CIVILISED TOO QUICKLY?

Chronicle (Levin), 28 April 1949, Page 8

CIVILISED TOO QUICKLY?

CoufiseFs Submissioas On lapri Race "'Maoris are equally subject to the laws of the land as ^.uyppeans; it wouid be a novel plea, indeed, if it were suggested that' a man before the eonrt, because he; was a 'ilaoriy sfxould b.e treated differently," statejd Mr. Justice Hufchispn in the course of his.summing up .to the jury in the Bupreme Court a1 Palmerston Korth yesterday at th( trigl of Jolm Reremoana Tuftie on three eharges of murder. His remarlts were an answer to sttbmissions made by counsel for the defence, Mr. P. G. Opie, in his address to the jury, that consideration should be given fo the faet that Tume was a ruember of a raee that only two'or three •generatious ago lived iu a tribal state, subject to tribal laws and traditions buried in history. ' "May it not be that too soon, perhaps, we have expected the Maorj, *t conform to- our way of iife and oui mode of thinking?'" he asked. "Have we hot expected him in too short a spaee of time to forget "all .his old ways? True, we have granted him equality with Europeans, but is it not really that we.have granted him legai equality only and then done nothing fuither to assist him?" Oue of the most important tribal laws of the "raee in its earlier history had been the law of utu, said counsel. This was the ftiw of compensation which i)rovided for an eye for hn eye and a tooth for a tooth. His llonour: Counsel should not in? troduce matter not inentioned in the evidence. Mr. Upie: In this case a wall of prejudiee lias been built up and-I submit I am entitled to endeavour to brealc it down. His Honour: You are entitled to asl the jury to disregard prejudice, as 1 shall do in my summiug up. Mr. Opie: I sluill be referring to the law of utu in regard to Graham Wilson (Avhom it had been alleged in evidence had an association with'Lillian Winiata, oue of the niurdered women with whom Tume. had beou living). Contiuuing with his address, counsel said the law of utu prnvided for compensation in the case of tlieft and in tlie ch.se of the rnpe of a vvonian demanded the dcutlt of tlie deliler at the | hands of the hii'sband. Although Tuine and Lillian Winiata were not married, they were regurded as married in tlie' Maori f ashton. The remainder of Mr. Opie's address was devoted to a summary of tlie evi dence which he suiunitted showed that rume had been sub-jected to a long period of opeu and ardent dislike by members of tlie llartley family. Tume was of a jealous nature and had been jeaious of Graham Wilson to the poinr of hatred. Tlie tragedy, he submitted, was tlie culmination of a long period of active dislike by those ' with -vVhom Tume had been associating. The evidence- regarding the Maori murderel', Isaac Johnson, who had been released from gaol after serving less llian Jive years of his Jife sentence, had been introduced to create prejudice, couusel cia'imed. The Crown Prosecutor 's address, which preceded Mr. OpieJs, was devoted to subniissions that the three murders had been coldly premeditated, that no provocation whatsoever liao exi.sted for Tuiue's action, and thai murder had been in lii$ heart for a" period of about two inonths prior to tlie tragedy. Tume was found guilty of murder on all tliree eounts and sentcnced to life imprisonment with hard labour.