CANTERBURY TOPOGRAPHY.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 9193, 24 March 1908, Page 3

CANTERBURY TOPOGRAPHY.

DICTIONARY IN COURSE OF PREPARATION. For many years it has been recognised that a topographical dictionary of New Zealand should be prepared as a record of all the Maori and European place names which have such historical associations as to make them a matter of general interest. For some time past Mr H. G! Ell, M.P., has been urging on the Government the advisableness of undertaking such a work, and seven years ago he brought the matter under the notice of the Hon W. C. Walker (Minister of Education), but it was postponed. Mr Ell recently saw the Hon R. M'Nab on the subject, emphasising the point that those from whom , the information could be obtained were lessening in number day by day, and the Minister urged him to communicate with the Premier, who had already agreed to have a similar work done in the North Island. Two years ago Mr Ell. mentioned his project to Mr J. C. , Anderson, who has taken a keen interest in Maori lore and the historical associations, particularly of Canterbury, and Mr Anderson has now undertaken the compilation of a Topographical Dictionary of Canterbury, for which he has already secured a great deal of material. The work, however, will be one of considerable magnitude, for it involves the perusal of almost every publication, including newspapers, that might throw light on the subject. Already many of the sources of information are lost, and it is the knowledge that the compilation will become infinitely more difficult every year that has urged Mr Anderson to the undertaking. Tlie dictionary will not be a mere record of names and dates, but, to some extent, a connected account of the eaTly history of the province. It will show that the whole of Canterbury teems with historical interest. Dealing first with the Maori, and the turbulent" early British history, ~rt will proceed to the days of the whaler ; then the explorer; then the colonist, led by the pilgrim. It is interesting to learn that the first permanent settlement of Canterbury took place as far Hback as 1836, and that by 1840 there ,were /something like ninety- Europeans settled on Banks Peninsula alone. The history of the peninsula, centring in Akaroa, is of especial interest. Here- the French arrived in August,' 1840, ten years be-, fore the Pilgrim Fathers, and found themselves in a British colony. The dictionary will show that the popular belief that the' British forestalled the French by a few hours is erroneous; that the British flag had been hoisted by Bunbury whilst the French colonists were yet in niid-ocean ; and that this was not the first time a flag had been hoisted, for it is reported that the French had already flown their flag in 1838, and the British before that again. The French flag was hoisted in 1838 by the commandant of a vessel named the Heroine; and, on at least one old map, the Akaroa head where the lighthouse now stands is called Heroine Head. On official maps the point is marked Truini Head. Theproper Native name, of which at least Truini is a corruption, is Te Ruahine. Several instances of perpetuated errors of the sort will be disclosed in the dictionary. The river Tengawai, a word with self-contradictory elements aa it stands (te wai is the water, nga wai is the waters, but te nga wai means nothing) will be shown to be a corruption of Te Nawai. In the same category Temuka shouuld be Tv mukif. The Peninsula is again a centre of interest in recording the historical -events in connection with the -Native occupation of various places., It was to the fortified village of Akaroa that the eecapees from the massacre of the ... old Kaiapohia pa fled from Rauparaha; it was in Akaroa harbour that Captain Stewart, of infamous memory (not the discoverer of Stewart Island), betrayed into the hands of his enemies the high chief Tamai hara nui of the Ngai Tahu, the tribe occupying Canterbury ; it was at Akaroa that Rauparaha destroyed the pa on the beautifully-situated peninsula of Onawe. and also Taka-puneke, the headquarters of Tamai hara nui. At Taka-puneke, too, Captain Rhodes first settled in 1840, and engaged in cattle grazing. It was on the Peninsula, also, that the whaling stations were established in the thirties and forties, American, British and Danish whalers calling at the principal station, Peraki, or, more correctly, Pireka. The dictionary will aim at not only giving a short historical account of every place with a "history," but also where possible the origin of the name, or tlft reason for its being given, as well as the different names under which places have been known. Kaiapoi was to have been known as Gladstone, and Port Lyttelton previously bore the successive names of Whanga-raupo, Port Cooper and Port Victoria. The reasons for the changes will be given, with dates.- where possible. Of towns like Lyttelton the principal events will be rocorded, and their growth and improvements noticed. The rivers will also be dealt with, and. in the case of the Avon and Heathcote, the details of the boating and shipping, for which they were notable in the early days, will themselves constitute a very interesting chapter. In order that the labour of preparation may bo lightened, the compiler earnestly desires that anybody possessing details of the early history of any place will communicate them to him. Accurate dates are especially needed, for fixing the chronological position of any locality in the general history of the province.

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