THE MAORI AS A MAN

Otago Daily Times, Issue 14088, 17 December 1907, Page 2

THE MAORI AS A MAN

HIS PAST AND ■ FUTURE. MR THORNTON INTERVIEWED. STRONG LEADERS WANTED. From a dim background of shnjaws aiul legendary lore stow the Maori—gentleman and warrior; part pcot, part Spartan; rather schoolboyieli, and altogether loveable. That Jiia history should bo for tho most part oonjeoturo makes it none tlio lew fascinating, and if, is tolerably cert«in that a wonderful past is known only to tlio mountain tops watching eternally above the smiling- valloys of Maorilnnd.

Though the Maori has, bo to speak, mislaid bis past, tliero arc people who are determined tirat hio futuvo filial! at anyrato bo assured to him. Amonft the most prominent of theso is Mr John Thornton, for nearly 30 years prinoipol of To Auto College, and now in Dimodin nsking our 00-ot&ration in the furtheranco of tho interests of tlio Maori race. MYTH AND MYSTERY, Interviewed yesterday, Mr Thornton said that tho beginning of things, as far as tho Maori was concornod, were so interwoven with tho ROSKtinor of loguml and myth as to bo nearly indistinguishable. It was supposed that Now Zealand had been uninhabited till tho arrival of "a people from tho East," who gave way befoTo the Maoris at a later dolo. Now, it is contended by some that New Zealand, being essentially a whifo man's country, in a corresponding latitude, say. to that of Franco, it is only reasonable, to supposo that its aboriginal inhabitants would be whito; but Mr Thornton said the rosy "folk" with golden hair who dwelt among the hills, woro but legendary. Thero was no evidence of them having ejistwl, oxee.pl, in tho imagination. To questions concerning tho existence of a white racc, or, indccvd, any r-scc, prior to the Maori advent, even tho highest authorities could only reply-" We do not know." Tho Maoris themselves knew l.hat their remote ancestors came from somewhere in four canoes. That was nil. Bright intelligence was a trait of the racc, and this could be accounted for by tho fact that the Maori came originally from die same stocks as ourselves—the' Aryan. Of late inquiring minds have boon asking how it was that tho Maoris tttiversinj* India, Mongolia, and Melanesia, where archery has been known for thousands of years, brought 110 knowledge of tho bow and arrow, or oven the blow pipe, fo New Zealand. Tliis question was put to Mr Thornton, who replied that if. was a, common mistake to supposo that, the Maori migration had been offectod in a few years. It had prnbablv taken ccnlurifs and con'.nries, and what the race had learned in Asia, it would have ample time to forget in the isles of the Pacific. As to their fnilh. thai appeared to have Iron dissipated in the satno wav. What they did pcrsess could swirrsly be termed a religion, and mainlv cor,listed in mystic lepmh and superstitions. They believed in departed spirit,i, but not in the reincarnation of the soul, and Ui?ro was not a trao? ef Buddhism. M to the res!", Mr Thornton was of opinion tho! toe more one thought and read on tho stiiyccJ the further one got in the clouds.

, THE MAORI NAPOLEON. Captain Cook had computed tho population of Msoriland at 300,000, though hoiv lio had arrived at that conclusion was sonicvrhat of a pu;?le. There was no doubt tho population mr.ct at one time "have been much larger, but welfare probably kept the census within reasonable limit?. Oi the gcne.rr.l3 Mr Thornton spoke of, To Haulers ha, (ho Maori Napoleon, who engineered R'jpniic rr.assMres, ami sent ins svrertliy battalions tliunficrin« like tidal waves along the whole lon K th of the South fo.and. An existing portrait of To Ranps.rr.lia shewed a drilling likenesi to Bonaparte; thoro was the same set cf the head on the shoulders, tho s;mo Forehead and now; deep set ores, thin, determined lir.'s, and inifsivo chin. Hero Ike resemblance ended in elaborate tiilooine and fringe*! o;ir-ringn. Oariouely enourh the fortunes of the I warn v.ero somewhat similar; for Je Riuparulia. like Napoleon, was horn n nonentity, and won his empire bv w'ar.

