MAORI HISTORY.

Evening Post, Volume LXXIV, Issue 24, 27 July 1907, Page 5

MAORI HISTORY.

INTERESTING INVESTIGATIONS. An enterprise which promises to produce a valuable book on Maori history is receiving enthusiastic attention from natives of the Wairarapa and Hawkes Bay districts. The work consists in the iuvision of collections of information possessed by the wharekiua, or college of science and literature. This information, which has taken many years vo acquire, vias dn, the olden days considered extxeniely sacred, and was confined to a few selected individuals, and in most cases it died with them. For &oino months a number of lead nig , Maoris of the Wairarapa and Haw kes Bay have sat at Tnhoraiti discussing the legende received from different sections of the people who claim to have arrived by the three oanoes — Tukitimu, Horoutu, and Kura-haupo. After the commission had practically completed the arrangement of the material fronx the beginning of things down to the great heke to New Zealand they expressed a wish that s tlie Native Minister (the Hon. J. Carroll) should go up to see what had been done. Mr. Carroll was unable to make the trip, and appointed Mr. A. Hamilton, Curator of the Colonial Musoum, to furnish a report on the proceedings. Mr. Hamilton was hcartilv welcomed at a meeting on the 18th by the chairman of the Tane-nui-arangi Committee, who said also that ho was delighted that the efforts of the committee were being recognised by the Government. Extracts from the manuscripts were read to give those present a general idea of the piogress made. At noon there was a feast on a large scale. Tho bill-of-fare included piles of pork and geese cooked in Maori ovens, and two tons of crayfish, pipis, mussels, and sea-eggs (kini) ; sent up from Wellington, ajid these delicacies were much appreciated by the inland natives. After dinner there was soma more rsading from the manuscripts, and Mr Hamilton made a short speech, encouraging the Maoris to persevere with their Collecting of such material from the most autnentic sources, and he urged' them' to instruct their children in tha knowledge of other days. Another feast and a dance concluded the day's programme. Subsequently the committee met Mr. Hamilton, and th,en adjourned till the 15th Maieh, as from now onwards the natives will b^ looking after their crops. Tho committee hopes shortly to be in a position to submit manuscripts to the Government for publication. "This work," fays Mr. Hamilton, "should be extremely valuable, as it will represent the views of the whole of the people from Jt-ast Cape to the mouth of the Wairarapa Lake on the subject of Maori history." MR. A. HAMILTON'S LECTURE. Last evening tho hall at the Wellington Training College was well filled with students ana others (principally feminine) to hear a lecturo on the Maori _nee by Mr. A. Hamilton, Curator of the Colonial Museum. Mr. H. Leo, Cliajrman of the Education Board, presided. Mr. Hamilton spoke about ths Maoris' habit iof closely studying the moods of nature and the features of the earth. Ho pictured tiio arrival of theso people- in New Zealand. When the Europeans arrived here they found a well-order,ed community, ana discovered that every point, every rock, every creek was .known by a particular name. Some of the tribss in the North could each put a body of eight or nino hundred well-trained fighting men into the field, aud he touched upon the social system which made such a feat possible. The order and regulation of tho community were ensured by the mysterious .System of " tapu, -which ,xrns, jon ,thewhole, beneficial to the New Zealanders. Forest, fish, and fowl were preserved by the regulations iof tapu, . to which- tho Sroudest chief humbly bowed his head, n the whole the Maoris of old were industrious, temperate, and " cleanly, whatever they might be now in certain places. They lived in fortified villages or pahs. They rose early in ths morning, at day-break generally, and busied themselves with the first meal ; usually they had only one other meal during the day. The men, as a rule, had their food apart from the women, and after breakfast various pursuits engaged the men — hunting, tattooing, carving, and so on. The women had_ special duties, such as weaving, searching for. berries in the bush, preparing food, cleaning fish. Thero wero four classes of labour — male, female, the sacred work of the priests, and tho work in which all joined for tho common good. There was one thing very estimable about the Maoris, and that was their courteous treatment of one another, their regard for what tho British called etiquette. The lecturer discoursed very interestingly about the Maoris' manners and customs and mythology, and his incursion into the 10mantic bygone days brought much pleasure to the assembly, which accorded him a vote of thanks.