ATTEMPTED KISS LEADS TO FIGHT

Northern Advocate, 11 July 1936, Page 6

ATTEMPTED KISS LEADS TO FIGHT

MAORI WOMEN IN WHAKATANE COURT [Special to “Northern Advocate .”l WHAKATANE, This Day. The rights, privileges and responsibilities of Maori parentage were touched upon in a case which came before Mr E. W. Walton, S.M., at the last sitting of the Whakatane Court. A fortnight ago the calm of The Strand, was rudely shattered by a violent altercation between two Maori women. Words soon led to blows, and handfuls of hair and fragments of garments were scattered before the gaze of an interested and rapidly growing crowd.

A Maori man, who tried to restore peace, retreated rapidly in complete disorder, with severe hefty, roundarmed slaps to the jaw. The contest ran its full course, but there was no official decision at that stage. It remained for the magistrate to give the verdict when the two women appeared before him charged with fighting in a public place. Cause Of The Trouble, The cause of the trouble was an infant. Constable T. Cummings said he thought it befet to let the Court untangle the rights of parentage. Mr E. Armstrong, who appeared j for the defendant Uru Paoa, explained that the infant was the illegitimate I child of Ura Paoa by the foster-son i of Hauraki Horopapera, and, asserting her privilege as a foster-grandmother. she went to the home of Ura Paoa and took the child away to live with her. On the Saturday afternoon in question, the. woman saw the child in the street, and went up to kiss it. but the foster-grandmother would not allow this and struck the younger woman. Then fight started. Parentage Rights Still Unsolved. Mr Armstrong wanted to know what right Mrs Horopapera had to the child.

In reply to Mr Armstrong, the defendant said she held the child because its father was her adopted son. She had not taken the child away from spite.

Mr Armstrong pointed out to the Court that there would have been no trouble caused by his client if the child had not been flaunted in her face. If she had been allowed to kiss it the matter would have ended there. The magistrate fined each of the accused 10/- and costs 5/-. and, in the case of Hauraki Horopapera. 9/6 for an interpreter. The riddle of parental rights i s still unsolved.