A STATF, OP TRANSIT-lON. ~ . "nornton said the idea that the aiaori was a Icafor. using pakcha civiliraiion as a vehicle to boar him swiftly t-o i:c?fn;cl:on, was entirely erroneous. The Maori certainly had a tendency to bccomr tireJ, especially m purMiils thai bored him but ho was striving <;c.tiragc;m?ly against that fooling w indolence. Ho had m>. douuled ability, which only w.mird a .ftinralua to spring into immediate activity, this «mld bo seen in his success at sports' 111 v.fucJi lie not infrequently oubhono the pakcha. Ho W as keoniy susceptible to cornpotuion, which st once stirred the spirit of Emulation. dormant .rui ° r i fie .South Island knew \ery littlo of the Maori, who had in those parts mostly merged into the pakeba extern j. They were thickest in iho Auckland, Wellington, and Hawke's Hay' provinces, where tiioy numbered about 30,000. Cvilieation had fpread mortality anions tlwim. , strenuous, open-air lifo had been abandoned, and many families had loft the lulls for l.ho swamps in search of eels, Thev g™ the eals, but also malaria. Another cause of death was the injudicious and unseasonable use of European clothiiij/. The slate of his exchequer, and not of the rather, determined what the Maori should wear. If ho had plpnty of money on a. broiling hot day he would buy a winter ovcrcoal, and wear it. It was'not an unusual si?ht at miil-summor to seo a woman waking »»t in velvet and over il: a I hick ulster ami heavy fure. Then she would 50 lome ajid cook dinner with nothin" oil hut a petticoat, Every day, however" . Mao " , W!U bei'Oinintf more enlightened and sensible. They were a race of sweet Binders, and Iheir voices po.sesdcd a rare and almost indefinable musical quality, three years ago lie took a Maori fontball team to Australia, and there thy people, havini; an ear for music, were much impressed by the men's voice;. The sweetnew of the intonation ot boys and <iir!s at reboot wfl-s also strongly inflated.

MORVKJNISM. 1" religion, lio believed, ii was the "outward anil visiblo sijrii" that appealod lo the Maori. Tlius many were Roman Catholics, though I lie majority to the Church of I jli^ulu-1. Mormoitisui hail a great. hold on iliom, uiul (ho renson wits that the Mormon niiteionaries lived the life of Lho people, unci dwelt with them in file pas. Tho main ami only things those uu«ioimri<M appeared to preach against were the u*>o of tobacco and tea. To «iy that a Maori was a Mormon was not to infer thai, he was a bv tttiy means. The great, objection lo the Mormon influence was that tin; mfeionaries, instead of att-enipiiny to rake their converts, invariably themselves 'descended to their level.

THE YOUNG MAOKI f'AUTV. It became clear lo tliinkini* people that it was to the intellectual abilitv and strong character of tho 'i'e Ante hoys that tile Maori mu.st look for the uplifting of the raco; so 10 years ago the Te Ante College Students' Association was formed (with the Young Maori party) with the object of forming a link between students past and prosent, and of ranting the Maoris moral!}-, socially, and spiritually. A conference wi, arranged to be held every year in the large Maori centre--. Here papora are now read, and a variety of subjects discussed, hearing upon the welfare of" the ra<;3. Mr Thornton said they had no iJca of effect in.? a racial reformation in a day. They had commenced by preaching tho " Gospel of Discontent," and thus hoped to make the Maori displeased with his present slate of living-, and gradual!? lead him on to adopting a higher standard, fireat progress liad ahcadv been made, and there was no doubt that the Maori or to-day wa.-; a hotter allround man, with loftier ideals, Ulan lie was 10 years ago. Already in many districts the Maoris had progressed as agriculturists, pastoralists, and ciairy-farmcrs, and these linen of industry were being rapidly extended; the Maoris being found lo lie capable workers in all departments. Mr Thornton went on to say that he w«6 working for tho holding of a oonfcrence in Wellington next year, at which every industry in which Maoris are enpiged will b? ri-;ive'so!itf>d. Important nuestions would

