MEN OF MARK AMONG THE MAORIS

NZ Truth, Issue 69, 13 October 1906, Page 7

MEN OF MARK AMONG THE MAORIS

TAMATI WAKA NENE.

NO. 11.

(BY "OLD CHUM.")

The most important tribe m the North Island of New Zealand 70 years ago was that of Ngaputi. It was amongst this j tribe that the seeds of Christianity and j civilisation were first sown, and 70 years ago there was but one town m New Zea- j land, Kororareka, which the English : named I'tussell, after the British states- j man, Lord John Russell, so well known m political circles as Finality John, from the frequent use, iv his speeches, of the phrnso, "there must be some finality, etc." This solitary town was within the territory of the Ngaputi. In February of 1840 the chiefs of the NGAPUHI TRIBE assembled near the "Waitangi," ort "Weeping Water," and were the first to sign the famous treaty by which the Maoris acknowledged themselves to be subjects of the majesty of Britain. Although five years later, under the leadership of an ambitious chief (Honi Heke) soine of the Ngapuhi disputed the validity of the treaty, many of the tribe adhered to their pledges,' and since then not a shadow of doubt has been cast, upon their loj'alty. The chief of the Ngapuhi was TAMATI WAKA NENE, which our historians, m their desire to Ahjglicise everything, have ''improved" or corrupted into. Thomas Walker Neno, which is somewhat reminiscent of a certain- spiritualistic politician some years ago ;iu New South Wales, and now a member" m the interests of labor m the West Australian Legislature. -,■'■■•■•■■■• * Amongst his own people this chief was known simply as Te Nene. He was one to whom New Zealand and the British owed much, and who was recognised as a type of the Maori gentleman of rank. Te Nene m his youth was distinguished, as a warrior, and assisted m the raids made by his people on the tribes to the southward. He had more than .half a century before his death accompanied Uauparaha m . his campaign to Cook's Strait. .-.'': •■.•■:■' ■ ♦ • » • •'. Te Nene had been converted tb Christianity by the missionaries at the Bay of Islands, and was thereafter the friend and ally of the .fcnglishi He gave evidence of this was at the making of the ■ TREATY OF WAITAN-GI, The chiefs had been invited to speak

their sentiments^ Twenty or thirty did so ; five or six opposed the proposed treaty with great violence. At the crisis the Hokianga chiefs under Te Nene and Patwone made their appearance just m the nick of time. . It was believed that some underhand work had been employed. Underground engineering was known then as now. The chiefs Jakahra and Revewa.h were followers of the Bishop Pompallier, and were the principal opponents of the treaty. Rievewah said, pointing to Captain Hobson, the Governor, "Send that man away. Do not sign the paper ; if you do you will be reduced to slavery and be compelled to \ break stones for the roads. Your land will lie taken frdm i you, and your dignity as chiefs will be destroyed." . : » • • At the first great pause,, the Ngapuhi leader, Waka Nene, came forward, aud (wrote Captain Hobson), "spoke with a natural eloquence that surprised all the Europeans and evidently turned aside the temporary feeling which, had been created." He appealed to .his countrymen to ■lace confidence m the English, and then he turned to Captain Hobson and said, "You must be our father. You must not allow us to become slaves. You must preserve- our customs and must not al-. low our lands to be wrested from us!" Other chiefs "supported Te Nene. The result was that 46 leading chiefs signed" the treaty m the presence of at least 500 of lesser degree. Waka Nene wrote his own name, some chiefs made a Maori, mark such as was used m tattooing, and others followed the practice of' Britisher? unable to write: they made a mark (x) . When ■■..-. HONI HEKE STARTED HIS WAR Governor Fitzroy sent to /Governor Gipps (N.S.W.) for troops' to assist m putting down Honi. Waka Nene offered to guard the English from harm if Fitzroy would aend back the troops and amend the customs laws, which were the cause of the discontent. Fitzroy accepted the advice, the number of guns and tomahawks demanded by the Governor were laid at his feet, and assurances of good feeling were given by the leading chiefs. Fitzroy returned them their weapons. More than a score of. chiefs spoka, and Waka Nene "was sternly practical." The Maoris would fight for the flagstaff. "You may return the soldiers. Heturn, Governor, we will take care of the flag. We, the old folks, are well disposed, and will make' the young folks so also." When Honi Heke plunged himself into a war, Waka Nene, with a strong force of friendly natives, assibted the British under Colonel Hulme, yin May, 1845, to \ij ATTACK HONI AT OKAIHAU, a Y pah. of Kawiti's. Colonel Hulme ordered "a stbrrn,'-' which Nene protested against as an act of madness. Te Nene's advice proved sound. Colonel Hulme found, at a cost of 14 dead "and 39 wounded soldiers, that the pah could not bo taken without big guns. Emboldened Dy his success, Honi Heke attacked Wak a Nene at Pukenui with' a superior force, but by determined bravery was driven back, himseif and other chiefs being wounded m the attempt to crush Waka None bc*oro fresh troops under Colonel Despard could be landed. Colonel Despard had over 600 men and four guns; Waka Neno had 250 Maoris. The guns were small and of little use. Judging from what ho could see, Despard thought that the damage done by one of the guns justified an assault. Waka Nene deprecated this strongly ; m this he was supp6rted by the senior engineer officer. Despard, howtever, ordered tho assault on July 1 The result bore out Waka Nene's opinion. Thirty-four dead and 66 wounded was the British tally. Nene thought Despard a fool for ordering the assault. He had lost some able officers m it and had trained some wisdom.; . • * * On November 28, Sir George Grey, who had just assumed the Governorship, had an interview with the chiefs, and gave Waka Nene a guarantee that it was the intention of the Government to fulfil all the terms of the treaty. He promised TO PUNISH THE WHITES and Maoris Imipartraltv for any wrong-.

