last item-- destruction of settler's property, which, taking the losses at Taranaki as a basis, may be estimated, at Auckland, outside the Tamaki, at 300,000l.; Wellington, 400,000l. --Hawke's Bay, 300,000l, making a grand total of expense and loss of 1,663,700l. These calculations I have just made are no imaginary ones. I have information derived from a gentleman high in position at Taranaki, and well able to judge, who states his belief that the loss at Taranaki from destruction of houses, stock, gardens, hedges, farm produce, and farming implements, cannot be much less than 150,000l.; and taking that as data, and our cultivated lands in the hands of the hostile natives, I think I have underrated rather than overrated the probable losses of outlying settlers. As regards Auckland, I am credibly informed that the Military cannot defend the country beyond the line of the Tamaki, and the settlers that live outside it must abandon their homes and a country in several parts cultivated like a garden. Sir, I heard the other evening the hon. member for Christchurch say "Auckland men don't place yourselves at the mercy of a Wellington Ministry," or words to that effect. Now I beg to assure that hon. member, Wellington members do not want a Wellington Ministry, and, sooner than see the present one remain in power, I think they would be content to be unrepresented in it: What Wellington members would wish to see is a New Zealand Ministry, who would foster and work in unison with the Provinces, reduce our expenditure, and increase our income,--who would negotiate fairly for an honorable peace, or, negotiations failing, carry on a vigorous war that would end in a lasting peace (hear, hear). But, Sir, I declare it to be my unbiassed and solemn conviction that, if the present Ministry remain in power, the fate of our Provincial institutions is sealed,--negotiations to secure the acceptance of the Governor's conditions

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to the Waikatos will fail,--and a disastrous war will be concluded by a patched-up peace. Sir, standing as we do on the threshold of a war likely to be ruinous, cruel, and bloody, I ask this house to pause ere it gives a vote of confidence to a Ministry whose past mismanagement of the affairs of this Colony ought to be a beacon to warn us from trusting them in the future. (Applause). * * * * *

The House then divided, when the numbers were--

AYES 24.
Fitzherbert. R. Graham. Williamson. White. Saunders. G. Graham. Henderson. Featherston. Eyes. O'Rorke. McGlashen. Wood. Kettle. Brandon. Carter. Carleton. Rhodes. Munro. C. J. Taylor. Renall. Mantell. Dick

TELLERS.
W. Taylor. Fox.

NOES 23.
Bell. A. J. Richmond Stafford. Creyke. T. Russell. Hall. Firth, O'Neill. J. C. Wilson. Ormond. Butler. Nixon. Domett. Cookson. C.W. Richmond. Weld. Rowley. Frazer. Wells. Mason. Jollie.

TELLERS.
J. C. Richmond. Curtis,

The announcement was received with cheers.

The latter portion of this speech, from A* to its conclusion, was transmitted home by Sir George Grey to the Colonial Secretary, His Grace the Duke of Newcastle, in a despatch No. 4, and dated October 26th, 1861.

It was introduced to the notice of his Grace by the Governor, with the following remarks.

22.--"As the best source of information to aid my enquiries on this subject, (probable cost of war) the Ministers refer me to a speech made by Mr. Carter in the House of Representatives, from which I enclose an extract.

23.--"Mr. Carter estimates the probable cost of removing the women and children from the threatened portions of the provinces of Auckland, Wellington, and Hawke's Bay, and supporting them for one year,
at .. £312,000
Settlers' losses in the province of Auckland .. 300,000
Ditto, ditto Wellington .. 400,000
Ditto, ditto Hawke's Bay .. 300,000
[Total] .. £1,312,000.

and Mr. Carter thinks that in this statement he has rather underrated than over-estimated the amount."

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No. VII.

(The following relates to that part of speech No. V. at p. lii of the Appendix, where Mr. Ferguson's name is mentioned at line 12.)

PUBLIC MEETING AT MASTERTON.

At a numerously attended meeting of the Electors of Masterton, convened by requisition on the evening of the 28th of July, 1858.--Wm. H. Donald, Esq., Chairman.