thero be disonfsod, and when statistics had lioen obtained lie believed (lint the number erf Maoris engagid in the various industries will not only astonish Europeans, but Maoris (is well. Tlio Executive Committee is to consist of the Native Minister, (ho four Maori M.IW, Mr J. Thornton, the Rev. F. W. Chaitarton Iprinoipal of To Rau College), Mr R. T. Koherc, Drs I'onrarc ami To Rangihiroa (P. Buck), and Dr W'i R«pa (Otaso Uxiivoraiiy), Mr Apirana. T. Ngata, M.P., is secretary, with Mr W. Pitt (scoretary to tho chief judgo of the Native Land Court) as assistant. The congree? is to nubb'cly demonstrate the .faot that tlve Maom have entered upon a period of progress along industrial lines, and to remove misconceptions, prejudices , and misrepresentations, from which the race differs. The Governor will ho asked to open tho oongces, which is expects! to result in enlightening tho people of (lie Dominion in regard to the industrial and social petition of tho Maoris, and tho unification of tho raeo. It is thought that when one tribe loams what, another h:w accomplished a i-pirit of emulation will ho ovokod.

TE AUTE. Mr Thornton said that Te Aute College had been in existenco for 35 years, mid ranked well with tho foremost secondary schools in tho Dominion. Many etudonte, luivin? finished their courco, returned to work on their people's land, while others entered the ehurob and madical profoesion, or were called to tho liar. Thero were failures, certainly, but these were more than compensated for by brilliant sucoesses.

An intonating point was brought out in fhio connection, an-d in reply (o certain qucation.s Mr Thornton s,\id tho Maori kov was an enthusiast and usually an ddept in Latin. Ola-isies appealed lo him much nioro than mathematics. They wero also a sucra-s at Greek, ami history interested them immensely. It was oartainly curious to note the avidity with whieh Ixiys, having no national history of their own, devoured that of tho pakeiia. Ye*, the I joys possessed n. decidedly moral tone. There wero -perhaps ono or two instances of pilfering, but t.lwt wti3 tho case at most largo schools. THE MAORI POLICY. The race, as a race, was chivalrous and courteous to a degree, given to hospitality, of a genial temperamont; "in fact, jolly good fellows." "Take a Maori the right way and he'll do anything you like, but once you start bullying him it's ail over." Mr Thornton went on to compare the manly outspoken Maori with the cringing, crafty, native of Bengal. Both wore from tho Aryan stock; but. that was an instance where climate had stepped in. Mr Thornton has spent some years in India, notably in the south, and has hud ample opportunities for making comparisons. lie thought it a great pity that the influence of tho old chiefs was waning, as the chief want of the Maori was a loader. Stl'oug loidcrs wove urgently required, and he believed these would bo furnished by tho Young Maori party. Mr Ngata and Drs Pomaro and Bitek, and many others, were deeply interested in tho development of the race. Their policy? The settlement of the land question. Tho Maori linst knoiv what belonged to him, and the communistic spirit must bo killed. It was a knofy problem, but great Hopes were based on the Royal Commission now sitting ro- Native lands. The fact cf Sir Robert Stout and Mr Ngata being members should ensure beneficial results. MIXED MARRIAGES. The Eurasian of Hindustan, tho halfbreed of Canada, and the Spanish-negro ha!f-ca*to do not seem lo reflect credit on the admixture of nee. Mr Thornton boliovod, however, that the, statement that a lwlf-;asve possesses the vicco of both prents to the exclusion of their virtues would be cruelly uutnie when applnid to British and Maori. Circumstances wore entirely different.

"Yon wish to know what I think will he Iho ultimate end of the Maori," said Mr Thornton, in conclusion. "Well, I'll toll you in one ward—Absorption!"