THE MAORI DIFFICULTY.

Globe, Volume XXIII, Issue 2374, 11 November 1881, Page 4

THE MAORI DIFFICULTY.

The following letter from the pen of Mr J. O. Richmond appears in the “ Nelson Mail ” of the 3rd instant:

The event which is now ripening in the Taranaki district is of peculiar importance among the long series of the Maori struggles ; for it is not improbable that it may turn out to be either the opening of the last effort of the race for arresting the movement of colonisation or the final collapse of resistance, in addition to the interest which it thus excites, the peculiar character of the policy, if we may so call it, which To Whiti has tried to carry out fires our attention. And last but not least, the prompt nrd loyal answer to the call of the administration for assistance given by the Volunteer forces in parts of the colony out of reach of the trouble is full of significance as to the growth of a national spirit among us. It would have been excusable had our small community, so lately flouted by the rest of the colony, shown indifference to the call of a national duty. It will, however, be thought of for many a day with pleasure and just pride that the young men of Nelson have been especially conspicuous by their cheerful -readiness for services. Had they aofcod on the miserable arithmetical principle for the honour of imposing which Sir G. Grey and Messrs Whitaker and Hall compete, Nelson would have despatched a quota of forty meio to the front-.; or, to put it in another way, if the colony had on this same principle sent ■-volunteers in proportion to population the Defence Minister would have at his command at this hour in the Taranaki country an army of 10,000 men. Our young men have done us and the colony a service in thus “ heaping coals of fire on the heads” of the one-eyed majority of last session. But I did not sit down to sing the praises of our volunteers, or to revive a disagreeable subject. My object is to recal for the information of those who have friends and relatives in the Taranaki force some few loading facts of the struggle, of which the present demonstration is the latest; and to give at the same time a general sketch of the country and surround- - ings among which our friends are at this moment placed, and a short estimate of the probable consequences of the movement. If any one should bo impatient of my historical reminiscences! would remind him that the press has been diffusing rumors of difficulties, now it is said happily _ surmounted, between Sir A. Gordon and his Cabinet on the mode of treating the West Coast crisis, -and it is useful that spectators who have ■watched the course of events for many years should speak out in justification of the colony. The time at which wo have now arrived is distant enough from the days of excitement and anxiety to enable us to sketch the history in a few broad strokes. Long before New Zealand was a British -colony a few scattered whalers and traders, prinoipally'Bnglish from Australia, lived in the islands, making themselves useful to the Maoris, by importing tobacco, blankets, guns and nowder, and by purchasing pigs, potatoes, &c. *The Maoris were engaged in a struggle among themselves for existence—acting out one part of the modern theory of development. In this case “the survival of the fittest ” would have been the early destruction of those last and worst provided with fire arms. The tide of war flowed from north to south. The Ngapuhi (the men of the guns) of the Bay of Islands with their Tower muskets and fowling pieces ravaged Waikato. Waikato passed the movement on to Ngatiawa and other tribes. Ngatiawa descended an the handful of Natives on this side of the Straits. It was a very few years after the devastating invasion of the Taranaki country by the Waikato, under •Te Whero-whero (better known as King Potatau) and Wi Nera that the settlement of New Plymouth was founded. A purchase of J 60.000 aorea of land had been made for this settlement. The few resident Ngatiawa, the scattered remnant left by the Waikatos, joined in the sale of this land, and Potatau on behalf ■of his tribe sold their rights, and on more than one occasion offered to give effect to the ■sale by exterminating the remnant of Nga„tiawa.’ At this date, in the words of a chief ,b£ the tribe, “ the land was deserted, the sea was deserted, the rivers were deserted, the forest was deserted, the open land was deserted. Then came the stranger—then I cried ha! ha! —the land has revived, the people have rewived, let us return to the land.” And accordingly the exiles of Ngatiawa, feeling themselves in some degree protected by the settlement, returned. They occupied Waitara and the choicest parts of the Now Zealand Company’s purchase. But they were a disorganised tribe. The Waikato invasions, their own exile, and the coming of Europeans abolished whatever of order there might have .previously been among them. Quarrels as to piecadence in rank and as to title to land broke out among the hapu, and rose to bloodabed, the skirmishes happening sometimes on settlers’ farms. In 1856 troops were sent ■for tie protection of the settlers. There were tvo parties among the tribe, one which resisted European settlement, while the other welcomed it. The first, or old Maori party, under M. King, forbade the sale of land within th) tribal boundary. In 1859 Governor ■Gore Briwne declared that he would not enffer this dictation, but that in ease of dispute wouH have the rival claims examined and support the true owners in doing as they thought fit with tHeir own. It was in consoqunce of this declaration that the site of the Waitara townß.jp ) a patch within the New Zealand Company’* purchase, was in 1860 bought of Teira, R-imona, and their hapu. Meanwhile the King movement in Waikato Bad arisen. It was it its origin simply obelvuotive, and was dove.pgjj Qut of a Maori league against begun in the Ngatimanui tribe, whin occupied the -nouthera part of th© coast as far oast as Waitotara. Thu tr ibe, the foremost in opposing t, a( j neV er ■alienated bu acre of their ter* or y > no t even the Mission station, and the *spicious eye with which they regarded the sionists was -almost a proverb. Their ofcstru^ Vo league was expanded into an effort for nah na i£ty by the higher intelligence of W. * am ihana Tarapipipi, of Waikato. Whero-Whero of the Waikato invft on g 0 f Taranaki, and the seller to the colony f the land he had conquered there) was * o sen