The following resolutions were passed unanimously:--

1.--"That the able, lucid, and temperate statement we have just heard from Charles R. Carter, Esq., in reference to the affairs of the Small Farm Association, the discharge of his duties as our representative in the Provincial Council, and the motives by which he is actuated in offering his valuable services as our representative in the General Assembly, not only calls for our warmest acknowledgments, but warrants our unlimited confidence in the ability, zeal and integrity which have hitherto marked his conduct."

2.--"That in the event of the information which has this day reached us, proving correct, we feel called upon to express in the strongest terms, our disapproval of the hasty and unconstitutional manner in which the nomination and election of a member to serve in the General Assembly for this district has been conducted--the said nomination and election having taken place at Castle Point, on the 22nd instant, as we are informed without due notice, and within a less time than is required by the law, thereby precluding us from the exercise of our just rights as electors; and that with a view to obtain redress, the principal Returning Officer be respectfully requested to cancel the return made, as illegal, and appoint another election of which sufficient notice shall be given."

Should this course prove unavailing, we pledge ourselves to bring the subject under the notice of His Excellency the Governor, by Memorial, and to employ every constitutional means in our power for obtaining redress.

3.--"That a copy of these resolutions be forwarded to the Editor of the Wellington Independent for publication."

(Signed by request, on behalf of the meeting).

W. H. DONALD, Chairman.

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No. VIII.

INTRODUCTION OF PHEASANTS.

The Preservation of Imported Birds.

We have much pleasure in calling public attention to the introduction into this Province, by Mr. C. R. Carter, of a number of fine pheasants, which he purchased when at Auckland, and which he intends to turn out in the Wairarapa. Mr. Carter deserves commendation for the public spirit he has displayed in this instance, and which we only wish was more frequently exhibited by those who take a part in public affairs. We are informed that pheasants are now very numerous in the Northern Province, and would have been more so had they not been wantonly destroyed.--New Zealand Advertiser, 1861.

No. IX.

THE MEMBERS OF OUR COLONIAL PARLIAMENT.

From, the New Zealand Advertiser 8 of Oct. 1862.

We believe it is generally admitted that the members of the New Zealand Parliament--whether as regards education, eloquence, intellect, gentlemanly bearing, or debating power--are equal, if not superior, to the members of any other Parliament in this hemisphere. We are not in a position to dispute this, but it struck us that in the last Session there were really very few effective speakers in the House, and that the dummies were in the majority. All the best things said by the best speakers left the impression on the mind that they had been said and better said before. The most fluent debaters were decidedly Fitzgerald, Fox, and Stafford; the most argumentative, Domett, Gillies and Carleton;

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and the most popular, without any comparison, was Major Richardson, the Superintendent of Otago. Of eloquent and effective speakers, Auckland, with fifteen representatives, sent the least; and Otago, with four representatives, the most. Dr. Featherston seldom spoke during the session; and Mr. Fitzgerald, though he spoke often and at great length, could not be classed, during the past session, at all events, as a first class debater. Most of his speeches gave the impression that they were made against time, and were not, consequently, listened to, even by his supporters, with patience and attention. The most earnest, and consequently one of the most effective speakers, was Mr. Weld. He stood at the head of the very few of our orators who gave the hearer the impression that he felt and meant what he said. Mr. Bell is a fluent, ready, and animated speaker, and stands at the head of our second-class orators; and Jollie, Colenso, Williamson, Moorhouse, Saunders, Carter, and Cargill, may be included in this class. Ward, Wood, Wilson, J. C. Richmond, Renall, Curtis, and Harrison, did not frequently occupy the time of the House, but when they spoke--J. C. Richmond excepted--they spoke well and to the purpose. In addition to the want of originality of thought and expression manifested in the speeches made during the session, the views enunciated in them were not those of the colonial public, but of only a small section thereof, if we except those of Weld, Saunders, Carter, Richardson, and Domett. The strangers in the gallery were forcibly impressed with the conviction that neither the views nor interests of the bona fide colonists were faithfully represented in the House. One of the best speeches of the session was made by Saunders, of Nelson. It was made to empty benches, and never reported. Another speech which made a great impression in the House, and which was near meeting the same fate, was that of Captain Atkinson, of Taranaki, the only report of which was given by the Advertiser. * * * *

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No. X.

