ABOUT LAW.

Maori Messenger : Te Karere Maori, Volume I, Issue 8, 1 July 1861, Page 4

ABOUT LAW.

I. THE ENGLISH STSTEM. Chapter 1. " In times past, before the Pakeha had arrived in this Island, the Natives were sat in a stale of ignorance, and of hostility one towards another, soihat if the right belonged to one individual, it would not be allowed by others, since they possessed the might. Jjut, at the present time, the Maori is ac-

quairUed with some of thePakeha's customs; and those who understand ihem well, consider that sue!) customs are extremely proper. But there are also ether usages of the European, which are not well known by the New Zealanders. The Maori wonders greatly when he crosses the sea to England, and the Pakeha wonders much when he arrives hither in New Zealand. The Native's wonder arises from beholding the abundance of the people. Every part of England is filled up ; there are nothing but fields, houses and towns. The various kinds of wealth also, and the shipping is innumerable. There is also no war: although there are tens of thousands of people, their quarrels are not like those ol the Maori, neither so lasting nor so bad ; every man sitting in quiet possession of his wealth, and estates, and everything; attacked by no unlawful force, and affected by no fear. The Pakeha also wonders greatly when he comes to New Zealand. As he lands on the shore, he enquires " Where are the inhabitants of New Zealand? are these few the only men there are? where are their houses, their fields, their stores? This island bears nothing but fern !" Behold, these are the men of New Zealand, these bones which are heaped up, the results of ancient battlefields; as for his wealth, the Maori has nothing but his land; and he has no heart to build houses, or to store up treasure, because of the many fights and unsettled condition of this country. But the thought of some ol the Maories lias taken a different direction, and they are desirous of good. Even so : if they are but courageous and single-minded, this island will advance and be equal to England. Now, the chief thing by which England has been raised, is the Gospel. In its original ignorance, it was exactly similar to New Zealand. Religious worship was practised, and the people advanced : for God remembers those who remember him. Another thing which caused England to rise, iss because regulations are laid down for everything. If a man has committed an offence, if he has stolen from or killed another man, he is carried before the judge, and his sin is punished: others become afraid of evil doing, and there are no such things as open contentions, similar to what are seen in this land. This is the thing in which the Maori is wrong. One man commits an offence, and it is thenceforth ascribed to the others. Hence the Maori proverb.

But it is not right; this is the plan. If the wrong is perpetrated by that man, let him pay for it; do not seek satisfaction from others who are sat in innocence. But who must adjudge the payment ? He whose property is stolen, or ftho is otherwise injured ? By no means: he would be led away by anger, and would inflict a disproportionate punishment. If one be murdered, who must avenge his death? His own people? No. If the murderer were slain by them, then his tribe would turn-to to obtain revenge for him, and so the evil would grow in an increasing proportion. In other cases of murder, many would be slain out of those who were not nearly related to the first murderer, whilst the real culprit would escape. Look here. There was once a man murdered at Rotorua. If the murderer had been caught and put to death, Rolorua and Waikato had never gorTe to war about it. Bui as it was, the man was kept back, and Waikato arose: and there were four pas destroyed and five hundred men slain as payment for that single murder : very many were the children, and wives, and hushands", who died as satisfaction for his offence. The Pakeha's rule is this; that none but the offender himself shall die. In former limes, the Pakrha was just like the Maori, one man causelessly killing another, and committing all kinds of violence, because there was no chief person to lay down the law, and to punish evil doers. But in the course of lime, the Pakeha saw it would be better to live peacefully, and they said, By what means can such a good be established? It must be by instituting rules for everything, and by the appointment of adult men to administer those rules, and to punish those who do evil. They then chose certain good and aged men to make the laws, and others, as magistrates to carry them out. The King and his Governor were the legislators for making the rules, and the man of ago had to listen lo the statements made by one who was judging another, as also of the defendant himself. There are also twelve assistants to the judge, and their name is, The Twelve. And, on the trial of any man for any offence, if they agree to the truth of the accusation, then the judge shall decide what the punishment for that offence shall be. And hence' it is that they make the Court Houses large, that all men may hear and know, that the administration of the judges is correct.

There are also some days fixed as days of hearing; and when they fall due, then the judge and the twelve jurymen, and the man to be tried, and the man who accuses him, all meet together at the Court House. And then everything is given up for the judge and jury to decide, and they will say whether it is a just or unjust trial. That is all, and here ends the dispute ; and it is not allowed (o tread their verdict under foot. And then the man is punished if he has done evil; and if he has no sin, then he is permitted, to go away. And there is no such thing as open quarrelling, the same as amongst the Maories. Here is also a thing where the Native gets wrong, i.e., in disputing about land. This was one cause of man-slaughter in former limes,' when the good food supplied to us by God was injured and wasted. That was also one cause of fight with us formerly, • and a man would meet with his death on his own lani. It is because of our new principles, that wars have ceased on account of land. ff land is disputed, one man is not allowed to turn another off by force. This would be a bad plan, for by it the land would be taken by the strong man, even though the title of the other were correct. The Pakeha's system is this: When a piece of land is disputed, the disputants must go before the judge and jury, and they will expound the law, and fix the right claimant to the land. Then the trespasser will be ejected, and the property delivered to the man who rightly claims it. This is also another plan of ours for the settling of land. If a man asserts that certain property is his, and he settles upon it, and his word remains undisputed for the space of twenty years, theu that land is considered as his own. This is also a law for a kainga trespassed upon, or on which trees have been felled, or fences broken down, or other injury committed. The owner of the estate may have the case adjudged, if within six years; but after the sixth, his remedy is gone. This is the Maori's word to the Governor, in every district, " Let us have some Pakehas." That is right. This is what the European desires, to reside inland ; and by this means the Natives will become possessed of wealth. But how can litey live comfortably, if bad and headstrong men are allowed to do as they please, to assault mid plunder

men, according to their own will. The Pakeha will not submit lo such a system, but will either return to Eihope, or go to other people who can behave themselves. The wish of the Queen is to save men. Hence, although she has great abundance of troops, and of ships of war, she is not good to fight with the Maori. Hit had been one of the other nations, from across the sea, it would not have been long before they had gone to war with the Maori. As for this, what does Victoria care about quarrels? Her dominions are numerous and extensive ; and unless men provoke her to fight, her desire is to remain quiet. And therefore I say, "Friends, cease to dwell in this improper stale, but give up the management to those whose work it is, to lay down the rules, that our residence may be long in the land of peace." — Chief Justice Martin, 4846.