A DAY WITH THE MAORIS.

Mount Ida Chronicle, Volume IV, Issue 256, 30 January 1874, Page 2

A DAY WITH THE MAORIS.

. Thursday, January 22, was a red-letter day among the Ma'oris at the Kaik—a kind of Saturnalia with, them. It was a grand gathering of Natives for a double purpose—,to receive money and to ask for money; and to open a new meeting-house. Months since ■word went unto the Maoris of all parts of the island of the ceremony of yesterday, and, as a result, there were present representatives from nearly all the aboriginal settlements in Otago and beyond it. There were Maoris from Waikouaiti, Moeraki, Southland, Canterbury, and from Westland. A general invitation was extended to Europeans, of whom there was a large attendance, the settlers in the neighborhood mustering strongly, while ; there was' a good sprinkling of visitors from town and Port Chalmers. When the feast-' 1 ing-was at its height there must have been over 400 people at the Kaik. About £SOOO i was paid away, in sums ranging from £BSO i to £2 10s., but the handing of cheques to each man, and taking his receipt therefor, i,only interested the parties immediately concerned. Shortly after two o'clock, the little steamer Result having brought down a load of visitors, a bell .was rung for the people' to assemble to witness the opening of the meet-ing-house, which is a comfortable wooden building 60ffc. by 18ft. The Maoris themselves supplied the.whole of the material, and employed a carpenter to construct the house, in which he was engaged seven weeks. In front of the house was a flagstaff, and on . this was to be hoisted a flag (presented by the Hon: Mr;- Vogel), bearing the name of the building. Everything being in order. Taiaroa, M.H.R., got an empty gin case and read in Maori the following statement of the programme of the meeting:— To the Chiefs of the meeting assembled on the 22nd day of January, in the year of - . our Lord 1874: The reasons that you have been called to- . • gether here to the opening of this house, and to the memory of it, are:— It is for you, the Chiefs.of the meeting, assembled here on this day, to seek what - - . should propeily. be done in all the matters written below:—

First: Let us seek the root of the mistake at the selling to the Government of the island called Waipounamu. Second is: To seek if payment has been made according to the promise, in schools, and hospitals, and other things>promised to the Maoris at the sale. The third is: How much money shall be paid; and ho,w much money shall be returned by the Government for those unfulfilled promises.

'The fourth is:' For this meeting to consider if Hori Kerei Taiaroa was, wrong in Parliament, in the year 1873, in asking for £2,000,000 to settle this matter, and to satisfy the Maoris of Waipounamu. The fifth is: To seek the money for-the Reserves that are held by the Government or let to the Pakehas.

The sixth is: To seek what shall be done with respect to the unfulfilled promises' of the Government to the Maoris. Shall we appeal to the General Assembly? or to the Parliament of England ? or to the law, to seek what these promises were? Let the Council here properly consider these things amongst others; and it is good also that Wiremu Katene, of the Bay of Islsnds, ,one of the Ministers of the Colony of New Zealand, and for Mr. Watt, the Magistrate, and for all the Chiefs of this meeting, and for all the people who came here, to listen to the words that are set forth' by'' the Maoris of the Island. ...