Wellington Independent, Jannary 9th, 1863.

ASTEROPE--The ship Asterope clears at the Customs this day, and sails for England the first fair wind. The Asterope is the first wool ship of the season, and takes a large and valuable cargo. She takes twenty cabin-passengers (including three children), amongst whom are Mrs. Daniel Wakefield, Mrs. C. R. Carter [and daughter], and other well known parties, who are about to pay a visit to Europe. The Asterope is in capital sailing trim, and being a clipper vessel, we anticipate that she will make a quick run home. We wish Capt. Mitchell and his passengers a speedy and pleasant voyage.

No. XI.

Wellington Independent, 28th March, 1863.

WAIRARAPA ELECTION.

FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT.

Mr. CARTER, in accordance with his promise, held a Meeting at the School Room, Greytown, on the evening of the 14th instant, There was a good attendance of electors, and the proceedings commenced by Mr. Udy being voted to the chair. The chairman having called upon Mr. Carter to address the meeting,

Mr. CARTER entered into a long, but interesting explanation of his political conduct as their representative: after which, he said, he trusted the long array of figures and dry details he had laid before them, had not wearied them; but he had felt it his duty to do so, in order that he might close the mouths of those very few individuals--political opponents--who went about misrepresenting him behind his back, but who dared not do so before his face. If any elector present had any complaint to make, or question to ask,

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he should be glad to answer it; but before doing so, he felt it incumbent on him, to say a few words personal to himself, and also as regards the present and the future of the district. Mr. C. proceeded, and said --Gentlemen, before I proceed further, permit me to thank you, and the rest of the Wairarapa electors, for the very large, I might say unprecedented share of confidence and support you have uniformly awarded me in past years, and in returning me three times to the Provincial Council, and twice to the General Assembly, always at the head of the poll, or without opposition. I see around me many old friends, who have worked hard with me in years gone by to establish those much abused small farms, which, in eight years, notwithstanding the errors we committed, have raised the population of this district, from 400 souls to about 2,000; and I now feel loth to say to these old friends and electors of this valley, that I must leave them for a time--I hope not for a long time--to take a voyage to England, but not until after another session of the Provincial Council; and as there are some things which I think, with the assistance of my worthy colleague, (Captain Smith) I could do for the district, my services for one session more are at your disposal. At first, I thought I would not offer myself, on account of inconvenience to you, and expense to the province; then I considered it the most straightforward course to consult you, as I have always done, and be guided by your decision. I know that as one of your representatives, I have not done all that I wished to do, or all that you expected me to do; but I am quite certain I have not neglected my duty, or failed to watch over your interests. I am also quite sure that the Wairarapa will not have full justice done to it, till the representation of the Province is reapportioned, and it has the four members it is entitled to--and that its progress wrill not be rapid, until the lake is opened, or a tramway over the Remutaki ranges is substituted for the present road. I will support any

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government that will turn its attention seriously to attain these objects. Mr. Masters may accuse me of supporting the present Government through thick and thin, which I take to mean, through right or wrong. Now I beg to inform him, that I decline to be a supporter on these conditions--I repudiate it; generally speaking, I have supported the Government. I am prepared to do so again: but I shall support them less, if some attempt is not made to induce a reflux of capital and immigration into this province. It is true, new lands may be open for sale, to be bought up by a few local capitalists; but what the province wants, is a new stream of capital and settlers with it, to improve and cultivate our country lands. The progress of Wellington will indeed be slow if this is not done. We may establish banks and steam companies, but they will not flourish if they are to depend on the trade of the City of Wellington alone. Wellington may do a little business in the carrying trade, or may export a few imported goods; but Wellington is not a depot for merchandise, as Sydney once was for these seas; or as Singapore now is in the East. Wellington in the infant days of the colony, to a certain extent > was; but that has passed away. Each chief port of each large Province (and there are five of them) has its own depot, its own commercial emporium, its steam companies and banks, independent of Wellington. It appears to me nonsense to think that the large Province of Wellington, with its vast inland resources, is to depend for its prosperous future, and the large wealthy population it is destined to carry, --on the limited operations of Wellington merchants, (however enterprising they may be). A large Province like this cannot be supported by its chief town, a seaport, exporting some of our own produce and part of what it imports. It is true, our present exports of country produce--wool to England, and temporary exports of cattle, butter and timber to Otago--keeps the place alive and prosperous--keeps us as we are. But the progress of the Province in population, in wealth and culti-

