158 HOW TO LEGISLATE [PART I. 



IX. It has often occurred to me that the advan- 

 tages which would accrue to a new colony by a proper 

 direction of the labour of a population of 114,890 

 souls has not been sufficiently considered. If work of 

 any description is to be done, the making of roads 

 and wharfs, the felling of timber, clearing of ground, 

 and so on, the authorities will not take the trouble 

 of superintending its execution by the natives ; 

 and the latter on their part are very cautious in 

 taking contracts, and will only trust those parties 

 who have gained their confidence : the principal 

 cause of this is, that they are always expected to 

 do the work at a very low rate of remuneration, 

 in comparison to the high wages which are paid 

 to Europeans, and that in some cases procrastina- 

 tion, if not deficiency, of payment has taken place. 

 When once the confidence of the natives in such 

 engagements is lost, it is very difficult to re-esta- 

 blish it. In New Zealand, where there is neither 

 slave nor convict labour, and at the same time a 

 great scarcity of free labour, the rapidity of its pro- 

 gress as a colony will in a very important degree 

 depend upon the natives finding it their interest to 

 exert themselves. I have seen them work very hard 

 where they had this stimulus, or where they were 

 otherwise well managed. In some instances in 

 which timber was to be brought down from the 

 sides of steep ravines, and along mountain-streams, 

 where Europeans found the task impracticable, 

 an equal number of natives easily accomplished it. 



