MEMORIES OF THE PAST

Hawera Star, Volume LII, 18 November 1932, Page 8

MEMORIES OF THE PAST

TEACHING AT WHAKAMARA MRS. A. BREMER’S EXPERIENCES To Mrs Adolph Bremer, now over 80 years of age and residing in New 1 lyniouth, fell the task of laying the foundations of the Whakamara School. Inheriting her mother’s teaching ability she carried on her work first in "Wellington and then at, Kohi, near Wavcrley, where she resigned to be married. After moving with her husband to Whakamara she took up teaching again for a brief period and recalls that the happiest , days of her life were spent in that district. In acknowledging; an invitation to the school jubilee festivities Mrs Bremer writes: “My mother and I conducted a private school in ‘Wellington until about l'S'72, when the provisions of the Education Act then introduced affected our attendance so badly that avc had to close. The Government agreed to license my mother as a teacher until things bcrcame more stable and she was to submit herself for examination and classification. She was afterwards mistress of the Tory Street kindergarten school, a position she held until her death. I was styled as a probationer pupil-teacher and placed under Mrs Tarn at the Mount Cook girls’ school. I later accepted a position as sole mistress of the Kohi School near Wavcrley (in those days called Wairoa), and from there I resigned to be married. Kohi School is a much improved type of school and quite a small township has sprung up around it. I was invited to the recent jubilee celebrations and many of the original scholars, some accompanied by their grandchildren, attended even from the .South Island.

“After farming for a while at Whcnuakura, wo moved 1o Wliakumara and were next at. Okaiawa turd then Armadale. Whilst at Whakamara I took up teaching in my own home and was kept busy with the children and numerous household duties. We killed our own meat, baked our own bread and made our owii candles and soap from surplus tallow. In addition, I made, butter and weighed it out in pound pats, which were wrapped in muslin and exchanged at the store for groceries. One year a large number of cows were milked and I remember the men tipping tlieir foaming buckets of milk straight into the pig troughs. I can say quite honestly that in spite of hard work and all the trials endured we were contented and enjoyed life to the full.”

Continuing, Mrs Bremer recalled the fear that every settler had of the Maoris, especially when the natives heard that the Government had assembled the volunteer troops to capture ‘To Whiti and Tohu. There was an old track, known only to the Maoris at the back of Whakamara by which they escaped to their strongholds. All these strongholds, .from Patea : (then called Carlyle) to Par ill aka pa, were connected by this one track. It was supposed to be the route taken by Hiroki after lie killed the surveyor's cook at Wavcrley. He was believed to have been at Okaiawa the next day in the battle of Te Ngutu o' te Manu against Yon Tciiipskv.

The settlers were armed and driller. at the Manutahi .blockhouse and when danger threatened all the families took up residence within this stronghold. On one occasion Mrs Bremer had to go to Pa tea and it was related to her afterwards that one of the two men detailed to watch the road decided to take the risk and stay home. In the night two dogs commenced to light under the house and the man woke to hear a great thumping. “They havegot me at last,” ho cried. The writer believed that every hair on his head stood upright with fright. “I loved living in Whakamara,’' stated Mrs Bremer at the conclusion of her letter. “Everything grew so profusely and I well remember the fine, vegetables grown by Mr .T. W. Scott, especially the pumpkins, the seeds of which l were thrown uown anywhere. Strawberries were so plentiful that the shearers would not eat them unless they had been steamed and served with lots of cream. I have never seen more luscious peaches than the ones we found growing in the old Maori clear- j ings. They must have been planted there by the wahines in days when the Maoris were the only occupiers of the block. ’ ’

mont. and Stratford. A commission which was visiting several centres of New Zealand for Hie purpose of enquiring: into the revising of 'boundaries and education matters generally, sat at New Plymouth under Mr John Strachan, and it was decided subsequently to transfer from the Wanganui to the Taranaki district that portion of South Taranaki between Stratford and Mokoia, including Whakamara.