MAORI AND PAKEHA.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 254, 20 July 1908, Page 6

MAORI AND PAKEHA.

- / SYMPATHY WANTED. ' A. mass . meoting, organised by the Maori: Congress authorities and.the Y.M.C.A,, was,held at the Town Hall-yesterday afternoon.' ' Mr.' H. N.. Holmes, secretary--of tuie • Y.M.CIA., occupied the chair, and there-was , a large attendance. The Hon. J. Carroll (Na-' tivo Minister), and Mr. J. Thornton (Piosident of the To 'Aute Association); occupied ' ; seats'on tho platform. . The Chairman made , congratulatory re- - feronces to .the. Congress.;. . . Tho Itov. F. Bennett was the first'to ad-:' dress the gathering. ■He referred fx)-.the re- % sponsibilities of .tho white, man : in connection . •with the' Maoris. The Pakehal'he said,'had built a house, but |iad neglected to provide the battlements, .and, the result' was that 10,000 Maoris had"'fallen from the" roof," or, in other words, lapsed into heathenism. .On' the question of responsibility, for this-down-; fall,he had no hesitation in awarding the blame to the invaders, • aiid the. remedy, would be', tho application of a more practical' Christianity. The Maoris saw the necessity, of taking ; -v a step 'forward, and they,'wfcre willing to.. ■•' : advance as much : as possible, but they required tho friend!j.' sympathy and: experience : of'tho-white man,';aiid this help. shouK bo. •freely' given. (Applause.) A. . ' . " \The was Miss Sterling,;, of . Hawko's Bay, .who, put in an earnests appeal for greater interest in the Natives, on the, part of the Pakehas. Sho emphasised ,tho '■ need for' hioro women workers among t|ia Maoris. ' ■' '- " .. . . * The Rev. Robert Haddon,' of Taranaki, said ■ that thero was no reason why: the two . , races should not work in co-operation. , ■ , Mr. A. *T. Ngata, M.P., pointed out that enthusiasm was absolutely necessary for the ' proseciitioirof the work that had to bo done.. Tho Maori: must be takou out of. tho. museum ■.. and regarded as a living man. (Applause,) Ho must not\bo regarded from tho tpunsts • \ point, of view,' and this was resented:■ -"One thing we desire," lie concluded, "is to bis told tho truth, and taken into-your confidcnco. Wo want you tq , grasp the fact that, from now on, the. Maoris aro going to work out their salvation^- not: by-their own efforts alono, but bv tlio. aid of tho people of this . Dominion..'. Abova all things, wo want tho most' sympathetic treatment of all Maori questions. Wo don't want to' bo laughed at. • , Wo resent .that. Wo hayo ho time for fun. The Maori is'a'force to' be reckoned ■ with, ■ , and is a strong factor in tho future'life of New Zealand." (Applause.) ■; , , i , Mr. James Prouso rendered a solo, and tho Maori Mission Choir gavb somo hyniUs; ' ... . ; Mr. Maughan Barnett presided at . the ■

organ, ' : • In the- course of a ■ notiro of . recent rcoitnl given in Sydney,, tho "Sydney Morning Herald" says:—"Sir. Monk and Con- • stanco Brandon Usher XMrs. Simpson-Baikie) played Alfred Hill's classic v 'Sonata in A Minor,' for violin and piano, giving- an impressive nerformanco of a work writteli in v the 'northern I 'stylo of Groig and Svoridsen. . The adagio furnished a ballad marked by pathos in tlio manner of a northern folk-song, and was admirably played by Mr., Monk, who was in good form.'' "With Albani and Kcnnerly Rumford specialising Mr. Kill's songs in London; Miss Ada Crosslev asking for somo of his compositions, antl his heavier work being played so successfully in Sydney, it'would seem that tho Wellington .musician and conductor is at length achieving tho honour he so richly merits, - His beautiful cantata "Hinemoa" is to be produced m Nelson vory shortly, and. it is possible that this i melodious composition will be hoard in Wol- . jiugton before, long, coii) lod ■ perhaps with f the ' 'Ode" Sir, Hill wroie for the ! of tho Now Zealand Exhibition. . ■ ! The Wellington Garrison Band, intend hold- i ing a social in tho new Drill Hall,, BuiWa t Street, on Tuesday evening With excellent I music and artistic surroundings,; the social should be most enioyable. i