THE MAORIS OF SOUTH OTAGO

Otago Daily Times, Issue 18613, 22 July 1922, Page 13

THE MAORIS OF SOUTH OTAGO

I.—THE OLD-TIME POPULATION OF PORT MOLYNEUX. Br Fred Waite. TJicre is a -widespread idea that at one time New Zealand was occupied by a very considerable Maori population. That it was much greater before the advent of the white man cannot be denied. But every now and again wo got somewhat large estimates that should be accepted with reserve. Out of a study of throe old-time populations arise a set of problems that must be solved while there is yet time. The evidence is fragmentary, and is rapidly passing away. This series of three articles will deal with (1) Tlie oldtime population of Port Molyneiix; (2) the evidence of Maori ovens; (3) the old Maori tracks in South Otago. L Perhaps the first record we have of the Maoris firing at Port Modynoux is contained in “Hie Narrative of Four Voyages,” ■written by Captain Benjamin Morrell, and printed in New York in 1832 k The following entry is dated January 1830; — Molyneux’a Harbour. Instead of a deep and spacious harbour, as reported by ite discoverer, w© found nothing but a small , bond in the land, between two low points, about three miles across, and one * deep. . ’ We soon had a friendly visit from about 50 Natives. They gave me a pressing invitation to visit their little village, at the • foot of a valley near the head of the bay. , . , The village at tho head of Molyneuxta Harbour, which is called by tho Natives Tavaimoo, contains 28 huts of miserable accommodations. The best among them are shaped like our barns, being about 10ft high, 30ft in length, and 12 or 15ft in breadth. The inside is strongly constructed, and well fastened together with osiers or supple vinea. They are painted generally, with red sides and hilack roofs, using the same kind of material as that with which they daub their faces. At one end is a small hole, just large enough , to admit one person, stooping low; this /serves as a door;) while another hole, considerably smaller, answers tho double pur l " % pose of chimney and window. Few of their habitations, hoWover, are constructed in -this laborious manner. The most of them are lees than half this size, and are seldom more than! four feet or- five feet in height. TheyTtre framed of young trees and thatched with long Coarse grass. Their household furmtuxo consists of a few email bags, in ’ which they deposit. their fishing gear and other trifles. This is a definite statement of the number of houses in Port Molsneux in 1830. If we estimate the floor, .available for sleeping on, wo may arrive at the maximum sleeping place in the Molyneux houses. Assuming that a person needs six feet by twd feet to lie down on, we find that the bigger houses mentioned by Morrell, having a floor space of 30 feet by 12 feet, would accommodate 30 people lying dpwn. Eight such voa these would hold. 240 people. Then on the assumption that *onoh of the 20 huts, “loss than half this size,” would hold 15 people, the whole number would hold 300. (fhis gives us approximately—--240 in the eight largo houses; an<^ But this is a maximum estimate. All the houses would not bo occupied; certainly all would not bo uncomfortably crowded; tjioro must bo deducted from the floor spaco £oom for fires, ate. From these figures we may conclude that not more than 400 Maoris were living at Port Molyneux in 1830. Of this number, 50 went out in their canoes to visit the ship. Wo see from that there wad not a considerable Maori population at Port .Molyneux in 1830. But tribal wars, massacres by Natives from the north, the introduction of infectious diseases and strong drink by the whalers, i all had a devastating effect on the local Maori population. Dr Shortland, who, as sub-protector of the aborigines, visited these southern districts in 1843, visited nearly every Maori kianga, making a census of the Inhabitants, but, for reasons we may examine later, did not visit Molyneux. It is worthy of note, however, that this able man. one of the firet to understand rightly things Maori, refused to accept the very large estimates of, the old Maori population which were'so widely held. Tho Maori himself has left littlo definite record. All we get is vagueness, such as “the Waitaha covered the ground like ants,” and such like,. It is reasonable to suppose that when the old-tirao Maori realised -■‘he value of iron; when he found that the |possossion of iron,, tomahawks and plane-irons, shot-guns (“tupara” and single), gave him ' an immeise advantage