CORRESPONDENCE

Waka Maori, Volume I, Issue 11, 7 December 1878, Page 165

CORRESPONDENCE

European correspondents who have a knowledge of Maori are requested to be good enough to forward their communications in both languages. To the Editor of the Waka Maori. Sir, —Will you kindly let me use the Waka to convey my acknowledgements to the chiefs of the East Coast tribes for their letters of regard and expression of sorrow at my retirement from the Government service. The time at my disposal will not admit of my replying to all the letters separately, but I can only assure them it is gratifying to me to receive so many compliments for impartial conduct of the Government laws affecting Europeans and Natives. All I can say is, let us bear in mind the proverb, " Maru attacks Maru, then comes gentleness " — (i.e., a friendly quarrel produces mutual forbearance.) From your Friend, T. "W. POBTEK. Gisbome, November 26th. 1878.

To the Editor of the Waka Maori. G-isbokne, November 28, 1878. Sie, —I send you the following, being supplementary to my letter which appeared in Waka No. 8, expressive of the anxiety which has been created on on account of our friends and the people going over to the religion of the Kooti. On the 9th of last January I went to Harataunga, and on arriving at that place I, and the Rev. Eaniera Kavvhia, found the Ngatiporou people there practising the rites of that religion. "VVe advised them to abandon it, but they would not consent to do so. I said to them, "If you persist in adhering to this religion, you will eventually come to grief. It was by this sort of thing that you were beguiled in days gone by and brought into trouble. The serpent beguiled our parents (Adam and Eve), and which of the two escaped those wiles of the serpent ? and have not their descendants suffered ? Do you not know that the Church of G-od in the world is engaged counteracting the evil effects of those errors of our parents by which we now are all influenced and affected ? and shall we return again to those deceitful works ? What truth is there in the works of the Ua ? Of what advantage is the practice of Hau-Hauism ? And what good is there in the principles of the Kooti which you are adopting? The end of aIJ such things is the total extinction (of the race.) The Gospel has saved us from the destruction consequent upon those evil and disturbing works of old; and therefore we can now sit peaceably by our fireside, and live securely upon our lands which have come forth from the belly of the land and man-devouring taniwha." Not long ago the Kooti went to Mataora, and there became improperly intimate with married women of Ngatiporou. It is a part of the faith of the followers of that false god to exercise no forbearance towards married women, unless they happen to be old. The Kooti makes prophetesses of the young women, and their husbands cannot then approach them —but the Kooti can. This was the reason why the Aitanga-a-liki abandoned that religion —tney suffered in respect of their young and handsome women. "When will men have their eyes opened to these works of deception and delusion r* Let them remember the snares and the wiles of the days gone by. The child who hearkens to the advice of his parents will be cherished.

In the year 1866 Pitiera Kopu and Paora tef Apatu wrote to Ngatiporou requesting them to go to the "W"airoa to put down the Hau-Haus who were* giving them trouble, Ngatiporou went, and those* two chiefs were freed from their trouble. Areta te Rito is a descendant of those two chiefs who were so energetic in suppressing these evil and troublesome works; yet it is said that he is one.of the. supporters of the principles of the Kooti's religion* Probably some of my friends will take their young wives, when sick, to be cured by the Kooti, and suffer them to be operated upon by him as. the' magicians of olden time were in the habit of doing; MaJOB ROE'ATA.i

To the Editor of the Walca Maori, G-isbobne, November 29,1878. Feiekd, —The Government have long since telegraphed to put an end to the quarrel between William Keiha and his people and Hirini Kahe, all belonging to the same hapu of the "Whanau-a-Ta-puhi, but they would not hearken. It cannot be foreseen how this family quarrel will end, whether they are in earnest or not; possibly they may carry on their innocent amusement for a time, and then bring it to an end. But the danger is that other strange hapus not related to the Tapuhi hapu may join in the quarrel; in such a case the quarrel may become serious. In auy case the sympathy and fellow-feeling existing among the members of the Tapuhi hapu will restrain them from pointing the muzzles of their guns at each other if they join battle. They will be careful not to kill each other, but they will direct their guns against the strangers on either side ; and, if one of the strangers be killed, then they (i.e., the Tapuhi hapu) will make peace with each other, leaving their allies to suffer, whose dead will remain unavenged, tor a solid peace will be made which no man will be able to disturb. The Native tribes value peace, therefore the chiefs have exerted themselves to put down this quarrel, but they have been unsuccessful. This being the case, the tribes and the chiefs do not think any other man can succeed in allaying this disturbance, even though he be greater than the chiefs who have been "trying to do so, because the- root has grown and the 1 rootlets have taken firm hold and cannot be easily pulled up. So the chiefs and the people decided to 1 leave them +o their work till: they had fully satiated, themselves ; because they had been reasoned withi but they refused to listen; efforts were made to pacify them, but they refused to be softened—to whom therefore will they listen, and by whom can they be softened? The Native Minister is the greatest man, and he has sent them a telegraphic message. The first.Minister, Sir Donald McLean, went there to try and clear up this difficulty, but it is not done yet. It commenced in 1872 and has continued to 1878, and we have now nearlv reached the year 1879. The matter in dispute is a cultivation. Major Bopata.

