Historical Association Advocated For Tauranga District

Bay of Plenty Times, Volume LXXVII, Issue 14884, 22 January 1949, Page 2

Historical Association Advocated For Tauranga District

Mr F. M. B. Fisher’s Address To Rotary Club

Treasures For Future Generations

“We have to go to the old world to find that historcy grows more and more precious with age and that things that today may appear worthless will in another century become priceless possessions,” said Mr F. M. B. Fisher who is at present visiting Tauranga, in the course of an interesting address to the Tauranga Rotary Club. The speaker said that he had long been associated with Tauranga, as a visitor, having climbed the Mount for the first time just over 00 years ago. Mr Fisher went on to say that he proposed to offer a few friendly criticisms to his Rotary friends and suggest to them that they had it in their power to render a considerable service both to visitors and to posterity. “Tauranga,” said the speaker, “has played a great part in the bistort, and subsequent development, of the Dominion as a whole. Indeed, your soil is saturated with great deeds of heroism and self-sacrifice. Within a stone’s throw of your town were enacted heroic fights and cannibalistic orgies that make one’s blood run. cold. But the scenes of these conflicts are a part of our history and will always prove a great source of attraction to visitors, more especially visitors from abroad.” Desperate Fight at Gate Pa «Mr Fisher went on to say that a few days ago he went out to the scene of that desperate fight at Gate Pa. Inside the little church ho found on the wall an excellent diagram of the battle -field, showing the positions of both attackers and defenders. On going outside the church to try and form a mental picture of the historic scene, ®ie found the whole landscape blotted out by a solid belt of trees. It was as if the people of Tauranga had said to the visitor—“ This is where the fight took place, but we are quite, determined to # put every obstacle in the way of your viewing the scene of operations.” In making reference to Monmouth Redoubt, Mr Fisher said that at this historic spot an excellent, and probably costly, tablet had been erected telling the story of the Redoubt in those exciting and thrilling days when the white men and women, and children too, were threatened with extinction by the Maoris.

“This very excellent tablet, which sets forth the whole story most admirably, and is only of comparatively recent date, is left exposed to all weathers and soon will be read with difficulty, if at all,” hS continued. “At a cost of a few pounds this tablet would serve its purpose for the next hundred years and would at the same time inform the visitor that the people of Tauranga respected and, .indeed, revered the spirit of those brave pioneers who blazed the trail for them a hundred years ago. when the going was none too easy.” ° Reference to Sulphur Point Mr Fisher made brief reference to Sulphur Point. “Nature had given to few places in New Zealand such a charmingly situated beauty snot, which commanded a wonderful view of the harbour and all the surrounding country,” he said “but at present, it could be described as little less than a ‘dump’. It was unclean, unsightly and sadly neglected. With little trouble and expense it could be made one of the most delightful and restful spots to be found in anv harbour in New Zealand. Today it appeared to be a kind of ‘No-Man’s Land,’ an eye-sore and a blot.”

Mr Fisher suggested to the members of the Rotary Club that it was well within their function to bestir a sense of citizenship by the formation of a Tauranga historical association whose function it would be to collect data about the brave days of old and take steps to preserve the historical sites with which Tauranga is literally surrounded.

“There must be many old people of todav who will soon carry away with them invaluable knowledge of the nast, Ther« must be many old homes with pictures and other records which, once dispersed, could never he brought together again. We who

are now living should gathe together this treasure and store i im fo” future genera i mus. ’* Mr Fisher concluded his aydre ’ with an amusing account °f b IS periences as Minister of when he was a member °* Massey’s first Cabinet.