LIFE OF SERVICE

Otago Daily Times, Issue 27447, 21 July 1950, Page 8

LIFE OF SERVICE

High Tributes To Memory Of Sir Apirana Ngata

DISTINGUISHED MAORI LEADER

PA WELLINGTON, July 20. Many moving tributes to the memory of their former colleague, Sir Apirana Ngata, were paid by members in the House of Representatives this afternoon. The House placed on record its high sense of the devoted and distinguished services given to New Zealand and the British Commonwealth by the late Sir Apirana, and tendered to his widow and family an assurance of its sincere sympathy in _ their bereavement. A similar motion was conveyed to the House by the chairman o! the Maori Affairs Committee, Mr G. F. Sim.

The Prime Minister, Mr Holland, laid that with the death of Sir Apirana, New Zealand had lost one of its greatest sons, and it would fall to the lot of future historians to write of the great part he had played in the administration of the country’s affairs. For half a century or more, Sir Apirana was the acknowledged leader of the Maori people, and his profound knowledge of his own people had not been surpassed by any man. Valuable Records

* Mr W. Nash: “The Maori race has not finished, and will not fail to produce great men.” Mr W. Sullivan: “There are monuments all over the East Coast to this incredible man. Wherever we may look, he has played his part fully. We have lost a great man and a great New Zsslsndcr Mr C. F. Skinner: “By his own example he has shown his people what they can do. The whole of Maoridom has lost a very great representative who will be very difficult to replace. Another Sir Apirana will yet be found, and the Maori people will again send a leader to this House to continue his great work.”Mr W. A. Bodkin: “ Sir Apirana will always be considered one of the finest characters in the House. He was one of the most distinguished New Zealanders I have ever been privileged to know.” Mr H. G. R. Mason: “He knew how to use his own tribe as a lever to move the whole Maori world. It will always be a marvel to think that in his lifetime he accomplished so much.” Mr G. F. Sim: “He used his gifts to the full in inspiring and encouraging the Maori people, a large proportion of whom have reason to be thankful for his land development scheme. Surely he must be called a great and noble man.” Mr P. H. Paikea: “Hikurangi is the mountain, Waiapu the river and Sir Apirana Ngata the man.” As a mark of respect to the memory joumed at 4.30. It will resume at 2.30 on Tuesday.

He would always be remembered for his work among the young Maori people. Many of his speeches, and his translations of chants, laments and songs had fortunately been recorded for all time. He was the inspiration behind the building of many carved meeting houses throughout the country, and his contribution to the welfare of the Empire had taken on the form of helping to raise the Maori Battalion. One of the greatest moments of his life was when the Victoria Cross was won by and awarded to a young officer of the battalion who was a fellow tribesman. “He showed to me the greatest possible kindness,” said Mr Holland, “and during his long term in the House of Representatives he made great pleas for an understanding of the Maori point of view by Europeans. I have lost a grand personal friend, and to no one did I owe more m my early days in the House than Sir Apirana.” A Crowded Life Mr Fraser said he marvelled that so many great and varied achievements could have been crowded into the life of Sir Apirana. The high honours which had been bestowed upon him had never been more thoroughly earned and deserved. “He was a great leader, a great scholar, and a great man of the Maori race,” Mr Fraser said. The building up' of the dairy industry in his own district and his anxiety for the welfare of the Maori race were not restricted to that district, but were among the most widespread of his activities, for which he possessed a genius and capacity for hard work and thorough organisation. Mr Fraser said that Sir Apirana s passion was the advancement of the Maori race and the preservation and continuation of its culture and arts and crafts. . , He suggested that as a memorial to Sir Apirana, a Maori Agricultural College could be established in the Rotorua district. , ~ Mr Holland: That is a very valuable suggestion, and it will be considered. Mr Fraser: It may not be very adequate, but it will be a great step forward and will fulfil something that was near to his heart. Service to an Ideal

The Minister of. Maori Affairs, Mr Corbett, said it would be regretted that no other man like Sir Apirana would be seen again. His learning was profound and his achievements great, and yet he remained so much a Maori and his was an unflagging lifetime of service to an ideal —the raising of his people to their rightful place in New Zealand. Sir Apirana, too, led in founding the Maori Anglican bishopric in New Zealand, and all his striving would be an inspiration to his people. Mr Corbett said he had been privileged to see Sir Apirana on more than one occasion, “frail as a falling leaf,” yet going on to the marae and by his actions revivifying the young people. “ The young Maori people must never forget what they owe to Sir Apirana,” he said. Great Abilities Others who paid tributes were:— Mr E. T. Tirikatene: “The hand of the atua has struck the giant totara, which has fallen to the ground, and the shock has been felt throughout the land." Mr K. J. Holyoake: “Sir Apirana was a man who saw visions in the sky but had the ability to bring them down to earth. The Maori land settlement scheme is the greatest of memorials to him. He will have a very honoured place among his fathers.”