OLD MAORI PAPERS.

Hawera Star, Volume XLV, 7 November 1925, Page 4

OLD MAORI PAPERS.

DISCOVERY- near paeroa

DISCUSSIONS WITH MR BALLANCE

TREATY OF WAITANGI’S * ' MAN A 3

A deserted Maori whare in the bush, ten miles from Paeroa, is the scene of the latest iind of old Maori documents. The discovery was made accidentally in August by Miss Elizabeth E. F. Pcgler, of the staff of the Huntly District Higii School. . Miss Pcgler was one of a party of holiday makers ’whose curiosity was excited by the decayed appearance of the whare, and, by digging among the ruins, the investigators unearthed <* box full of books and papers, many ot Which are still in a fair state of preservation. The box was about feet long by 21 feet broad, and its content; were old newspapers, correspondence and account books, many in the Maori tongue. Several letters, a portion ot ail ok. newspaper, and two exercise books were selected by Miss Pcgler from the mass of tattered documents and shown to a number of Maoris in the district. No light, however, could be thrown upon their previous ownership, and they have been brought to Auckland. The exercise books, written in Maori, have been placed in the hands of a translator. They seem to have reference to the trial of To Kooti, and are quite well preserved. «.

Eevidence of Pioneer Hardships

Among the correspondence the outstanding item is a letter signed “John Dickson,” in which is mentioned the name of a Mr. Bcatson. The letter refers to a timber splitting contract, and contains evidence of the difficulties faced by the pioneers in having to walk overland to Paeroa in the early days. Another reference, in buslunan ’s English, is to a sickness that attacked the bullocks of the district, and to the profits that could be gained by firewood, rail-splitting and fencing contracts. A newspaper. that was discovered, is called the Pleiads, or Seven Stars, and is dated October <>, 1592. It contains' a long letter in Maori from King Tawhiao to Governor Jervois, in‘the time of Ballance. TJic news paragraphs report that King Tawhiao had called a meeting on November 15, ISS(>, when the Hon. Native Minister was present. Tawhiao addressed the .Native Minister as follows: “I wish you, Hon. Native Minister, Mr. Ballance,! to listen to my words. Stop the' Native Court surveys and roads, so that we can see our way clear to adopt rules for this, our country.”

Mr. Ballance replied: “You and I must agree. I was also of the same opinion. A native- assessor must be appointed at that place to assist the judge. You must stand together as members of the council. ” Chiefs Meet Mr. Ballance.

Judging by the careless grammatical construction in the English section of the Pleiads, it appears that the newspaper was a. Maori edition, containing an English translation of the vernacular matter. In the correspondence columns on the third .page is a letter from the Governor to iTawhlao replying to the questions of a number of chiefs. The Governor’s reply was sent to Tawhiao by Mr. Ballance on April 17. The Governor said: “Firstly, there is only one mistake with .the Treaty of Waitangi • —the Maoris’ approval of their land being sold to any European who offered to buy it. Secondly, authority has been given to the .Maori committees to hear all cases regarding their land, and to give it to whom the committees think are the proper persons;'thirdly, the Government have protected the rights of the Maori nation; fourthly, I received no information from-Lord Derby asking my Government to protect the Maori race. These arc the -words of the Govei nor. ’ ’

King Tawhiao’s letter of reply to the Governor is addressed whatihoc, July 12, l88t>: “My friend. Salutations to you. I beg to acknowledge the receipt of the dispatch dated April 14, forwarded to mo by the Hon. Mr. Ballance on April 17, in reply to the deputation of Maori • chiefs who interviewed you in Auckland. Enough. “J have carefully read your dispatch, and in reply arc the following words: You say that there is only one mistake in the Treaty ’of Waitangi, which is the power given the Maoris to dispose of their land to the public. I will now ask: What Guana’ of the Treaty of Waitangi gives the 'mana-’ to do away with the rights of the Maori nations to their lands by the Native Land Court Act? Do you think it was approved by the chiefs' .as with the Treaty of .Waitangi? Who were those tribes and.chiefs who consented? “You say that ‘mana’ has . bceu given to the Maori committees to hear claims to their land and decide who arc the owners—ln what section of the Maori Committee Act is that ‘mana’ to be found?”