GREATLY HONOURED.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1090, 31 March 1911, Page 9

GREATLY HONOURED.

IN MEMORY OF TAiMAHAU 1: MAHUPUKU. J ' r Yesterday; at Papawai, the memory of a Tamahau Mahupuku was greatly honour- i: ul From tho far north and from the r south, from the east and from the west, r the tribes and their chieftains had gath- i oral to play their part in the ceremony of unveiling the monument that has been erected to his memory. There must have been nearly 2000 of them present, to say nothing of tho tiny infants, whose brilliant black eyes gazed roundly out at one from over tho edge of the enfolding shawl that crossed their mothers' backs. 1 Till next Tuesday many of them intend J to stop, and then they fold their tents and steal away to the north, where another great meeting is shortly to be held. - - p. • As the years creep on apace they carry away ' with them, far too surely and rapidly, one after another of the Maoris , of the bygone days—days that,'for them, some think-were finer and stronger than they are now, and there are few to replace them'. A newer, almost alien, generation is succeeding, and the old customs, tho old traditions) are rapidly dying out. There woe Maoris present yesterday whose opinion it was that, after'the northern gathering, there will be no more in New Zealand. Whole Township of Tents. • A whole colony or township of'tents was to bo seen spread out over the ground, and in the meeting houses great long rooms were turned into sleeping quarters for the Natives. Across the road wero numbers of little booths with gaily-lettered signs, where fruit, cool drinks; ice creams, sweets, and all- kinds of things were to be bought from the , Maori salesmen and women. There was also a shooting gallery, which was constantly surrounded.' At the back of tho meeting house were the kitchen' quarters, where the cooking was being done, and which appeared to exercise an irresistible attraction for crowds of people. Hero a most ingenious idea had been carried out. An old engine had been stoked up, and from its boiler was carried a pipe, that had branches running down into four or five casks, whose tops were covered with sacking, and from which clouds of steam wero constantly issuing. Their contents were almost as "-varied as pot-pourri. . Several Maoris were busily ongaged in ; peeling potatoes, whole mountains already prepared being piled in front of them. ' The stone ovens were also heavily taxed, and one can imagine the amount of work involved when meals are going on practically all day long. The amount of food consumed is equally,-of course, enormous. Old Feudalistic Spirit. Nearly all the morning fresh pnrtiei of Maoris were arriving, but, when the Hon. James Carroll, Acting-Prime' Minister, appeared upon the scene, the interest became very great. The old feudalistic spirit is aliye to-day—alivo ' among the Maoris—and those whom the gods havo set in high places must bo accorded duo respect and ceremony. After the greetings from the assembled chiefs and chieftainesses, a haka was danced by between ninety and a hundred men and women, under the leadership of Taranaki Uamairangi and Hone Kereama, and the ground fairly shook beneath the measured stamping of their feet. .The time they kept must have been absolutely perfect—every movement as by. one man.. No wonder the Maoris of the old fighting times used to work themselves into a frenzy of battlehunger, and, even to-day, it has very nearly, the same effect. It was harking r< : the priniitive, and the carved 'old gods'that mounted guard about the house.looked, down with grim ap- - ;•( I pr j fly.tu.\iii' 'their 'deep-set far-gazing- cyesn Life was becoming far too civilised-a thing j for, their liking. • 'j; '. Hymn-Singing arid tho ;Unveillng. In odd - contrast to the haka wag "the' ' portion of the funeral- service which was . read in Maori by the Revs. A. 0. Wil- ; Hams, T. H. Spencer, H. T. Parata, and '■ Arura TaugWa, in tho absence of Bishop ■ Wnllis, while hymns were sung by tho ' Maori choir, Mormons and Church of s England Maoris combined,, their clear > musical voices that have yet a curious I fibre or timbre blending very beautifully - in the open air. ' '■ Many inquisitive eyes were . attracted • towards the monument,-the upper part of • which was draped with flags. After tho ' service concluded, Mr. Carroll unveiled ' it, leaving the bronze panels open to tho 1 view of -the interested public. The two ■ which were there were very fine indeed, • but one.was missing. At the foot of the ■ monument : were seated the immediate " relatives of. Tamahau Mahupuku, they 5 being Rangi Kerehomo, Mrs. Aretn Mahu- ! puku, Mrs. Mata Macgregor (the last of " the line), Niniwa te Tangi, Horiana Kingi, • Hamuera"Tamahau, Edward King, Tama- : hau King,.James Frederick King, and 5 Mrs. Rauknra Matini. ; Tho Words of "Timi Kara." ; Then began the speech-making, thoso 3 speaking in-English having their orations translated into Maori for the benefit of 3 the people assembled, and somo of the - Maori speakers having theirs turned into > English for the pakeha. With such an . interpreter as Hari Honga, they could surely have lost little of their beauty by translation. The Acting-Prime Minister I was the last speaker, and here was no longer Mr. Carroll, Minister for Native ', Affairs, but "Timi Kara," a man among his own. Gone was tho listlessness, J tho indolent aspect. with which ' tho ' House is so familiar, and, in 3 their place, was energy, mobility, and a. wealth of expressive gestures. At the end of the speech a chant was started by Tutanekei, in which he; with several others,. f joined in, and finally Tutanekei, becoming somewhat carried away with his feelings, brandished a club dangerously near to those who were standing by him. It must have been somewhat .of ft relief to them when the chant came to an end, . for that reason. Tho Great Crowd Dines. r The' feast was provided by Niniwa, .- chieftainesscs of the .Maoris of Papawai, Mrs. Mahupuku and Rangi, and the utmost hospitality was shown. It must ■- havo been between three and four hundred tl people who were in at the first relay, and a whole army of boys and girls, and young men were-in attendance upon the s visitors. There were probably twelve or ; fourteen long'tables crossing the room, 0 and tables, placed against the walls, wero « also carried all round tho sides as well. ' Brilliant artificial flowers decorated the tables, and, overhead, long streamers of coloured tissue paper had been taken from.corner to corner. It really seemed as though the meals went on all day, and the Maoris themselves wero probably the last comers of till. - For somo reason or other there was a cessation of events in tho afternoon, not even any speeches being made, and crowds of people, who had come from r other parts of the valley, in the hope of ; peeing something unusual, were rather disappointed. However, it is just as the 1 spirit seizes them with the Maoris, and 'j probably last evening there would be all ' kinds of events. During the day small ■1 boys were going about selling small soum veiiir memorial ribbons of Mnhupukn, i and on them was inscribed a verse in which the Maori belief of the future is crystallised. Tt runs: "Rink into the enrth !" n Chrvsal'S: Tn soar tn the sky as a Bntterily." Could anything there be ims; proved upon? j. -