The Children's Corner

Radio Record, Volume I, Issue 31, 17 February 1928, Page 15

The Children's Corner

By

ARIEL

Dear Radio Boys and Girls, I.wonder how many of you were allowed to stay up late enough to listen-in to the Maori pageant last week. It certainly was rather late, but I hope lots of you heard it because it really was a most important event in the Radio World, and one that you should remember for years and years. I think the Maoris themselves got every bit as much pleasure from their performance as they gave, They all looked so jolly and full of fun, enjoying every moment of it. Of course, you, all know what the pageant was about-the history of the Maori in New Zealand from the time of his arrival here right up until to-day-and of the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi on that particular day eighty-eight long years ago. The chief spokesman of the party (Whose name I can’t spell!) got up and said "How-d’you do" to all listeners-in by way of a beginning. He was such a big man and looked splendid in his native costume, but he WAS so hot and bothered before he began, I think he had a sore throat, too, because he seemed to need such a lot of cough lozenges! I wonder if he felt as nervous as some of you did the first time you recited to a microphone? It is a rather dreadful feeling, isn’t it? However, he got on famously, and told how the Maoris lived in the olden days, before they were civilised, and described the arrival of a travelling party at a Maori pah. The welcome they gave their visitors was wonderful; the haka party certainly did not spare themselves! After exchanging speeches, food was handed round, to a weird kind of chant (not real food, of course, only the pretend kind), and the Maori girls did such a pretty poi dance and sang songs. Then after that they talked a lot about the Treaty, which was very important but wouldn’t interest you very much, and also about the help given by the Maoris in the Great War-how brave they were, and how well they fought; and after that there were more poi dances with those fascinating little balls on string which you ecould hear tap-tapping through your loudspeakers if you listened. Then at the end there was a pretence garden-party given in the grounds of the chief, and more Songs and most exciting hakas. The faces they made were just lovely, and the noises were better still! They rolled their eyes and put out their tongues and stamped their feet and shook their fists, and altogether behaved in a most alarming way; but when it was over they had a good laugh at it themselves! But it was rather a relief to see them looking good-humoured again! I don’t think I’d care to make them feel really annoyed! The girls were so pretty, with their large dark eyes and soft voices, and they sang so many sweet songs; but best of all I liked "Home, Sweet Home" which they all sang together at the end. After the evening was over the Maori party had a photograph taken by flash-light in the studio, which makes quite a nice picture which you will see for yourselves in another part of the paper. There was only one little Maori: girl at the studio and she fell asleep before the performance was half-way through, but no doubt she had heard it all before and was tired out with the many excitemenits of her visit to Wellington.-Yours, ARIEL.