MR. JAMES MACKAY, JUN, AND THE HON. DEFENCE MINISTER.

Hawke's Bay Times, Volume 17, Issue 991, 13 April 1871, Page 2

MR. JAMES MACKAY, JUN, AND THE HON. DEFENCE MINISTER.

TO THE EDITOR OE THE EVENING NEWS, Sir,—ln the Thames Advertiser of the 4th inst,, a letter appeared from Mr D. Grove, in which I am requested to answer questions, as to the truth of a statement made that " I had instructed Te Hira not to show himself in case any official or agent of the government should go to Ohinemuri" ; and as to whether I gave any other advice to that chief or any other native at Ohinemuri, tending to thwart the action of the government. In reply, I beg to state that on reading the article cited by Mr Grove, as being published in the Daily Southern Cross, I was utterly unconscious that I was the person therein alluded to. In the course of the following day several personal friends directed my attention to it, and said it was commonly reported that I had given such advice to Te Hira. Subsequently it was said that the Defence Minister bad made a similar charge against me. I distinctly and unhesitatingly say that I never told Te Hira or ony other native within the cokny of New Zealand " not to show himself to the officials or agents of the government." With respect to " thwarting the action of the Government," it is possible I may have done so inadvertently, as I have always spoken in a straight forward manner to Te Hira and other natives, and the recent action of the government is incomprehensible to myself and many other persons,—both European and Native. I, however, assert conscientiously that where I was capable of understanding the policy or wishes of the government, it has been my constant desire, both as an official and subsequently as a private person, to give effect to the same. Having utterly denied the first charge, and objected to the second, as far as wilfully "thwarting the government" is concerned, although I may have done so ignorantly from having pursued a straight forward course with Te Hira, I would bog the favor of a small space to make a few remarks respecting my own proceedings and those of the Government. Te Hira has always been opposed to the opening of goldflelds, as witness his objections at the cession of the Coromandel goldfields in 1852 and 1862, a circumstance with which no person is better acquainted than the present Native and Defence Minister, who was then an officer of the Native Land Purchase Department. In August 1867, the Hauraki goldfield was opened up, and subsequently several persons, both officially and privately, endeavored to persuade Te Hira to allow gold mining on the lauds of himself and Uhers at Ohinemuri. In December, 1868, I procured the signature of all the natives interested in the Ohinemuri lands, who were willing to cede the same for mining, to an agreement to that effect, since which date the question has not advanced one iota, but the movement has been rather of the retrograde description than otherwise, as far as the government is concerned. I left the service of the Colonial Government in July, 1869, since which time I have been carrying on business as a Native Land Agent, Several natives put in claims to land at Ohinemuri, and requested the Native Lands Court to investigate their title to the same. Te Hira objected to these proceedings, and I with considerable difficulty persuaded him and oppositionists to appear in the Native Lands Court at Ohinemuri. Subsequently I appeared at the Native Lands Court at Shortland, on behalf of several claimants, with Te Hira, directl/ for them and indirectly for him. Fortunately success attended my efforts at Shortland, and a judgment was recorded in favor of Te Hira and others for the Waihi block, which, in addition, secured their title over some 30,000 or 40,000 acres outside the piece investigated, which almost reconciled the Hauhau faction at Ohinemuri to the action of the Native Lands Court. But what did the Government do? Tjiey appeared in the Native Lands Court and asked for a restriction to be put in the grant for the Waihi, a paltry, block of about 1,000 acres, so as to prevent the natives from dealing as they pleased with it. I here found it necessary to endeavor to ** thwart the action of the Government," as I considered it my duty to my clients to do so, and I also tried to point out to the representatives of the Crown the extreme folly

