The Daily Telegraph. SATURDAY, JULY 26, 1884.

Daily Telegraph (Napier), Issue 4060, 26 July 1884, Page 2

The Daily Telegraph. SATURDAY, JULY 26, 1884.

King Taaatiiao, on his arrival at London was honored by the papers by being made the subject of leading articles. On reaching Plymouth the" Royal,. party was interviewed by tho Times correspondent. His Majesty Avas found to be pleasant and. agreeable, and instead of .knocking the members of his airite on the head... whenever he felt disposed, and eating them when he was hungry, it was.discovered that he laughs and talks freely with the,chiefs. His dress is doscribedas a "tweed suit with a macin-

tosh of blue texture,'', and .he wears the

insignia of temperance, not as a little bit of blue ribbon peeping from; a button-hole but as a broad band of silk suspended ...from a silver clasp, which converts "ii into a

a decoration as gorgeous as .the Order of

tbe _Jatli_ All the c_iefs..are. similarly decorated, and are.very proud to be.so dis-

tinguished. Instead of. the dirty old pipe that we used to see him smoking His Majesty now indulges in unlimited cigarettes; a., package of; which he signed "to the Times/correspondent to appropriate. What the object of this Maori mission to England is no one at the date of the departure.of the mail could; discover. Says the Home

News :—

" King Tawhiao has been faith-

fully described. as the'most uncommunicative of men. - He left New Zealand in a

state of suspense as to what he means to do in England, and after vainly endeavoring to Avorm. the secret out of him the Times correspondent hazarded a guess that he intended to seek, the confirmation of his title as King of■ Noav. Zealand. But this'was"""mere conjecture,: and the.momentous problem still remains unsolved."; The same paper '■■ giA'es tha names, of, theT whole party, ; some -of which,\ at .all: eventg, -■will not be recognised by - New-; Zealand readers, Tawhiao; King :of the Maori, TopiaTuroa,: a .Jalthi Wanganui chief,'who subscribed £1000 towardsithe expenses of the visit .to: England,. Wiremu Patara te Tuhij son of the J chief Maisha, who acts as secretary, to His Majesty/ has had considerable .experience, in public matters among .the i Maori,' and was, "editor of the Hokoi, a paper starred to. advocate the King's cause, Hori Ropia, ,a chief hailing •from Poranghari in the Wellington district, and Maj or Te Wheoro, avhose name is said to bo almost a household" word-in New Zealand, and who has for. some ; time past had the honour of a seat in the :New Zealand House" of.Representatives." This then ia the august'party, some of whom, however, arrived Avith " sore feet" in consequence of . wearing boots: J Turoa;/ .the :■!_'. Jalthi" chief,*: was suffering from .rheumatic gout, probably from the effects of the humid atmosphere of a sea voyage,-and a : change of diet from potatoes at uncertain intervals to well-cooked'; regular, meals:-71 What surprises us most; is that the. whole party have stuck to the Blue Ribbon principles. The English papers, hazard the opinion ,;that . ".TaAvhiao's visit to : England is rjrompted by, the same feeling which caused Cetewayo to. visit this*.country.r The King of, the Maori was so impressed with the reception accorded to Cetewayo in England by the Queen and. English people that he determined to start on " a similar mission to England, and invited; the co-operation of his friendly chiefs for that purpose. Ki_g TaAvhiao is under the impression that he I will have an intervieAv.with the Queerf, who will at once restore him to, his old position of King.". The; Pall -Mall Gazette gives a portrait" of the' Maori potentate, and describes him thus :. T -.-f' : The; King is tall and slim, with ,;a very dark complexion; for a .Maori. His face is; elaborately tattooed, aud still wears the sullen look which attracted the notice of Dr. Hochstetter .a quarter of a century ago. He wears a splendid piece of greenstone. suspended from the lobe of his. right ear. His eyes are small and in- x expressive, and his forehead is high, tho croAvn of Ma head being pyramidal. His gait is shuffling and; undignified. , He appears to be a. eak-kneed. , Attired as he

usually is in a grey tall hat, a shabby dress coat, checked trousers, and ;'bqots down at the heels, his appearance is anything but majestic." He looks rather like an itinerant Christy minstrel. In his native costume (a blanket) he is rather more imposing." ,