Aing. What follows is quite mo lrn< Wiremn :Kingi, of Waitara, resisted the, c l onpation of the Teira block by the Govvg, mont. He was supported not only v Potatau, who had sold the district as his o* conquest twenty years before, but also by th whole Ngatiruanui and the southern hapui <jf the Taranaki tribe, whose territory was perfectly intact. The two latter tribes were repulsed by the New Plymouth volunteers Waireka, and three or four years later several columns under General Cameron Colonel Warre, and other officers, marched through their district. But sullen hostility or open aggression never quite ceased till 18®, when, after the campaign of Colonel Whitmore,, the country between Waitotara And Waingongoro (the Patea district) waa occupied by its present inhabitants. It was to punish the aggression of the tribe of Ngatiruanui that the confiscation of this part ■of the coast was proclaimed in 1865 by Governor Sir G. Grey, advised by the Weld Government, In the early days of 1867, I think it was during the administration of Mr Stafford, a large section of the Ngatiruanui accepted the confiscation, and received extensive grants of land within their former boundaries, including every one

of their favourite dwelling places. The promptitude and liberality of the Government in this matter, and the sound good sense and good faith of Hone Fihama, the leader of the Tangehoo sub-division of Ngatiruanui, have, I believe, been the causes of tho 18 years’ peaceful occupation of this noble district, •which includes the townships of Waverley, Patea, Manutahi, Hawera, Normanby, &a.

Unhappily the proceea waa not further carTied out. In the first instance it was impossible, owing to the continued hostile temper of the tribes northward of VVaingongoro j and an ambiguous plan of buying portions of the territory not unnaturally led the tribes to .imagine the confiscation abandoned. The etermination of the Government to assert its 1 s and continue settling the coast was .Oilowed by events we all know. Jk is impossible to look back on the course of events which I have sketched without ■recognising (hat a genuine policy has guided Jtbe Maori malcontents. It was early perceived in Waikato and Ngatirnanui that, the spread of the colony implied the subordination of the Maori; and however just and liberal the Goverament might be in their dealings there was humiliation in the idea for a proud, brave,, intelligent race in a lower state -of civilisation. Jt must be allowed that, exoepting tho iacadents of the Hauhau fanatioism, the inevitable straggle has not been canned pa ajtlj ges*Jt. : ag savagery on either jade,

In considering the probable sequel of the present action wa have to remember that the general nature of Te Whiti's influence for ten years past has been peaceful, and that most of the leading chiefs and prophets, so called, have hoped to establish an independent Maoridom by peaceful means. Wi Tamihana, Potatau himself, To Ua, Te Whiti are alike in this, but all haye been led into strife soon or late. In exciting times peaceful leaders become followers of their excited followers, Te Whiti’s last manifesto is said to bo pacific, and there may bo wisdom enough among his associates and followers to see the madness of resistance. But he may by this manifesto have abdicated his prophetic claim,and there are ot her more turbulent men who would be brought to the front by his abdication. Tohu is believed to be such a man, and Titokowaru is still at band. Therefore, the capture of To Whiti cannot be reckoned a great point to He has restrained rather than pushed on his men. The construction of roads and the surrender of arms are the only genuine assurance of a peaceful future. The coast tribes may be willing to yield even to this, for the season is unfavorable for war as the crops are in the ground, and the increase of European population and the great lines of communication opened during the last ten years have exposed all the convenient retreats of the district. The experience of the colonists in warfare, as well as their numbers, have increased; and this the Maori leaders no doubt perceive. The King party in Waikato declare for leaving Te Whiti to his own resources; a declaration that is natural from that quarter where the prophet is looked upon as an upstart and a rival. I incline to believe, therefore, that we shall see the submission of the party, yet it must bo frankly recognised that a fiery, determined and ambitious leader may find it easy to overthrow that hope and plunge _us in war. la that case will it be possible to localise the warfare ? Only I think by a groat suocesful coup de main , a swift and crushing blow. Tno Faribaka party are not a tribe, but a congregation gathered from all tribes in the country. Any indecisive action will allow time for sympathy to spread and allies to arrive or to make diversions in other districts. Notwithstanding the repudiation of Te Whiti by King Tawhiao, the King organisation, or at all events many of the party, will probably be drawn in. If fighting bfgins in less than a crushing style every tribe south of Auckland will furnish sympathisers and will have blood debts to repay in kind. I think this, with the conviction at the same time that the King Natives of Upper Waikato are disposed to peace and friendliness—not merely because Tawhiao and five hundred men visited all the European villages of the district, but because during that visit no symptoms of ill-feeling escaped, even from the candor of the wine cup, and the “ progress ” was marked by abundant drinking. I related the early sale of the Waitara territory by Potatau with his offers to complete the conveyance by gun and tomahawk, and the subsequent descent of the flower of the tribe to their death beds at the foot of Mount Egmont, partly to illustrate this alternative, which we ought to face, and to credit the Government with facing. Nevertheless, the balance of probabilities is in favor of a peaceful issue, and if otherwise we have the most considerable disposable force ever collected in these islands, and some of the best soldiers and the most experienced in Maori warfare who have ever led a force of the kind are at the front. The names of Major Atkinson and Colonel Roberts are a guarantee that boldness and experience will be brought to bear at once if need bo.

