[173] TE TOA TAKITINI
Registered at the GPO as a Newspaper.
Number 43
Hastings, 1st February, 1925.
THE CHURCH AT WAIPIRO.
The new church at Waipiro is almost completed. It is a brick building, The Committee has asked the Bishop to open it on 5th March and the Bishop has agreed.
THE CARVED NGATI POROU CHURCH.
The date of the hui for the opening of the Ngati Porou Church has been fixed for March 12th. Soon the firm invitations will be sent out, but the young leaders of Ngati Porou have discussed and confirmed these arrangements:
March 12th. – Arrive on the marae.
March 13th. - The Governor to unveil the stone memorial to the soldiers.
March 14th. – A day for the children.
March 15th. - The Opening of the church.
March 16th. - Area meeting of the Church at Tikitiki.
A man well known to the Maori People, Tahupotiki (Mr Haddon), will attend the hui
and will put forward important ideas on the Maori power to vote on matters concerning alcoh0l.
Ngati Porou invites all of us to attend.
[Thank you, Ngati Porou. We will come with patu and pipes. Your ears will soon hear the noise of the instruments of Nebuchadnezzar. ‘The cornet, the flute, the harp, the sackbut, the psaltery, and dulcimer, and all kinds of music.’ Only patu, and no spells. Best wishes. Best wishes. – Editor.]
As the paper was going to press a telegram arrived from the Hon A T Ngata on 2nd February saying that he and the Department of Health were in discussions about postponing the hui because of the sickness which is causing giddiness amongst children [poliomyelitis].
Published by the Rev F A Bennett and printed by Cliff Press, Queen Street, Hastings, HB.
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Te Toa Takitini,
Registered at the GPO as a Newspaper.
The Price of the Paper is 10/- a year.
Address Letters to Te Toa Takitini, Box 300, Hastings.
Te Toa Takitini, 1st February, 1925.
A LETTER FROM THE BISHOP OF WAIAPU TO HIS MAORI CLERGY.
My brothers, greetings in this new year. May the blessings of God rest upon you all.
Here are some matters that I need to tell you about.
Area Hui.
The Area Hui for the Gisborne Archdeaconry will be held at Tikitiki on 16th March
The Area Hui for the Tauranga Archdeaconry will be held ar Rotorua on Monday, 1st May.
The Area Hui for the Hawkes Bay Archdeaconry will be held at Moteo on 31st August.
I would like all the Ministers and Lay Representatives to gather on the Saturday evening so that all can participate in the Sunday services so that we are in a right frame of mind for the discussions of important matters when we gather for the meetings on the Monday.
The December Letter.
In the letter I sent to you last December I set down the way of electing spokesmen for those hui. I advise you to be very careful with running the elections for those people. Do not elect people who you know will not attend the meeting. There are important matters to be decided upon at those hui and so all Ministers and Lay Representatives should attend.
The Days of Lent.
There is another important matter that I must point out to you and that is respect for the days of Lent. The First Day of Lent is a Wednesday. This year it is 25th February. During the days of Lent we remember the forty days our Lord spent in the wilderness. He was terribly oppressed by the devil but he defeated the devil. Those forty days were not completed before he had been tested to see if Satan had any place in our sinless Saviour.
The Church has set apart these forty days as days of fasting and repentance = repentance for our personal sins as well as for
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those of the many people who make up the body of Christ. Secondly it is a time for setting right our minds and spirits in preparation for receiving the blessings of Easter Day, the day of the resurrection of our Lord.
I urge you to arrange services in your main centres on the first day of Lent, Wednesday, 25th February.
On every Sunday in Lent, sin should be the subject of the Minister’s sermon. We all know the prevalent sins of the Maori People. The second concern should be the confession of sins. The third subject should be the forgiveness of sins through the precious blood of Christ.
When it comes to Good Friday (April 10th) arrange services in all your villages. This is the most sacred day of the year, when our Lord suffered and died for us. On this day we all gather beside his cross to contemplate.
It is not appropriate for us to have sports or entertainments on this day. Our thoughts should focus on the weight of sin that crucified our Lord. We are sinners at the cross of our Lord. We must remember the greatness of his love in consenting to suffer so that we might have life.
The worship on Good Friday is different from that on Sundays. On Good Friday we do not celebrate the Lord’s Supper. On this day we are spiritually contemplating the cross of our Lord. On Sundays and other days when we take the Lord’s Supper we are remembering the death of our Lord.
