The Church in New Zealand

New Zealand Tablet, Volume LII, Issue 35, 16 September 1925, Page 21

The Church in New Zealand

An Old-Time Land Deal An historic .Maori deed concluding a property sale by a chief hear Kororareka (now called Russell) over 90 years ago, has come into the possession of an Aucklander (says ; -5 a daily newspaper). It is a modest enough document in size, being about as large as a leaf of an. ordinary book, but. has a certain artistic effect that is never found in a deed of to-day. A few simple sketches that are, the tattoo marks »f the Maoris who negotiated the contract and a list of signatures in well-written English alongside three thumb impressions in black ink, constituted the deed of purchase and sale. In tho good old times, it is said, the Maori landholder always signed his name with his tatoo mark, a process which made the deeds of that era quite respectable works of ait. The document in question is a page of a deed dated February 23, 1834, by which a certain Akiewa and his people transferred a block of land to one William 1). Brind, of the '•good ship Torrance Castle." The land was a block of "600 English acres" near Kororareka, and the cost was "four double-barrelled guns and g two hundred-weight of powder." The deed came into the hands of Mr. T. Vinton Smith, of Melbourne, who is deeply interested in Maori lore, and has many interesting ex- ■>■ hibits of early land transactions in New Zealand, and was posted by him to a friend in Auckland. Some Otago and Southland Parishes From the Cyclopedia of New Zealand, published in 1903, we extract the following information (officially supplied) regarding various parishes in the diocese of Dunedin:

SOME HISTORICAL NOTES.

INVERCARGILL. "The parish of Invercargill originally included the whole of Southland, and continued to do so from its foundation in 1863 till 1882. ' In the latter year it was divided into three parishes—namely, Invercargill, Riverton, and Gore. In 1893 Winton was made a separate parish, and Riversdale and Wrey's Bush in 1900; so that there are, in , all, six parishes in Southland. The parish of Inverdargill as now constituted includes the town, and extends from the Bluff to the West Plains. The Church of St. Mary occupies a site which has a frontage to Tyne and Eye Streets. It was erected in 1904 in the Byzantine style of architecture, and is of brick with white stone facings. It has | . seating accommodation for 700 persons, and r - the building, without the land, cost £6OOO. St. Joseph's Girls' School, the parish school, and St. Catherine's Convent School adjoin tho church. The original church in Invercargill. was erected in 1863, a wooden building capable of seating 400 persons. This : building, which stands on a half-acre site in %OBrL Clyde Street, adjoins the old presbytery, j\'• and is now used for the Marist Brothers' W% 11„ School, founded in 1897. St. Catherine's / Dominican Convent occupies a pleasant and convenient site facing the beautiful public

gardens of the city, and adjoins the new Basilica in Tyne Street. The convent is a line two-storey wooden building surrounded by its own grounds." The conditions above mentioned were very materially altered by the tine range of buildings erected during the past two years. A much esteemed friend, since passed away (R.1.P.), supplied the present writer with the following additional particulars relating to Invercargill : "St. .Joseph's School was built for the nuns when they went to Invercargill in

1882. On-each Sunday and holy day ■of obli- "\\ gation the early Mass was celebrated in it, J and Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament ] given in the afternoon; second Mass was cele- " ] brated in St. Mary's, and there were- - Vespers and, Benediction at 6.30 each Sunday. J It was "the church" until the Basilica was -'j opened." ' , !^| WINTON. . ': 3 "The settlement of Winton, situatedvon ff| the Fortrose-Kingston railway, and on the : ;|| great North Road leading to Lake Wakatipu, J\ may be said to date from 1862, when the first portion of the town was surveyed. Ab- '.-■'■! out 1876, Winton was created a municipality. . • '/ vj "In the early period of settlement •;:at ■< Winton Mass was celebrated, and other ser-'tl vices were held by Father Garden in the * Oddfellows' Hall. With the growth ,of the parish the necessity arose for a suitable :'■ building, and the present Church of St. : = Thomas was partially erected in 1884, at a . cost:of £SOO, which was secured chiefly by - the exertions of the late Bishop Moran, > assisted by Father Kehoe, and with the V ready co-operation of the people. When the late Father Vereker took charge of the dis- . -tl trict it soon became necessary to enlarge i and complete the church, which was accom- '■."■'•;. plished at a cost of £7OO. A fine spire 80ft - in height was erected and gives the whole /;; structure a handsome and striking appear- '/•■; ance. The'Rev. Father P. O'Neill, formerly of South Dunedin, succeeded Father Vere- | ker." Some time after the death of Very Rev. Father O'Neill a year or so ago, the M Very Rev. Father Hunt was transferred ' from Alexandra as pastor of Winton,/ taking the place of Father Ardagh, who was meanwhile acting as parish' priest. (To be continued.)