MAORI MEMORIES

Taranaki Daily News, 27 May 1933, Page 1 (Supplement)

MAORI MEMORIES

“NOT UNDERSTOOD ”

(By

J.H.S.

.—Copyright.)

The late Mr. William Gray, whose father was one of the earliest secretaries to control the destinies of the G.P.O. of New Zealand, also guarded as a dutiful son should the good name of the telegraph branch. Forty or 50 years ago, the Maori delighted in the facilities offered by that branch of the Government service, where free pen, ink and paper were provided, and even stamps on telegrams were licked by the obliging official. A very stringent regulation guards against the use of indecency or profanity in telegrams for which a term of hard labour in prison is the punishment. , Mr. Gray and his officers would have had many an electric shock if they could only have translated literally one-half the innocent Maori telegrams presented for transmission. The disingenuous Maori speaks of everything pertaining to nature in a perfectly natural way, and sees no impropriety in -writing it so. Having, for instance, no'formal marriage, it naturally follows that-there is no word for that ceremony.‘iir'-his - vocabulary. A pakeha who knew but little of the language, and was correspondingly proud of his recent acquirements in it, wished to ascertain from a lady friend the date of her coming marriage. He telegraphed her as follows: : “Awhea kbe ka moe tane?” . This simple message was intercepted en route at 'Wellington, shbwn to the horrified Chief Secretary, and referred to his Inspector with a view to prosecuting the sender,' who, . when the literal words were explained in English, agreed that it should not be delivered to the ladyi From the Maori point it was quite free from guile. AU future Maori messages questioned by the officials were passed by an interpreter. Kiore (the borer.) !

The blue rat of the Maori, now believed to be extinct, was their. only flesh food. With the advent of the pig, the rat hunter ceased operations. In 1842 Alfred Saunders, the father New Zealand politics, thus describes the plague of rats in Nelson:-— , . “The ' native rats, were- an intolerable nuisance. They had not the slightest fear of man, but as soon as it was dark, ran about .the house in swarms, walked over our feet,' climbed on the table, and dropped like flies from the thatch. At night we used a stick to drive them away from the tallow candle. But worst of all they ran over us all night, and came creeping up the blankets to smell our nose, chin, and ears, so we were never sure they would not taste them. They, ate our boots'or any. edible thing that was not suspended on a wire.. I Drought a cat from Wellington, but they simply, chased her out of the house. In spite of everything we could do they continued to increase. Some rat killing dogs were introduced, when as if by magic, the rats suddenly disappeared, or so entirely altered their habits as to become timid as civilised rats usually are. Ora (Health).

A student . taught, at Churton Maori Boys’ College on the Whanganui River about 60 years ago electrified his orthodox teachers by delivering an unorthodox address at a popular gathering m town. His subject was “Health, and his treatment of it was regarded as an unwarranted reflection upon the medical profession. Asked by the Board of Control to show cause why he should not be expelled, he repeated the words to which they had objected, “In your good farmer’s flocks and herds not one per cent, of the animals are ever sick or die a natural death. In every community 50 per cent, of us suffer from sickness in many forms and die of disease. "When my people took but one meal a day it was properly digested before the next one called upon his natural forces, to dispose of it. They were like your pigs, sheep, cattle, and horses—never sick, and had no drugs or doctors. About 50 vets, care for 20,000,000 livestock, while 5000 doctors, nurses, chemists and dentists cannot mend the health of nearly 1,000,000 people. If we were relatively as innocent of dietetic errors, then about five medicine men could attend „to all the sick people in New Zealand.”

He Apa (Company of Workmen); It has previously , been suggested that the “Prophet” Ratana has hit upon one of the main causes of the degeneracy of his people—the' abandonment of team work. No Maori can work alone any more than we can • play alone. Their work, as should ours be, was true recreation. The Maori has been ruined and his “civilisation” wrecked by our efforts to remove the spirit ’ of. the commune from his life. The white man for 1000 years has been taught to, individualise his life and work. Our' unemployed team workers are a pitiful failure where theirs would succeed. The whole structure of Maori life was community interest, and ownership of land and the necessaries of life. .The Maori implicitly believed that the Treaty of Waitangi was designed to preserve this _ community spirit and to enable them to live together in the Christian brotherhood-pictured by the Missionaries. ■ . Actually not five per cent, of the Maori people are as happy, healthy or contented as under their own code. The vast majority have been'exterminated by our civilisation, and most of. the survivors are demoralised and deteriorated almost beyond recognition, as members of a once great and noble race. The sacred legends (purakau) were to them all that the law meant to the Ancient Israelites. Akoranga Maori (Teaching the Maori). I had occasion to visit a remote Maori village in' the King Country, where the people were holding themselves aloof from the Pakeha. My mission , was on behalf of a land purchase officer to bring a reluctant chief to give evidence on behalf of his tribe concerning the sale of their lands. Maori like, though apparently quite willing to come, he must first talk about every other subject. Sitting on the floor, I was sleepy and weary with the desultory talk; but seeing a leather bound book under the low raupo roof, was suddenly startled into wakefulness by its contents. . Written in excellent Maori under the imprimatur of the Church, of which it purported to be an authorised organ, the prominent heading of one chapter was the name of another creed to which was added, “Te Kanga o Ingarangi” (The Curse of England)., ; Then a chapter, on “Te matenga rawa o, tetahi tangata Nui (The death, bed of a. certain great man), whose identity is obvims. and illustrated by a full page engraving of His Satanic Majesty with orthodox hairy body and tail, and the ears of the humble' donkey. His bony fingers were grasping the throat of the wicked man in authority, whilst the Angel of Pity stood with bowed head. I secured the precious volfume for half a sovereign to digest its 1 ethical teachings at leisure.. Now we ■ may know another reason why 90 per cent, of these simple, kindly, receptive people reverted to their, fantiistic religion lof Hau Hauism, and war.