AUSTRALASIA AND POLYNESIA. 



57 



provide for tho deficit of 

 the current your by an in- 

 crease of tin- liuul-tiix and 

 customs duties. In Jan- 

 uary a vote of want of 

 confidence in the Ministry 

 was passed by the Legis- 

 lative Council of Queens- 

 land. In consequence, the 

 Ministry resigned, and a 

 new one was formed, com- 

 posed as follow s: Premier 

 and Treasurer, T. Mcll- 

 wraith ; Colonial Secre- 

 tary, A. II. Palmer ; Min- 

 ister of Justice, T. M. 

 Thompson; PublicWorks, 

 J. M. McCrassan ; Minis- 

 ter of Lands, T. Perkins ; 

 Postmaster - General, 0. 

 H. Buzacott. This Min- 

 istry met with a vote of 

 want of confidence from the Assembly in the 

 beginning of August. In August the Legisla- 

 ture passed an act declaring that certain isl- 

 ands in Torres Straits, and lying between the 

 continent of Australia and the island of New 

 Guinea, shall, from a day to be fixed by the 

 Governor by proclamation, become part of the 

 colony of Queensland, and subject to the laws 

 in force therein. This territory is described 

 in the act as follows : " All islands included 

 within a line drawn from Sandy Cape north- 

 ward to the southeastern limit of the Great 

 Barrier Reefs; thence following the line of 

 the Great Barrier Reefs to their northeastern 

 extremity near the latitude nine and a half de- 

 grees south ; thence in a northwesterly direc- 

 tion, embracing East Anchor and Bramble 

 Cays; thence from Bramble Cay in a line 

 west by south (south 79 degrees west) true, 

 embracing Warrior Reef, Saibai, and Tuan Isl- 

 ands; thence diverging in a northwesterly di- 

 rection, so as to embrace the group known 

 as the Talbot Islands; thence to and embrac- 

 ing the Deliverance Islands, and onward in a 

 west-by-south direction (true) to the meridian 

 of 138 degrees of east longitude." 



The Parliament of New Zealand was opened 

 on July llth. Among the measures, the in- 

 troduction of which was promised by the 

 Governor's speech, were manhood suffrage. 

 Parliamentary representation on the basis of 

 population, triennial Parliaments, and the rei- 

 ulation of Chinese immigration into the col- 

 ony. The revenue of the colony for the pre- 

 ceding year had exceeded the estimates by 

 190,000; but there had nevertheless been a 

 ^reat falling off in the amount derived from 

 land and from the income-tax, and Parliament 

 would be asked to sanction an additional loan 

 of 5,000,000. A difficulty arose with tho 

 Maoris at Taranaki, which at one time seemed 

 to assume serious dimensions. The Maoris 

 had trespassed on lands of white settlers, 

 which had been confiscated from the natives, 



THE POST-OFFICE, MELBOURNE. 



and begun plowing on these lands. The set- 

 tlers applied to the Government for aid, but 

 the Government refused to direct the settlers 

 how to act in the emergency. The settlers, 

 thereupon, having first informed the Govern- 

 ment of their intention, took the matter into 

 their own hands, and, mustering in consider- 

 able numbers, but unarmed, took possession of 

 the plowmen and their teams, and removed 

 them bodily across the Waingogoro River, 

 which forms the boundary of the confiscated 

 lands. No great attempt at resistance was 

 made by the Maoris, and no unnecessary force 

 was used by the settlers ; and, after the eject- 

 ment had been successfully accomplished, Sir 

 George Grey telegraphed his approval of what 

 had been done. The ejected plowmen were 

 duly warned that in case of their return they 

 would be arrested and sent to prison. But 

 this threat and its subsequent execution did 

 riot deter them from their purpose. One party 

 after another renewed the trespass, some of 

 them even coming within the inclosures sur- 

 rounding the armed constabulary depots with 

 their plows; and party after party was ar- 

 rested. The imprisoned natives were commit- 

 ted for trial for destruction of property, but 

 they pleaded that their action was simply an 

 assertion of an undefined claim in the confis- 

 cated lands, and that they adopted this as 

 the only means of obtaining a hearing. Among 

 the majority of Parliament an evident desire 

 made itself manifest to do justice to the na- 

 tives, and Sir George Grey, the Premier, who 

 had up to this time enjoyed public confidence 

 to a high degree, was bitterly denounced in 

 Parliament, and charged with maladministra- 

 tion of the native affairs in particular, and pub- 

 lic affairs in general. Upon the motion of 

 Sir William Fox, the leader of the opposition, 

 the House declared in August, by a majority 

 of fourteen, that it had ceased to repose con- 

 fidence in the administration of Sir George 

 Grey. Upon the letter's request the House 



