The Weekly Times. Nullius addictus jurare in verba magistri. MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 28, 1868. NATIVE REPRESENTATION.

Hawke's Bay Weekly Times, Volume 2, Issue 91, 28 September 1868, Page 235

The Weekly Times. Nullius addictus jurare in verba magistri. MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 28, 1868. NATIVE REPRESENTATION.

A motion of considerable importance in relation to the above subject lias recently been discussed in the House of. Representatives. It was brought in by the half-caste representative of the Northern district of the Golony, Mr Russell, and intended to exterid the operation of the native franchise to the election of persons not Of the native race—to persons, in fact, .who would-be, able to understand’ what was 'passing before them, and to record their votes in,a manner that should be the result of an

intellectual/ perception of the merits of any case under discussion. r The whqloi debate is >of: too great; length for -; transference' to. our columns;

but we give below the speech of Mr Russe 11, Which we, cannot regard as other than superior to much of what isspoken in. the House.. The motion was not carried, but it was of importance as showing the mind of the native representatives in the matter —Mr Russell, later in the debate, 1 assuring'the House that he had the concurrence of the. three native mem- , bers, bis co-representatives of the : Maoris, with him . on the subject* ; We do not wonder at this ; in fact, ' it is precisely what might be con- ■ eluded from what was said at an early period of the session by those members themselves, who could not do other than feel themselves in the wrong place. Thus Mete Kingi said: “ I come before you as a child ; I come as a child into the presence 1 of this Parliament, though amongst my own people I was an old man. 1 J have not been able to understand 1 what has taken place in this - House j since I took my seat in it.” Mr John ; Patterson, . during the same debate, \ said : cc The appearance of us who ' are called Maoris sitting here is this i We hear merely the words that are spoken, hut we don’t know the | meaning; we are like a post stand- ■ ing, having neither voice nor ears. ' . . . With regard to the Government of this place and other places, : I am entirely ignorant. ... As to this, friends, I am doubtful with regard to the questions you have been debating. If I give my vote for the Government perhaps it will not benefit me in any v ay, and perhaps if I vote with the Opposition it will not do me any good. To my mind you are perhaps all right or perhaps all wrong. I shall know hereafter with regard to what is right and what is wrong. I shall go out when the time for the divi-

sion comes.”

It is said that one of these members also somewhat graphically described his feelings in the House to the coirespondent of a southern contemporary as being like the figurehead fixed on the hows of a ship, sitting still and constantlv looking on, but doing nothing towards aiding in the progress of the vessel.

The House did not favor the idea of a change, regarding the whole experiment as of a mei’ely temporary nature, and which would gradually become unnecessary by the natives properly qualifying themselves as electors, and taking their places amongst the regular constituents of the several electoral districts of the Colony.

The following is the speech of the member referred to :

Mr Russell moved, —“That, in the opinion of this House, electors of the Maori race qualified uuder ‘The Maori Representation Act, 1867,’ ought to be relieved from the restrictions imposed, upon'them by the sixth section of that Act, in'so far as it affects their free choice of representatives from among persons duly qualified under the New Zealand Constitution Act.” He said that any one who had been present during the session must have plainly seen that if the representation of the Maori race was to be anything beyond a sham, they- must ha entitled to return Europeans in whom they had confidence. By the present system they returned men having rank amongst themselves, and who amongst the Maoris were probably, as good orators as most Europeans, but it was easy to see that they did' not understand wlmt was going on or said, and were often called upon to vote on questions of which they were utterly ignorant; and even when matters were brought in concerning the,Maori race, they were as likely to vote on the wrong, side as on the right. , They felt as much as any .one in. the House, that unless the Maoris were allowed either to have a ;separate Assembly for themselves, to which all questions relating to Maori matters should be referred, pr-be allowed to elect persons of the European race to that House, they had better not be represented,at all; for", sitting-in those seats ' the whole Maori race became respond sible for the 'acts of .that'Assembly. There were many,Europeans iaiwhomthe natives,placed their utmost confidence; and considering that ,in each electoral district'in the' Colony there were several

large tribes, it was much more - likely that' these natives should combine together to elect - a Euro-pean-rpther than a'native; -irat at thp . sameitime 1 he didfnPt propose to. compel them fctpdp soV . but' to give them full liberty ; to elect any one thqr thought proper. .Tlie - present ‘election showed that most unfortunately the chief in the place of nomination was the only one that had: a chance of being returned, and thecbnsequence waa thatmany of.the largest and most influential tribes in..the Colony werenot repretented'at a|b as he might mention in the instan6e ! of tKeArawas; Waifcatos,

and Thames tribes. - ;He would read an extract from the report of Mr Edward 'Wilhams, Resident. Magistrate at Waimate, Bay of Islands, inpractiqai * evidence of what he had just brought forward

During a conversation I had with Abraham l : Taonui on the subject of Maori represen tation,the following remarks were made:—He first- * wished to know the motive for introducing MaPri i members into the House. When told it was that i the Maoris might have a-voice in the Legislature, he replied, “ Very good; you say there are to befour Maori members and about twenty. Pakehas what are these four to do among so many Pakehas ? where will their voices he as compared with, the, Pakeha voices? How are they to understand anything the Pakehas say, or the ■ Pakehas anything the Maoris say? Is each man to have his interpreter by his side ? If not, are they to listen to the Pakeha talk without understanding a word that is spoken ? Speak without bein g understood ? Give the Aye when asked to-do so without knowing what they Aye to; and, -bye-and-bye, when , some new Act bearing upon the Maoris is brought into operation, be told —* Oh, you assisted in passing it’? It will not do. Now, if we had been.' allowed to return some Pakeha in whom we.coiild place confidence, it would have been a better arrangement, but the present one will not answer/’ By the way he said, after conversing for some time, “ What about the pay for all this fine work?’* On my replying that an allowance of so much a. day would he made, “Very good,” he said, ‘‘.Letone of the younger ones go first, and if on his return he report the pipi-bed as yielding plentifully, then I may t hink about the matter.” The reference to the \ icld of the pipi-bed will at once he understood to mean good pay.