doing, and to acquaint the- Queen with; the loyalty of Wafca Sene and other ' : chiefs. Grey gave Honi T-leke and Kaj witi four days to accept Fitzroy's terms. I Waka None knew tlyat neither would [yield the demanded lands. .To some of ! them Waka Nene asserted his • own j claims, and was so confident m Kawiti's honor that he declared that if Kawiti wero present, though an enemy, he would acknowledge the claims to be just< • # • After Honl Heke's defeat and submission, Grey gave gifts and procured pensions for his friends. On Waka Nene an annuity of £100 a year was settled by law for the valuable services rendered by him, "and the zeal, courage and loyalty lie had displayed," and this he enjoyed ' until his death, 25 years after.' In 1861, Waka Nene, then old and infirm, wrote from the Bay of Islands to Queen Victoria that - his love continued I firm, and Colonel Browne transmitted the j letter to the Secretary of State, with ! the hope that an answer and "a present" would be sent to the "excellent chief." On June 28, the Queen "most graciously acknowledged the letter" aid SENT A. SILVER CUP. :--i . 'i/v'j to be presentedj t^o ■ Wajc^,- -Nenfc . .'.'aa^imrk' of her friendship^! .aiicL\ -in, recognition , : pf ; his valuable services'^ m i^ebrAiary," 15651. Waka Nene again wrote ■ to the il Queen • assuring her of ■ his continued" loyalty, at the same time sending Her three New" Zealand mats and a greenstone mere-;, 'the symbol of chief tainshig. .One historian, says that Sir George -Grey "did not think it judicious to check the pjd chief's loyalty by refusing to 'forward hW pre-: sent, but the N. 2. Parliamentary papers' contain no recognition by the Secretary' of State of the irregular devotion of the chief to whom the English mainly owed their safety m New Zealand Hong after tha Queen assumed sovereignty there. In 1868 Sir George Bowen visited Auckland. He was to have been accom- j panied by the Duke of .Edinburgh, but a lunatic named O'Farrell, belonging to a family of lunatics, had intervened at Clontarf, Middle Harbor, ; Port Jackson, i and H.R.H. was unable to come. The Governor had a magnificent reception. The principal Maori ,chiefs of the Northern districts, "beaded by ERUEKA PATUONE, who, with his brother Tamati. Waka:

Nene, has ever been a firm friend of .the English m peace and their brave ally m war, were present. "When I was rowed ashore," said Sir George, "these chiefs and the numerous assemblage of Maoris of both sexes that surrounded them on the pier, presented a sight m the highest degree picturesque and affecting as .they chanted their national songs of welcome, at the. same time waving their mantles m the air, after the traditional custom of their race-" On May 4, all the Maoris of the North that could be brought together at a short notice to the number of about three hundred met Sir George at Waitangi, on' the spot where the meeting of February 5, 184:0, was, held. Sir George's despatch, which records what occurred, is worthy of reproduction. "It will be remembered that the chiefs who first addressed the meeting at ' Waitangi, m. 1840, strongly dissuaded their countrymen from the cessiou of their national independence, and that the majority yielded at length to the authority , and ■' ELOQUENCE OF , TAMATI TVAKA NENE, who urged that the sovereignty of the Queen would bring with it the blessings of Christianity and civilisation. It has i buen often stated, and it is generally bes. lieved here, that without the support of this celebrated chief the British Government could not' have been established m i New Zealand m 1840, nor maintained ! during the war of 1845-48. It was with I deep .interest that I and other Englishmen present at .the recent meetings saw •this loyal subject of o\ir' Queen, this con- ; stant friend and brave aily of our racenow m extreme old age — arise, and striking his staff on tho ground; proceed to remind hjs countrymen that, standing on the very spot, he had counselled the fathers of the present generation to place themselves under the shadow of tho Queen and the law ; ' that he ' knew .he had counselled them well; and. now- exhorted the sons of his former hearers-. .t0 dwell m peace and brotherhood with each other . and the colonists.'- . . ". . ■ * '■'• ■: • ; ."r^V ■ .Concerning the death of Wakav< Nene, Sir George Bowen wrote the Secretary of State thus : "It -will be observed that, m the speech with which I opened the present session of the Colonial Parliament, thero occurs the following paragraph : 'You -will concur with me m •regretting the death of the celebrated >cb,ief Tamati Wak a Nen*, alike distinguish, pd. for, his loyalty to the Queen arid for/ his friendship to the English, and 1 ' who; whether m peace or war, 'did- more than any other chief io New Zealand to establish the Queen's sovereignty and: to : promote colonisation.' In their Addresses-ih-Reply to thfc speech, both Houses reciprocated tho feeling thus expressed, and the same sentiment is universal throughout 'the colony.'' ' Waka Nene visited Sir George Bowen at Auckland a few weeks before his death, and spoke with grateful emotion of the silver goblet presented to him several years before by the Queen. Aa T« Nene had outlived all his own children, he BEQUEATHED THE GOBLET to the family of the late Mr. Russell, a respectable settler at Hokianga, who married his niece. "The best writer;"says Sir George Grey, "who has hitherto compiled the annals of New Zealand, remarks that as many noble Spanish houses m Peru and Mexico boast of their descent from the Jucas and, from Montezuina ; and as many leading families m Virginia are proud of the connection of their ancestors with Pocahoutas and the Red Indians of a former age, so the time may yet come when the descendants of some of the first English settlers of this country (N.Z.) will be proud of having m their vein 3 the blood of Tamati Waka Nene, and oi the Maori chieftains and warriors vfha were the loyal friends and bravo aJMMwI their forefathers." Old TamaXp^fcka Neno, full of years and honors, still ie'rect as an arrow, with mind unclouded,; passed away to the

happy hunting grounds of hia father an I August 4, 1871. He died m the faith j of a Christian, his last words being a i command for perpetual peaco between the English and his tribe — the sturdy and powerful Ngapuhi. lie was CARRIED TO THE GRAVE iv the cemetery at Kororarika— known officially as Russell— toy some of the principal English colonists, the pall-bearers being his brother chiefs and English officials. By the desire of the old chief, the funeral obsequies were not those of an ancient Maori custom, but were conduci ted according to the liturgy of the ' Church of England.^ Sir George Bowen, the Governor, deemed the chief's death worthy of special notice m the Governor's Speech to the Parliament, and both Houses concurred m lamenting the death of the great chief, whom ' the Legislative Council termed the unswerving friend of the colonists and ,the constant supporter of the authority of the Queen of England. One of the last acts of Sir George Bowen as Governor of New Zealand was the unveiling of A MEMORIAL STON.E over the grave of Te Nene. On March 1.9, 1873, the steamer which was conveying Sir George to the scene of 'his new Government, Victoria, put m at the Bay of Islands to enable his Excellency to perform the ceremony. The unveiling was carried out m the presence of the chiefs and clansmen of Ngapuhi and other Maori tribes of the North, and a large ! concourse of leading colonists, who had assembled to pay honor,, to the memory, of their, firm friend and gallant ally. In his. despatch to the Earl of Kimberley, Sir .George. Bowen drew attention to the .'.interesting fact ..that his last despatch way dated - ! from the Bay- of Islands, iwhich Had'- filled so prominent a place m Jthe the country, and should ben mark of respect to the memory „ plr'tbe; Maori chief who was mainly instrumental m procuring the . cession of the, sovereignty of the island of New Zealand to the British Crown. The memorial bears the' following inscription :— . . ■ ■'■■- ''•'•' In Memory of ' . -'■- >TAMATI WAKA NENE, Chief of Ngapuhi. The first to welcome the Queen's Sovereignty m New Zealand. A consistent supporter of the Pakeha. This Stone is Erected by the , Government of the Colony, ' which, for upwards of .thirty-one years . Ho Faithfully Upheld* . . •■ : He died, regretted by. all the inhabitants of these islands,^ at Russell, " ' ' • • On the 4th August, 1871; Though not indicated m this description, Te Nene • must have been over 80 years of age., at .his. death, for he was an elderly -man when he procured the ces*

slon of tho sovereignty of the islands to the British Crown by the treaty of. Waitangi, m 1840. His last illness was short and not severe. His dying words were exhortations of peace, and his last wish was that he should be buried m the English churchyard at Russell. Tamati Wak a Nene must be regarded for all time as ono of the makers of history m -rnoriland,: . • .