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vation, is slow, not rapid; we are lagging behind other Provinces, instead of competing in the front, or even keeping a creditable place in the rear. It is to the land and to the land alone, that we must look for our exports. The land is the source of all wealth, no matter whether it is gold, or wool, wheat, or wine; no matter whether it is material to build ships or houses -- clothing to cover our bodies, or food to sustain our existence--to the land we owe all. The question next arises, how can we attract capital and population, and get the lands cultivated. The principal difficulty is how to keep out the land shark--the land jobber--and always keep a supply of land for settlers as they arrive. There are three known ways of arresting and impeding the wholesale operations of the land jobber. First, to raise the price of land; this I do not agree with. The second, to give free grants on conditions of occupancy, &c. to actual settlers as at Auckland, which under certain limitations, I am favorable to. The third plan is to do as was imperfectly done in the Wairarapa, avoiding the errors committed by the first Small Farm Association. Organise an Association, give it a legal standing, and a good block of agricultural land, (Manawatu for instance) or a good block of pastoral land, for we may have the two; the one for farmers of from one to three hundred acres, the other for farms of say from 500 to 2,000 acres. Appoint a paid Commissioner for this special purpose, whose sole business shall be to make it known in England, Germany or Australia. I think by this we might attract a population, and without population we all agree, this Province can make no progress at all commensurate with its large area, and resources. I am not wedded to the above plans. If any one will furnish a better plan to attract and locate a population, it shall have my support. I simply call your attention, and the notice of the public, to the importance of something being speedily done in a matter of such vital importance to the Province at large. Gentlemen, I have done, it is now for you to ask me

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any questions, or to say whether you approve or disapprove of what I have done. If this meeting will say that it would rather I should not stand and prefer Mr. Masters, I will at once retire from the contest; let there be no misunderstanding about this: I stand upon my past conduct as your representative: if the vote is against me I retire, but will still attend at Carterton and Masterton simply to give an account of my stewardship.

Some confusion here arose, several speakers getting up to address the meeting, one to propose a resolution, another to ask a question, a third, Mr. Renall, to a point of order, and a fourth, Mr. Masters, bursting with the desire to make an abusive speech. The Chairman behaved in an able and impartial manner throughout. At length Mr. Bennett asked Mr. Carter why the contractors on the road had been kept out of their money after it was due, and Mr. Holdsworth did not bring up the money instead of Mr. Carter?

Mr. Carter replied, that it was wrong to keep the contractors waiting for their money, but Mr. Holdsworth was not able on account of Government business to bring up the money, and had asked him, (Mr. C.) to oblige him by so doing, and as he (Mr. C.) was going direct to the place he thought he would be obliging all parties by taking charge of the money.

Mr. Bennett here made some irrevelant and abusive remarks.

Mr. Masters made a long and violent speech; saying nothing of what he would do if elected, but abusing Mr. Carter for what he had done, and accusing the Government and him of doing all sorts of things, which if any one did, he would be acting dishonorably. Mr. Masters exhibited himself more like a political ranting showman than an aspirant for political honors and trust, and as Mr. Renall said "what would the public think if the Wairarapa electors elected such a man to represent them."

Mr. Renall, at considerable length, moved a resolution to the effect, "that this meeting has heard with

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satisfaction the explanations tendered by Mr. C. R. Carter, and requests him to again offer himself as a candidate," which being seconded.