Oh, Chiefs of the meeting! the origins of . these matters have been set before you. It is for you to consider the things that are right, and to remember. - - Taituha Hape, Chairman of the Committee. Taiaroa asked all the Maori chiefs and ? English and Maori gentlemen to listen to him and what he had to say at that great gathering He was gladto see, them all there, as he had sent notice-to all parts of the island of the opening of the house/ The house was put up because he could talk, to all the people of a lot of things he* had in his mind, and through which he wished to see his way. He could not see, how-the Government came , to have possession of the whole of this Island. I All the promises made to the Natives by tlie Government when the land was bought were I never fulfilled. This was why he built the house, and called'it Te Maki tamariki. He called it thus because there were no old peo-, pie in' Otagoj al,l were young people hero, and there were no old people to cany their works through. All the old chiefs," from the south to the north of island, could do nothing towards getting their own title back | from the Government. He sent'a bill-"into" ihe Committee nt Wellington, but the Government did not send him an answer to, it. Tlie G-ovevnmt-nfc asked him what he thought the Natives would charge the General Government, lie considered, over it, and said that £2,000.000 w.is 1 of the island, but the Government would not agree to it. They said they would consider it before the next session. WiCKafcene 'was present, andhe would like.to hear what he had to sav before he left Otncro. There was a gentleman in the house, Mr. Gillies, a member of the General Assembly,.and he would like to hear what, he had to «ay against what he proposed, so that the English gentlemen would see whether what he snid was right or wrong.' lie would be glad to hear Mr. K-jtene and Mr. G-illies make :i speech before the people left the House. The dinner would commence nt five o'clock at the Schoolhouse, and would be open to Msiovi "and European—nil free. ,He w»s glad the gentlemen came to see the opening of To Maki Tamnriki. Three cheers were given for Taiaroa. Mr. J". L. Gillies, M.H.R., thought it unfair on the part of Taiaroa to call upon him

to make a speech. He came because he was on the Committee to which Taiaroa had referred, and took an interest in examining into the claims .which were made. It was ad- ■ mirted that the Natives of the Middle Island 1 had claims, but not to the extent which Taiaroa had put forward. The Imperial Government were written to on the subject in 1556. There was no dispute between the two, races as to jbhe claims, the only difference was as to the value of the claims. He would tell his Maori" friends to be reasonable 'in their claims' Mr. -Taiaroa looked to the present value of the land, but of what value would it be if there were no iCuropeans here? The Europeans had spent money in opening up the land, and in bringing up the country to the position in which it was now. After the promise of the Government he thought they could make a final settlement with the Maoris before the iiext session was over. Let them have all that was fair and just, but they must not go in for exorbitant claims. He hoped a spirit of reasonableness would characterise all this matter.—(Applause.) Three cheers were given for Mr. Gillies. The Hon. Wi Katene said that he was glad to see all the Natives present and all the Europeans at the gathering. He had no what Taiaroa had said about the Middle Island. Taiaroa had been trying for three years in tffe General Assembly about this Middle Island. He considered the speech Taiaroa. had made was a valuable one, and he thought the value of the speech was the same as the value of this island.—(Applause.) The Goverment knew the ' reason Taiaroa had put up the house—it was all through the Middle Island affair. What Taiaroa was asking for was all printed in English letters in the books. There was only one of the Government here, and that was himself, and for this reason he could not give any decided answer relative to the matter of Taiaroa's speech. If the people thought he could give a decided answer, he himself did not think he could do so. He thought if he could give a decided answer—he .might just as well say he could lift that island to another plaae from, there." The best thing for him to do was to stop and listen to what . the people said at that gathering. He had given a speech in answer to what had been said thafday, and he thought the best to do with the matter was to place it before-all the Ministers, and let them settle it. He had no authority to settle this matter he was only one. That was all he had to say.Three cheers were then given for Wi Katene. ' ~

Three cheers were then given for Mr. Vogel for his present of the flag, attention was. given to the feast. ■ Plenty to eat and drink was supplied, and in less than an hour and " a-half Robertson and his assistants had satisfied the wants of the 400 and odd hungry Maoris and Europeans who were oh the ground. At 9 p.m. the schoolhouse was thrown open for a balL The Maoris first found accommodation, and then the Europeans wei-e admitted—at least such of them as chose to " pay the levy that was demanded." "Five shillings a-head and not a penny less," shouted Robertson ;' and low fell the countenances of those who had come prepared to assist the Maoris in tripping the light fantastic. Loud and dpep were the grumblings.-of those who thought that as no intimation of an intended charge had beenmade, they were entitled to free admission'; but the Maoris held that it was enough .for them to provide refreshments (in which, I =must say, they were most liberal) gratis. The crush and heat were overpowering, and the opportunity being offered to me of returning to Port Chalmers that night, I gladly availed myself of it, having had enough of the Maori gathering.—Dunedin ' Star.' • '.