TAWHIAO'S DOINGS in LONDON.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXI, Issue 7080, 26 July 1884, Page 1 (Supplement)

TAWHIAO'S DOINGS in LONDON.

[FEOM OUR S7£CIAL reporter.] London, Thursday, Jane 5. THE MAORIS " AT HOME." The visit of Tawhiso and the Maoris aacompanying him has a double interest; it haa a social aa well as political significance. I have been engaged closely observing both, and am convinced that the natives have mnch to learn. Te Wheoro may bo, and doubtless it, at the helm, bat aa yet the ship does not appear to answer to it. Today I have been engaged in two qaartera alternately. 1 have visited the Maoris, and attended at the office of the Aborigines Society. In one quarter I have gleaned little; and in tha other not mnch; Of this, however, I am satisfied : that it is proposed to raise the vexed question of the confiscated lands when an interview with Lord Derby I haa been arranged. I am now inclined to think that the facts to be stated, and the line of argument to be taken, are that after the last Maori war certain lands w«re confiscated to the Government, and that.aome of these have been since disposed of, and are now in the possession of certain colonists. The Maoris are understood to say that then should not have been wholesale confiscation of territory, ioasmuoh as many of those whose property waa taken werejoyal subjects ,of the Crown—that, in fact, there waa a division among them ; and that while they do not contend that the land should be restored to those who fought against the oolonial authorities, yet that, in the oaae of those who supported the Government, they ahould be either reinstated or, in tho event of the soil having passed into other bands, they should be awarded compensation for' that which they allege baa been wrongfully taken from them. They will, moreover, make representations to the Imperial aa.

{horities, with a view, to obtaining for themselves something. in the nature of local self-government. ■ Bat of this I shall have to bay more pit*ently. Meanwhile, I will follow Tawhiao to bis new quarters in London. last night I left him and Te Wheoro and the rest in their chambers at WlUiamaon'a Hotel. Aa I have already said, they retired early; but, •s it appears, not to rest. They were en* gaged until a late hour in correspondence and other clerical work, and they resumed their labonrs early this morning. By ten o'clock they had settled their hotel bill—which they teem to have done with every satisfaction to all parties —bid qoitted the city, and were fairly on their way to D-meter Hons* in Montague Plaoe, Kuuell Square. They and their baggage were conveyed to their destination in three oabs, and on their arrival were received by Mrs. St. Bnry with every mark of courtesy. A drmwing-room has been placed at their disposal for the "purpose of reoeiving visitors; they have a oomlortable smoking-room, and their sleeping accommodation consists of four bed-rooms, one of which, witK a front aspect, is devoted to the exclusive nse of the King. It is proposed that thejr shall take their meals with the other visitors, taking their dinner at table d'hOte, and in other respects conforming to the rales whioh govern a genteel boarding .establishment. I may, perhaps, mention that Demeter House is patronised by many colonists and English professions! people, and that the proprietress seeks sa far as possible to provide for her patrons a comfortable and pleasant home. The house is well appointed, and there seems every desire to make the Msoris happy and oomlortable; but they barely seem at present to appreciate it, and the gingerly way with which they go up and down stairs indicates that they have not ,been accustomed to such - exercise. The' day was very dall in the early hoars, and soon after noon heavy rain fell, whioh was followed shortly alter by a slight thunderstorm. The dsrkness made a marked impression upon Te Wheoro, who soveral times commented