of their proceedings, which would effectually prevent Te Hira ami other natives at Ohinemuri from putting their lands through the Court, either for cession to • the Crown or to private persons. It may be argued that the Government can acquire laud without the title being investigated by the Native Lands Court, but the Native and Defence Minister has in the House of Representatives pledged his Government not to deal.-with any native land before tho title to the" same had been determined on by the proper tribunal. A reasonable person mighfe have supposed that with such expressed views the Government policy would have been of a nature to induce the obstinate, portion of the natives to come into our Courts, but on the contrary they act in such a manner towards Te Hira as ta embitter him against the Court and the Government. I may here state I never charged or received one penny of payment from Te Hira or the natives I appeared It in the Court in the matter of the Ohinemuri lands. After this, Messrs. Warbrick and Davis succeeded in persuading Te Hira to allow Her Majesty's mails to be carried through to Tauranga via Ohinemuri. The King party at Tokangamutu put their veto on this proceeding; and Te Hira being sore about the proposed restrictions in the Waihi grant, coincides with their views. On the occasion of the first stoppage of the mail, the contractor, Mi* Warbrick, came to me and asked me to U3e my in« fluence in the matter, I did so by writing a letter to the Ohinemuri natives, and it resulted in the mailman being allowed to pass through. On the 12th of February I went to Ohinemuri and saw Te Hira and Mere Kuru, and asked them to allow themail to be carried without interrupt tioc. To this they assented. Shortly after my return to Auckland, Hunia, the King's messenger, arrived at Ohinemuri with instructions to Te Hira to establish the "Aukati," and stop communication with Tauranga. Te Hira assented. At this time I, and the majority of the loyal natives of the Thames district, were engaged in the Aroha case, and could not proceed to Ohinemuri. I, however, pointed out to them the folly of Te Hira's action, and suggested to them that the whole of the loyal natives of the Hauraki district should, as soon as the Court was over, proceed to Ohiuemuri and tell To Hira that " the mail must not be stopped ; and, if he wished to carry out the wishes of the King and Waikato, he had better <o to Tokangamutu." I hear that the Government have now fathered the scheme ; but on inquiry, they will find I took action before they did, and therefore in this instance I could not thwart them. As to whether they have since interfered with what I laid down in a plain and straightforward manner, is another question. On judgment being declared in the Aroha case, I sent the following telegram to Te Hira :-^ Auckland, 24th March, 1871. The Court about the Aroha is concluded, the Maratuahu are dec'ared to be entitled. Friend, carefully consider the proceedings about the mnil; myself and the tribe are going to Ohinemuri. James Mackay, Junr. Te Hira te Tuiri, Ohinemuri. I received a reply as under:.—<* Ohinemuri, 26th March, 1871. Friend, —Greetings: Your letter has arrived. We have seen it ; it is good. That is s the word about Te Aroha. Friend, we are carefully proceeding about the mail, but it is not clear. m Te Hie a te Tuiei. Mr J. Mackay. I make no comment on either of these documents; I leave them to speak as ta whether there is any " thwarting"' of the action of the Government in my telegram. In accordance with my proposal, the Ngatimaru and Ngatitamatera tribes returned to the Thames, and are now assembling their people for tbe purpose of holding a meeting at Ohinemuri to bring pressure on Te Hira and the other malcontents in the matter of their conduct respecting the mail, and the other questions of importance to the public I also dispatched some of the Ngatipoa to Mercury Bay, with instructions to bring all the people of that tribe to the meeting; they have arrived at Auckland, and will proceed to the Thames in a few days, when a meeting will be held at Ohinemuri with the above object. Now, what has been the action of the Government in this matter ? The Native and Defence Minister proceeded to the Thames, and the first thing which a,s*

peara is a flourish of trumpets as to the surrender of Paora Toki and Nga Tauiwi, —and on handing over the loaded pistol the natives were informed " that the Government might justly punish wirh great severity those Natives who had teen fighting against it; but, with the exception of men who had been guilty of secret murders, that it was not intended to punish those who had fought in open daylight and been defeated." After a few days another meeting is held at Parawai, aud there the Native And Defence Minister is said to have stated : —" If I had met Te Hira, I would have made him prisoner, and put him in gaol. I heard there was a person at the Thames who had taken part with Te Hira in obstructing the passage of the mail. If the authorities should succeed in taking him, I will see him punished." Before considering the effect that the above expositim of the policy of the Government, if true, may have on the minds of the natives, I would ask, who is Paora Toki, aud who are Nga Tauiwi ?

