HONE PLAYS TWO-UP

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLII, Issue 2219, 23 December 1920, Page 2

HONE PLAYS TWO-UP

Te nnkoe, Mil (a Editor. Aceep’ my best, aecep’ for te merry Kris- ' mas and Noo Year! Kia ora! Thank you, Hone; same to you, and the wahine, and may your shadow never grow less! Tat' te talk alright! Kapai! Kapai! Excuse me sit down. I werry lire. Tat te way too hot. Me and Repecea been to te shop, and f now Repecea she gone under te f trees, and terra me no good too many (dollies tis weather; alright lor te pakeha, but te Maori wahine he only like te one petticoat. Py kripe, te missis spend a lot of money on te taonga now. Eweryting 100 dear. I link te only cheap ting.te two-up. Tat te way I come to see you |mat. Why, Hone, you don't mean to tell me that you have .been playing an unlawful game 1 ? J dunno pout tat, but I link to pakeha law te werry cranky law. Tis my money, isn’t it? If I like to play two-up tat my pisuess. .1. never owe Pokahama for le taonga (goods). 111100 I go te races i put te money on le lotalisntor, and le Gowenuent lie got te share, and le race krnb lie get te share, whether le horse lose or win. 1 dunno whether le horse goin’ to win when I hack him. Tat to gamble, isn’t it .' And te Gowermeulp newer kick up le row, Werra, when I play two-up, tat le best gamble. No jockey to .puli te penny, and if 1 Jose, tat' alright, and if 1 win I get to lot. If le totulisator alright for to gamble, what te way te two-up wrong. Well, Hone, all gambling is immoral, and cannot be .instilled. It is immoral to take something for nolliing. But 1 don't know whether it is wise to discuss the . ethics of gambling. Hoik; hardly caught my meaning, and shook bis head at the inconsistency of the gaming laivs. What ie way te Gowermenf let te man buy 1c farm for £45,1e acre and newer spend any money on it, and sell it to the utter pheller for £(io. Tat pheller ,te bally rook, worse tan te plofiteer, and le two-up. Yet be walk apoul jus’ like le only rooster in te fowl yard. Why te Gowermenl he not take his share from to land gambler like he take from (c tol.alisa.toi’? Py kripo, I not unerstau’ le law! Te .•■'Maori, way le best. Tis to. Maori way: When te Maori in my grandfadder lime maka steal, all le tribe come along and take from him all he got. Anyhow, pout tis two-up. Trooper he terra me, you come le two-up _ knra on Sunday, Hone. We get te good lime. Te pheller he come from Palmerston and Lewin. and prenty money in le ring. Werra, tat ie good talk. Might I win live quid, might I. lose: J don’t care. Werra,.l go long through, le lupin. Py kolly, lot my pakeha friend there. We have te good lime. Pino te boss te ring. We newer know. Jack and Owen lookin’ trough te lupin all le time. Bymeby we see te pleecomen come wit te big smile on le face. Nearly all te pheller run like le taipo after him. Tar maka me larp like I got % le pain in te inshide. I newer run away. Te pleeeeman talk werry quiet. He say, I know all you pheller, I been lookin’ manly two hour through te lupin. One pakeha say, ’tis not te public* place; tis place tapu. Might be some my people been bury there long time ago —L dunno. But if he bury there alright then te Gowermenl he can’t do uutliu’ to Hone for playing two-up on te tapu whenua, isn't it ?

What about all the pakehas who have not the .same claim to Maori custom, Hone? Worm, I Jix it. alright wit Tommy WiriJ'ord, , 1 terra him te gi’ouud tapu and not public, pecause long ■ time ago my grand! adder’s tribe light, and some his bones there. Tatle wiiy we boat le cranky pakeha law, and te Magitrate say Hone quite right, and we all get off. Te law say no play two-up in tc ‘'pubric place.’’ ’Worm, te.tapu whenua not te public place, and tat to way Hone goin’ to Win tis time, I see you at te Koorli. So long, Mitta Edita!