Easter day is the day when our thoughts turn to the resurrection of our Lord from the grave and his living presence with up to this day. ‘I am alive for ever and ever.’ [Revelation 1.18] By his death he has destroyed the power of sin and death. By his resurrection we are given that power. He has provided a vehicle of that power, the bread and the wine of the Lord’s Supper, the symbols of his body and his blood.
Therefore, Ministers, provide the service of the Lord’s Supper in every part of your parishes on Easter Day. But remember to celebrate it in the morning up until 1 p.m. and not in the afternoon.
May the blessing of God rest upon you in the days of Lent until Good Friday. Make this a time to repent of your sins and to pray to God, so that we may see our Lord clearly during the days of Easter.
Greetings to you all. From your father in Christ.
W M Walmsley Waiapu, Bishop.
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THE HUKARERE JUBILEE
To be marked with a Chapel.
A notice has been sent to those women who were educated at Hukarere telling of the desire of the managers of Hukarere to build a separate Chapel for the pupils of the school to commemorate the Jubilee. Should any want that notice sent to them they should send a request to Miss Bulstrode, Hukarere School, Napier.
The first gift of money has been received; it was sent by the Hon A T Ngata last year. The money was collected at a function held at his home. The amount was £15/5/6. The Hukarere teachers thank A T Ngata and the remnant of Ngati Porou for this token of their affection.
Other donations have been received. These will be acknowledged in the 1st March edition. All you ladies, make every effort to promote this on each marae throughout Aotearoa and Te Waipounamu and as far as the Chatham Islands [Wharekauri] and Rarotonga. Don’t be anxious about sending money for this project. It is a worthwhile, proper and obvious project. Therefore, do support it with all your abilities.
‘BULLER’ SCHOLARSHIP.
John Porteous, MA.
During the first week of December the Inspectors of Maori Schools visited Te Aute and St Stephen’s to examine those students who had applied for the Buller Scholarship.Nine from Te Aute and four from St Stephen’s entered for this Scholarship. Nine passed, getting more than 50% of the marks.
The student who got the Scholarship was Selwyn Te Paa with 68.9% . After him came Kaharoa Rangawhenua with 67.5%. Then came Erutini Hohua with 66.8%. It has been arranged that Selwyn Te Paa of Te Aute College receives the Scholarship. This student was educated at St Stephen’s. In 1922 he gained the McLean Scholarship and went to Te Aute.
[Congratulations, young man, on winning this Scholarship. Keep up the good work when you get to University. You have first sought help from the ‘Trust Board for Funds for Maori Purposes’ which supports and guides suitable young people seeking to reach the heights of learning. Therefore, be stout-hearted, be strong, be firm. – The Editor.]
A SALUTATION FROM THE EDITOR.
Greetings, those of you who send articles. This edition of the paper and the next edition are filled by articles already typed up. This is a sign of how the paper is appreciated. Therefore, don’t be impatient, my friends, my Many Warriors [Toa Takitini].
From your servant, -The Editor.
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HUKARERE SCHOOL.
This is the Report on Hukarere by Mr G M Henderson MA, Government Inspector.
There are 69 pupils at this school. In Form 8 there are 11 pupils; Form 7, 16; Standard 6, 21; Standard 5, 8; Standard 4, 9; Standard 3, 4. Of the pupils in Standard 6, 12 passed Proficiency and 7, Competency. The pupils in this class have done extremely well. Those in Forms 7 and 8 have a good grasp of English and arithmetic from Form 6, as well as history. They have learned by heart two plays by Shakespeare and some of the songs. I highly praise the excellence of the work of this class. The work of Standards 3, 4 and 5 is also good, and the reading and spelling are very good. The writing is very good throughout the school.
One pupil has passed the partial D Certificate as a teaching qualification. Eleven have passed the course in caring for the sick in their villages.
Six have passed piano exams. Forty-eight attend the Manual Training Centre where they learn the preparation of food. There is a large garden where the pupils plant seeds and cultivate them. Also very good were the clothes sewn by the pupils and the various foods I was shown.
I must also praise the living conditions of the pupils. I also observed their knowledge of the poi – short and long.
I also send my congratulations to the Head Teacher and the Staff on the good work they are doing and on the good fruits emerging from the school under their leadership.
REPORT OF THE GOVERNMENT INSPECTOR ON TE AUTE COLLEGE.
G M Henderson MA.