Paora Toki, I have been informed, was a companion of To Kooti, and was one of the principal actors in the massacre of European women and children at Poverty Bay. He has been in the habit of visiting the native office at Shortland pretty frequently during the last six or eight months, and I wonder why the agent for native affairs at that place did not consider it his duty to either arrest him or take his surrender before. It may now be understood why he was reserved. As to the Nga Tauiwi, they are a number of slaves, ps their name imports, principally belonging to the Taranaki tribes, who reside with their masters, the loyal Ngatipaoa, at Taupo and Waiheke. And I .am prepared to guarantee that not one of them ever bore arms against the government. I am therefore at a loss to understand why they should surrender or submit when they have not been guilty of any offence against the Crown. Perhaps Paora Toki committed a multitude of sins, and it was thought expedient that a multitude should go with him, as " many hands make light work," and one murderer among so many ex rebels might be overlooked, especially when a flourishing paragraph could be made of " their anxiety to tender their submission, relinquish all further hostilities, have a portion of land assigned to them," and add a feather to the policy of the Government. If this is the policy of the Government, I can only say it is suicidal. It appears strange that when a high official proceeds to Waikato, he meets one of the principal actors in the rebellion, and a determined opponent of the Government, and does not demand the surrender of the murderers of his countryman, Mr R. Todd, Next a high official visits the Thames, and says natives who have fought against the Government will not be punished, xmly those who commit secret murders. I ask, how will those natives who formerly fought against the Government at Waikato, Tauranga, East Coast, and Taranaki like this ? Many of them have lost all their lands by confiscation, and have long since relinquished fighting. They have been punished, and the man who has fought since the days of cordis cation is not to be punished at all. Only secret murders are to be punished. I presume, poisoning and killing people quietly, without boasting of ir, is, according to Maori ideas, the meaning of secret murder. If I am right in this construction, Paora Toki and the murderers of poor Todd are safe ! If these men are to escape, why make the empty boast,-—"lf I had met with Te Hira I would have made him prisoner and put him in gaol." I do not uphold Te Hira's action in the matter of the mail in the slightest degree. On the contrary, I consider him very much to blame, and deserving of some puuishmeut; but his offence is a very trifling one compared to those for which, on the authority of a Minister of the Crown, it is said no punishment is to be inflicted. I ask, could anything be more impolitic than to request the loyal naiiv;S to go to Ohinemuri to use their influence with Te Hira to allow the mail to go through, and at the same time tell Te Hira, " If you will only come here and let me catch yml will put you in gaol." Had the Native and Defence Minister said plainly, 99 Go to Te Hira and tell him if he stops the mail another day I will take a force to Cbinemuti and protect the mail carriers against all comers/' then Te Hira

W'Hild have understood it. If a threat was to be made at all, let it be done in an unmistakeable manner, and when made let it be carried out at all hazards. The threat used was puerile in langaage, absurd in its character, and if, as is stated, the Responsible Minister wished the Thames natives to use their influence with Te Hira to open the mail route, it was highly impolitic and mischievous, as tending to prevent him from listening to any negotiations. Te Hira's well known obstinacy of character is not likely to be improved by a threat of being put in gaol, and it is not a very good foundation for diplomatic arrangements. In conclusion, I will state that so long as the Government act in a staightforward manner towards the natives, I will never " thwart their action," but when they have a policy which neither themselves, the Europeans, nor natives can comprehend, it is highly possible that when I give the natives a commonsense version of what myself and the general public think ought to be the policy of the Government, that some of my opinions might clash with those of the Native and Defence Minister. Much as it may be regretted that I have my own opinions about Native affairs, I shall continue to adhere to my present views until I see reason to modify them, and shall at all times do that which, in my judgment, is most conducive to the interests of both Europeans and natives, irrespective of the question of pleasing or displeasing the Native- Minis* ter. I shall never in any case submit to the publication of a deliberate falsehood like the reports of my having written to Te Hira " not to show himself to any officials or agents of the Government, and advising hiai to stop the mail," but shall invariably take steps to contradict such unfounded assertions. —I am, &c, James Mackay, Junior.