THE MAORI CENSUS.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXII, Issue 10190, 16 March 1911, Page 5

THE MAORI CENSUS.

INCREASE IN THE TRIBES,

Mr Harry Parata, -oT Grey town, has (says the News) just returned from taking the Maori census <m the East Coast. He reports that there is an increase in the tribes, and that general conditions are much improved. A good deal of land is under cultivation, and there are numerous herds of cattle and) flocks of sheep. The Maoris generally are a great deal.better off, and are paying more attention to the tilling of the soil. Mr Parata claims for the natives that they have always had a good deal of land under cultivation, and owned numbers of sheep and cattle, hut in previous; occasions of census taking they laboured under the idea that the more stopk they had and the more land under cultivation the heavier would be their taxation, and consequently they were reticent in their replies. Mr Parata. explained why the census was taken, and! it was pointed out that if gave true re-, turns they would remove the stigma which at present hung over them, that they, as a whole, were a lazy and indolent people. After the explanation the Maoris freely gave their information, and in consequence Mr Parata foretells that the native census this year will be.*unusually complete.