NATIVE AGGRESSION NEAR HAWERA.

Taranaki Herald, Volume XXXV, Issue 7113, 10 July 1886, Page 2

NATIVE AGGRESSION NEAR HAWERA.

NATIVES BUILDING ON EUROPEAN LAND. Information was sent into New Plymouth yesterday afternoon that a number of natives had been behaving themselves in such a way that it was desirable that the police force in the locality should be strengthened. The details of the mattei did not, however, transpire, but Inspactoi Pardy, with Constables Roche, R3 r an, and \ O'Leary, left by the train in the afternoon in order to take what steps the situation ; misht necessitate. Tbe scene of the affair is Mr. Lysaght'i ; freehold property at. Mokoia, about five miles south of Hawera. It seems thai . on Friday about a dozen natives entered upon the land, and began to erect a whare ' They laid off a square plot of ground foi ' the purpose, and without any hesitation 1 broke up the surface for the foundatior work, and also set about erecting a kind i of wall, or shelter for tli9 edifice. Mr Lyßaght had them at once warned off, bul , they laughed good-humoredly at the notice and generally treated it with contemp' and indifference. They were understooc ■ to say that Te Whiti had declared all lane ' to be common property, and that they wen E only exercising the rights which this pro clamation conferred upon them. It wa: also gathered from their remarks that thsj admitted Europeans to be possessed of thi same privilege, and that Maori land coulc be similarly occupied by the white people ! Seeing that they were determined upoi I the trespass information waß given to th< ; Hawera police, who in turn communicated • cated the intelligence to Mr. Pardy, who ii , in charge of the West Coast native district Mr. Pardy left for the scene last night and evidently recognising the advantasr< of having a respectable force at his dis posal, he took with him from here tin , constables mentioned, those in other districts tricts meeting him on the way down. Wo made enquiries in reference to thii raattor of Mr. Rennell, the Native Re serves Trustee, but he was unable to afforc any information. The property enterec upon by tho natives being freehold, anc not ordinary leasehold or reserves, the dis puto or aggression of the natives does no officially come within his cognisance. That tho Maoiis shou'd now maintau that all the land is common property, anc , that Europeans also may occupy nalivi lands aa freely as the latter arc doing witl [ Mr. Lyoa9jh,V, seems somewhat inexpli , cable, for their ideas of holding laud 5i common hitherto hive been that their owr land was exempt from tho arrangement ' It will probibly be found that tho Mi orii ' have been misunderstood,, and that win the}' intended to convoy was that as M*or land had been taken by Europeans, Euroi pean land may be taken by Maoris. The , dozen natives mentioned belong to Mokoia Th<* Press Association furnish us witt the folio win:* further information, frorr which it will be seen that the nutter is oi considerable cotisequence. Inspector Pardy, with nino constables, went out to Lysaght's farm ttiis morning, and found the nitives had decamped during the night. The poles they had planted in the ground were pulled down, The natives had left eleven kits of potatoes behind them. The police went to the neighboring pah, and the chiof, replying to questions, said he had acted according to Te Wlnti'B instructions, and that Mr Pardy must go and talk to Te Whiti. The police warned him that they would be arrested if they did it again. The natives were silent and sullen. Shortly after this another small loiy of natives, eleven in number, rode right through Lysaght's land to tho scene of the building, but were turned back by the polico and warned. A good number of natives left Taipohorinui by the back loid for tho siraa placo. Every consideration will ba shown by the police, but they intend to arrest the ringleaders if mischief is done. The general impression is that this is another protest on the land question; and although no violence is probable, the natives intend to causo a good deal of trouble ail over the coast by actions similar to those at Lyaaght's.