upon it, and contrMted the dark clonds and thick atmosphere here with the clear and bright «ky usually to be met with in hia own country. When Tawhiao and Patara went ont they created quite a furore. Their appearance was new to that portion of the public who happened to be abroad, and even in this aristocratic and comparatively secludcd part of London, a crowd of tome fifty persons or more gathered aroond the entrance of Dimeter Honse when the King made his entry. Patara is a rare wanderer. Ha is ever journeying from place to place, closely observing all that he sees, and making private not«s in hia memorandum-book. Copia, also, is invariably on the look-oat. They patronise the pubtio vehicles very freely, often going only short distances, and the time occupied being sometimes but a few minutes. This afternoon, adopting a suggestion which Mr. Chessou threw ont yrsterday, the party have decided to give public intimation that they will be "at home" each day,, from eleven till one, within which honrs they will be prepared to receive visitors. No doubt this invitation will be largely availed of. Already several New Zealand gentlemen, at present sojourning in England, have paid the King a visit, among those who had ao audience of them this afternoon being Mr. Matthew Holmes, a member of the Upper House of Representatives, and Mr. Douglas MoLean, son of Sir Donald McLean, formerly a Minister in the colony. The visit was simply a friendly one, and hnd no political significance. Meanwhile, the AgentQeneral for New Zealand remains ■ silent. There has, np to the present timo, been no communication betwe;n Sir Dillon Bell and the Maori*. From a social point of view, Tawhiao is already beginning to gain polish under the influence of the boarding-house regime. Mrs. St. Bury informed me to day, with evident pride, that ahe had already tanght the King the use of * hat peg,.a dour mat, and an umbrella stand, and she hoped for still better results in the course of a day or two, with especial regard to the comforts appertaining to the use of a pockethandkerchief. Subsequently, Te Whooro, had a pleasant chat with Mrs. St, Bury, who assured him of her desire to do everything in her power to make the Kingaud the ohiefs oomfortable; like Miss Kate Phillips, in the play of " Money," ahe would make Mr. Tom Thorne (in the person of Te Wheoro) " laugh, and danee, and sing." After dinner there would-be » piano, and singing and dancing. She would arrange for a private dance: would 1 join them? The Major was delighted, and there is evidently some pleasant entertainment in store. He showed me his portrait, in uniform, as it appeared in the aupplement to the Auckland Wxbkly Niws, and was dearly very proud of it. A couple of enterprising firms in the photograpnio line—Messrs. Elliott and Fry, of Bakerstreet, and the London Stereoscopic Company, of tiegent-street—have applied for the privilege of taking portraits of the party, bat these have for the present been refused ; while the services of an individual and his wifo who offered themselves as guide and cook respectively were promptly ignored! When I was nahered into the private apartment of Tawhiao, he was attired in a white flannol jaoket, though before I left he had donned the favourite black waterproof and high silk hat. Topia was lying upon his bed asleep. Ropia, in his shirt sleeves, waa busy writing, Te Whtoro waa attired unina), and Patara was walking the streets.

In course of the morning I paid another visit to the Temple offices of Mr. Gorst, M.P., but he had not yet returned to town. He is still at Chippenham, and is not expooted to be heme nntil Wednesday next. I also sgain called on Mr. Chesson, and resumed tho conversation npon whioh we entered yesterday. He prefaced his observations by saying that be must be very darefal in what he had to-say, as he did not wish to offend any one. He then proceeded to make the following statement: —"I forwarded to the Colonial Office (on behalf of the Aborigines Society), several months ago, a letter from the four members of the House of Representatives of New Zealand, addressed to us on the subject of their grievances, with special reference to the inodo in which the King Country should be opened to settlement. That letter Lord Derby sent to the Government of Now Zealand ; and His Lordhiip was good enough, towards the end of April last, to send the nociety the comments which Mr. Bryoe made upon it. A portion of the letter is argumentative, and deservea the attentive consideration of those interoated in the subject. Very much to odr surprho, Mr. Bryoe instead of confining himself to that aspect of the question attacked the authenticity of the Maori letter."

Reporter: Can you toll me the names of the four members of the House of Representatives who signed the letter to wlxich you refer? Mr. Chetson: Major Te Whero, To mo ana, Tawliai, and Taiaroa. Mr. Bryce, of coarse, did not say that the four Maoris bad not sent or signed the letter, seeing that there was no donbt whatever as to its genaineness in thi& rospcct; but he declared that tho doonment bore ample internal evidence that it did not oontain - their sentiments, and oonld not really have emanated from them. If this statementwere wellfounded, it was manifestly desirable that we should have evidence of the- fact, because our objeot is not to pot forward statements or views of a misleading oharacter, bnt to ascertain what the natives themselves really think on matters in which they are interested, and to give them such little advioe or help as, under the circumstances, it may be in onr power to afford. Bnt the information we reoeived from New Zealand satisfied us that Mr. Bryce was under a misapprehension on that point, and we, therefore, wrote to the Colonial Office, vindicating the authority of the letter, and stating why we believe it expressed the sentiments of the Maoris who sent it. It seomed to us that the faot thatTe Wheoro had been the first to enter his signature to the letter, and had accompanied the King from the antipodes to this country, was in itself sufficient proof of his sympathy with the objects set forth in the letter. This communication was first sent to us, then to Lord Derby, then to Sir William Jervois (the Governor-General of New Zealand), and then to Mr. Bryoe, the Secretary for Native Affairs, who sent as baok bis reply. I told Te Wheoro yesterday about Mr. Bryce's statement, so far as it concerned himself, and he seemed to be amused at the idea that he shohld put his name to a letter without both knowing and agreeing with its contentr; I have promised to send him JMr. Bryce's memorandum, so that he may see what the Native Minister has said concerning himself and his many colleagues. Csq you tell roe, in brief, although it may be known in New Zealand, what is the nature of the letter to which you refer t Mr. Chetson : Speaking,in general teraa, I may say it was.a letter in which they advocated the appointment of a Maori

