BOOK NOTICES.

Otago Witness, Issue 2722, 16 May 1906, Page 81

BOOK NOTICES.

" The Stirring Times of Te .Rauparaha,' by, -W. T. L. Travers, F.L.S., and ", The Sacking of Kaiapohia," by Rev. J. •W. Stack. Dunedin, etc. : Whitcombe and Tombs. (Cloth ; illustrated ; 25. 6 d.) The publishers are of opinion that as the forthcoming Exhibition will " draw the^ eyes of the world to New Zealand, ' it will be as well "not only to emphasise the colony's prosperous present, but to stimulate interest in her more romantic past." To this end they have issued a new edition of the late Mr Travers"s stirring history of the life and times of the great warrior chieftain and diplomatist, fVe ■. Eauparaha. The opening chapters show much insight into the habits and customs of the ancient Maoris, and point out the -inevitable re.su(ts of their collision with white civilisation. This is followed by .an account of Te Rauparaba's childhood, youth, manhood, and early training; the migration- to Kawhia, the occupation of Kapiti/and. neighbouring territory; and the whole long struggle for supremacy between, the great tribes of the Ngatitoa ' and Ngaitahu. The story is well told, the, dry historical details being enlivened with some excellent characteristic anecdotes. The last phase of Te Rauparaha'-s long and Napoleonic career is further developed in the Rev. Mr Stack's account of 'The Sacking of Kaiapohia. familiarly known to us as the "woollen" town ' of Kaiapoi.-. The whole is calculated to arouse and stimulate keen interest in the .past of a great race, whose prestige and numbers diminish every year, and whose story will soon be among the classic tales of the past, scarcely to be distinguished fvom their own myths and legends. " Poems and Songs on Home and Abroad." By Mrs E. Colville. Kilmarnock: Dunlop- and Drennan, Standard Office. (Cloth; illustrated; 3s 6d.) ' This collection of cheery, homely verse, 'breathing throughout a wholesome ring of patriotism* and strong common sense, joined' to a keen sense of humour and .touched here and there with pathos and true' human sympathy; is the work of a lady well kuown in lJunedin, especially to members of the Burns Club and the Gaelic Society. Born -.in. Kilmarnoek, in Ayrshire, Jiot far from the birthplace "of Robert . Burns, she early left her native land, and bas been a"* resident of New Zealand for 40 years. Like many of our ewestest singeis, she has had little education, in the technical sense of the term, but her native shrewdness, imagination, and 'metrical gifts hay« gleaned from the teaching of life something that mere booklearning can never supply. These verses are not for the critic ; they are not literature^ they are not mystic and full of "thoughts that breathe and words that burn," but they are of the simpler type described by Longfellow as "songs that gush from the heart." They are avowedly written

. . . not to suit tlie arrogant, But for the struggling poDr. They are often faulty in construction, halting in scansion, defective in rhyme; but they are full of happy thoughts, apt illustrations, a genuine contempt for hypocrisy and cant, a warm sympathy with the oppressed, a gentle touch of sentiment, and ■■a hero worship which ranges from the deeds of Wallace to those of Major Robin. The volume is admirably got up, paper, print, and binding being a"like excellent, while the portrait frontispiece may be described as a speaking likeness.

Th© Opotiki Guardian states tha* the Government is about to acquire a block of Native land of good quality in the vicinity of Torere, consisting of 20,000 acres. This, block has been voluntarily offered *to the Government by the Natives. A man who was charged at Hokitika feeeiitly with escaping from prison said he .was quite satisfied with his treatment at the gaol, and his running away was due to a" sudden temptation to get a glass of foeer. In reply to his Worship, the man said he ran about 12 miles, taking the back pouatry for it. His Worship, after remarking that tho accused could nave got a glass of beer nearer than 12 miles, imposed a Sentence of -three months' imprisonment.