Despoilers of Nature’s Gifts to Auckland

Sun (Auckland), Volume I, Issue 171, 10 October 1927, Page 8

Despoilers of Nature’s Gifts to Auckland

“Goths and Vandals' * Who Destroy “God’s Own Hills ”

TRIBUTE TO ASSOCIATION

of ‘uw l 'ua [ f u'ml lh< “*. pres, ' rvalw " 01 Lilt 11atu1.il beauties „f Auckland and for the arts >r Maoris is made by Cheeseman in the followin', letter to the Editor „f TlH i SUN.

I have just returned from th e a,, monstration organised by the vatiuU pological-Ethnographical and Section of the Auckland Museum and Institute held on Mount Eden this afternoon iSaturday), and niff through THE SUN, to thank the speakers and all the organisers the display. As a child I uset t 0 imagine hari-hari kai meant a sort ct “come to dinner,” but Mr. Graham has greatly enlightened me and explain* that it is simply a carrying of food I believe this society has lej, formed not only with the obieft of preserving Maori arl, but also -with the object of preventing the furthet destruction of nature that has beer rag on for almost a century at the hands of the European Goths and Vat dais. I have all my life suffered iro* these inroads—the cutting away 0 f “God’s own hills” by man. Whj* I married and became part- possessor e( one of these lovely extinct volanoe —part of “Little RangJoto”—the »i*. ern hill was a feature of our propem and I was proud of it. One of the native speakers on Komi Eden yesterday told us of the phpricks his race has hitherto saDc-ed through Europeans. He spoke in i general way, but I looked on this reference as one that must hire alluded to the spoliation of their inrthright; their historic mountains, ind their lovely harbour. Pin-pricks! H« is modest. “Picks and shovels' j, should have said, and the carting in, of nature’s charms. If the Maoris had been left in possession of this beautiful land this spoliation would :iever have come about, for to then evaj mountain, vale, or bay had its history I wish to plead for their, and our] natural heritage. There is not a lnoaitain or a hill in Auckland, excep; perhaps Mount Victoria, that has not suffered. Even Mount Victoria *u in the past, beautifully wooded. Bat all the others have been hewn to destruction. Last Wednesday I visited my old home for the first time in 12 years. I walked through a part of the property on which part of “Little Rangitoto” stood. AH that remains of that now is on the western side pan of a mutilated hill on which bourn crowd each other out. On the astern side there are huge craters made fra the excavations for scoria pile. I silently thanked Heaven that befon the complete destruction of the proat beauty had been completed I m away and could not see it Befon a George Grey left New Zeala-fi, never to return, he foretold the destined* of “God’s hills” by man. and also that of the Auckland Harbour. Toe eafir beauty of the harbour with its menj bays and capes: Where is: it «JR,I am an old woman now, and have hid to watch its destruction with ra:e*d sorrow at each outbreak. Whai; then must be the feelings of the oiiglwl owners, the Maoris, when it ao rsira a mere European? is this to cabin until all the harbour, except that vriich cannot be reclaimed because i: it needed commercially, is taken fra us? There is plenty of room 01 tht mud-flats of the Manukau Harbom for commercial purposes. That Is triers our real factory land stands, and hr using it our harbour could be savel from further spoliation. The lotslr Fort Britomart. Campbell’s Pciiat, ui so on, cannot be restored to hi, te» surely the spoiling hand can onr he stayed to permit us to keep wist is left. ROSETTE CHEESEMAK Parnell.