elective Botrd to ouigt native iffiirn;'ud more particularly the sale of *iurtiv». lands, under the supervision of the GoTernor"GeseraL They expressed. their willingness to lease the an occupied lands in the King Country op » systom which would retain » iizuli portion for their own absolute use £n perpetuity. That waawhat itcune to. . Do jou know if .the document .prepared daring the voyage goes farther than the one yea hare received I Mr. Chesson: Ido not. I-have not seen the document; bat I apprehend that it coTtti the whole gtoond of their Yesterday I informed them that I considered it to be abiolntely nec»ssary that.the document whioh they proposed to protect to the Secretary of Slate fnr the Colonies should be an entire and nnsnggested expression of the Maoris' own views; and, therefore, that I did not wish eves to see it until it was completed. The general feeling here among interested in the subject is, that the Maoris have no intention of raising or making any proposal which would not admit of argument. Loiraur, June 6. It does _ not take long to satisfy oneself that Maoris are very much the creatines of impulse. Thoy appear to have a fixed determination at one moment, *««lf an hoar later they' act upon an altogether different resolve. last night; for instance, they had decided to remain at home, hat, happening to meet a gentleman at the dinner-table who offered to condnot them to a theatre, they conditionally accepted his invitation. It is, however, only right to say that at first they had considerable diffidence about it, and that in the remit only one of the chiefs went oat. This was Patara, who all along has shown himself devoid of shyness or fear, and is ever ready to inform himself of Che ifo'n'lff of English manners and customs. To Wlteoro is at

present too much occupied with the real business of the minion to devote himself very largely to pleasure. The gentleman who acted as cicerone to Patera ia Mr. John Cheater, a barrister-at-law, of Lincoln's Tnn, who, as m shareholder in the Alhambrit Theatre Company of Leicester Square, had sufficient influence with Mr. Holland, the manager of the establishment, and Mr. Satton, the Chairman of the company, to canse the Royal box to be set apart for the accommodation of the King and his retinue. Whether, however, from lethargy, fatigue, timidity, or any other cause, Tawhiao delayed his coming until it was too late, and he and the others only descended the stairs just aa the cab containing Patara and his newlyfound friend drove away (torn, the door. Consequently, they were temporarily doomed to disappointment; bat they took it with apparent indifferenoe, and they spent their evening in quiet at home. Meanwhile, Patara enjoyed himself immensely, and, moreover, he was taken by many for the King, so that, in some cases, homage was paid to him accordingly. The piece performed was the oomio opera of the "Beggar Student," with .Miss Fanny Leslie in the title role. It ia a light, pretty piece, foil of singing and dancigg, graceful ballets, and, as the play-bills have it, "novel spectacular effect*. Patara appeared to be delighted with the performance, and bis curiosity was farther aroused when, later on in the night, he was conducted behind the scenes by the manager, who explained to him the way in which the ■cenes were shifted, and had the stage waterfall pnt for a short time into play. The visitor evinced very great interest while watching the modus operandi of stage mechanism, and the dancing of the corpt de ballet excited bis admiration, while ne appeared greatly struck with the band of young ladies dressed aa Polish soldiers. After leaving the theatre he was taken to the " Savage " Clnb in the Savoy, a turning just off the Strand, where he had refreshment in the shape of poached eggs, eta, at this well known professional and literary rendezvous. The clock had struck one when Patara reached home. Bis colleagues had been anxiously awaiting him, but when they had satisfied themselves 'of his safety, they made eager enquiries about what he had seen. Patara was very enthusiastic. He described, alike by word and gesture, not only before going to rest, but again this morning, the nature of the entertainment; and has so aroused the curiosity, not-only of the King, bat of the remaining members of the mission that they have all accepted an invitation to attend the theatre this oveniog. It is proposed, after remaining at the Albambra for a short time, to conduct them to the fsmous Drnry' Lane Theatre, where the Haverly Coloured Minstrels are performing, and thence to the Savage U'.ub. I cannot say whether this arrangement will be carried out, but judging from the manner of Tawhiao, I should say that he had thoroughly made up his mind on the subject, notwithstanding wnatanyone may say. Te Whero, who gradually becomes more communicative in the intervals of business, also intends to accompany the King. It was lata when the King came down to breakfast this morning, but when he did he was attired in a white flannel suit with sash of many colours and eccentrio ornaments, consisting of the teeth of fish or of some wild animal. His appearance was really qnito imposing in its way; but was certainly rather out of character, seeing that the sky was overcast and dark, ana that heavy rain was falling. In the oenrae of the morning Tawhiao and Te Wheoro, went out for a while shopping, their appearance again exciting a good deal of curiosity among the pedestrians and others who saw them. And well it might. It does not need a very great stretch of imagination to picture the ludicrous figure cut by the dusky New Zealauder when walking Oxford-street in white flannel garments, surmounted by a high-crown black ailk hat. I understand that their object was to order some clothing of a West End tailor, but this undertaking would seem to have been somewhat premature, inasmuch as I am credibly informed that Messrs. Charles Baker and Co., a large firm of clothiers in Bolborn, have offered to

