MAORIS AGAIN WITNESSES

Chronicle (Levin), 2 May 1947, Page 8

MAORIS AGAIN WITNESSES

-Bress AssGciction

ELECTORAL COURT HEARING

By Telegrapn-

xlAAl i Li i UA , xU a y 1. ' Maori s were again m-the vvitiiess box tracing their genealogy and wliakapa [;as were again HourLslied in the Eiec tural Cou.t ti'.is afternoon as respond ent 's ease moved lorward l'rom ohjeo tions on residentiaJ grounds to a sniaij group of electors chailenged as being oi inore tlian li.ilf Maori blood. Counsel for respondent announeed that although seven objeetions had oeen lodged 011 raeial groniids, one oi the cases would not be proeeeded witii and another was comnion to both lists. The iirst eases ie vvliich evid^nce wa?ealled were those of Tipene Minhinnick and Tukotahi Minhinnick, two brothers. The latter's wife, Wikitoria Miiihinnick is also chailenged. Stephen Kirkwood, of Frankton railway, shunter, said he kriew the Min hinnick brothers. Their mother wlio was his fatlier 's cousin, was Mihi iiatu wlio was a full Maori while their fatlier, Mitero Minliinmck, was of hal. Maori bli. .. lvirkw od '"id he also knew Stephen Miuiiiimick. grandfathe» of the brothers, wlio was a lialf caste as also was his wife, Puti Cowell. Witness here divertcd to tell the Court how it came ubout that Stephen Miuliinniek's brother — grand uncle of the two chalienged voters — came to be known as "Bag" Minhinnick. He was stolen as a bov bv ilaoris wlio put him in a

bag and ealled him "Bag". When he later found he was a Minliinniek he adopted the name of "Bag" Minhin niek which stuclc to him, Cross exarnined by Mr. Tompkins, witness said he was responsible f'01 drawing up the whakapapa of the Min hinnick family which Mr. Cleary Fad presented to the court. He himself was a half-caste and was 45 years of age. Kirkwood was lengthily questioned b\ .Mr. Tompkins as to his personal knowledge of those members of the Minhin nick family whom he.had named in evidence aiul whom he had inclnded in whakapapa he drew up. Tukotahi Minhinnick, sharemilker, one of the chailenged voters, , said he enrolled on Oetober 23 for Raglan. His enrolnient eard showed he was formerly 011 the roll for Western Maori and he had previouslv voted for that electorato but at the last election he and his brother Tipene voted fpr Raglan. Wit liess saici he knew his mother was a full Maori. Ilis fatlier had some Maori blood but he could not sav how niueh. Question of "Home" One witness heard earlier today was Lawrence Gerard Hassan, civil engineer, employed by the Hamilton City Couneil, wlio said that on August 1 he moved from' an address in the Raglan electorate to tlve Naafi transit camp in tlie Hamilton electorate. Aft-er thev moved to the transit liouse his wife en- » rolled for Hamilton but he voted, for Raglan after verifyihg that he was 011 the Raglan roll. He gave it no more thought but recently ou looking at Ms rent books he found that lie-had qualified for Hamilton five days before the supplementary rolls closed. Witness, questioned further as to why he had

uot followed the same course as his; wife in respect to enrolinent, replied: "Had L been right my wife would have been wrong. ' ' Gordon Wilfred Button,. postal official, whose true plaee of residence was allegedMo be outside Raglan, .gave evi dence that he "enrolled for Raglan on April 23, 1946. For' some time durin'gi the war he was in Papakura military camp. His duties in the Army weretliose of a postal offic ial. When Oir April 17., 1946, the post office in the camp was put on a ciViliun basis, :he remained there as a civilian officiat, liviilg in the quarhers he had occupied whi'le a member 'of the fences. He left' Papakura in Oetober last on transfer to Papatoetoe wThere he stil'l was. Witness said that while at Papakura he regularly visited lifs niother at Taupiri ( in the Raglan electorate. He consid . ered his true home was at his mother's place at Taupiri rather than in the Bayi of Plenty where he was -enrolled before entering camp. His mother 's place, he said to Mr Cleary, was the home of 'his affeetioiis..; The Chief Justice said Hiitton was, not to* be blamed for enrolling as her had done but the fact was he livecl during most of . 1946 at papakura and not at Taupiri. There appcared to b'e; some misconception regaiding 'the word home. Some people still ealled En'gland home but the misconcep'ti'on was; no foundation for qualific'ation for en-' rolmeut in aLn electorate if the place ef: abode was not there.