PACIFIC PEOPLES.

Auckland Star, Volume LIX, Issue 267, 10 November 1928, Page 1 (Supplement)

PACIFIC PEOPLES.

g/IIGRATIONS OF THE RACES.

DISCOVERIES AT 3PANAMA, •'-:.'" POINTS Off'SIMILARITY. {By SIR GEORGE GREY, K.C.8., exGovernpr of Cape Colony, South Australia and New Zealand.) Shis -1b the fifth of a series of articles -written in 1893 for the "Auckland Star" and not then published by us,'- by.- Sir George Grey, ex-Governor of New Zealand, upon the origins and migrations of the two great • races of ■ the: Pacific—Polynesians and Helaneeians'..- , . "The golden ornaments mentioned ii my last article were significant of s much more extensive commerce than e merely "local one; they were at a higl price because they came from a country which was six days distant frorr Ciu-iana." ./.;. . -_, ; - About, the year 1868-some tombs wen '.'opened'"some* distance to the north pi the Isthmus: pf Panama in the countrj mention in the extracts from Helps and in the tombs- discovered . wert porringers, and vessels of'various forms and gold ornaments made in the forn of. birds, frogs, and pet dogs, forminj really brooches fastened by. a pin whicl was separated .from the brooch. Th< eyes of the larger frogs were little golc balia/rolling in sockets and thus form- : ing, bells which' rang as . the wearei danced or-moved; 'I 'arrived",at Panama a short ttoi •after the/discovery of these articles." was fortunate enough to obtain bj purchase most of them, including all th( gold ones.. ..Ohe.-of ,them was 1 a. goldei .frog, the-gold of: which was valued bj —- — of the Haymarket, London,-ai •' £19. - Some few of; the /articles I gave to friends, the remainder are now ii thePublioLibra'ryat-Auckland; The pot tery'is.of the same kind':ag that made hy the races of 'Africa. ..' ~;'-. "Again, Helps (VbL'l, page 359) statei . is follows:—-"The king (Quarequa) an( , his principal men were slain to the num ! ber of six-hundred. Speaking of thesi people Peter : Martyr makes o the sweetness,of ylieir language, sayinj • that all the,word* in it might be writ ■ ten in Latin letters,, as was-also to bi remarked in that of the inhabitants b: Hispaniola. - This writer also mentions : and there is reason.for thinking that hi was correctly informed, that there was 'i region not two days', journey from Qua •requa's territory,;in.which I :Vasco. Nune: found a race of black men who were con lectured to have come from Africa an< to have been shipwrecked on this coast.' ; - ; Driven OS Shore, It 'was very /natural .for. the Span lards', who', had; no, knowledge of.:th 'Melanesians,'' to ; have taken people .:■ o ; 'that-face for •descendanta ' of-_' Africa] • negroes, but the probability appears ti .- he that theywere really-descendants p % Melahesians who.; had, been driven oi shore. -It. was highly-probable that ii .'the - cour-se of-long intervals of- time "'-.' som'eofithe Polynesian race, and.spmi • of the Meia^esian.,race, ; eachof"them i navigatingi /.must, .Jhaye,;..beej arifted-ini'cande's dtf'the coasli'oiSbut) ■America, and : have been-compelled to' larii there. There. is therefore - np: great dif ficulty. in. .admitting' that the black rac -fallen in with by. Vasco Nunez, :.arid:b; • him conjectured to have been a race o black/men coming from Africa, and. t have ibeen'shipwrecked on: the coast, wer really;of Melanesian descent. If it wa . on;the .West Coast of. South Americi they were/drifted, this must clearly hav been the caseVas;a canoe coming.froi the East Coast! of-Africa would, neve have ; coasted found-Australia,'and^othe islands, in search/pf.a more suita/ble, 6po —-and it seems /more improbable, tha negroes from the /West Coast of Africa •-' -whose canoes : are unfitted for a long se: voyage, should- have.'crossed the wid . Atlantic ;and have landed upon the Eas Coast of America and have\ settled there than that Melanesians, with their .doubl .' canoes -, and 'knowledge! ;pf .navigatior ; should' from vtheir comparatively speak ing': nearer - home have reached : tb coasts of Central' America. It' shoulc also be remembered that; upon all thi outlying islands on. the East Coast; o America the. Carib race alone was found Hany strong points of similarity cai be established between the brown race o : the -Pacific and the Mexicans,- then thi .' presence of the Melanesians in the sami ' / country is an- important argument ii Y favpur.bf; the - Mexicans and, Soutl American • races allied •to ' them havin; at. least in part descended, from th< Polynesian race. .' ;If we examine; now some of the cus ";.. toins pf the Central Americans and p: the Pplynesians. and Melanesians,;-wi ' shall find that a;, striking similarity --• exists between them. ..:;.'. The custcms pf. human sacrifices. anc cannibalism, common to. the, two race; • are. remarkable. Cortes, in a letter t( Charles the Fifth, states that the Indian; . after being hardly pressed for 'severa . days' for want of food, took part in a battle in' : which several natives r were killed,.- and, :-as he expresses it, theii allies "had, again' abundance of food;" ' Helps also points .out (Vol. EX, page i ! 873), "That Las Casas says that Alvaradc when he was" accompanied by large bodies of. Indian troops, permitted cannibalism in his camp, an accusation whicl -..'■• has hardjy been brought, against anj ; other commander." .:.' :.-

