JOHN WHITELEY'S BIBLE.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LI, Issue 329, 22 January 1909, Page 3

JOHN WHITELEY'S BIBLE.

PKESENTEU TO AYHITEWJV MEMORIAL Uiil'lvUl. Methodists, ami purlicuhirlv those Methodists i-oniii-etuil witJi the Wlijtcl.v Mbiiiorm] Chureh, should be niueh interested i;i an important presentation made yesterday u> the elmreh, without ostentation or llourisli 0 f inmijie , Wlien the ltev. John Whiteley the pioneer of Alethudi»m in Taraiia'k'i irn butel.ered by the Maoris at Wbiteelilß he hull upon his person a Aiaori Jiible' or rather a udun.e eo,itainin« ihe ■Maori translation „i six Jnmks of the »ld .testament. This hook was rm-ii-.v hauled to Kev. Al. J. |-|ihler bv Mr halpli Jones, of Taiiki. who asked liim to present it .to the Whiteley Memorial Uiui-eh in New Plymouth The volume 'S m a capital state of preservation. ]t was printed in J.ondw. by Messrs. T. ami ],. Harnson. The trustees of the Church will, probably be asked to provide a suitable home for the Hibl,.

THE WHITKCUFK M'UIiDEK. J 1 V U V d : r ° l I!, ' v - Jolm WHitele »a» the last; act in tlic drama of tl, Maori wars ,„ Taranaki.. Early i„ Jj, cemtar lata, the superintendent, K iaranaki received a coimminkatio Itut the Xgatimamapotos, fculiu«-«ii»r «t the refusal of the other Waikat t lies to sanction a general rising j. t at district had uttered a. threat tl.a tliey would go to the Whilccliil's ii laranaki, on their own account Tli l.overuiiieiit placed trustworthy uatiy on the look-out to guard ajai'i-iat th possibility of surprise, hut later, no apprehending any danger, the scout were dismissed. On Saturday, 12th Fell ruary, 180 a excited by fa «' which attended the anus of the rebel under Te Kooti and Titokowaru, am encouraged by the fact that the who', of the Imperial and colonial troops ha< been withdrawn from the Taranaki nor thern outpost, a taua, or war party, o Ngatiinamapoto, the section of tin tribe residing at Mokau, approaches ukearuhe, the British redoubt at tin Hhitecliffs. The taua approached ii broad daylight, and found two men ii the blockhouse. These they enticec iway with a story that they had pi™ for sale on the. 'beach. Both men wert tomahawked. The Maoris rushed the redoubt. Lieutenant Gascoigae and UN Family were absent in their Held of coir ind potatoes. Gascoigue looked up, and saw tiro natives, and wient forward tc meet them, his wife following. The Maoris shook hands with him, but a« lie: went to the door of his house they killed him from behind. Mrs. (iaswignc suffered a similar fate. The inurierers then tomahawked the house do» md the cat. About sunset Kev. White" ley was seen approaching. Little did le think how black a crime had been perpetrated at the sipot. Pukearuhc »ad that day been stained with the ilood of a. young English mother of 27 rears, her three babes, and three harmess nlen. The missionary crossed th» stream at the foot of the hill and comneaccd to ascend the steep path, when le was warned by Maori voices, "Hokia, lokia" ("Go back, go back"}. Them iras a discharge of arms, and the misrionary fell. Disengaging himself from us horse he sank on his knees and commenced praying. While doing so he was ihot at twice by Wetere. with a revolver md missed. Wetere then went up close, lad shot the unfortunate gentleman' lead. He was 62 j'ears of age at the ;ime his death.

Tire Rev. John Wliiteley was born at Kneesal, Xotfcinghainsliire, England on July 20th, 1806, and in 1831 he was accepted by the Wesleyams as a candidate for missionary work. He landed at Bay of Islands in 1833, and from that time onward—strong, active, abstemious, loving the country and the people, not troubled with sickly longings for home or sentimental languishings for refined society—lie gave himself to his work, treading nimbly the narrow and devious paths, paddling his canoe up the rivers, travelling long distances in search of the dusky race he had given his life to save.' Without forgetting that he was a civilised Briton, so identified did he become with his people, and so readily did he fall into their habits of thought and catch the idiom of their language, that he became one of tlie best Maori preachers, and obtained great influence over the Maori people.