over men armedwith only stone weapons, ho would, naturally resort to those places where . the pakeha’s grew canoes called for refitting and whaling, The able-bodied warriors would flock to these ’ harbours where the white men made their headquarters. So these early sailormep would form very exaggefated estimates i>f tho population. In any .ease, the average untrained eye cannot correctly estimate either number of popple in a crowd or the number of dried (pdas in a pickle bottle. About ' this date—lß3l—the old sealing ships ceased to operate, and the bay whaling stations were established in the south. Trouble came to the Maori in many, forms. A few miles north of Goal Point, Molyneux Bay, there, is a well-known beach culled Measloy Beach. There are numerous stories about this place. The “Reminiscences" published in 1912 about the settlement of South Otago contain tho statement: “About 3838 a couple of wav canoes, filled with a war party, landed there, the occupants suffering from measles, anew disease imported by tho Europeans, and very fatal to the Maoris., The party managed to draw up their canoes above high-water mark and camped, making shelter whares. It is reported that ©very man died, and the remains of their bones and the canoes were seen os late as 1860 by some early European setters.” There is no evidence that these people who died were a war party. Colonel Wakefield records; “Since the visits of whaling crews and shore parties, the mortality 'has continued more gradually, and can only bo accounted for by tho introduction of new habits and formerly unknown diseases. At one place near Molyneux, of 500 people who lived in a small bay, none but two or three escaped death by tho measles.” It is possible that the party that was blotted out by measles was the large summer hunting and fishing party from Fort Molyneux, who were caught by the white man’s 1 scourge while on their ordinary annual fishing. This we do know, that in 1820, Morrell records a visit from 50 Natives, and there is house room for many mm-e. In 1844, however, wo shall see that there were only half a dozen Natives at the Molyneux. In 14 years they had disappeared—melted away like last year’s snow. Is it not reasonable to assume that the party carried off by measles was the original population of Molyneux? In a letter to tho Secretary of the Company, New Edinburgh, dated “51st August, 1844,” Colonel Wakefield-says- :i “Tho population of tho Southern Island has decreased with extraordinary rapidity since tho establishment of whaling stations on its shores, and tho visits of whaling ships to its'fine harbours and hays; but previously the slaughters hy tho northern tribes hod materially diminished its numbers. Since tho commencement of this century, it is known that 2000 Natives were settled on Taiaroa’s Head in Otago. Now not more than 50 reside Permanently in the whole district. At Molyneux, -whore now are only to ho found 12 Natives, there was within the same period, a population of 2000. . . So in 1844 we find that there were only 12 left out of tho original estimated 2009. This estimate requires a littlo examination. It cannot, ho accepted without reserve; Colonel Wakefield evidently got his information from the parly consisting of Mr Tuckctt, the surveyor. Dr Monro, and others, who walked through Otago in March and April of 1844. But in Mr Tuckett‘s report wo perceive a very substantial difference. Ho writes; “ . . . From Port Cooper to this place two-thirds of the Native women, who ai-o not aged, are living with European men. 1 No wonder, if. in addition to measles, other diseases, and ardent spirits, the aboriginal population is fast, diminishing. At each place which 1 have visited. T have been assured that tho Maoris are dying rapidly—‘perishing like rotten sheep,’ these people often say ;,thus at Kurreroo or Molinoux, where there are now half a dozen Natives, they say that formerly, and at, no remote period, .about two generations previous to the present, there were above a thousand.” Hero we have a reduction—from two thousand to one thousand, ami tho survivors are said to bo six in number instead- of twelve —both sets of figures evidently being put forward hy travellers in tho same parly. Tuckett wrote in 1844. Assuming tiiat a .Maori gehcration, is 25 years, two generations back from 1844 will firing us to (he year 1796. This is the year, then, in which there wore “above a thousand” Natives at Port Molyneux; and this is well before the time that the sealers and whalers made them solves talk

