Maori Tohunga.

Kawhia Settler and Raglan Advertiser, Volume IV, Issue 316, 14 June 1907, Page 3

Maori Tohunga.

News hag reached Wellington from | reliable sources of strange doings on the part of a Maori tohunga at a little village near Atiamun (gays the Wei- | Lngton correspondent of tho Hawkeo i Bay Il?rild) ‘’Some little time agd l VI u-i girx who was ill was place. ’ uuler the treatment, of this tohunga ■ J.ie first thing the ignorant old roan > did was to pu ta j child for the greater ' part of the night in a cold creek that [ ran past his wha-e. Then she was ‘ taken into the wbare and beaten all ‘ over with sticks. Tho objeok f the beating was tc d-ivo tbe «_ il ppitits | ■l6 of her body. A European who., cnanaed t> g.- in:.) the wbare after wards siid tb it- th ) ch >l*l3 body was c 'OH wi.h b-nis. When became •ion th . a(fon« the tohunga was g'ippi g iu« pjiti roniid the throat to ■ th- devils rhat ho b'vi beaten :t from tt-'‘titering her body. Tbe visitor seized the tohunga and fit ng him across tun wbare. The child i the next day. No inquest was j »d. At tho same village, anotherg now being slowly done to death j ;bo Id b.bunga. She is a half- . ca-’»-, ni’*i » little while ago she was a ' vcrv . tty child. In thia case tbe j tol augas treatment consists mainly j in feeding her on strips of raw pork. 1 P pie who have seen her recently utH Hr be girl is in a pitiable con <i ; n. Probably, it is not yet too j s c L&r life, if the autboritiee > toln •!■. action and the old lofi toga o hi-; desserts. These statem»nv t>ru nud-» to me by reputable paeons . w to tbeir rcceivin'g public-’v; i > interests of commoi humanity.