PREMIER AT PAPAWAI.

New Zealand Times, Volume LXVII, Issue 3444, 27 May 1898, Page 2

PREMIER AT PAPAWAI.

IMPORTANT ADDRESSES. CHURCH RESERVES QUESTION. TECHNICAL SCHOOLS FOR MAORI YOUTHS. PROPOSED LAND LEGHSL ITION. A cordial welcome was extended to tho Premier and Mrs Sadden and tntir parly by the natives at Papawai yesterday. The party drove out from Grey town in the morning, and reached the settlement at about half past 10 o’clock. Although a smart shower of rain fell just at this time, the Waipawa Brass Band, wearing their smart uniform, played an inspiriting march, and a company of men danosd a hafca. When all had settled themselves in J the meeting-house, the business of the day commenced. Tamahau Mabupuku, addressing the Premier, said that on the last occasion on which Mr Seddon was at Papawai, the meeting-house was formally presented to him in his name as Native Minister. It was fitting that this should be done. The great House cf Parliament in Wellington was for him as Premier. In his position as Native Minister it was right that he should enter this house and discass native matters with the native people in their proper environments.

Mr Seddou, in reply, said it wag pleasing to him to ba reminded that he was now in his own house as Native Minister. He thanked the natives on behalf of the country for providing conveniences by which Ministers might meet them and discuss matters more particularly affecting their race. The building, erected by natives, most of them young men, was a proof that, under instruction, Maoris could become as good artisans as any in the country. Ope of tlie best mechanics in the workshops at Napier was a Maori. Ho would like to remind his hearers, and especially those of the younger generation, that their forefathers set apart reserves for the purpose of providing funds to defray the cost of the education, technical nud otherwise, of Maori children. It was a lasting disgrace to those who had been entrusted with those lands that they had done nothing in the direction intended by those who gave the lands. Ho knew one reserve at Porirua, near Wellington, from which they had at the present time in the bank over .£9OOO. And they had never spent a £6O- - on technical or any education in respect of the children of the natives at that place. He was looking at a piece of land as ha spoke, and he said the laud was donated by their ancestors for a proper and most beneficial purpose. Had it been devoted to tho purpose for which it was donated S There were lauds on the Hast Coast, also, donated by natives for the same purpose, and he said they had never been utdised for tho purpose intended by their forefathers. He went then to the West Coast, where there were also reserves which had never been utilised for the purpose for which they were given by their forefathers. He went to the Waikato, and there application was made to him by natives whose lands had been confiscated, who had not an acre of their own, but whosa forefathers gave reserves, with which nothing had been done. It was natural, therefore, that those natives should ask the Government to give them back at least those reserves, which had cover been used for the purpose for which they had been given, , u— —> . u-i in a case in which Wi Rarata asked the Supreme Court to give back a reserve at Pprirua to the descendants of those who donated it, the Court said it could not be done. As the law said that the land could not go back to-the descendants of those who gave it, and as the trustees and those entrusted with it said they could not give effect to tho wishes of the natives, it was time for the State, the father of bothraces, to step la and seo that the trustees and those endowed with the laud in the first instance gave effect to tho provision made by tho foresight of their forefathers. Beyond a little that had been done here and there in a small way, nothing bad boon done in tho direction intended by those who gave the land. Now, the native race was particularly endowed with constructive ability and mechanical powers, and it required only instruction to make its members good engineers, carpenters, bricklayers and blacksmiths. They ought to have the young men of the native race engaged in trades. He was looking forward to the time when he should pay a visit to those of the native race in tho Wairarapa, in order to open, not many yards from the Papawai meeting-house, a technical school, a school orooted and lo be maintained oat of tho land which was donated for that specific pu-pise. (Applause.) In that school he wanted to see various branches of technical instruction followed, which would give to native youths an opportunity of going into the world and making an honest, respectable living. If similar schools were established in different parts of tho country, a reproach against the native race would be removed. People said at the present time that the native youth did not care to work. They said ] he preferred the public-house and the I billiard-room, the racecourse and the totalisation to honest employment Now I h-' hi'Mv-P was deeply pained to <>■>« ond know that there w.as too much of truth iu ; what was said in this respect. But when ; he asked himself the question. What is there for those young men to do ? are we help- t ing them? does the pak*ha give them an opportunity to work ? do they

