THE MAORI KING MOVEMENT.

Colonist, Volume II, Issue 189, 12 August 1859, Page 3

THE MAORI KING MOVEMENT.

(From the Wellington Independent, July "MS.) The large majority of the inhabitants of this province have, hitherto, deemed this Maori demonstration scarcely worthy of notice. They have looked upon it as a mere childish freak—one of those burlesques so natural to a people just emerged from barbarism, and notoriously given to, imitation. They have considered it a fl-ish in the ~ pan of Maori fancy—a silly eccentricity which could claim attention only as long as its novelty lasted. But they are now constrained to modify their opinion, and to take a more sei ious view of the matter; They begin to feel some decided un- j easiness at the aspect this movement is assuming, j We are by no means disposed to excite a morbid j feeling of alarm in the minds of our readers; but \ at the same time we cannot conceal that we feel . uneasiness also, and that we should be; wanting io our duly as-journalists if we were to neglect to' "take the bull by the horns" by dealing plainly j with the subject A short oi-t'ine ci the rise and progress of the King movement will enab'e <mr i readers to take the same standing point as ourselves, and form their own judgment. . ■■ i Thi3 movement had. its origin, about eighteen ! months ago, amongst the Waikato tribes in the |

centre of this island.. It doubtless arose fronr an innocent love of imitation —the romantic idea of a king'presenting the strongest-attractions to the Maori fancy. For a considerable lime it was purely local'in its character,- being cither ridiculed or frowned on by the neighboring tribes. ■ Indeed, those most conversant with the Maori disposition were of opinion that the movement could not spread beyond certain circumscribed limits, inasmuch, as the prevalent tribal jealousies would present an insurmountable barrier to its progress. In this case, however, their experience has been at fault. The confederation of powerful tribes under the Maori King league has of late months been very largely augmented, and in place of the harmlc-ss display of imitation, we hear ofrunangas* and rumours of runahgas throughout the length and breadth of the i&land. . These repeated runangas have had the effect of powerfully exercising the native mind, and under the harmless device of a white flag with red crosses, and the empty cry of "Our King Potatau," subjects of the gravest import, to this colony are being discussed and decided. One of the strongest features in the ■effect of these councils is the evident determination to oppose the sale of land to the Government. Indeed,.this is one of the professed objects of this Maori combination. One by one, the tribes who have hitherto treated this subject with derision, are catching the "king" mania and joining the ranks of the royalists. We learn from the Taranaki Herald of the. 28th May last, that the natives of that district, hitherto most opposed to the king movement, have now, chiefly at the instigation of an influential'chief fronTthis province (Wiremu Tako), declared to a man in favor of Pptutau. Bui-ing- the early stage of the agitatio-i, the tribes of this province treated it with the utmost contempt and ridicule; but we regret now to learn that a strong feeling of sympathy with it is now beginning to display itself in many quarters. On the progress of this movement, the Herald makes the following remarks:—" At Wanganui we are told that the natives are for the present loyal, but both, at Wellington and Ahuriri, and indeed along the whole of the east coast, from Cape Pallisier to Auckland, there are comparatively few who have not joined the league. Next week W. Tako goes to Waitara, where we know he will be well received by the majority of the natives, and from thence, we hear, he journeys to Mokau and Kawhia, visiting Ihaia and Nikorima, en 1 oute. The movement has, therefore, it will be perceived, already extended, over the greater portion of the Northern Island, and although the powerful tribes of the Ngapu'hi, the Upper Waikato, and other northern tribes, have hitherto kept aloof, the same causes are still at work —hii-h have Induced so many to join the standard of Potatau, and it would appear to require but few men with the tact and ability of W. Tako to make converts of nearly every native in the island."

The fact is undeniable that a large organisation is taking place amongst the natives, and in connection therewith is the rather significant fa",t, that the natives generally, and of some parts of this province especially, are acquiring large quantities of ammunition and evince the most eager desire for fire-arms. ' The removal of the restrictions formerly imposed on the sale of ammunition to natives, opens the way for their obtaining an unlimited supply of those articles, and we regret to learn that some of our trader?, both in town and country, are availing themselves of this eager demand to carry on with them a most profitable trade in guns There is a heavy penalty for selling fire-arms to natives without a license still in force, but the clandestine gun trade affords so large a profit, that unconscientious men are willing, it appears, to run the risk of discovery. Now we do not wish to imply that the natives are taking these steps from any hostile intentions towards the Europeans. On the contrary we are confident that the most friendly fueling exists at present between the two races; but of this we are certain, that the native mind is in a state of anxious agitation ; a kind of indefinite, half formwd suspicion prevails among the king enthusiasts, and they seem to labor under a vague apprehension of some approaching crisis. The arbitrary' .measures of the Board of Commissioners of Native Reserves in this district have done much to alienate the. confidence of.the' natives, and to feed a suspicion as to the purpose of the Government in reference to the natives; and, indeed, it was this grievance which afforded to Wiremu Tako an effective lever in h'isTarauaki agitations, the success of which has already been adverted to. On this point the journal already quoted makes the following-observations. " Wi Tako ha 9 been noted for years past for his friendly disposition and observance of our habits and customs. Yet, he now openly boasts that he will put a stop to our progress t>y pro venting the sale of land, and cunnir^ly enough quutes some Act in reference to land as Wellington, reserved for native uses, as a justification for his present conduct, though he well knows the proper quarter to apply to for redress, if any ground of complaint exists. The success which has attended -Wi Tako's progress from Wellington .to this place has, beyond doubt, been increased by the allegation that the reserves in question are not managed with the approval of the natives, and that they derive no pecuniary benefit from them. The complaint has an air of truth about it because it is openly made, and we know that several natives, hitherto favorable to us, have been turned by the adroit manner in which the matter is made to tell against the Government/

While there is nothing to be feared under present circumstances, yot, should anything transpire to call forth a spirit of hostility on the part of the natives, then, we apprehend we should feel the weight of the Maori organisation which is so rapidly increasing; there being far. more to be expected from a well organised confederation of tribes, than from the same tribes acting separately and independently of each other. For instance, let the Government assume a threatening attitude and endeavor, as some have 'recommended, to put this movement down by force, instantaneously would the tinder be ignited, and the whole island would experience the full smart of that spirit of hostility which such a measure would most certainly engender. We must not forget that the Maori is still only in a transition state. Several generations must possibly elapse before his savage propensities, now dormant, will h«ve died out. Let him become powerfully excited Mid he is still a true savage. Let him feel that a superior power ia wronging him; let his native pride be injured; and his dormant passions will revive in-all their original force. Those who affect io treat lightly the results of a Maori war, should reflect on what a combination of 50,000 natives could accomplish, and though any outbreak amongst, ihe .natives 'vyotild be* in"'the end" effectually quelled, yet'..it would .leave behind it many a disastrous result.;