MAORI MEMORIES

Wairarapa Times-Age, 2 May 1939, Page 9

MAORI MEMORIES

CONFIDENCE VERSUS CONFLICT. (Recorded by J.H.S. for “Times-Age.”) Having detailed the. facts which must be distasteful to us, and which must be regarded in the light of partisanship for the unfortunate, victims, we are constrained to ask, “How are we to save these remarkable people?” We must either govern and care for them wisely, or fight till they are exterminated. All our efforts to cut off the marauders from the vast forests of Hunua failed. In spite of our 20,000 armed men, the farms on the edge of the forest became a battlefield. An iron-plated steamer carrying cannon arrived from Sydney. This enabled General Cameron to destroy the strong forts along the Waikato river and to sink many war canoes. The war in Waikato may have added to our reputation for power, but it destroyed any credit we had for mercy or justice. The Maoris always felt that we intended to rob them of their land. Having reluctantly undertaken to manage the Maori problem, we proposed to take the land from those who tried to defend it by what we called “rebellion, divide part among our “military settlers,” sell part to future immigrants, and reserve some for our beaten foes, vainly .hoping that they would gratefully return good for evil, become good farmers, and live at peace with those who robbed them of their inheritance. We knew the scheme would fail, and that its main objective was to continue the British military expenditure upon which the colonists and their government depended for their financial support. Sir William Martin said: “The government of an uncivilised people must be built upon confidence; among the Maoris at present there is absolutely no confidence upon which to build.”