REV. MATTHEW TAUPAKI.

Waka Maori, Volume I, Issue 3, 18 September 1878, Page 39

REV. MATTHEW TAUPAKI.

Concluded. The following account of our departed brother's more recent labours has been furnished chiefly by Archdeacon Clarke. The district of which he had the charge is one very difficult to work. The stations in the neighborhood of the Bay are only accessible by boat, whilst those along the coast are reached by l&nd over an exceedingly rugged country. Matiu has often been known to put to sea alone in his little boat in weather which many would shrink from, and in spite of the remonstrances of his friends. The weather must have been bad indeed which would have prevented him from keeping an appointment. He was seldom at home more than one Sunday in the month. Nothing- could exceed his indefatigable devotion to his Master's work. During the last year he used to ride from Paihia to Waimate and back (thirty miles) to attend a divinity lecture which wus given every Friday. Though older in years than his instructor, he rejoiced in gaining information from which his ignorance of the English language debarred him. But there is so much to say of dear Matin that one hardly knows where to begin or to end. He was just everything one could wish in a minister —a bright, genial fellow, so gentle and humble, so guileless and truthful, and vet so bold and outspoken in what was right. Being essentially a gentleman in feeling and manner, he was welcomed as a guest by all the settlers. I never knew a Maori to be regarded by Europeans with so much affection and respect. As an instance of Matiu's influence with the chiefs of his people, I may mention one instance of this. A few years ago a large feast was given by one of the neighbouring chiefs. A vast amount o t food was provided, and with not less than £SO worl h of spirits. Matiu went to him and inveighed against these feasts generally on account of the waste or food, and especially against the spirits. The remonstrance seemed to be k in vain, and he went homo

disheartened. Next morning, however, he heard with joy that his pleading had not "been useless, for all the spirits had been returned to the European who had supplied them, and the feast passed off without a single case of intemperance. Mr Puckej contributes the following characteristic anecdote:—'Some years ago, during a visit to the North, Matiu was at our house for a short time. "We had finished dinner, and he went on the verandah. Mouhou was doing something in the garden, I forget what. Matiu noticed him, and spoke very nearly as follows : —" It is Mouhou! How are you, Mou ? Not Mouhou now, perhaps, but another name—a new name " —so kindly spoken. The man looked up in a half-ashamed manner. " Yes, " he said, "it is Mouhou." " But you do not always intend to be called that name; you are going to be a different man, are you not P " And he continued speaking to him for some minutes so earnestly, affectionately, and with such evident humility of manner, pressing on him the necessity of a change of heart and life. I wish I could remember all he said; but it left an impression on my mind I have never forgotten, and cannot express in words. The following circumstances, received from a Northern lay correspondent, confirm the testimony borne to the excellencies of Matiu Taupaki's character by the Archdeacon and his other fellow-workers. Some who used to doubt the sincerity of the religion of the Maories have been known openly to acknowledge that their observation of Matiu Taupaki silenced them. One of his last acts was the establishment of a school near Paihia for the Native children. Finding that the attendance of the scholars was less than he expected when he applied to the Government for the school, he sent for two boys (distant connections), and maintained them at his own cost in order to secure the requisite number of children. It is scarcely possible to over-estimate the loss which the Native Church has sustained by the death of Matiu. His influence on the younger Native clergy—the example he set them by his untiring activity, as well as his direct counsels—will be sadly missed. I know intimately all the Native clergy of i this and the "Waiapu dioceses, and I say without hesitation that he had not his equal. The question of having a Native Suffragan' Bishop to take charge of his countrymen has lately been mooted, and the thoughts of all were directed to M. Taupaki as the only one eligible for the office. His having been taken from us at the time of his greatest usefulness is to us a mystery; but doubtless the great Head of the Church has his own purposes. May He raise up another to carry on his "VVork. But where are we to look for another Matiu Taupaki F He died at Paihia on 10th July, after only four days' illness, and was buried on the 12th by the side of the monument erected to the late ArchdeaconTwo hundred Europeans and Maories from far and near attended the funeral. The service was conducted bv the Rev. S. "Williams and myself in Maori. After the service the Europeans sang the hymn "Christ will gather in His own" round the grave. His age was between forty-five and fifty.

A subscription towards a fund for assisting bis widow was begun on the ground, amounting to nearly £S(X It is intended to canvass the district so as to obtain the means, if possible, of securing her an annuity, or otherwise providing for her. E. B. The following testimony to the excellence of Matin's character from a European resident at Paihia, confirms the opinions of Matiu's brother missionaries as given above:— You will of course have received intimation from other quarters of the heavy loss sustained in the death of Matiu Taupalci, Native minister to Paihia and the surrounding districts, still in the prime of life, and fully engaged in work. I happen to know that a general account of his ministration is being prepared for you, and therefore restrict myself to a few words, in expression of the sorrow felt by those who lived immediately round him—felt, not alone because of the Church for which he had worked so zealously, but also because of the man himself, who had made himself endeared of his Parishioners, Native and European alike. Myself, an old resident among the Maories, I never elsewhere saw the distinction between the two races so completely effaced. In each house he was considered almost as one of the family ; and rightly so, for a truer gentleman at heart would be hard to find. Modest and unassuming, with the habit (so alien to the instinct of his ra of acting up to the highest attribute of a gentleman—the thinking of one's neighbour before one'* self; wrapped up in his work, which he went about with the dash and eagerness of the thoroughbred. Matiu Taupaki lived and died for his work ; in it was the work that killed him. For the JJaori Church, mainly through laxity in contributions, is under-manned as yet; his district was of over large, and in his exertions to cover the wi: <.•]<% he wore himself out. Maori-like, he did not hike the precautions necessary for health. Rowing lii.s own boat, or riding through the bush, as the o,u-o might be, he was in all weathers at the appointed place, careless of exposure, by -which his constitut ion was gradually impaired. His last illness (bronchi!is) was brought on by a boating expedition—his brother minister had been lying sick at his house, and ho took him to the Kawakawa for medical advice. Af: or labouring hard at the oar, he made sail, sitting sr.i'ii on a cold day. On his return to his own house. lie fainted. Illness, not supposed to be serious, at least until the day before his death, ensued; but collapse came on, under which he sank. The widow and family are now dependent n;;on the Pension Fund, to which, by fortunate forethought, contributions had been made in his behalf for nmny years; for, out of a yearly stipend of only £SO, ho could not have afforded to make payments himself. About £4O (I have elsewhere overstated the amount in error) was gathered from English and Maories on the day of the burial; but not much has been added, since.