Government—The government of New Zealand has hitherto been intrusted to a governor (till 1845 he was only lieutenant-governor, subordinate to the governor-in-chief at Sydney), with an executive council, consisting of the colonial secretary, the treasurer, and the attorney-general; and a legislative council consisting of four colonists, nominated by the governor. The seat of the government is at Auck land. In 1852, by the act 15 and 16 Viet., cap. 72, a new constitution was provided for New Zealand. By this act the following provinces are established in New Zealand, namely, Auckland, New Plymouth, Wellington, Nelson, Canterbury, and Otago, the limits of the same to be fixed by the governor of New Zealand ; each province has a super intendent and a provincial council, and the colony at large has a legis lative council and a house of representatives. The waste lands are under the superintendence of the General Assembly, but arrangements with respect to lands held in common by the natives cannot be entered into except with the crown.
New Zealand was created a bishopric in 1841, as suffragan to Sydney, when the Rev. G. A. Selwyn was appointed, whose residence is at Auckland, and who has been indefatigable in the discharge of his duties. A second bishopric, that of Christchurch, was founded in 1854.
The government revenue in 1849 was 48,589/., in 1850 it was 57,743l.; of the increase 4000/. arose from the customs, and 5000/. from the land. There has been always a deficiency in the revenue as against the expenditure, which has been made up by a paliiamentary vote by England. In 1850 this vote was for 20,0001. ; but in 1849 there was a decrease in the expenditure in New Ulster of 5075/., and in New Munster of 11,5871., a total decrease of 16,6621.
Towns and Villages.—The chief towns and villages in the colony are the Auckland, the seat of the government of the colony, is built on the southern shores of the harbour of Waitemata, which opens into the Gulf of Hauraki. The harbour has sufficient depth for vessels of con siderable burden. The town stands on cliffs of sandstone of moderate elevation, backed by rising ground. Several volcanic cones rise in its immediate neighbourhood, at the base of which are hard scoriae, fit for buildings and roads, and easily worked ; the sandstone of the cliffs, though soft, hardens by exposure to the air, and is also a good building material. Some of the caves that occur in the cliffs have been used by the natives as places of sepulture, and the bottoms are covered with human bones. The houses in the town are mostly of wood. .The town is situated in a part of the island where the soil, though light, is fertile and easily cultivated, and it has an easy communication with all the countries both to the north and to the south. Many of the English, who settled on the island before the foundation of the colony, reside in the harbours north of Auckland, and a great number of small coasting-vessels visit Auckland. Around Auckland are four pensioner villages for discharged soldiers. Auckland was incorporated as a borough on July 29th, 1351, the district by which it is formed extend ing 16 miles in length, and from 5 to 'T miles in width. It is divided into 14 wards, of which three are in the town itaelL The Tamaki Creek intersects the borough, is navigable for boats, and is made available for the commerce of the district. The borough is governed by a mayor, aldermen, and burgesses. The principal buildings in the town are—St. Paul's church, a handsome building ; two seta of barracks
built of scoriae; a public hoepital; a market-house; a native hostelry; public washing, bathing, and drying grounds ; several chapels ; and a bank. There are also several bridges, wharfs, and landing.placee. The governor's residence and the bishop's are closely adjacent, and four miles from the town, on the banks of the Tamaki, is St. John's College. There is a church at each of the penaioner-villagee mentioned above. The population of the town is about 4000; in the district in 1851 there were 8840, of whom 4921 were males and 3919 females. The flag-staff of the barracks is in 31' 51' 27" S. lat., 174° 45' 20" E. long.
Wellington, the principal settlement of the New Zealand Company, founded in 1840, is on the shores of Port Nicholson, in the island of New Ulster, but for government purposes the town and the whole of the dis trict are comprised in the province of New Munster. Port Nicholson lies in 41' 15' S. lat.., 174' 47' E. long.; it is surrounded by moun tains, except at the alluvial tract through which tho river Hutt, or Eritonga, reaches the sea. These mountains rise abruptly from the water's edge, except in the most south-western corner of the harbour, where a strip of fiat land extends at their base, about one-third of a mile broad and two miles long, the soil of which h composed of sand, shells, shingle, and vegetable earth. On this flat ground, which snr rounds that portion of Port Nicholson called Lambton Harbour, the town of Wellington has been built. It extends about three miles in the form of a semicircle round the harbour. The fist ground not being considered sufficient for the town, the hills south of it were included. As these hills are generally too steep to build on, only the more convenient parts were selected for that purpose, and thus the most distant points of the town are nearly four miles from the harbour. In 1843 there were 525 houses, of which 45 were of brick or stone, 303 of wood, and 177 of clay and wood, or other materials. Other houses, and large warehouses of brick, have been constructed since, near the wharfs and jetties, which have been built so that vessels of 70 tons can unload alongside of them. There are two churches, and an Episcopal chapel, a Presbyterian chapel, five Wesleyan chapels, three other Dissenting chapels, and one Roman Catholic chapel, with a Roman Catholic bishop ; there are also an hospital, a bank, a savings bank, a mechanics institute, a horticultural society, a custom-house, an exchange, a jail, two seta of barracks, and the residence of the lieutenant-governor. There are also 33 schools of various kinds. Most of the publio buildings are of wood only. The population of the dis trict in 1851 was 5722, of whom 3135 were males and 2587 females. The town is well supplied with water by streams which run through it ; it is lighted at night by lamps, which every public-house is com pelled by the terms of ita licence to keep burning; the streets are not paved, brit excellent roads have been made in several directions along the coast to the valley of the Hatt, and towards that of Wairarape. Two newspapers are published in the town. Three cemeteries have been provided, all of them at some distance outside the town, one for the Jews, one for Roman Catholics, and the other, • large one, pie turesqnely Protestant situated, Is used by all the Ptestant eects, European and native. The harbour is safe, and has good holding-ground.