CELEBRATION AT WAITANGI

Evening Post, Volume CXXIX, Issue 31, 6 February 1940, Page 10

CELEBRATION AT WAITANGI

STIRRING SCENES RE-ENACTED

LANDING OF CAPTAIN HOBSON

If the landing of Captain Hobson as the first event in the signing of the Treaty carried the stamp of realism, the scene on the square in front of the Treaty House where the enactment of the actual signing of the Treaty was carried out, was even more realistic. There, on a spot which is literally the. birthplace of New Zealand's story, the past was lived again. Under a dais made from canvas were seated the men responsible for bringing the young country under the sovereignty of Great Britain. There were Captain Hobson, Captain Nias, Mr. FeltonMathew, the first SurveyorGeneral,. Archdeacon Henry Williams, the Rev. Richard Taylor, the Rev. William Colenso, and other missionaries, Bishop Pompallier, and many others. In, front of them seated in a rough semi-circle on the grass, were the Maori chiefs and their followers, clad in mats, the men's faces moko'd *n ancient style. Grasping their taihaias and other weapons, they, moire than those on the dais, made the scene dramatic and even inspiring.

PROPITIOUS SUNSHINE

To the thousands watching the historic scene it seemed a propitious omen that just as the speech-making preparatory to the. signing of the Treaty was about.|o -commence r th_e sun should breakthrough -to reflect in gold from the uniform buttons, in silver from the sword hilts and scabbards, and turn to molten silver the waters of the inland sea immediately below.

In measured tones Captain Hobson explained the Treaty and explained also its significance to the Maori people. A responsive murmur ran through the entire assemblage when he said: "People of Great Britain are, thank God, free," for the presence of the numerous khaki-clad figures of the members of the Maori Battalion seemed with added force to signify another fight for freedom, the beginnings of which the Treaty alone made possible.

Chief after chief arose to speak with gesture and voice either for or against the Treaty. Te Kamara (a Maori chief) would have nothing of the Treaty. Rewa (chief) supported him, and then there was some general argument as to the rights and wrongs of the Maori case. Kawiti arose strongly antagonistic, and Hone Heke, whose dignity and good breeding was obvious both in words and manner, supported Kawiti, with whom afterwards he was to fight against the pakeha.

Then Tamati Waaka Nene, one of the greatest Maori chiefs of all time, had his say. " He was favourable, and his words seemed to sway the Maori opinion. "Let us all be friends together. I am walking beside the pakeha. . . . Stay, then, our friend, our father, our Governor." These words clinched the matter. Then, led by Hone Heke, the chiefs, in order, put their marks against the Treaty

In this historic scene none showed greater interest than his Excellency the Governor-General (Lord Gal way). Clad in tropical uniform, he and Lady Galway and their entire suite arrived about 10 ajon. to the accompaniment of thunderous applause. In a way which has not been more apparent during the whole of his term in New Zealand, he became the personification at Waitangi today of that authority to establish which the entire pageant was the object. Part of his duties during the morning was the' 1 inspection of the guard of honour from the Maori Battalion.

TWO MAORIS INJURED,

Just as the Treaty ceremonies were about to begin a branch of a tree growing on the spot overlooking the scene broke and two Maoris who were seeking a vantage point thereon were thrown to the ground below and rendered unconscious. Both suffered broken ribs and were removed to the camp hospital.

SPEECHES OF WELCOME.

The ceremony of the resignature of the Treaty was the first part of the celebrations completed. The next stage was the official opening by the , Governor-General of the whare-ru-

nanga (meeting-house), which had been erected some 50 yards from the Treaty House. This is one of the most imposing purely Maori buildings in the „ Dominion. Before it is a square courtyard, in .-which was erected a dais where the Governor-General and Lady Galway, Lord and Lady Willingdon, and other members of the official party were seated. On their arrival from the enclosure the Treaty ceremony was re-enacted. Speeches of welcome and greeting were made by the four Maori repre-* sentatives in Parliament, Messrs. Paikea, Ratana, and Tirikatene, and Sir Apirana Ngata, all expressing regret at the impending departure of their Excellencies on the conclusion of their term of office in the Dominion. Mr. Paikea welcomed them to the sacred courtyard of Waitangi. He stressed the fact that while the Maoris had grievances which ought to be redressed, they stood solidly behind the Mother Country in her struggle for freedom. Mr. Ratana drew attention to the significance of the Treaty, stating that the khaki-clad soldiers prominent on the marae were going forward with.

(By Telegraph—Press Association.) WAITANGI, This Day. With the sun's rays breaking through grey covering clouds and lighting to sparkling splendour the wavelets of the Bay of Islands, New Zealand began the celebration of its hundredth birthday. One hundred years ago Governor Hobson landed on the beach at Waitangi with the object of inducing the Maoris to cede the sovereignty of New Zealand to Queen Victoria. During the intervening years the country has seen the passing of perhaps the most momentous period in the history of civilisation, and as mankind has advanced so has advanced our own country. Today at Waitangi, however, hundreds of people from all over the Dominion, for New Zealand now enjoys that status, had the opportunity of witnessing the re-enactment of scenes which must have stirred the feelings of those who participated in them 100 years ago. They certainly stirred the feelings of those who were present at today's ceremony, and there were lumps in many throats and tears in not a few eyes as Captain Hobson's counterpart set foot on the gravelly beach from a pinnace manned by sailors in oldfashioned uniforms. On either side of Captain Hobson's craft as she approached the beach were Maori war canoes, the largest of which, 120 feet long, carried its full complement of 150 warriors, tattooed and dressed in Maori mats, and carrying arms with which their ancestors were familiar centuries ago. After the actual landing, Captain Hobson and his suite, who were greeted on the beach by a group representing early settlers, dressed in the gay costumes of the period, were preceded up a steep path, the famous Nias Track, to the Treaty House by groups of armed Maori warriors and greeted with cheers from the hundreds of people who had gathered on the surrounding hillsides. Captain Hobson slowly made his way up the path and entered the building which may aptly be termed "the cradle of New Zealand's history."

their pakeha brothers to defend the sacred rights of the Treaty.

Mr. Tirikatene appealed to Maori and pakeha to balance the conditions of the Treaty presented to the gathering that morning.