..■: r Sacrifice . to Idols. ■ . -Helps says (Vol. Ill:, page 300);— "But as, the- good Bishop (of Mexico) , says, that which, causes more admiration is, -that whereas they- were accustomed each, year in the city of. Mexico to sacrifice to idols more than:twenty thousand . hearts of young men and young women, . now.all those hearts are offered up with innumerable sacrifices of, praise; not to " the Devil, but to the Most High God. Both bishops are loud in the praise' of the Indian ■'...'children; .the -Bishop .of "■;. Mexico says that they. now fast very precisely, and pray fervently; that taost . of; the children, as also others of .riper age,'can read; write, and sing very well." ■'; All the Spanish authorities were. loud in their praises of the ability, industry and r : docility, of the Indian children.- •■; These descriptions, were; in, 1851r52-53 equally as applicablei to New- Zealand as . to Mexico.' In New Zealand in the years '.' alluded to, the human sacrifices and 'cannibalism ■■: had ' ceased, : . large'.-., boarding : schools had been established in various parts of the 'country in which, religious. instruction and industrial training, were • V given to the native' : children, who, were '. distinguished by their aptitude for.lea'rning' and docility, and they, as well as others of riper, years', : 'had : . been taught to :'■ read and write, arid could sing very well. .;.■■'The aptitude": of ithe-Indian children ' ::for. learning, and their singular skill and 'pleasure-'in. music are'-frequently dwelt.

upon by the Spanish authorities quoted by Helps. Those who have had anything to do with the children of the aboriginal inhabitants of-the- islands of the Pacific Ocean will admit, that .those statements also accurately describe the capacities and tastes of tiie children who have been under their care.' ' If we turn now to the style of music, and to the musical instruments in use in Mexico, we shall, find that. they, were absolutely identical with those of the Polynesian race. De Solis, in the "History of the Conquest of Mexico," states (Book m., page 84): —-"After some little repose his (Monte Burna) musicians were wont to come in to divert him, and with a sort of flutes and sea shells, notwithstanding the difference of their sounds, they formed a kind of concert." '

