CORRESPONDENCE.

Maori Messenger : Te Karere Maori, Volume I, Issue 3, 1 March 1855, Page 16

CORRESPONDENCE.

We feel much pleasure in placing in the hands of our native readers the following communication. It is from the pen of a valued friend, who is well known to many of the Maori people, and deservedly esteemed by them. We may add, that there appears no reason why the practical suggestions embodied in this letter should not be carried immediate effect. Surely the amount of wisdom and happiness to be realised from such a course is a sufficient inducement. TO THE NATIVES OF NEW ZEALAND. Idleness is the curse of life. Mind and Body require exercise, else, in each, disease will soon spring up. Self-preservation teaches the most and the most barbarous to exercise the Joody, for life cannot be sustained without labor Thus we often see, in the case of the savage exposed to the inclemency of the weather, andi destitute of medical skill, bodily health in the highest degree. Obedience to the law of nature m reference to the body, brings to him the natural reward. Look also to the mind of that savage, and you will see the illustration of the same law in the reverse of the picture. Inactive, it is necessarily depraved. Evil passion, in all its loathsome variety, soon has sprung up in the neglected The mind has become impotent against temptation to wrong,—it obeys no law but the impulse of the moment, —the greatest benefit will scarcely produce in it gratitude, the least provocation will incite it to direst revenge. The object of civilization is to remedy this evil. The means are, by affording constant employment to the mind, to bring it into healthy acmOn, fortifying it without, and rendering it sound within. &

The Christian Religion, by showing man the certainty of the existence of the soul after the death of the body,—either in a state of misery or of happiness, according to his conduct in life, — and the necessity of securing the latter, calls into exercise our noblest mental faculties, and is the surest guarantee for their future health and usefulness. It forms the Foundation, the Rock of all civilization. Law is also an important element of civilization. It teaches the mind no longer to act in blind subservience to impulse, or to self-interest; but to regulate itself with deliberation, and in wise obedience to rules established for the good of the community,—rules to which the strongest, the weakest, —the richest, the poorest, —the wisest, and most foolish, —must equally bow, or equally run the risk of disobedience. Further, what a large sphere of action is given to the mind in learning the nature and object of the rules.—in assisting to frame and improve them, —in extending their moral influence, —and in inducing others to do likewise. Education is, of course, a great necessity in civilization. The very meaning of the word is to school the mind, to teach it it's powers and it's duties, and to guide it from a state of stagnation into one of healthy and fruitful action. The simple fact of being able to read and write confers a power which, as regards the employment of the mind, is almost illimitable. Civilization is merely the exercise of the mind directed to useful ends. All the power, and the knowledge which England and other civilized countries are possessed of, result from such mental labor, accumulated throughout a course of many generations. In this world, no doubt, knowledge is accompanied by a train of evils. The tree of the knowledge of good, is also that of evil. But that fact should not discourage us. The more we know the more fully we perceive how worthless is the evil, and how advantageous the good,—and the more strength we obtain to fight the battle on the right side. The time will come when this struggle shall cease, and when perfect knowledge and perfect happiness shall reward the victorious combatant. Let me earnestly advise you, Maori friends, to employ your minds,—read—write—reflect,— keep your intellectual faculties in constant exer-

ciso. You see many wonders around you, created by the knowledge and industry of the Pakeha. Reason regarding them. Enquire into their cause, their nature, and their objects. Never be ashamed to ask questions regarding them. You will find, in such mental exertion, a sure reward. Your mind 3 will become strong, liealthy and useful. You will have been faithful stewards in a little, and you will be made rulers over much. From Your Friend. Auckland, February, 1855.