We have heard a lot over the years about the Maori “drift to the cities”. When it started to happen, it worried people. But this moralising did not stop the “drift”; The pleasures of village life are sometimes a little over-rated. One may live in an overcrowded house, do a lot of hard work and suffer much inconvenience, without getting any obvious reward for one's labours. It is natural for youth to look around for something better— often it can only be found in the towns. Most young people are too wise to fall altogether for “bright lights'. Life in the city is not easy: you have to work regularly, be very careful with money, accommodation often gives trouble, and friends and relations have a habit of getting themselves into difficulties you have to help them out of. Worst of all is that you never know what this big thing, the City, it going to do to you next. You get talked into ideas you are really not too keen about, as soon as you seem comfortably settled, something comes out of the blue and you don't know where to turn next. Many go back home for a while when things get just too complicated. But that does not help either, you have to leave home again. This sort of “drift” has been going on for about 20 years. Meanwhile some things have been done to help the young Maoris in the cities: hostels, clubs, help with employment and some other welfare services. The bulk of young people, however, have not been reached by these services; many, indeed, do not need help from outside, they look after themselves very well.

INDUSTRY CAN HELP A very good system of moving to town is that worked out by Amos Softgoods Ltd. of Wellington, whose friendly personnel manager, Mr White, brought a group of Maori girls from Wairoa to the big city a year ago, and has done a great deal to help them to get settled in. Mr White asked Mrs Lena Manuel, the Maori Welfare Officer in Wairoa, to find the girls for him; in response, the sent him a list of available girls with their school qualifications and other details. He then travelled to Wairoa to meet the girls and their parents, told them about the job, engaged them, and paid for their journey to Wellington. He engaged twelve, to arrive at the rate of two a week. Most of these girls had had three or even four years' secondary education; only few of them had commercial sewing experience. At the factory: Mrs D. Hunia (above) of the Arthur family of Porirua, is a more experienced worker in whom the girls have confidence. Teia Pomana (below) came to Wellington under the Amos scheme.