INTEMPERANCE AMONG THE NORTH ISLAND NATIVES: ITS CAUSES AND EFFECTS.

Waikato Times, Volume V, Issue 270, 3 February 1874, Page 2

INTEMPERANCE AMONG THE NORTH ISLAND NATIVES: ITS CAUSES AND EFFECTS.

The Wellington Independent of J.umary 8 bays :—": — " Disclosured weie inn It 1 in the Su nvme Court ou T u -d*y which clearly indicifo th<tt into'injiemnce is eTercmmij a great mfluenci', for e\il at r-d near Otit.i T'iw will be mo knew information t.i muni, for it Iris nee 11 \nm\ that drinking to a hmcnti'i'n ejfent Ima been indulged in at Ot'tki, ftiul the quality of the liquids sot 1 there, itnilir the nam»s of brnndj, em, rum, &«, has been so bivl as to in ike tlit 1 Otiiki spirit* u bye-word, n ai»inet!>iiiu to be shunned bv truvellor*. The mntlcr haiinc be»ti brought out pro'nmenth must be tittended to, and tli> locil police will doubtless reccve iii6truct:ons to watch t lie hotels narrowly, »o that on nrxt lieonaing cl iy keepers of ill-coi.rfiictcd hou^fs may bo unable to obtain n renewal of their licenses. Two Maoris were rhnrgrd with hor^e-stpuling, and it annoared that both lio-^m had been bought b\ a publican at Oiakin.tmed Carmont, nl about 'Int\iM tune ; and n»on*> c»no it 'has bten clearly shown that tiieinmi who sold ahorse divided i lie money «motu other Ma«»n», and it was spent in drink in Carmnnt's hou<o. Hi» Honor Mr Ju tioe J ilnuton, in comment mjr on this, saul it would 1)b for the mnvistrAe,? ami the police to take notice of pujli thniL"-, ns it was out of Ins power to do anything ; but bv b in ,111,2 {\rwai\l m Cuurl and i>liimUii^ intofii ition urn Honor has done well ; hi* action should lead to sopieelianiie f>r the bettor. We recently referred to the munucr in which drunk-nnos w&o mdu!j>ed in by t\m ilnovis ut Ma--terton, but tlr.na* ore wor-«e at OtAki. and probublv are in bad and, possibly more vieiolH in other townn and dntriels. It is hiiih time thai both the. licrnßinij magistrate and the country police should sre Ih it houses which a 1 © not'iin;, but driniiiig I'ou^on lor the nulues vr'iei'cin vile poison la sold and Maori> te'iipto'l to °,)uiul tnoir money, to sell their goods, and to p' m \>v so I <at they m iv !?o' dr.nk, should be no longer lie.'n&ed. Karanama Te Efipukau, an ng,d and in llncntiiil duel, wlio was questioned by his Hmnr as to this eon yesterdnv, spoke feelingly and sadly of the of the increase of drunkenness aniiing tio Maoris at OUki — his children ho called them — and his words are entitled to weight. He lias done the pakebas uood service, and has for wmo time he->n on a mission to Waikuto respoclin^ what ho teri>-.rd ParuVuhi's affair, and lu>i often been msrrumenlal in irduain^ ?!»• i.-v to juomit to (he law, but he miwt find it a nard matter to instil in tlie minds of his country mod respect for 1 » vs that permit the nn'nei to bo ru.ned m bodi and in 'jjoods by men license! by Government to r>ll spirit*, men, as it mist appear to them, especially cliosim for ionic imaginary go^d qualities to have the spcei il and valu iho |irivd-'up of d^a'm ; in •< mes, spirits, <tc. Win Kinokmo, who nVartml fjtult y to a charge of norse slealinjr, without dm-.bt et'ile tho 'liii'iial to obtain drink Hn own words were, "we divided tho manejr and spent it in grog."