Hawke's Bay Herald. WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 1882. TAWHIAO AND THE PREMIER.

Hawke's Bay Herald, Volume XXI, Issue 6165, 8 February 1882, Page 2

Hawke's Bay Herald. WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 1882. TAWHIAO AND THE PREMIER.

The interview between Tawhiao and the Premier, of which we published a full translation on Thursday last, though totally barren of immediate practical result, was yet important in its indications of a desire on the part of Tawhiao to put an end to the present isolation of himself and his people, and to deal with the Europeans. Seyeral causes may hare contributed to this change of front. Some old cynic, advising male lovers, says that the more warmly you pursue a woman the more will she retreat ; but if you retire she will begin to pursue you. Of course this is a gross libel on " the sex," but, if untrue of polished European damsels, it doesnot follow that the principle is inapplicable in dealing with the natives. When Sir George Grey pursued Tawhiao, ffited him right royally at the country's expense, and treated him very like an independent monarch, the wily old savage saw ' the advantage he had, and on the strength of it he made preposterous demands, and was hardly courteous to Sir George. He, however, over-calculated the advantage he held, and he was consequently allowed again to retire into obscurity. Now he has voluntarily emerged, and instead of the Europeans seeking him he has come to seeking the Europeans. Even then he was uot met by those in authority, but by a few private citizens, who, seeing the commercial advantages likely to accrue to Auckland through the opening up of the King country, put their hands in their pockets and subscribed enough to entertain him well, and send him away highly pleased with his visit. The sights which he there saw probably greatly strengthened his desire to deal with tho Europeans. Savage as he is, he could not fail to contrast the abundant comforts surrounding the Europeans with the raupo whares and potato patches in which lay the whole wealth of his own people, and it is not to be wondered at if there came over him a desire to so act as to place more of the comforts of life within the grasp of the now isolated Maoris. A third motive— and perhaps this is the strongest of all — iv his evident jealousy of Eevri. Sulking in the King country, he muat have heard how his great rival visited Auckland, and Ixqyt lw was made much of, and treated

as if he, and not Tawhiao, were the real arbiter in future arrangements between the King natives and the Europeans. This jealous feeling was manifested more than once during the interview with the Premier. Once he said :— " I b. O p e that in your intercourse with my people you will not be influenced by what other people of my race will say, but what I say." Again the same jealousy crops out in the following sentence : — " Wait awhile ; the time will not be very long. I will not go back from that ; do not listen to what other people say (apparently meaning other chiefs of his own people). Do not pay any heed to anybody else, and if any of the Waikatos or ffauhau chiefs should visit Auckland and say anything about me or my policy do net pay any heed to them." It was probably the same spirit which animated him in his repudiation of any ill-feeling agains t the Europeans for the arrest of Te Whiti. "I do not recognise Te Whiti in any way," he said. Probably, if he had spoken his exact thoughts, he would have said, " I am glad that Te Whiti is out of nay way, for he was a formidable rival, and I want no rivals." Lastly, perhaps Tawhiao, like monarchs of more civilised nations of whom historr tells us, found that his people were tired of their isolation, and that he must either lead them in the direction they wished to go, or lose his kingship. We have not a great admiration for Tawhiao' s character — Rewi is more our model of " the fine old Maori gentleman ; one of the olden time " — b»t when the circumstances surrounding the re-appearance of the self-styled king are examined, there is reasonable hope that his words have some real meaning in them, and are not intended merely to blind the Europeans.