This is the Report of the Government Inspector:
‘This College is being very well run and the pupils are healthy. The total number of pupils this year is 89.There are 9 pupils in the Matriculation Class; 7 in Form 5; 22 in Form 4 (Public Service Entrance); 13 in Form 4, Remove (Agriculture); 38 in Form 3. In Form 6 are the older pupils aged from 17½ to 19½ . These have not sat Matriculation. The Form 5 pupils will enter the Matriculation Class next year. I examined them in English and Science and was gratified by their good answers.
Form 4 is the class that is to take the Public Service Entrance examination. I examined them in
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English and History. From the clarity of their answers I concluded that they were being well taught. Their teacher s Mr Okey.
The Agriculture class is learning all aspects of farming, everything relating to milking cows, tilling the land, erecting fences, and building the necessary farm buildings. Perhaps this is the class that will bring the most benefit to the Maori People.
Form 3 prepare for the Proficiency Certificate examination. They are taught by Mr Loten.
Thirteen pupils took the Proficiency examination. Six passed (Stage 6). One gained the Proficiency Certificate. Two entered the examination for the Buller Scholarship. One pupil is in hospital. Three did not pass.
The pupils are in very good health. The new College buildings are good with plenty of room for the pupils.
Some prefects and monitors have been appointed to assist the teachers in looking after the pupils. Pupils who transgress minor rules are punished by the monitors. If it is a serious infringement it is dealt with by the Headteacher. All appear to be permitted to use corporal punishment.
As for meals, there is plenty of food, but in the three days I stayed there, there was no cabbage or puha or other varieties of food, nor was there fruit. I spoke to the Headteacher suggesting that he consults a doctor, with a knowledge of the Maori body, who could prepare a menu of the kinds of food for the pupils of the College.
The pupils’ vegetable garden which they cultivate is very large.
The carpentry class repairs damaged places, and they have built the store-rooms for machines and chairs. They have built the verandah for the house of the second teacher.
The pupils are committed to their work and are happy with their lives.
THE TE KOHUPATIKI FUND.
Early in December the remnant of Te Kohupatiki met to discuss means of increasing their minister’s stipend fund. The fund lay dormant at £32.
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It was arranged that each person contribute part of their pay from summer occupations. The amount received by the Diocesan Office this month is £50/10/-. The fund now stands at £82. There are seven houses in this village, and so we praise this spirited response from the remnant of Te Kohupatiki. May blessings increase upon you.
THE GOSPEL OF WORK.
J P Shepherd (translated into Maori by Kingi Tahiwi).
What is a man,
If his chief good and market of his time
Be but to sleep and feed.
- Shakespeare
Once the Prime Minister said to a group of young people that the noble way of life is the way of work.
These words apply as much to Maori as to Pakeha, but because these few words can be applied to Maori let us look at the ways in which the above ideas do apply to Maori.
This word ‘work’ does not describe only work with the hands. It has many applications. The definition I give to this word ‘work’ is that it is an intention of the mind to work, it is commitment to working and perseverance in working. It is no good a person hoping that he will get ahead of his friends by working if he is not determined to work and does not persevere with work. Do not work today and not tomorrow; do not think only about today’s work and not about tomorrow’s.
Rather one must think about work day and night and work every day until the job is completed. Do not think that when you have finished a job you can give up thinking about work. No, but persist in thinking about work. Don’t give up on the idea of work lest those following you who are diligent in their work slip past you and you are left behind and he it is who gets the rewards of the work that you wanted.
It is not only children who want to work. When folk are children it is their springtime. It is the time to acquire learning. When a person is old it is time to mix up his learning with his [Kauae-hinatanga - ? grey beard]. When a person is old it is good to reflect on the fruits on his work – of his diligence and his perseverance at the work he has done every day from childhood to old age. There are not many men who become famous for their work when they are children. But many men when they are
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aged see the fruits of their work that they did for many years because they were diligent and persevered. So, my friends, I would say this: If we wish to have status amongst the people be committed to work and persevere with it from the time we are children until we depart to the great company in the life to come. One can say that it is by commitment to work and perseverance in it that we climb to the heights of good and life.
‘The heights by great men reached and kept
Were not attained by sudden flight,
But they, while their companions slept,
Were toiling upwards through the night.’
[Longfellow – The Ladder of St Augustine]
The Government of New Zealand has given Maori many benefits and there are people outside the Government who are working on ways of educating young Maori.
