Tuwharetoa Timber Incorporations by E. R. Clark Maori timber incorporations in the Ngati Tuwharetoa tribal area in the centre of the North Island, have in recent years not only enabled the Maori owners to gain full value from their timber and lands, but have been investing surplus monies in modern buildings to provide another valued source of income. First to do so was Proprietors Puketapu 3A Block Inc., which erected a concrete two-storey office block in the centre of Taumarunui. Besides the incorporation's own offices and board room, the block houses several government departments in modern office suites, and produces a regular income from rentals. In 1967 a second incorporation erected a two-storey office block in the new Turangi township, which is also revenue producing, being fully occupied by tenants. Most recent was the action of Hauhungaroa 2C Block Inc., which spent $100,000 on a two-storey showroom and office block, also at Taumarunui. As investments, all three are proving profitable for their owners. The Hauhungaroa building, named ‘Te Maunga House’, has added interest from the Maori viewpoint, in that the construction was done by the firm of Johnson Bros. The three young Maori brothers and their staff have earned an enviable reputation for efficiency and were also the builders of the Taumarunui Borough Council's modern chambers. In many other cases and other areas, once the bush has been felled, the land has reverted to scrub and cutover bush and is almost totally non-productive. Under the wise guidance of management committees over the years, the incorporations have used a percentage of the royalties from timber sales to develop the cleared land into rich pasture and to stock it. The ‘father’ of Maori timber incorporations is Taumarunui Maori leader and scholar Dr Pei Te Hurinui Jones, O.B.E., and they are based to some degree on land incorporations which have operated successfully on the East Coast. Dr Jones was employed at one time by the Department of Maori and Island Affairs at the time it was known as the Native Department, and was appointed to pioneer Maori land development under the auspices of the Department. The then Minister for Maori Affairs, Sir Apirana Ngata, invited him to visit the East Coast to see how the incorporations were operating. During his month there Dr Jones was greatly impressed by the system and stored the knowledge away for further use. Dr Jones had interests in forests in the Lake Taupo area and when State Highway 41 was pushed through to the lake in the early post World War II years—until then the road had gone only to the Waituhi trig—there was access to work on the development of the timber resources. When the first move was made towards the establishment of the first incorporation, Proprietors Puketapu 3A Block Inc., Dr Jones met with a lot of departmental opposition. At a meeting of owners at Waihi pa, attended by the then Minister, Mr Skinner, and his officers, both Maori Affairs and Forest Service, a motion was finally carried by the people. Mr Skinner generously wished Dr Jones luck in the new venture but the departmental officers ‘threw up their hands in despair’ and predicted early failure. The management committee had to work in the face of considerable opposition for three or four years, but then faith in the proposal started to bear fruit and progress was made. The Government had offered to take over the marketing of the timber at a guarantee of four shillings per 100 feet royalty for the whole area. Some incorporations today are receiving about $2.50 per 100 feet. Puketapu at one time operated its own sawmills and joinery factories, but sold these a few years ago to the Fletcher organization