THE PROPHET RUA.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 228, 19 June 1908, Page 7

THE PROPHET RUA.

COMING TO WELLINGTON. HIS CULT DESCRIBED. (BT TELEGRAPH—TRE3S ASSOCIATION.) . Hastings, June 18. The Maori prophet Rua, with 18 followers, will interriow tlio Hon. Jas. Carroll, Native Minister, hero this afternoon. The party troks to Wairarapa, thenco to Wellington to intorviow Ministers.

A good deal of interest has been drawn to Rua, tho Maori prophet, on account of his long hair, his naive interpretations of Bible statements, and tho descriptions that have been given of his quaint village. It appears that Rua is on his way, by easy, and, as it worp,. royal stages, to interview Ministers in Wellington. This would appear to be a somewhat courageous intention, for, despite his picturesqucness to the multitude, Rua's in-

fluonco on his peoplo has not, up to tho present, commended him at all to the authorities. Mr. Elsdon Bost, Inspector of the Health Dopa'rtment, referred to llua'.s cult in his official report last year to tho Native Health Officer (Dr. Pomaro). Under the heading "Tho Messiah Crazo," ho wrote: —"This peculiar cult is as strong' as ever, and will not, apparently, 600n fall into innocuous desuetude. A great number of Rua's followers have been for some time past living at largo camps—one at Haupapa, one at To Waimana, and oue noar Te Toko. All Nativos have been warned by Rua to loavo their homes, sell all portable property, and go and live on the hills in order to avoid an appalling doluge which is soon to overwhelm all lowlying lands. At Te Waimana I recently found 60 tents full of Natives so living, besides numerous parties living in whares, cottages, etc. Many left Ruatoki, sold horses, ploughs, etc., and are now living at Kekataone, as wo term tho Waimana camp. Theso people havo ceased to work for Europeans, and aro spending their money on food-supplies." . . . "Tho only marked improvement in the building line is'the lino of guest-houses or nicoting-liQUses, four of which have lately been erected. Much of the spare tnoncys has been' donated by Natives to Rua, who is utilising it to purchase food for his camp of loafers. The few Natives left at Waikirikiri, Ruatoki, have cut a track from their hamlet up the range near 'by,, through fern and scrub, so as to oo ablo to quickly escapo from tho predicted deluge when it comes."

Dr. Pomaro himself wrote, under the heading "Tohungas""The llua crazo has been taken up by tho Hauliau section of our population. His influence has been productive of indolcnco, mistrust of the tho stopping of children from going to school, tho stopping of cultivation, huddling in camps, the ontieing of Natives to desert their homes, tho selling of their goods in order to get money for their 'prophet'—in fact, the Uttor disorganisation ot all things pertaining to 'a well-regulated kainga. Theso poor Natives believe that a flood is soon coming; consequently, in some parts of lluatoki a path lias been made to tho mountninu, so as to give them easy access to safety when tho deluge occurs. The flood, by the way, is to sweep all tho pakolias out of existence." ' ■ Dr. Pomaro, so a pressman gathered in a conversation with him yestorday, still adheres to these conclusions in tho main. Ho admits that Hua is now keeping satisfactory order in his own village, but ho believos that lie has done harm to many other villages by drawing men away from them to tho -new centre. His successful repression of drinking and smoking among his followers is worthy of all praise, and indicates the great "mana" which the prophet must hold in their eyes, since usually the Maori is a smoker from his infancy.