There are many colleges and schools aside for the education of Maori children. As I see it, the understanding of a Maori child is the same as that of a Pakeha child.
You know the good things that result from education. Because your ancestors were convinced of the good that results from education they set apart land to support the schools for you, their descendants.
There are two main fruits of this treasure, education. The first is the ability to write down people’s ideas in a noble language. The second is that a child comes to possess the skills to sustain the body and the soul. The schools and the colleges and the farms are places where children grow up surrounded by learning, where they are clothed with the knowledge with which to dig out a place for themselves in the many occupations of the world when they become adults. There they get the foundation of commitment and perseverance in work which will be an ornament for each of them as adults.
Many people think that because the Maori formerly had land it is appropriate that all Maori learn farming. Government statistics show that the Maori population is increasing while the land available to Maori is diminishing. Therefore, not every Maori can be a farmer, rather it is necessary to seek other avenues for work for the Maori young people who are taught in the schools. It is right to look for other good occupations for these children when they finish school,
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So what work should these children undertake? The field in which work grows is huge. The occupations undertaken by Pakeha are open also to Maori provided they persevere. So, can he achieve the commitment and the perseverance at work so that he can fulfil the purpose for which he was sent into this world?
There is an occupation set aside for each girl, for each boy, for each woman and for each man. Do that job with loyalty and perseverance and, if it is worthwhile, good will come from it. When you are taken from this world you will leave behind your good works, the beautiful things you’ve done, as an example for the generations after you.
By the commitment of the mind and perseverance at work you will rise above the conditions I have named above.
[Thank you, Mr Shepherd, for this profound article and its good advice. Te Toa Takitini salutes you for this token of your love for the Maori People. – The Editor.]
THE TE ARAWA LAKES BOARD.
The Executive of the Committee of the Te Arawa Board went to Wellington while Parliament was in session to ask that a certain power be given to them. Apirana concerning Maori issues. Because Te Arawa wishes to purchase Maketu, it was agreed that the Te Arawa Board has power to buy land, Pakeha or Maori.
1. When the Te Arawa Board purchases land it need not apply to the Waiariki Maori Land Board for permission. It is valid from the time the deed is signed.
2. The Board has been given power to give mortgages without having to apply for permission from the Governor-General or the Waiariki Board. If the Board sees that the mortgage is justified, then it may conclude it.
3. The Te Arawa Board agreed to stand security for Government Departments lending money. This authority makes it easier for Government Departments to lend money to Maori, given that there is this security backed by the Te Arawa Board.
4. The Government was asked to take thought for Maori who are blind or whose bodies are weak and who are unable to work for their living. The response to this request is called the Act for the Blind which has been passed.
5. The Office of the Maori Councils and the Department of Health were asked to agree to provide an additional £200 to the Board for its work to provide water for the Maori villages of Mourea, Waiatuhi, Te Taheke, and Otamarakau. This was agreed.
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6. The Te Arawa Board has been authorised to lend money to Maori who have money with the Waiariki Board, but it will be held under legal restrictions for a short time.
1. The members of the ‘Rahui’ Committees of Ngati Pikiao for Okataina and Waione were organised and this generous task on the part of Ngati Pikiao regarding these ‘rahui’ was completed without charge.
We met with:
a) The Minister of Maori Affairs – Mr Coates
b) The Minister for Hospitals – Hon Sir Maui Pomare
c) The Under-Secretary of the Land Department – J Thompson
d) The Head of the Maori Land Court – Chief Judge Jones
e) The Native Trustee and Deputy – Judge Rawson and H S King
f) The Commissioner for Pensions – Mr Fanch
g) The Minister of the Tourist Department – Hon Nosworthy.
The matters we raised were dealt with sympathetically and we received a warm personal welcome. The Member for the Tai Rawhiti, Apirana, was praised for supporting our concerns.
The group 0f ‘Ministers’ sent by the Board to Wellington were:
1) Wiremu Ereatara – ‘Minister’ for Land and Factories
2) Morehu Te Kirikau – ‘Minister’ for Maori Pa and Pensions
3) Kepa Ehau – ‘Minister’ for Maori issues and Miscellaneous matters.
4) H T Mitchell – ‘Minister’ for Education and Hospitals.
5) Raureti Mokonuiarangi – Deputation Secretary.
THE STONE MEMORIAL TO THE TE ARAWA SOLDIERS HAS REACHED THE CANOE.
