THE MORIORIS.

Pukekohe & Waiuku Times, Volume 9, Issue 571, 1 October 1920, Page 3

THE MORIORIS.

INTERESTING HISTORY. The winter scries of university lec tures in anthropology was continue at the Museum (says the Otago Daili Times). The lecturer. Mr. H. D

Skinner, dealt in a very vivid ant lucid manner with the fascinating subject of the origin and culture oi the now all but extinct Morion's ol the Chatham Islands. His remarks were illustrated by a series of excellent lantern slides and the exhibition of a large number of curios of great rarity and scientific value. The Chatham Islands were due east of Lyttelton. The main island had an area of about 250,000 acres, of which 40,000 acres was taken up by a large lagoon. As illustrating the isolation of the islands, he said it was now seven months since they had been visited by a vessel. He himself had on one occasion been compelled to stow away among the coal in order to get a passage here. He went on to relate the history of the European discovery of the islands by Lieutenant Broughton on November 30, 1791. In 1835, when the Maoris first visited the Chathams, they found them inhabited by the Morioris. The actual names of some 1675 Morioris living at that time had been recorded, but now only two of that strange race remained alive. These were Tommy Solomon, a shrewd and capable landowner, and his aunty. In 1817 there occurred at the Otago Heads the very exciting event of the attempted cutting out of the brig Sophia. After they had destroyed a big Maori settlement, probably near Murdering Beach, her seamen sailed away for the Chatham Islands. This showed that these islands were known at that time to the sealers and whalers.

It was through the sealers and whalers that the Maoris first became acquainted with the Chatham Islands. Some of them living at Port Nicholson captured the ship Rodney and compelled her skipper to take two loads of them across. The Maoris treated the natives with great brutality, and drew freely upon them when food supplies ran short. The result was that after five years, of Maori occupation the Morioris were reduced in number from 1676 to 90. The first investigators had accepted it as certain that these Morioris were simply a branch of the Maori people who had drifted across there 29 generations previously, and who had remained isolated ever since. Lately, however, doubt had been thrown on this view, and it was suggested that tho Morioris might have originated not from New Zealand but from some other part of the Pacific. If they came from New Zealand the importance of the study of them in its bearing on Maori anthropology was obvious. As to appearance the general conclusion was that rtie Morioris were very like the Maoris. They were said to be broader shouldered, and a number of them were said to be unintelligent. They were no more Melanesian than were the Maoris, and perhaps less so.