Mr. Carter asked for a few minutes to say a word or two in reply. He would be very brief. As regarded what Mr. Bennett had said, he excused him, and would not notice him further, for he did not know any better (laughter). As regards Mr. Masters, he expected something a little better from him, and was surprised to hear him use such coarse language, and be guilty of such gross misrepresentations. However, he (Mr. C.) pitied him, and was willing to forgive him, knowing that his vanity and ignorance sometimes got the better of his common sense and understanding.

The Chairman here put the resolution, which being carried, "unanimously," he said at first, but corrected himself by saying there were three hands held up against.

Afterwards a vote of thanks to the Chairman was proposed and carried, when the meeting separated.

On the Monday evening after the above, Mr. Carter held a meeting at Carterton, where his explanations appeared to give general satisfaction. Mr. Bennett (who had made himself so conspicuous at the Greytown meeting) being one of the audience, said, in effect, he knew the electors had no fault to find with Mr. Carter. He had been a good member, and his (Mr. B.'s) only objection to him, was his going to England. Mr. Masters indulged in much the same strain as at Greytown, but met with a much more severe reproof than at the latter place.

The requisition got up to Mr. Masters, and signed by thirteen electors out of about 300 in the district, was not all genuine. One person has since stated that his name was put on it without his authorising anyone to do so; other two stated they did so because they were told that Mr. Carter would go home as soon as he was elected, with M.P.C. in his pocket. These two, if there had been a poll, would have voted for Mr. Carter. We

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give these few particulars to show how a man may make a great noise without having any foundation or reason for doing it.

On Tuesday evening, Mr. Carter entered into a lengthy explanation to the electors of Masterton, in the School Room. Mr. Masters was present and drew it very mild--was as quiet as a "new shorn lamb." Mr. Renall occupied the Chair, and the following resolution was proposed by Mr. Crayne, and seconded by Mr. H. Donald:--

Mr. Masters proposed--

The Chairman here read Mr. Masters' resolution, which finding no seconder fell to the ground, and the original resolution being put, was carried without a dissenting voice.

The nomination took place last Friday, at Greytown, H. St. Hill, Esq., acting as Returning Officer, who having opened the proceedings,

Mr. S. Moles proposed Charles Rooking Carter as a fit and proper person to represent the Wairarapa in the Provincial Council. Mr. Kempton, sen., seconded him.

Mr. O'Connor proposed Mr. Masters, who did not show his face. Mr. Leyden seconded him.

A show of hands being taken, they were in favor of Mr. Carter, three hands being held up for Mr. Masters. Mr. St. Hill asked if a poll was demanded: none being demanded, he declared Mr. Carter duly elected. The proceedings terminated, with a vote of thanks to the Returning Officer.

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No. XII.

From the New Zealander, November 10th, 1863.

FROM 0UR OWN CORRESPONDENT.

Wellington, October 29th, 1863.

Another of our citizens, who has long been deservedly-respected and esteemed--I mean C. R. Carter, Esq.-- also intends going home for a year. He left Wellington in the Lord Ashley, on her last trip to attend the Assembly, and will proceed from Auckland to the old country when relieved from his duties. Very few men have been so fortunate as Mr. Carter in securing the confidence of the community in general, and more especially that portion of it which he represents in the House. A shrewd and energetic man, his career here has been deservedly successful. He has for many years been engaged in business as a builder, and has [as an architect] executed very important works--the last of which was the recently-erected Supreme Court-house, comprising the Debt Court and Police Office. Mr. Carter represents the Wairarapa District in the Assembly, as well as in the Provincial Council. In the House, though not possessed of eloquence, he is a sound and logical speaker, distinguished by earnestness and thorough honesty of purpose, and his opinions therefore carry great weight. The other day, while passing a farewell visit to the Wairarapa, he expressed himself willing to meet his constituents publicly, and explain his views, but they were perfectly satisfied to leave their interests in his hands without requiring any pledge from him. We can ill spare such a gentleman as Mr. Carter at the present crisis, and his return will be warmly welcomed.