Accepting Tuokett’s information as being near the truth, we find that the Maori population at Port Molyneui haa been as follows: Year 17% ... „ _. 1000 (Tuckctt) Year 1830 ... ... 400 (Morrell) (estimated) Year 1844 - 6 (Tuckett) Truly a frightful commentary on our “dyiliaation’’ of the southern Maori I But this is the point with which wa are chiefly concerned tq-day: Is there * any existing evidence of an extensive Maori population having once occupied this dutha Valley? \ Very little field work has been done in the Otago district to oonfirJh or contradict the largo-population theory. But the little that has /com© under notice points to the conclusion that, at some time or another during the Maori occupation of these parte, very large fishing portico frequented this territory. All the streams—even the most insignificant—that empty into, the .dutha provide! on the most casual investigation, evidence of Maori ovens. Larger streams, the Waiwem, for instance, show near their mouths great aggregations of those ovens. There is ample evidence that every gully in the Waiwera South district was fished and hunted in due season. On© hundred years ago doubtless every ridge, ©very gulljf, every dump of bird-haunted bush, every pool of eel-infested water had its oorogni sod hunters and fishermen, and was as firmly secured to the tribe and family as if our regular title deeds had existed. THE ROAD BACK TO PROSPERITY. SO THE EDITOR. Sob, —It is a matter far general congratulation that the Welfare League in now joining actively in the effort to induce the Government to effect such reductions in the puhlio expenditure as will emablo- it in the hear future to materially lessen the huge burden of taxation under which the whole country is staggering. . . The total net expahdituxe of the dominion between 1911 and 1922, a period of eight years, increased from £11,825,863 to £28,466,838, while the net revenue, which, of course, had to be maintained by increased taxation, increased from ' £12,131,761 to £28,127,007. The casual person, who will not trouble to make himself acquainted with the facts, is content to aooept this huge increase in the public expenditure as an inevitable result of the war. “Oh, yes,” he says, “but there is the interest and sinking funds on the war loans, and the additional payments in the way of pensions.” He ia ignorant of the facte, and if act indifferent, wholly apathetic. But setting aside the payments for interest and sinking funds and pensions altogether, as wo must do ip making a useful comparison, the annual expenditure between 1914 and 1922 increased from £8,937,813 to £18,301,866. This means that the permanent expenditure (including, that is, interest, sinking funds and pensions) during the eightyear period increased by nearly 252 per cent., and the annual expenditure. (excluding these particular charges) by over 104' per cent. During the previous eight-year period, from 1906 to 1914, the expenditure (including interest, sinking funds, and pensiond), increased from £7,122,340 'to £11,825,883 or slightly more than 65 per cent. \ What has happened, so far afr can be ascertained from the officio! documents, may be stated in a few plain figures. The staffs of all the State Departments, excepting working railways, between 1914 and 1922 increased in numbers from 11.587 to 17,564, and their total salaries grew • from £1,914,ui.6 to £4,323,856. The expenditure of the Railway Department during the frame grew from £3,004,180 to £6,473,2330f the Education Department from' £1,131,755 to £2,580.562; and of the Post and Telegraph Department from £1,170,882 tc £2,448,687. The salaries in the Post and. Telegraph Office grew from £899,246 to £1,609,828; in the Prisons Department from £25,696 to £58,830; in the Police Department ‘ from £156,057 to £330,934; in the Public Health Department from £11,326 to £84,374; in the Tourist Department from £5722 to £41,074; in the Lands and Survey Department from £99,799 to £184,959; in the Agriculture Do-, pa tenant from £8J,978 to £171,356; and in the Education Department from £65,468 to £109,064. The great increase in salaries came during the “boom time,” between 1913 and 1921, when “everything in the garden was lovely," and the Government thought, as a great majority of the public did, that the civil servants should participate in the good things that were going. Buy the circumstances of to-day are very different (from those of two or three? years ago. r Ths railways and the 'Post and Telegraph Office, instead of being a help to the revenue, as they were for many years, are now a burden upon the taxpayer, and the' nun-earning departments have ■; become a vastly greater burden, than they were before. I do not wish to suggest that the salaries of the civil servants alone- should be ‘‘economised.’ ‘ Retrenchment, reorfeaigeation, greater efficiency, and harder work are urgently required everywhere. Th Railways Department and the Post and Telegraph Department, in particular, Stand sorely in need of a thorough overhaul. While the railway expenditure between ’1914 and 1922 rose from £2,860,323 to_ £6,473,2)33, the net earnings of the' system fell 'from £1,163,005 to £210.002. In the case of the post and telegraph service, .while the salaries of the staff, as already stated, rose from £699,245 to £1,699,828, the returns for the year just closed show an enormous decrease in the business done. These deplorable results, it is fair, to assume, were not brought about by inefficiency or slackness on the part of the staffs, but by the unsound methods employed by the management, such as reducing services and increasing charges, in its efforts to restore these departments to their former financial position. ' But the situation demands immediate and drastic measures to place the country’s finances in a sound condition, and the members of the public service cannot reason■fibly expect to be exempt from the sacrifices which practially every other member of the community is being called upon to make. It is safe to eay there is not a capitalist, a business man, a farmer, a professional man, a tradesman, or a manual worker that is not feeling the pinch in one way or another. One of the few comforting reflections we have in these troublesome times is that we are no worse off than our neighbours. But whatever sacrifices may bo imposed upon the State employees, the Government haa a right to remember that a servant who can be profitably employed is not an extravagance, and an obligation td discharge in seeing that the great principle of equality of sacrifices is as closely observed as possible in all ite economies.

The rehabilitation of the pnblio finances is not ft party question. It ought not to be a class one. We have heard far too much about the “Red Feds” from one section of critics—the Welfare League, by the way, among them—and far too much about too “Capitalists' 1 from another. Neither of these handfuls of people is going to mould tho destinies of this great little country, and neither of them ia going to extricate it from its passing . troubles. These are the tasks of the great sane majority, composed mainly of working people., that waits only a bold lead from the Government to put its shoulder to the wheel, to insist upon the absolutely necessary economies that will make possible tho imperative reduction in taxation, and so start the dominion on the road back to its former prosperity.—l am, etc., ■ Tax-paying Worker.