MAORI MISSION AND OTHER REPORTS.

Otago Witness, Issue 1971, 14 November 1889, Page 13

MAORI MISSION AND OTHER REPORTS.

At the Anglican Synod's meeting on Friday last, ■ '•"'•' The report of the Rev. W. Blathwayt on the Maori mission was received, and showed the work the writer had been • able to accomplish, with the assistance of his son. Nine 'baptisms had taken place in connection with the miesion, and numerous services, in which much interest was taken by the Maoris, had been held.. At Moeraki a committee had been formed for the purpose of f aisipg funds to repair the church, and this committee forwarded an appeal for help, and stated that the repairs were estimated to cost £40, and that towards, this £12 had been collected. * • His Lordship said that in connection with this matter he would give some information which had come to. bis knowledge. He had learned from a very old Maori at Moeraki; and from letters that Maoris showed him, that the arrangement made when the land there was .sold was that the Natives should have churches and schools maintained for them. ■ Some time sinco his Lordship had written to a gentleman in Wellington', who was able' to give information on this subject; and that gentleman said that the account given by the Maori^was perfectly correct and that he was tired of informing the Government tbat it was bo. Partly on' the strength of this he believed they had 1 obtained a grant of £50 towards the restoration of, the chutch at Puketeraki. Again, during his recent; visit to th« South, his Lordship had been told the same thing by a man who had accompanied tbe Hon.. Mr. Mantell, aud was, present;- at the registrations with the '.Government agents. Then, regarding tbe subsequent sale of j^tewatfe's Island, a condition ;was that a fcbird.parfc was to benot'b'nfyfor the natives, of Stewart's Island, brit for their r relitiona on. the main land.' The history of the matter seemed to be' that tbe proceeds of this third wsre devoted to the payment of certain teachers ; but if the former accounts were correct the Government (already were pledged to pay school teachers 1 and .maintain churches as a condition of the other Bales. It seemed, therefore, that the Government- were payiug the schoolmasters out of tb.e Maoris', own money. His Lordship said be might be wrong, bub he thought the matter should be investigated in some way, and he hoped that Mr Allef) would some day make this a part of his business.' A short discussion followed, and Mr ,3. Ash* choft suggested that the synod should personally respond to the appeal for help; His' Lohdship mentioned that he had just received a promise of 2gß from Mr J. Braithwaite forvthis purpose, aud before tbe synod adjourned sub? soriptionj amounting to £11 13s 3d -w^re.!received. - , . . „; fn 1... The report of the Lay Evangelist, Mr Wing* fiold t was also read, and showed thafcia good dtal of work was accomplished ;ib Catlui's River. The Rev. T. Fuanb: Dom> wished to express his sense of the valuable services rendered .in the Catlin'a River district by Me. Wingfleld, whose voluntary, labours were given in tbe, midst, of a struggle for bfs livelihood in the bush at, the Woodlands settlements. He ' expressed" a hope that the synod would see its -w?y to authorise the expenditure of a email sum in recognition of Mr Wingfiold's exertions in tbe work of the church. \ • ... - His Lordship replied that, he hoped during tbe next year to ask the Standing Committee to appropriate, for tbat purpose, a tnull aruouufc from the second moiety of the-generaL-.church fund. The report on theological students was" road, and showed that the ocly candidate who had entered from Dunedin lass year liad passed the socon«]-ftlap« examination of the Board of Theological Studies. '