receive technical instruction P it was not difficult for him to find what was the true cause of the degeneration of the native ry.ee. What was the good ut shedding crocodile tears to appear to he sorrowful, aa had been the case with many, when behind all there wac carelessness sn.i callousness, when those who should come to the rescue refused to stretch forth right hand to assist tho natives from tho mire into which they were drifting, and to help them to maintain the pr»»srig- »f in j noble race to which they beloiiuo.l. It was, however, his plu.su • intern* the meeting that the B sii-.p -.4 V.' -.u sgteii (Dr Wallis) had been g«,r:jg i*.to tt- 4 1 ! - lion uf the reserves, aud tbar. luer** w a movement now being madu to rumu.. t-.h flock that existed in dealing with r* e ; s was originally intended by tho u« u.m.h. Tho matter was discussed at the Angl o u Synod recently held in Cac , is-chui , . ,;> .

Conclusions were then arrived at whicu had now been submitted to the Government. And the Government had been asked to give its consent to allowing tho conditions of the reserves to be submitted to the Supreme Court in order that as the original trusts, so it was alleged, could not be carried out, the Court might order what was to be done in the futuio. But there were two necessary matters in connection with this affair that must be considered. The native race bad as much right to be consulted in respect to the matter as the Government, The natives of the present day, being the descendants of the original owners, wore a party to tho trusts, and had as much right to consider the question as had the Synod in Christchurch. And he might say that personally he did not concur in the proposals which had been submitted by the Synod, because it had recommended that the scholarships for members of the native taco should be confined to such schools in any pait of the country as might bo under tho control of the Church of England. Such a condition was too restricted, and could not be complied with, as all the natives could not send their children to those schools. The reserve at Papawai was intended for the benefit of the children in tho Wairarapa, and what the Synod was proposing was that children in the far north or the far south should participate in the benefits from the land at Papawai. Now, by tho State system of education, the people of New Zealand as a whole found tho money for education. The State schools and the aid given to native schools out of the Civil list relieved the land, which was not wanted for the main purpose intended by those who gave the reserves. But there was sufficient land to establish technical schools ia addition to tho schools already provided by the State. This would give Maori youths an opportunity of learning near their homes that which would fit them to go into the world and become mechanics and tradesmen.

Speaking for himself, he had no desire to bo brought into conflict with tho various churches to whom land had, for specific purposes mentioned in the trusts, been donated. Tho Government asked tho churches to recognise that there was a necessity for giving to youths of the native raco what their ancestors intended they should have. The matter was so important that it should not be dealt with piecemeal. They should not, for instance, bo brought into conflict with his own church, the Church of England, in respect of these lands. But the matter was of such groat importance that the whole question should bo dealt with by Parliament, and in such a way as should remove tho reproach tiiat was at present upon them. Nearly 20 years ago, in the year 1879, a Royal Commission was appointed to investigate and report upon the subject. Tho Government intended to have that report, with the evidence given before the Commission, printed and laid upon the table of the House next session. It would revive a report on an injustice done, a report which had remained dormant for the last 20 years. Tho question should be referred to a select committee, upon which there should bo some of lha ablest men of both parties in Parliament and also of the native representation. Opportunity should be given to representatives of the churches to attend tho committee to ask questions and to advise as to the disposal of the lands, in regard to which in almost every instance the original trusts had not been carried out. He was gratified that the church to which he belonged, through the Bishop of Wellington, had been the one to draw attention to this matter and make an attempt to remedy the existing condition of affairs. The forefathers of the natives handed over their children to the churches. They also handed over lands to be applied for the good of their children. He hoped the churches would act as good parents and sea that what the natives’ ancestors intended was given full effect to. In conclusion, Mr Seddon said that as reference had been made to his presence at Papawai, to tho building in which they weio assembled, and to Parliament, ha had thought it was a good opportunity to make known to the natives and to the world that the question of dealing with tho reserves must shortly engage the attention of Parliament. The Premier’s speech was frequently applauded, and appeared to be very well received.