On 5th January, 1925, the Chairman and the Secretary signed the contract for the start of the work on this stone commissioned by the Te Arawa Board. It will be a fine memorial. On another occasion we will describe what is to appear on the stone.
It will take a year to complete. It will be set up in the Government Gardens in Rotorua, a place donated by the Te Arawa chiefs in 1880 for a wide range of purposes that do not involve payment.
THE SUPPLEMENT
There is no Supplement in this edition. The experts in that area have been under pressure.
In March we will publish waiata from here in Heretaunga.
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YOU ELDERS WHO HAVE PASSED ON! WE OWE TO YOU THIS BLESSING.
In 1881 Ngati Whakaue gave three thousand acres to the Government for a township, and that town is called Rotorua.
By that donation, Pukeroa and other parts were gifted to the Government in perpetuity. It was arranged at that time that sick Maori would not have to pay to go to the hospital when it was built by the Government.
From that time until 1916 Maori who were ill did not have to pay to go to the Rotorua Hospital and Sanatorium.
In that year, 1916, the Hospital was taken over by the Army and Maori were no longer allowed free access. Ngati Whakaue held a meeting and concluded that they would wait until the war with Germany was ended and would then raise the matter. Maori, even Ngati Whakaue, had to pay in subsequent years until the war was over. In 1919 the deputation went to Wellington to see the Director General of Hospitals. The answer they received was that nothing could be done as the arrangement was just a verbal one ‘and now is the time we must put an end to this privilege you enjoy.’ The deputation returned and some talked of a petition or of going to England. It was arranged that someone look into the old Government departmental papers and may with luck discover the old accounts.
Fortunately, Editor, the Agreement was found. It had been signed by Judge [Penetana] for the Government and by Whititera te Waiatua for Ngati Whakaue.
Soon afterwards Sir Maui Pomare was made Minister for Hospitals and when he visited Te Papa-i-Ouru marae he was confronted with that Agreement.
When Pomare got to Wellington an order was sent to the Doctor of the Hospital built at Pukeroa saying that the doors of that Hospital were to be open to Ngati Whakaue free of charge because they gave Te Pukeroa and other special areas of the town of Rotorua to the Government.
Editor, this forethought for their descendants on the part of our elders is a great blessing to us. This is a time when many of us are afflicted with illness and so we praise the Invisible One for putting this wonderful idea in the hearts of our elders when we possessed so much land.
Editor, you and all your children belong to Ngati Whakaue, and if you are afflicted with the world’s illnesses then this is the Hospital your elders arranged for us.
We are very grateful to the Minister for Hospitals and to Sir Maui Pomare, and to the one who hauled up the fish which lies here for our benefit.
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TE TOA TAKITINI.
This is to tell you that the copies of Te Toa Takitini from March 1924 to February 1925, including the Supplements, have been bound into a book. The house [cover] that contains them is good and strong. The price is 12/- for each book. Those who want a copy should send their names and their money to The Editor, Box 300, Hastings.
CORRECTION TO THE NUMBERING OF TE TOA TAKITINI.
There is no Number 41.
There is a mistake with the numbering of the copies of Te Toa Takitini. The number of the edition for 1st November, 1923, was 28. When the December paper was printed the printer forgot to change it to 29 and it was left as 28.
Therefore, we thought it right in this new year to correct the numbering of the paper with this edition. The December edition was number 40. That of January was 42. There was no 42 in order to correct the numbering of the paper.
TANGI FOR PARATENE NGATA.
During January the party from the Tai-hauauru [West] arrived at Waiomatatini to lament for Paratene and others of Ngati Porou who have died. The party consisted of Sir Maui Pomare, Lady Pomare, Doctor Te Rangihroa, K S Wiremu MP, Captain Pitt, Mrs Woodbine Johnston, Mrs Sherratt and the daughter and son of Te Ta. (sic)
Tangi in Ngati Porou have been prohibited. They will all take place at the March Hui.
SCHOLARSHIP FOR WAIAPU.
Paratene was a man who gave much thought to ways of educating Maori children. His grandchildren have made a gift to the children of Ngati Porou in the form of a scholarship for them. An amount of £850 has been given, the remnant of Tokomaru have contributed a further £300, making a total of £1,150. A further £350 has been given to the Ministers’ Stipend Fund.
Ngati Porou will continue to contribute to the scholarship fund to bring it up to £5,000.
[You do well, Ngati Porou.
Mate atu he tetekura, haere mai he tetekura.
