25 YEARS AGO
MAORIS EAGER TO FIGHT Gisborne Maoris have thrown themselves heart and soul into the arrangements for the projected Native Expeditionary Force, stated a Gisborne message of October 3, 1914. Yesterday, when the Gisborne contingent of 1G was selected, some hundreds came forward. They were of a magnificent stamp, in some cases standing as tall as Gft. Gin., without an ounce of excessive fat upon their bodies. They pressed forward, eager to be selected, to go anywhere to fight anybody for King and Empire. It was quite pathetic to see the look of disappointment which came over the faces of these young giants when they were told the weight limit was 12 stone, and that no one heavier than that could be selected.
Among the volunteers were a number of stalwart wahines, who became quite indignant when they were told that they could not be accepted. “I can shoot as well as any man who ever stepped,” declared one Maori maiden, who expressed utter sc -rn for the incomprehensible ways >f the nakeha in dispatching an army of men to fight without their women being there to look after them,
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https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/GISH19391003.2.62
Bibliographic details
Gisborne Herald, Volume LXVI, Issue 20058, 3 October 1939, Page 6
Word Count
19225 YEARS AGO Gisborne Herald, Volume LXVI, Issue 20058, 3 October 1939, Page 6
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