Wi Pere, M.H.R., Henara Tomoina and Tamahau Mahupuku spoke briefly in commendation of the address.

Some time previously tho dinner gong had broken in on the utterances of one of the Maori speakers, much to Tamahau’a displeasure. Ho now concluded his own brief speech with an intimation that the kai was getting cold. Every seat in the dining-hall was occupied at dinner. The Premier and his party sat at the cross-table at the head of the hall. The R«v W. Williams, who is visiting tho settlement, said grace. After dinner, in the korero hall, about a score of the younger women gave a dunce descriptive of the building of tho meetinghouse.

NEW KATIVE UNO BILL EXPLANATION BY THE PREMIER. The Premier's speech in the afternoon was devoted to an explanation of the Native Bands Protection and Administration Bill, copies of which were distributed. Mr Saddon referred to the land question as tho real reason for the gathering. The land was the life of the natives; without it they must disappear from the face of tho earth. With the approval of the natives the Government would introduce the Bill next session. They wanted to put every Maori family upon its own portion of land, just the same as Europeans. In leasing land the proposed Native Band Boards would have first to provide for landless natives by giving them an opportunity to take up land, for which they would pay rout. There were many natives who were without land, and who bad to live on land which did not belong to thorn, and for tho use and occupation of which they could not pay. The balance of tho land would ba leased to Europeans, who would pay a rent to be fixed by tho board, that would I® fair alike to them and to the native landlords. Anothergreat thing which he claimed for the Bill was that after the land was vested in the hoards there would be no further use for the Native Band Court. There would also be this benefit, that onco tho boards were created and the land vested in them tho natives would not be able to swallow up their land in disputes. There was a matter not now dealt with in the Bill, hut tho inclusion of which would bo for the consideration of the natives, namely, whether lawyers and land agents should ba permitted to appear before the boards or take any part whateverin their business. He was of opinion that, they should not, but he awaited the advioe-. q£ the natives on the question. Tho provisions of the Bill would give effect to what; he believed to ba the native mind, and totU6 COmtuan* .4._.... ,4. should not sell any more land, but from., generation to generation hand ic onto theirchildren, so that they might live on or from the land. If the natives did not adopt theBill things would go along as at the present time. He himself would regret thatit should be so. The area of native land, was diminishing. There were only fivemillion acres left foe 40,000 uativesj, qnd. as many owned large areas and some verylittle, m bis opinion there was not too much land left for the race. Unless something was dona to stop what was going on in respect of their land tho natives would before very long become recipients of Charity at the hands of the pakeha. Referring to the petition forwarded to the Queen through Mr Wi Pere, M.H.B, last year praying that the sale of native land might lie stopped, Mr Seddon thought it would he a proper thing to do to connect the Bill with the Diamond Jubilee of Her Majesty by referring to the petition iu its preamble. The action to bo taken in regard to the Bill was a matter for tho natives themselves. If they said

“Gj on” he should go on; if they said ” Taihoa.” then, much as be should regret it. bo would not proceed farther with the measure. He hoped, however, to have tho assistance of the natives themselves in the battle of tho land, which he intended to fight with all the vigour which he possessed. Before leaving the settlement the gathering was photographed in front of the meeting-house. In the centre of the group stood the Premier ac-i Tamahau, with the Union Jack waving over their heads. The Premier and his party returned to Wellington by the ordinary train in the ever ing.