As one chief dies another rises to take his place. [cf Nga Pepeha 1766]
Ka pu te ruha ka hao te rangatahi.
When the old net lies in a heap a net goes fishing. [cf Nga Pepeha 1100]
Paddle your war canoe! By the current behind your canoe we will perhaps be drawn in to follow you. Paddle for your life! – Editor.]
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RATANA AND THE JAPANESE.
Rotorua,
January 15th, 1925.
When the people returned to Rotorua from the hui at Ratana, a hui was held at Te Papa-i-Ouru, Tamatekapua. At that hui the organiser of the Ratana Covenant told what Ratana had said in his sermon at the Christmas Hui. In his address were the following words: ‘Ratana has married the Maori People to the Japanese People, and life for the Maori People is in the hands of the Japanese.’
Te Arawa objected to Ratana’s words and passed this motion:
Ngati Whakaue, on their sacred marae, Te Papa-i-Ouru, declare their loyalty to King George V, and wherever the thoughts of some hapu of the Maori People may wander to, we want those charged with maintaining the authority of our King to know that Ngati Whakaue are loyal to the way of law and peace.
We also want to thank the Crown for the good and just way he has dealt with all the problems of the Maori People that have been laid before him.
We are thankful and full of praise for all the good things have come to the Maori People.
During the Great World War we sent our young men to support the auth0rity of our King and to preserve all the good things that have come to the Maori People through the provisions of the Treaty of Waitangi.
We are saddened by Ratana’s rejection of the loyalty of the Maori People, Our thoughts go back to the words of our father who said: ‘Be loyal to Queen Victoria, and should anyone challenge the authority of the Queen, you are to be the stone that smashes them [?wawahi i te motu].’
Response of Pita Moko.
Ratana has not so far uttered a word about the Maori People and the Japanese uniting and he rejects what the Rotorua hui has said, We went to Japan to preach the Gospel. When we arrived the Japanese welcomed us as family, and our mutual questionings revealed a closeness of the Maori People and the Japanese.’
Ratana did not send his spokesman to Rotorua. However, a Rotorua man came to the Ratana Hui and he was perhaps that man. Ratana explained at that Hui that the shared blood of the Maori People and the Japanese brought them together as family.
Whanganui Supports the Te Arawa Statement.
On 20th January these articles appeared in the country’s newspapers.
‘Some thoughtful people from Hiruharama have written to the Whanganui paper expressing their surprise at Pita Moko’s strong condemnation of the statement from the Rotorua hui by the Ratana organiser. They heard his speeches at the Christmas Hui at Ratana and he made the same statements at Hiruharama. It was said that the Maori would not sign the covenant and that they would be troubled when the Japanese arrived to deal with the problems of the Maori People.
The people who signed the letter said that they are still loyal to our King and to Te Arawa.
The Maori of Whanganui are deeply distressed that Ratana’s works have strayed into such paths. Many people with leanings towards Ratana condemn such things.
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RATANA AND HIS COVENANT.
Te Waipounamu.
Auckland Weekly News, 29/1/2.
Although Ratana preaches that the Maori People should be united, when his emissary arrived at the Ngai Tahu Hui at Tuahiwi there was no agreement about signing the covenant which he brought with him to be signed.
The copy of the covenant was brought to Tuahiwi by M Whitau. In the covenant Whitau was named as an apostle to promote the covenant. Thosse who signed had to believe in the Lord, to agree to forsake the practices of the tohunga and Maori works, and to believe in the name of the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit and the true angels.
Many people signed Whitau’s covenant including many Church people.
When one Maori stood to preach he voiced his concern about the purpose of this signing. More of those who did not sign were keen on stopping the activities of Maori tohunga than those who signed. If this business of Ratana’s was put to the vote he would strongly oppose his project.
Dannevirke
Hawkes Bay Herald, 30.1.25.
One of Ratana’s emissaries visited the Maori of Dannevirke and spoke about the signing of the covenant and the benefits that would ensue for those who signed.
Most of the people did not agree to sign because the purposes of signing were not clear.
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It seemed better to them to place their problems before those sharged with making the law, who had been authorised to do such things. Therefore they endorsed the words of Te Arawa about being loyal to the King as their forefathers were loyal in the days of Queen Victoria.
THE HERETAUNGA HUI.
The people of Heretaunga were invited to gather at the YMCA, Hastings, on Saturday, 24th January, at 11 a.m., to consider Ratan’s speech about his marrying of the Maori People to the power of Japan.