Hinemoa Over Again.. ..-•;' Tils is precisely Hinemoa and Tutane kai over again (see "Polynesian Myth ology," page 147). 'About this tim Tutanekai built an elevated balcony, o: the slope of that hill just above: yo' there, -which, lie called Kaiweka. He- hai contracted a great friendship for a youni man named Tiki. They were both' fom of music. Tutanekai played on the she! trumpet (putorino) and Tiki oh a flut (koauau), and they used to go up int the balcony and play on their instru ments in the night, and:6n calm evening the sound of their music was wafted b; the gentle land-breeze across the lak to the .village at' Owhata, where dwel the beautiful Hinemoa, the. ; younge sister of Wahiao. "Hinemoa could then hear the sweet sounding music of the instruments o Tutanekai and his dear friend Tiki which, gladdened her heart within hei Every night the two friends played oi their instruments in.this manner, am Hinemoa then ever said to herself, 'Ah that is the music of Tutanekai which '. hear!'" De Solis describes exactly th instruments on which Tutanekai and hi friend Tiki played. ;„ Again, De Solis goes on to Bay, "The; sang: several compositions in- variou sorts of metre, which, though unequal ii their measures, had somewhat like cad enees varying the times, not : withou some method, into ,a> music; adapted-ti their.ear. The ordinary themes of th songs were the exploits of their anees tors, and the memorable actions of thei kings. The children, learned them ty heart to preserve, the; achievements o: their ancestors! from oblivion." (800 l I, page ,60.) . . '.- • 't These extracts exactly describe ": thi themes of the poems and songs- of thi ; Polynesians, and their mode of' singinj ; them, and their children had" to lean their: songs by heart, exactly' in th manner in which they were: taught ti ; the Mexican children.- ■ V. :■ : The Maori chiefs made their mosi • effective speeches by constantly: introduc ing into them selections from_ • thei: ' ancientpoems suitable'to{the' subject oi , which they were addressing their people 'So much was this "the case, .that n< I native'chief, would have been reported i > "bod orator who was not able to maki quotations from many-ancient songs ant poems. Consequently -'■ the learning \o: . ancient poetry constituted a cohsiderabli , part,'of the education, of their, youths f Females of rank;were often celebratei i for their knowledge of the: ancient, poets , and. inany. females composed poemi f highly admiredby the native race; 1/;'■■••';- 'The Tree Drum. ;/ 1 v De' Solis .further states as. follows re ' gardiig' the Mexicans:—', They' had alsc J warlike-instruments ''and:.music, witl 1 which they animated, their soldiers, anc 1 gayel'signals-on iflutes made: of. greal J canes;' sea-shells and' a sort of drun made of : the trunk of a tree so hollow.ec " and made thin that they answered t< B - the stroke-of a stick, a verydispleasinf I sound, but it seemed' well .suited to thi ears'of those people." ■ ° : This ifi the identical drum of the Poly 3 nesian and Melanesian people from thi 3. trunk of a tree, hollowed and made thii e in the manner described by De Solis. Bj „ the-Maoris such a drum is. called T( r Pahu, or the Pahus one was freqiientlj suspended in -.their villages, sometime: t upon hills, and in their .fortresses..Thi + sound of these wooden'drumß.or gong! reverberated over the country .to a greai 1- distance, warned " the people of ai e approaching, foe seen by their outlooks + or summoned "them to defend, the pa, oi , it notified to them the return of a Sues' cessful war party,, bringing with there prisoners who were to be sacrificed,anc .' eaten, or it'called them to a great festie val or rejoicing. One of these pahus is i figured in Mr. Angas' work -on; Nev e Zealand,, the mode in; which they are f suspended and beaten ,is there alsc I shown; These drums we're commonly j used in the Solomon and many'.othei f islands. -. ;': \.

Another custom' is 'thus alluded to by Helps (Vol. IT., page 509):—"The "Mexicans in warfare with their enemies, were able to indulge in the most fierce and malignant language. To the Tlascalans their, language was more insulting and more minutely descriptive. Throwing to them the roasted flesh- of their companions and the Spanish . soldiers, they shouted, "Eat of the flesh of these tueles (devils), and of your brothers, ■ for we are quite satiated with it.'" -~.<■'.' | These are the very expressions used by -the Maoris of New Zealand under precisely similar circumstances ("Moteatea" page 401):— . • ■ -"; ■ ■ -"J am quite surfeited -..'."'.• With.the sacred brains OfiTukorehu; . . ' ...The flesh of Hanauru ■ ; .SHU sticks between my teeth." (To be continued.) .