PAPERSPAST

Nā Henry Blundell i waihanga te Evening Post, te nūpepa o ia rā ki Te Whanganui-a-Tara i whakaterengia i te 8 o Hui-tanguru 1865. I whānau mai a Blundell ki Dublin i te tau 1813. E toru tekau tau a ia ka mahi ki te Dublin Evening Mail. I te tau 1860 ka hūnuku rātou ko tōna whānau ki Poipiripiri (Melbourne). Nō te tau 1863 ka neke ia ki Niu Tīreni ka mahi mō te Otago Daily Times. Nāna te Havelock Mail i whakatū i te tau 1864.

Heoi, kua tīmata kē te pau haere o ngā koura o Te Wairau i taua wā, ā, kāore noa iho i hipa te wā roa ka kati te nūpepa nei i te marama o Whiringa-ā-rangi o taua tau anō. Kātahi ka taka te whakaaro i a Blundell rātou ko tōna hoa pakihi a David Curle me ngā tama tokorua a Blundell, a John rāua ko Henry, ki te whakatū nūpepa ki Te Whanganui-a-Tara.

I taua wā kāore he nūpepa o ia rā ki taua tāone. Ki tā Blundell titiro, he wā pai mō te whakatū nūpepa ia rā ki Te Whanganui-a-Tara nā te mea, kātahi anō ka tohungia ko Te Whanganui-a-Tara hei tāone matua mō Niu Tīreni, tāpae atu ko te tūpuhi o ngā nūpepa o Te Whanganui-a-Tara i taua wā. E toru anake ngā nūpepa hei whakataetae mā te Evening Post – ko te Wellington Independent, ko te New Zealand Advertiser hoki – e toru wā i te wiki ka puta; ko te New Zealand Spectator – kotahi te wā i te wiki ka puta. Kāore i te pai te haere o te New Zealand Spectator, ā, nō te marama o Here-turi-kōkā o te tau 1865 ka kati.

He umanga te Post nā te whānau Blundell – ko Henry te kaiwhakahaere me te kaitito matua, ko ana tama a Henry te tuarua, a John me Louis ka mahi hei whakarauwaka tuhinga, hei kaikawe pūrongo, hei kaihoko nūpepa hoki. I te otinga rawa o tana kura ki Ōtepoti ka kuhu a Louis ki te nūpepa mahi ai.

Ko te whāinga o te nūpepa, kia tangohia ngā kōrero katoa ‘within a mile of Martin’s fountain’ [kei roto i te kotahi maero i te puna torotī a Mātene], kei te kokonga o te huarahi o Featherston me Lambton Quay. Mā te hāngai pū ki ngā take o tōna takiwā, te tika o āna kōrero me te koi o ngā tuhinga ka matika te Post hei nūpepa matua o Te Whanganui-a-Tara; kāhore ia ka hinga i tēnei tūranga i roto i ngā tau.

Ka noho whakaraupapa i ngā take tōrangapū ngā tuhinga a te Post. Kāore te Post i rite ki ērā o ngā nūpepa o te wā ka whirinaki ki tētahi rōpū tōrangapū; nā reira tareka ai tana whakatakoto kōrero here kore mō ngā take tōrangapū me ētahi atu kaupapa. Nā Blundell tonu te kōrero i takoto ki te nūpepa: ‘ a liberal course of policy will be pursued and the bounds of moderation will not be overstepped in giving expression to the views entertained by the proprietors as journalists’ [Ka whānui te titiro a te nūpepa ki ngā take katoa. Heoi, i a rātou ka mahi hei kaikawe pūrongo, kāhore te hunga nō rātou te nūpepa e takahi i ngā whanonga pai.] Ka mate a Henry Blundell te matua i te tau 1878.

Heoi, ka haere tonu te nūpepa i raro i ngā whakahaere o ana tama me Frank Gifford hei ētita. Nā te hāngai pū o te titiro a te Evening Post ki ngā take o Te Whanganui-a-Tara i kaha ai ia i roto i ngā tau, ahakoa te hingahinga o ngā hoa tauwhāinga i te wā. Ko te Dominion anake te nūpepa kaha ki te tauwhāinga ki te Post. Nō te marama o Mahuru o te tau 1907 tīmata ai te Dominion. I whakatūria te Dominion ki te whakaputa i ngā kōrero o te taha matau o te ao tōrangapū ki roto o Te Whanganui-a-Tara. Hei ngā ahiahi o ia rā ka puta; kāore i pērā i te Post hei ngā ata ka puta. Koianei pea ngā take i ora ai, i pakari ai ngā nūpepa e rua nei mō ngā tau maha. Kia tae rā anō ki te tekau tau atu i 1960 ko te whānau Blundell te mana whakahaere i te Post. Hei te tekau tau atu i 1970 ka paheke te Post ka iti haere ngā nūpepa kei te hokona. Ka eke ko te Dominion ki runga ake. I te tau 1972 ka taka ngā nūpepa e rua ki raro i te mana whakahaere kotahi. I te tau 2002 ka whakatau ngā rangatira o te Post me kati taua nūpepa ka hanumi ki te Dominion kia puta ko te Dominion Post. Nō te rā 6 o Hōngongoi o te tau 2002 te putanga whakamutunga o te Post, e 137 tau mai i tōna pueanga.