WESLEYAN MISSIONARY MEETING.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XII, Issue 4372, 17 November 1875, Page 3

WESLEYAN MISSIONARY MEETING.

The annual meeting of the New Zealand Wesleyan Missionary Society was held in the Pitt-street Church last evening. There was a numerous attendance of the supporters of the society. rThe Rev. A. Reid, President of the Circuit, took the_ chair. The following gentlemen also occupied the platform: — His Worship the Mayor, and the Revs. Schnackenberg, Gittos, Rowse, Watkic, Thomas, Williams, Smith, Wiremu Patene, and Hone Waiti. A hymn (the 697 th)' having been sung,: the 52nd chapter of Isaiah was read by the Chairman, and the ftev. W. Bowse engaged in prayer. The Chairsian delivered the opening address. He remarked that the attendance was not so large as usual, but that this was due to the unpropitious state of the weather, and to the fact that a mistake had been made in the advertisement of tie meeting in one .of the evening papers. He explained the objects, of the society. A general summary of work performed by their agents was given. There were in connection with, the Mission- ten chapels and' forty-two other preaching places amongst the , Maoris, three day-schools, six teachers, and forty-six ' scholars ; twenty-one Sabbathsehools, with twenty-six teachers, arid 801 scholars; thirty-one local preachers, two class leaders, 392 Church members, fiftyeight on trial, and 2,534 attendants at public worship. Amongst the European population they had twenty-four chapels, twenty-four other preaching places, eleven local preachers, six class leaders, 103 Church members, thirteen on trial, eight Sabbath-schools, with 231 scholars, and 11S8 attendants at public worship. For the maintenance of this work they were wholly indebted to New Zealand liberality. With reference to the estate at the Three Kings, he said that the rent derived therefrom, £200 per annum, was devoted' to the education of forty-five Maori . scholars. The amount expended at the Three Kings would only have educated ten scholars, so that the money was being spent most economically. It was, however, time to consider whether the school should not be re-opened for the instruction of Maori teachers; and this would shortly have to be decided. Mr. F. L. Prime (Mayor) then read the financial statement. This report shewed that the ladies had collected £104 14s 6d ; collected last Sunday, £25 Is Id; missionary boxes, £18 19s 3d; from the Thames, £18 ; Otahuhu, £14 ; Waikato, £3 lSs Id ; Raglan, £50; Kaipara, £122; Hokianga, £50 ; Wangaroa, £1 16s 6d. The Chairman explained that the large amounts from Raglan and Kaipara were contributions towards the support of ministers. These districts were rapidly becoming circuits, and might be considered such, so ■ soon as their contributions were £200 per annum. The Rev. Mr. Gittos spoke upon " Progress." This subject was somewhat_ diffuse, as it embraced social, civil, scientific, and religious progress; but the speech was concise and entertaining. Special reference was made to the rapid progress of this province, which had come under the immediate observation of the speaker. The Rev. Wiremu Patene, a Maori minister, next addressed the meeting. His speech was interpreted by the Rev. Mr. Gittos. The principal remarks made by the speaker were as follows :—" It was a good time a long time ago, and then came days of confusion. The confusion I mean, as you all know, was the setting up of a King in the Waikato. I did not fail to tell the King (Potatau) that he was wrong. I said to him, ' You are a foolish man; you know nothing.' But all the people said, ' Let us a have a King,' and then came the confusion in our midst. When they fought there came great difficulties, and they lost their land. As for myself, I still kept to the old truths. Many of our people kept from that confusion, but others listened to him and were in favour of Potatau. All this time I am continuing to instruct the people against the Hauhaus. The Hauhaus have a worship, but it is to a false god. There are many good things among the Pakeha, but there io one very bad thing, and that is waipirau—grog. If you were to go.up to the Hauhaus you would say they were deranged or drunk, and a great many "have died. Wβ have had a meeting, the object of which was to suppress this great evil of drunkenness. The word of God is spreading at ithe present time. The word of God has spread, and is now growing in power amongst Oβ J but there is just one thing

which is not quite right,.or it is wrong,—we do not support our ministers." The Choir here sang, " Tell me the Old, Old Story." The Rev. Mr. ScmcACKE-rcEKG said that i they would hrrdly charge him with a leaning ■ to Hauhauism or -with- being favourable to the Kingites, but he would tell them what a Hauhau would say in reply to the speech they had had from William Barton : The Hauhau would ask them all to listen. He would say :—"What Barton has told you is all very well for Mm; he is paid to say it. You p&kehas charge the Kingites with all that is bad. I say it is not true ; I do not talk in the way your friend ■ William Barton has spoken ; but I will say to you, that you, yourselves, say you have a book, a large book — you cail it • The Book.' You say that book is inspired by God—by the Spirit of God ; that what that book says is true, and that all, Pakeha and Maori alike, should obey that book. Ifow, there are two little words in that book, and if you had obeyed them, there would have been no murder and no confusion here. Those two words are : Thou shall not ' kill' and Thou shalt not 'covet.' If you had listened to those two words there would have been no war and no murder; and, therefore, I throw back upon you the charge of causing the evil -which.exists." The speaker, in continuing his remarks, said that in his district there were about two thousand natives, one-half of whom were Hauhaus. Some would ask, what is Hauhauism ? and he would therefore give his view of the matter. Some of them, he thought, were,real patriots —men who did not want to fight or molest the Europeans. Then there were others who hated the Pakeha, and everything Pakeha. ' They say we caused the war. There was also a third" party, whom he would call heathens. These men did not like any restraint, and were polygamists and robbers. The Hauhaus do rot, however, 'talk now- ;as '■■ they once did, and charge everything that is. wrong, upon the Pakeha. In their prayers they ■ acknowledge the Trinity as supreme,. but also render a kind of worship to their, King. .Their servrce consists in the repetition of.about half-a-dozen verses from Scripture, generally from the Psalms." Fully one. thousand of the natives in his district were quite willing to listen to instruction, and they had plenty of work to do amongst them. They had a number of schools, the children; at which were instructed in the English and Maori languages. He thought their Christian natives would for honesty and morality; compare favourably with those of other disstricts, and not ba far behind Europeans. Most of them, like himself, were total abstainers from intoxicating drink. He wished, he could also speak well of their industry, > cleanliness, and frugality, but of these virtues they were sadly wanting. In concluding, he aeked all to consider if, supposingmissionary labour to fail in obtaining any results, that • would relieve us of the responsibility of taking the Gospel to them. • The Rev. Hone Waiti, a Kaipara minister, spoke of the trouble caused by the King and the war. He said that his people had remained faithful to the Gospel, and had not gone to Hauhauism. He said the evils caused to the natives were the result of their creating a king, and compared their action and its consequences to the conduct of the Jews in desiring a king and placing Saul upon the throne. His people had, he said, held fast to Christianity, its laws and doctrines. ~ The Rev. Mr. Watkin delivered a brief address, in which he commented upon Maori physiognomy. He compared Wiremu Patene to King George the Third, and Hone Waiti to' William Gladstone. The Chairman stated that the Rev. Mr. Brown, who was present at the last annual meeting of the society had safely arrived at the Duke of York-lsland_ with eight Fijian teachers. There was a wide field of labour before them, and he commended them to the prayers of the congregation. ■ Votes of tlianka were carried by acclamation to the chair,, to,the lady collectors, and to the ladies, and gentlemen belonging to churches who had responded to the appeal made by the society. The meeting was closed with the benediction. The performances by the choir were well worthy of recognition. ■ A collection was made in. aid of the funds, and a sum of £6 odd collected.