TE WHITI'S SPEECH.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume I, Issue 99, 26 March 1881, Page 4

TE WHITI'S SPEECH.

(PBOM OUB OWN CORRESPONDENT.) Pungarehu, Monday. At about nine o'clock in the morning the natives collected on the meeting place, and the food was brought and piled in a heap in the centre. This was divided, bread and tea handed round, apples distributed, and pork disposed of in the various cook-houses. The marae was then swept, and the prisoners marched on to the meeting place in single file. The released prisoners came first, and afterwards those who having been appointed by Te Wliiti to fence and be taken, are styled prisoners, although they were not arrested. These all took their seats in the centre of the square, and Te Whiti commenced speaking. The following is an epitome of his speech : — Any mistakes or miscalculations which may have arisen, any apparent lies, must not be blamed upon our assembly, for lies were from the very beginning. Many are the nations of the world, and innumerable are their chiefs and leaders, kings and rulers. Lay not the fault of ill to this generation, for there is no evil which h.13 not a precedent. Whatever befalls a man, suffering and death are his ultimate fate. It was so ol'oltl, and it is so now, and will be for the future ; so say not that wo alone, the small people, deserve to suffer ; that we, the little tribe of the island, alone do wrong, and that the great and strong of the land are right, for surely it is not so ; for all people inherit suffering, whether good or bad, and the fact of yom* having suffered imprisonment neither proves that you deserved it, nor that your works are bad ; nor, because the great of the land have escaped, is that a proof that they are good. It is not right that fear of war, of imprisonment, or of any evil thing, should be made master of the world, and that *he great and strong, by coercion, should become masters of creation. It is not right that the men of the island should be made slaves of through fear of war, anger and vexation, or that the land should be relinquished from that cause. If the world was created by a feeling of anger ami vexation on the part of the Creator, then it is right that these things should continue to rule the world and conclude all things. But, no ; the world ■was created by Jehovah through love, and all tilings which He made upon the face of the es»rth were created out of affection and love ; therefore, I say, as love was the beginning of all, by love let all things continue, even unto the end. I will not suffer strength, sorrow, anger, war, and tumult to finish the things we are engaged in, but by suffering are all things attained and concluded. All evil things were brought into the world by Adam, and the present troubles are no exception to the character of the troubles which arise through him. Strife, war, quarrels of all k : nds, were brought into the world by Adam, and no good has ever resulted from them. Therefore, I exhort this gathering not to allow war, or f ar of war, to become masters of the land. Engage not in the first, and be patient, that there may be no occasion for it. By vexation of heart, comes war ; by love, peaceful days arise. Let not love utterly die, nor evil days settle on the land. My words are not short in their application, nor unimportant, for they concern the whole world, to which I wish to see them ■ applied. On the day you commenced your work of patience and forbearance, the initiation of these good things were inaugurated, and we became so much nearer to a final settlement of all diffii ulties, by peace and goodwill. The Governor of New Zealand shall finish all things connected with the land in these da 3's, and the settlement shall depend upon love, and not upon anger. The old bad way of settling questions of land, let it be abolished, and let the land troubles bo settled by love ; even so shall it be, and not otherwise. The things which I propose are on entirely new thing. Hitherto all quarrels have been settled by a strong hand, by war and bloodshed, tumult and strife of all kinds, innumerable evils, and the vanquishing of the weak. But let us not take heed to tho evil brought into the world by Adam, but look iurlhor back and see that the heavens and the earth by Jehovah were created out of love. It was when man grew envious, vexed, and angry, that all land questions came to depend upon the might and strength of the disputants. By quickness and strength does tho fish find for himself a calm and stormless haven when the hm # - ricaae troubles the ocean, and by the sarao strength of movement does man find for himself a new home in a distant land. .^Ender all your tribulations, let the groat men of the island behold your quiet and peaceable behaviour, your patient and cheerful attitude, gathered together in my presence on the marae. Those who disbelieve and despise you for your present quiescent and uncomplaining attitude will do so because of the novelty of such behaviour. No good and permanent thing has been accomplished by might, strength, war, or such like things, from the time of Babel, even unto the present; had there been, then there would be reason for laughter against us for our non-resistance and continued patient behaviour under wrong and spoliation. It is said that there is only one really good thing in the world, and that is a God : but who has seen him and can inquire into the particulars of his greatness and goodness as a thing to imitate? The great thing among men is the rulership and eminence which many seek to attain, but has any escaped suffering and death

on account of bis greatness ? These are the two great things which are considered pre-eminent for their goodness ; but who can discover their merit, for neither the godsbip, and there have been many, nor the chieftainship, if any, however great, has been able to accompb'sh perfect rest and peace from the beginning even unto the present time. Quarrels, strength in fight, fear of war, or war ilself ; these shall not be left to dominate over the land this day ; but the work is not yet complete, which shall finally accomplish this permanent peace. The shark is hooked and dragged into the canoe, and the fisherman beats and throws him into the bottom of his boat, but although quiet for a time, he is not dead ; but when struck a welldirected blow on the snout, and the froth gathers about his lips, then with a quiver of his tail he expires, and not before. The men upon the land shall not find deliverance from strength and war, but from a pure, disinterested, ami peifecfc love this clay. God shall not allow the land and the men to owe dependence to war and the tilings I have spoken of, but on love alone this day. The chiefs of the great people, Ihe brave and strong in battle, are raging with passion, because of their importance, to bring matters under the dominion of war. You, the prisoners, have not succumbed and been captured by a small and insignificant sword, for the sword of the Governor is by far the strongest in the land. Waikato quarrelled with Ngatirnutunga, and vanquished that tribe, and then returned and fought against Ngapuhi. The great tribes fought against Ngatikahungunu, and returned to their houses boasting of their prowess ; but in the end all, even the strongest, were vanquished by England. Therefore, be not ashamed and dismayed, for we, the very lowest, were pressed down by the very highest in the land — the Governor." An hour and five minutes was consumed by Te Whiti's speech, and after the songs of the prisoners, an adjournment was made for dinner. In the afternoon Tolm spoTie for about an hour, much to the same effect as Te Whiti — in fact, it is looked upon as a sign of their inspiration that these two, without consultation, always speak upon the same subjects spontaneously.