This was the motion passed by that meeting:
‘The remnant of Heretaunga met today, 24th January, to discuss their response to the speeches at the Christmas Hui at Ratana in which the Japanese were spoken of. Because this is such an important matter the people of the East Coast were invited to gather at the YMCA, Hastings, on Saturday, 31st January, at 10 a.m. to formulate the response of the East Coast. We also ask Ratana’s emissaries not to proceed with gathering signatories for the covenant until that hui is concluded.’
From the Remnant of Heretaunga.
On Saturday, 31st January, they met again. Those who attended were from: Dannevirke, Porangahau, Waipawa, Patangata, Te Hauke, Pakipaki, Korongata, Waimarama, Waipatu, Matahiwi, Kohupatiki, Omahu, Waiohiki, Moteo, Petane, Tangoio, and Te Haroto. No-one attended from Wairarapa, Mohaka, Wairoa, Whakaki, or Turanga. There were many speeches of clarification. This was the motion passed by the whole hui.
‘If by Ratana’s words concerning the marriage of the Maori People to the Japanese nation he means abandoning the loyalty of the Maori People to the Crown of England, we, Ngati Kahungunu of Heretaunga, affirm that we retain our loyalty to the King.’
P H Tomoana.
Chairman of the Hui, 31/1/25.
INFANTILE PARALYSIS – POLIOMYELITIS
This illness is a contagious disease affecting young children but also individual adults.
The Symptoms.
In the beginning there is tearfulness, irritability, and drowsiness; then there is headache, vomiting, fever, and stomach-ache resulting in diarrhoea. After these first symptoms the hands and the feet become paralysed like the paralysis that follows from eating uncooked karaka kernels. If such symptoms are seen, fetch the doctor.
The Course of the Illness.
A person passes on the illness to another and the seed of the illness enters via the mouth or the nose, that is, by eating or breathing. Mucus from the nose, spittle, phlegm from the mouth, and dirt from the body of a sick person, all contain the seed of the illness and must be treated with medicine, burned in the fire or buried in the ground.
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Prevention.
Children should not gather together and should not be permitted to go into houses where the disease is present, for any reason. The children should not kiss or touch noses with family members. Each child should have their own drinking cup and eating plates and the like.
Outside the house children should wear broad-rimmed hats lest their heads or the backs of their heads be touched by the sun.
Children who have caught the disease should be kept apart but preferably should be sent to hospital.
When the child recovers tell the Health Inspector so that the house can be fumigated.
Those who are nurses or those who enter the sick-room should take care of themselves, They should gargle their throats using medicine. A good medicine is a cup of warm water mixed with half a teaspoon of salt and a few drops of ‘Condy’s Fluid’ so that the water is reddish. ‘Condy’s Fluid’ is available from shops and chemists.
This medicine should be poured into the palm of the hand, sniffed up into the nose, and spat out of the mouth. Then use it as a gargle in the throat. This procedure should be followed by older children and adults.
Councils and Marae Committees.
Councils and Marae Committees should issue order for all marae to be cleaned. Litter should be burned, food waste and such things should be buried, and the buildings’ interiors should be scrubbed. Do away with rotting things lest flies increase and carry the seeds of the illness onto food. As for food, protect it so that flies cannot settle on it. Human waste should not be spread about. Do not spit on the marae or in houses. Meeting houses should be washed with disinfectant.
Meetings for Maori purposes should be postponed until places are free of the disease. The uhu ceremonies over the bones of the dead should be delayed until we are free of the problem. The dead should be buried promptly without waiting for the usual gatherings at this time. Children should not be allowed to go to the pictures or to inside entertainments.
These, people, are the instructions of the Department of Health. Do as they say so that we Maori may flee from the Net of Tara-mai-nuku [the giant fisherman from whose net not even a whale can escape – Barry Olsen].
From your servant,
Te Rangihiroa, MD, DSO.
TO THE PEOPLE IN THE TAMATEA MAORI COUNCIL DISTRICT.
This an order that you follow all these instructions. Be quick to report to your Marae Committee or to the Chairman of the Council if you see any of these symptoms so that you can receive the help that is available to you.
So, be aware, be strong, be patient.
P H Tomoana, Chairman
W K Winiata Cr
W H Nikera Cr
Pohe Hemi Cr
Akonga Mohi Cr
Katene Pukerua Cr
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