Taupo, November IS. Rewiti te Knme, a notable chief of this district, died Jftsfc night. He was a Good Templar, and a veiy-loyal Native..

An obscure and nameless paper, rejoicing in the appellation... of the Wairoa Free Press, in its of the 20th of November ■- last, has a long leader viciously attacking the Waka Maori and its editor. In contradistinction to a number of its own. mendacious statements, contained in the article to "which we allude, it has quoted largely from the Wdka. No doubt ite editor has discovered that the few persons who have been in the habit of reading his trashy and abject effusions in support of the present Ministry are becoming disgusted with such absurd twaddle; therefore, as we are naturally of a charitable and forgiving disposition, it wul be really gratifying to us to find that extracts from our pages have the effect of making the Wairoa Free Press more readable and saleable. We compliment the editor of that journal upon his unusual perspicacity and discrimination which have led him to republish our articles. It is necessary to inform our readers that the Wairoa Free Press is an insignificant sheet published in the "Wairoa, Hawke's Bay. Some time previous to the session of 1877, it was purchased, as we are informed, by Mr. JohnSheehan, and a bill given for the amount of the purchase money—which transaction, we shall merely say, has not proved a very satisfactory one to the vendor. Of course we can only expect abuse from a paper owned by the Native Minister. The editor, is of course obliged to act according to the instructions of his master. "We advise him to seek another employer—the Native Minister will shortly subside into the insignificance from which he sprung. Before concluding these remarks we may say that the article in the Waka, which has bo excited the ire of the editor of the Wairoa Free Press, does not contain the slightest allusion whatever to the Native Minister, his name is not even mentioned, yet this truthful editor informs his readers that "from beginning to end it is directed against the Native Minister." It appeared in No. 7 of the Waka, and by reference to it our readers can judge for themselves what dependence is to be placed in the statements of such men asthis editor of the Wairoa Free Press. However, as he appears to think the cap fits his master, the Native Minister, he may apply it accordingly. The Whavgawui Chronicle has the following most pertinent remarks on the present Government:—" The Grey Government have gone about uttering the most exalted sentiments, leading people to believe that they were the Heaven-sent uprooters of all abuses, and the benign guardians of even the most humble person's rights. But their actions have been the antipodes of their professions, as they have been high-handed and arbitrary to a degree hitherto unknown in this colony j they have preached equal rights and universal fair play, and have practised a system of irresponsible and indefensible coercion." No COEN vs Egypt.—A most respectable Native, wellknown in the district of Turanga, entered our office the other day and, in the course of conversation, informed us that he was one of a party of Natives who went to "Wellington during the late session of Parliament for the purpose of interviewing the Native Minister on matters of importance affecting a considerable section of the Natives. From his flowing promiseswhen stumping the country, they expected to be received with open arms. On being admitted to his presence they informed him that they must return as soon as possible-to their homes, as they had no means of defraying the expense of alenghtened stay in Wellington. They were led to believe, our informant states, that accommodation would be provided for them, butthey were detained in town by the Native Minister for some months at their own expense, and at last had to come away without getting their business settled. During their detention in town their expenses at the hotel at which they lodged amounted to a verv large sum, the means of liquidating which :»hey had the greatest difficulty in obtaining. This will be a warning to our Native friends to take corn in their sacks when they go to Egypt. A new king has arisen who knows not Joseph. It is commonly reported, says an exchange, that Mr. Weld, the present' Governor of Tasmania, is to succeed the Marquis of Normanby in the Governorship of New Zealand. Mr. Weld was one of the pioneer settlers of Canterbury, and was at one time Premier of New Zealand. It will be a noteworthy coincidence if we have atone and the same time in New Zealand a Premier who was once its Governor and a Governor who was once its Premier, as weshmzld have in the case of Sir Georg« Grey and Mr. Weld.— tyhanganui Chronicle.

Our Native friends -will be glad to hear that Captain Porter ha 9 been elected Mayor of Gisborne, He is a gentleman whose great experience and knowledge of the wants of the district, added to his sterling honesty and integrity of character, well fit him for so responsible a position. "We think the people of Gisborne could not hare chosen a gentleman better suited in any way to fill the office of chief magistrate of their town. The New Zealand Loan and Mercantile Agency Company is pushing business in Fiji. A proposal has been made there to establish a Sugar Company if the capital of £15,000 can be raised.