THE REV. MR. BUDDLE AND TAWHIAO.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XVI, Issue 5496, 28 June 1879, Page 5

THE REV. MR. BUDDLE AND TAWHIAO.

, Sin-ce the meeting with Tawhiao, at 1 Kopua, several Maoris who are in the confi- ■ dunce of the King party have been in Auck- ■ land, and have been questioned on two \ points which appeared somewhat hard to be understood, even by those who were present , at the meeting. It will be remembered that J Mr. Buddie detailed how he had gone over ; to see Tawhiao, with the Rev. Mr. Schnaci kenberg, and Hev. Mr. Lawry. The Rev. ! Wi Barton led them, and Mr. Buddie, in ; describing the affair, eaid :—" We seemed, : for a time at least, to have avoided the • King's body guard." Hβ then proceeded to 1 narrate how, after they had spent some time I with Tawhiao, two of the King's body-guard came in and said, " What are yo« doing ; here; you had better be off?" behaving with ! great rudrness. A Kingite who was in ; town the other day, gave the following ex- ; planation of this occurrence. He said that 1 Mr. Buddie and his friends, instead of • coming straight up to the King's house, got round by a back way, and went in . without the detachment of the guard on duty being aware. These men were very angry when they found that their vigilance' had been set at naugh by some Jiuropeaus. Their esprit de corps was hurt; they were afraid that the name of the King's guard would become less a terror than it had been to the pakehas. Suffering under these irritated feelings, they went into the King's house, and behaved as Mr. Buddie stated. They say now that the proper ivay for Mr. Buddie to have proceeded, would have been to have gone straight up to the guard, and to have said that he had come by invitation to see Tawhiao, and then the party would have been-ushered into the royal presence with appropriate ceremonial. Tawhiao himself was angry at the guard for their carelessness, and this further increased their irritation. The question was then asked of our informant: How could the difference in the demeanour of Tawhiao between the Hikurangi meeting and the Kopua meeting be accounted for ? Tho answer was : That Ministers have broken the promisee they made as to the land that was to be restored. This, of course, has been often said before, but the curious fact is, that the Eingites themselves would not publicaly challenge Ministers with, any breach of faith in the matter, although directly challenged to do so by the Premier.