I will wind up with an attempt to describe broadly the lovely country which is tho theatre of the singular historic episode that our young men have gone out to help in moking. Every one who looks at the map or sails along the coast is struck with the remarkable symmetry of the district. Mount Bgmont is the centre of all. Seen from a distance on the south-west its graceful curves seem to stretch generally without break, and with regularity from the summit to the beach. The mountain and coast look as if turned on a Titanic lathe. The forest clothes all from the winter snow line to within three or four miles generally of the ocean, the remaining spaos being covered with high fern, flax, koromiko, tutu, &c., indicating good soil and climate. Passing along the road or track that sweeps round the open land, the seeming smoothness is frequently broken by clear streams running in the rooky bottoms of gullies, often sparkling with glossy karaka trees, which prolong the furrows of the lofty cone tothesea. The gullies expose for the most part a deep bed of loam from 20ft to 150£t thick which clothes the rooky substratum and gives the generally smooth outline of the country. The rock is, I believe, “ hypogene,” that is to say, a rock, thrust up from below in a state of partial fusion. In a few places the rocks appear on tho surface, notably at the Sugar Loaf Islands in the north and in the neighborhood of Warea on the west, where they form low isolated hillocks. Pungarehu, the head quarters of the forces, is a few miles soush-east of Warea, very nearly on the same parallel of latitude as Gape Egmont and the cone of the mountain. The camp is on the border of the forest three miles inland from the lighthouse. The celebrated clearing of Farihaka lies about a mile and a-half inside the forest. The bush between is low, but tangled with supplejack and underbusb, and contains some swampy ground. The clearing is 200 acres in area. The pa consists of two or three hundred whares fenced on one side only, and a fine stream runs through the middle (the Kapoaiaia ?). The country generally known as Taranaki,' from the Maori name of Mount Egmont, is divided into three districts, Ngatiawa on the north, Taranaki on the west, and Ngatiruanui on the south. Parihaka and Pungarehu are in the territory of the Taranaki tribe, which originally reached from the Sugar Loaves at New Plymouth to an insignificant stream, the Oeo, on the south side of Opunake. The beautiful little grass plain of Waimate is about twenty-five miles distant from Pungarehn, in a south-easterly direction, and lies in the Ngatiruanui district. I know of no more soothing and exhilarating trip than a ride by the coast road from New Plymouth to Patea on a fine day of October, whilst the snow yet glistens on the cone of Mount Egmont and the streams are full and clear. Yet one word at to our relations with Sir Arthur Gordon. It is right to recognise that it was bis clear duty, and not, as has been hinted, officiousness on his part that brought him hastily back to the colony on the news of uneasy movements among the Maoris. The Home Government have a perfect right to hear from an impartial and independent witness the details of transactions importing life md death to British subjects, and they have duty also through the voice of a trusted b out to convey their advice to the colony their criticisms if they think fit. But it m H not be forgotten for a minute that they Yolutarily abdicated the management of the Nati\ policy of New Zealand, and, notwiththe deliberate and reasoned protest of the -egislature, imposed on the colony the sole anoynaided responsibility of working out f P ro “; £> i which they felt unable to solve tbemsolvt. The responsibility was distinctly, ad indeed inevitably, held to ° a^ ry , wx “ it full authority, which can only be re 9 fced if Great Britain should desure to res me the paternal government of both ract. The protection implied in the Governo'a advice and criticisms the Ampire is metihd in continuing to extend to the Maori, but v> more; and even this is wholly superfluou f or New Zealand Governments throng! all their diversities and amid all their mistake have ever been unanimous _ in holding ou. a friendly hand to the Maori race. Eoroed 'n self-defence into a struggle, tho colony hi, o hown at all times great temper and self-ooitrol. Its sins have been occasional and weakness—never harshness. We are \s clear of “blood guiltiness ’ as Mr Gladstone himself, and England a youngest offs hoc/, may claim in her dealings with the Maoris to have led the honorable way which Englani herself had never trod till under Mr Gladstone she withdrew from Afghanistan and retroceded the Transvaal to its inhabitants. Ko barbarous race has ever mot with usage from its moro civilised neighbors comparable for liberolity and fairness to the treatment of tho Maori by the colonists of New Zealand.