EARLIEST WESTLAND

Grey River Argus, 16 September 1941, Page 1

EARLIEST WESTLAND

[To the Editor] Sir,—On September Bth, I had the pleasure of listening to a lecture by Mr G. G. M. Mitchell, of Greymouth, ! in which he dealt with ■ the earliest ! settlements of Westland by the Moni ori and Maori peoples, the discovery I of greenstone on the Coast, the his- ■ toric battles, and fascinating Maori ! legends dealing with places all . familiar to West Coasters. It was (very disappointing to me, a “foreigner,” to find only a handful of people present. Had people been able to appreciate in advance the nature of this lecture, I have no doubt that scores would have attended. I myself found Mr Mitchell’s talk fascinating, and am sorry that I cannot attend the others, as I do not live in Greymouth. In subsequent lectures. Mr Mitchell will deal with the coming of the Pakeha to Westland, the discovery of gold, the explorations of famous people, such as Brunner and Heaphy, the naming of various centres, the “lost” towns, the meaning of Maori place names—Runanga, Kumara, Moana, Hokitika, Ikamatua, Ahaura, etc. Westland has, in my opinion, a more interesting history than any other part of New Zealand, and I sincerely hope that the people of Greymouth will take advantage of this opportunity to hear these authoritative and fascinating lectures on their own province. I am, etc., W. T. DOIG, Canterbury University-College, Christchurch.