TRACING LINEAGE OF MAORI VOTERS

Chronicle (Levin), 22 April 1947, Page 5

TRACING LINEAGE OF MAORI VOTERS

-Prcss Association

further evidence at raglan INQUIRY

3y Telegraph-

HAMILTON, April 21. BncleavoiTrs by coungel for petitioner to trace to tlie satisi action oi tlie vioui'o the lineage of four "bothers whose xorehears mcluded a Buropean vconstable on the one side oi tne I'ainn/ tree and a clergyman of full Maorx Dlood on the other side, oceupied muon of the time of the Raglan Electoral odurt today. The court heard evidence as to the ancestry of most of the 19 /oters challenged hy petitioner as possessing too much Maori "blood to entrcie them to vote as Europeans. Counsel announeed that oue of these cases would not he proceeded with while m aiiother- no evidence would he called because hoth petitioner and respondent had ohjected to the vote. Tlie lirst c-use lienrd was tliat of lui yiona Mason, of "Horotiu, a fspinster Evidence was given by illiain Kohi, tlie girl's fatlier, that he was a three quarter Maori, and that he Iralieved his wife, Ngairupa Kohi, was a full-blooded Maori. His daughter, who was 24 yeats otd, was adopted when three month. old by tlie alason family, and lived with them until their deatli about Jivfc vears ago. Mr. iMason had 110 Maori blood, but Mrs. Mason did, b-eing related to witness' own wife. Kohi coukl not say if the adoption was legalised'. but the arrangement was that the Masons should bring her up as their own daughter. He considered his daughter should not have voted as a European. Slie knew who her true parents were, although she had visited tlieni only once. Tlie services of an interpreter weie liurriedlv s'ought for, and obtained, when tlie next witness — Tui Mason ?s niaternal grandmother — was called. Blie was o-ive1 the oath in the ordinary way b-efore a daughter, who aeeonipanied her, told the clerk of . the Court, "she doesn 't understand a woro you say". Her evidence was then givefi tli rough an interpreter. Witness said. that although she had a small pereenlage of European blood she had always regarded lierself as a full Maori. Tui Mona Mason said she ertrolled at Horotiu when a man called there taking enrolments. As far as she knew the Masons were her parents. They brought her up to understand this. The Koliis had jokinglv told her last vear .iiat they were her parents, but she did not ' believe them. >She had never seeri niy doeumentary evidence concorfiing icr birth or parentage. Te Waimoana Pakihi, a married woman, of Huntly, anolher voter, said that, although she was a full-bloodel Maori, she thought she was entitled ti* .ihe same privileges as her husband, who was a half-east-e, and was 011 the Euro pean roll for Raglan. Evidence tliat he had been on ♦the European roll for more tlian 20 years was given by the fatlier of three voters objeeted to as being of-- predominantly daori blood. Thfiy were lliriga McLeati a labourer, Tom McLean, a lahon rer and Moriori Bell, a married woman, ab >f Whatawhata. Their l'ather, George Meljean sometimos knoavn as Maka rini, said his wife was a full Maori. Hi.. own fatlier was a quarter pakelia, dnd his mother was a half easte. Adinitf ing, under eross examination that he was enrolled for Raglan an a European, iMcLe.an said he had tried to live as a European, although lie realised he was (ive-eighths Maori. She had enrolled for Raglan because die was married to a European, said Mary Tekiri Tasker, of Pukeiiiiro giving evid-enee th rough an interpreter. dhe had no idea liow much Maori blood die herself possessed. George Riehard de Thiery, of Te Kauwhata, sawniiller, giving evidence rliont Mrs. Tasker 's lineage, deseribed liimself as chainnan of the tribnl •ommittee, chainnan of Ngaruawahia Pa -and judge of a tribal court which F'xisted for the settlement of any , roubles which occurfed among the' Maoris within two miles of Ngai'ua-

wahia. He was sole judge of this court. - Tne Chief Justice: Is there any eoun. ot" axtpeaft Mr. Sim, K.C.: I have never heard of , it. It would not seem necessary vvitli this witness presiding. Witness said that from his knowledge" of Mrs. Tasker 's parents and their urigins, he believed her to be a full Maori. Pliilip Phillips,- freezing worker, of Whatawhata, who voted as a European, said he had always believed hiniself to oe halfcaste as both his parents were halfcastes. On his daughter 's birth eertilicate his wife had deseribed both lierself and liimself as Maoris of full ' blood. Eileen Phillips, wife of the-previous witness, said she also voted. Her father Avas quarter palceha and aiLhougli "she did not know her mother V: ancestry, she had always regarded herself as being of Maori blood. Evidence in the cases of Thomas Molii Berryman, Edward Dave Berryman, George Berryman and Eteve BerrymTan, whose grandfather was European, centred ,upon the question Oi" whether their grandmother was fully IMaori. Two aunts of these four eleetors, Mrs. I-Iora Hilton and Mrs. Mary Pawson, wero also objeeted to as ueing of more than half Maori blood. Tlie cases- of these six voters, all of wliom live at Huntly, were taken together. Lengfhy evidOnce' as to tlie genealogy of tlie B'efryman family was given by sevCral fige'd Mtnesses, inincluding one 74:-y6ar-6l(I halfcaste retjred farmer. During cross-eiamination by Mr. T. P. Odeary for respondent, witness ad- j mitted that he had be6n engage'd foi' 1 some time in inquifies as to several family lineages. Ha had received no | money for this work and did not expSct : to. Asked by klr. Cleary why he had ! undertake'n ' the w'ork, witness replieci j that lie had j'oined'the National Party. I He was, however, trftvelling abont at j the expen.se of lii's aunt. ! ■ hfr. Cleary: Then I ean only aasume your aunt is an even more enihusiastie ], politician" than ybil' are. Witness: Yes. I