MAORI MARRIAGE CUSTOMS

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2519, 21 July 1915, Page 3

MAORI MARRIAGE CUSTOMS

WAR PENSION DIFFICULTIES. There seems to be some doubt as to whether the wife of a member of tile Maori Force will be able to get the Is. per day separation allowance without undue trouble, and tho matter was raised in the House of Representatives yesterday by the Hon. A. T. Ngata'. Mr. Ngata read a statement which appeared in yesterday's Dominion, setting out that the marriage certificate should bo sont to the Department when application was made for tho extra separation allowance, and desired to know whether tho Defence. Department had taken into consideration the position of wives of the members of the Maori contingent. "The honourable gentleman, I think," he continued, "sufficiently understands, the position of Maori marriage customs, and knows that if tho marriage certificate were insisted upon a lot of women- deserving of this extra Is. - per day would be disqualified. The statement presupposes the existence of a legal marriage according to New Zealand law, wliereas in a number of cases members of the Maori Contingent married according to the Maori custom. It is only under the Maori Land Act, in land transactions, that marriage, according to the Maori custom, is recognised. I think it is only fair that it should be recognised in the case of men going to the front." Mr.' Allen, in reply,'; said that the newspaper report was correct, but with regard to tho marriage of Maoris he thought .that a declaration would have been sufficient. However, ho was not sufficiently acquainted with the Maori' customs to be able to satisfactorily deal wit'h- those questions. He would bo pleased if Mr. Ngata would see liim, and if an alteration was necessary to see that the Maori married women were certain of getting the allowance, the alteration would be made.