A MAORI ON THE MAORIS

North Otago Times, Volume CIV, Issue 13666, 7 September 1916, Page 4

A MAORI ON THE MAORIS

"JTHEBTOItY OF MY PEOPLE."

LECTURE BY REV. R, T. P, HADDON

Tim work of the' Methodist Church amongst Ihc N'alives of New Zealand, and indeed the development and progress of the work of Christianising the Mauris was denll, with fully in a must interesting and illueidaling manner at Wesley Church last nighl, when I In; llev. Rapala Tohu Poliki Ilnddon Icelured on iho subject "Tin; Sl.uy of My People: A Maori on the Maoris." Tl'ii! .Hew .1. ;\. Liu-liori! |irt!.si.U'.l ami there ivas :i good allendanco. Tlio idiairman, prior - lo the lecture, gave a few dectaiLs of tin; financial side of the Hume Mission work of the church. He stated that last year the total amount raised was £0255, including a credit balance of over £534 brought forward from the previous vear, Of that amount Onmnni Circuit had contributed £33 10/8. The expenditure voted for the current year on the Maori Mission work was £2200, whilst for the European side of tlio Church extension worluii sum of £2794 was authorised. Departmental charges would necessitate an expenditure of £052 and it was estimated that at the close,of the year there would lie a. credit balance of £7B. . The chairman referred to the work as pioneering, and urged-its claims on all church members and adherents. The' Rev, Mr Hnddon,. who has been delegated by the conference to deputnlionise, the churches in support of the Maori Mission and Church Extension Fund, is the first Maori to be set apart to the,'full work of the ministry of the church of his choice, He is fully acquainted 'with theMiistory of his people and spoke authoritatively of the development of the. Maori people. Mr Haddon said the migration of the Maori people from the islands of their original habitation to New Zealand had occupied a' space of prolinhly hundreds of years. The means of their Iravgl and the manner of lashing their canoes together were told liy the speaker, as also were their observances of heavenly bodies, and their rending of Iho signs of the skies; by means of which they directed themselves frrim place of place.

The first Maori to come to Now Zoa-' land from the Island nf Hawaii, said Hie speaker, was Turi, wlio landed to the nortli of Now Plymouth, anil later sailed round to Tarnnaki and made his pciWnenet home at the mouth of the Paten river, lauding there with about sixty followers. Other parties of Maoris had lauded in different' parts of the land, and as the tribes increased the war-like instincts of the Maori caused tribes to frequently dash with one another. As the tribes increased pas were built until all over the North Island there 'were Maori villagcos. Jn those pas there were houses of council, houses of worship, houses of amusement, and houses.for legislature.

Referring to Maori law, the lecturer said there were four headings under which the Native was dealt with—first Utn; second Muruj third Tana; fourth Tapa. If convicted under the first he had to pay a tine; if under the secoud his property was confiscated; and if under the third it meant war would, be made on him or perhaps his tribe; whilst if found guilty under the fourth heading it was recognised that divine punishment would be meted out to the offender.

The speaker also stated Ilia! the Maoris brought with them a religion of their own, 'which included (he belief that the "Great Atua/' had created heaven (rangi) and enjrth (papa), but no .Maori beliefs, had. .been recorded-jn sacred books, and those beliefs were not accessible to others than the Natives. It was a fact thai t'he Maoris were not idol worshippers, and there was no temple in which idols were set up for worship, The coming of the Church of England and 'Wesleyan missionaries was ' then dealt with, the lecturer showing how both, churches worked side by side for the Christianising of the Natives. Habits of cleanliness were 'instilled amongst'Hie'Maoris. Mr Haddon showed how other traders came and duped the Maoris, and tried to rob them of their lands by trading with gifts of insignificant* value, In IS'IO, said Ihe speaker, the Treaty Qf Wailfliigi, by which New Zealand was transferred lo the British Empire, was signed, chiclly al the instigation of I lie missionaries, in order to protect the Maoris against the deceptions of unscrupulous traders, Five years later tin* Maori war had broken out but that was Ihe result of a misunderstanding, and. the built oMhe Maoris had 1 stood side by side with the British. In that respect the present-day Maori was equally loyal to Ihe throne of Britain. When the present war broke out in Europe the Maori desired to take a part si.'V by side with the European, and a contingent of 500 of the best, many university trained, Maoris had' boon scut to the front,.and reinforcements had increaseed that lirst contingent to nearly 1000 .men,

lieferring to the future of the Maori, I lie speaker said that after the war 11 was the intention of the Maoris to endeavour to bring the Maori on |.o the same footing as the white man in regard to military training, education, ami polities.

The speaker then went on to toll■ of I lie work of (lie Maori Mission. He referred to the differences between the Natives of the east and west coasts, and of how the Taranaki .Maoris had broken away from the faith, lie told of the application of the Maoris to the Methodist Church for the appointment of a missionary, and to the settling of the Rev. Mr Skovinglon at Waimate Plains, in.that province. He also detailed his early history—how he had been n prominent member of Hie Han Ilau Church and afterwards of his leaving that church, and of his part in the work of the Native Land Courts. Later, Mr llnddon related the manner of his lieing brought into the -Methodist Church, through the instrumentality of the ltev. T. G. Hammond, and of how the church received him for training at the Three Kings College, from which he was sent out as a probationary minister of the church amongst the Maoris. He resolved that the most important thing to do was to light the drink evil amongst the Natives, and detailed the account of the presentation of a petition to Parliament, the result of which was the prohibition of tlio sale of drink amongst the Taranaki Maoris and marked a turning point of the history of (hose Natives.

Mr Iladdon furl her told how the work had grown, ami how the children were being educated. From the Taranaki mission, snid the speaker, a large number of girls and boys had been sent to the several Native schools and colleges, and so were being raised to a higher standard of life. For all the work thai the mission was doing amongst,the Natives the support of the European eliiireli, was necessary and Mr Hammond appealed to the, congregation'to give all Ihe assistance possible; ■» <*{; M A collection was taken on behalf of 'he Mission Funds,

A vote of thanks was accorded the lecturer nn the motion of Messrs F. G. Marshall and A, Miller, ami Ihe proceedings closed with the pronouncing of .Maori Benediction by the lecturer.