furnish the King with an outfit free of cost I People are constantly calling at the house, seeking an interview, purely for commercial and advertising purposes, but Te Wheoro is very particular who he sees, and has several times shown annoyance at the repeated pestering. Traots and circulars are sent in galore, only for the most part to be cast iguominiously aside. A Manchester merchant baa left wonl that the people Af that city will be glad to welcome the Maoris there, and give them a. suitable reception, but, as I have said in a former despatch, they are not likely to go out of London, or take any very great pleasure, until they have had their long-looked-for interview with Lord Derby at the Colonial Office. Whatever else may be said of them, they are certainly adhering to the principle of setting business before pleasure, although at spare intervals they do not fail to take.a little recreation. They are, moreover, improving in manners, and they receive a general good character from-those. who ait sown with tbem at table, everyone being anxious to teach and encourage them, in the proper use and purpose of the various articles and dishes plaoed before them. The sugar tongs are stated to have a special attraction for Tawhiao.

This afternoon Te Wheoro, who was accompanied by Mr. Skidmore, had another interview by appointment with Mr. Chesson at the offices or the Aborigines Society "in Broadway Chambers, Westminster. Hap. pening to be at Demeter House when they set out, I took a seat in the vehicle with them. On arriving at our destination, Mr. Chesson politely informed me that the interview would be of a private nature, and in reply to my inquiries, said he had received a communication from Miss Weale saying she regretted she was too unwell to come to London to meet the Maoris, and from Bishop Abraham, formerly of Wellington, New Zealand, asking particulars as to the nature of their mission. From another source I have, however, at the last moment gleaned some further information, and this of a rather important character. I understand that to-morrow (Saturday) the Lord Mayor of London (Mr. Alderman Fowler) baa invited the Kintr and his party to luuoh at the Mansion House,-and that subsequently His Lordship and 'other membcrs of the Aborigines Society will with the Maoris the principal object of their mission. -A .letter has also been received from Mr. James Ashbuty, formerly member of Parliament for Brighton, asking the Maoris to visit him at his mansion in that town, while Mr. Gorst, M .P., and Mr. George Graham, of Brighton, have written'evinang an interest in the business in hand. -'

Last night Tawhiao gave an amuting'exhibition of nis vocal and terpsiohorean powers, and to-day he is suffering from a cold in his' eye. Some soothing lotion has been procured from a neighbouring chemist, - and wheh'l ! .left him this morning 'Mrs. St.- Bury - war solicitously applying it with -a piece 'Of lint;' Tawhiao gracionsly submitter to the open*' tion with the meeknets of » oEild. - - |