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TE TOA TAKITINI
Number 75
Registered at the GPO as a Newspaper
Hastings
November, 1927
SPREADING THE GOSPEL
As the Maori Church we Maori have not yet adopted the eagerness of the Pakeha section when it comes to proclaiming Christ and preaching the Gospel to all parts of the world. God’s word says, ‘The people who honour me I will honour.’[1 Samuel 2.30] This is indeed one of the means by which the Pakeha people have found blessing and have been honoured by Heaven.
The October edition of the paper called ‘The Reaper’ pointed out that most of the parishes gave more than £100 during the past year towards the spreading of the Gospel to parts of the world living in darkness.
Fifty parishes contributed more than £100 for this purpose. The largest donation of £517 came from Nelson Cathedral.
Otane, Hawkes Bay 300
St Mark’s, Wellington 300
Timaru, more than 200
Napier Cathedral 200
Merivale, Christchurch 200
St Peter, Wellington 200
Havelock 200
Hastings 200
St Mary, Auckland 200
Palmerston 200
Most parishes gave less than £200.
Let us, as the Maori Church, make an effort to follow this good example set by our brothers amongst the Pakeha.
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
November, 1927
JOINT MEETING OF THE STANDING COMMITTEES OF THE DIOCESE OF WAIAPU.
On Tuesday, 4th October, 1927, the hui of the Maori Church of the Diocese of Waiapu was held at Napier. The members who attended were:
Clergy
Herbert Williams, Archdeacon and President
F W Chatterton, Archdeacon
Arthur Williams, Canon
H Pahewa, Canon
F A Bennett, Supervisor
Peni Hakiwai, Moteo
W A Te Waaka, Whakatane
E M E Te Tikao, Ohinemutu
R Tahuriorangi, Ruatoki
Paora Te Muera, Taupo
M Tumatahi, Te Ngae
W T Puha, Manutuke
W T Mataira, Nuhaka
Hemi Huata, Mohaka
Pine Tamahori, Tuparoa
P Kohere, Tikitiki
Wi Te Hauwaho, Whangara
Ramahaki Rangiaho, Heretaunga
Kingita Anaru, Waipukurau
Wharetini Rangi, Waipawa
Laity
H P Tomoana, Waipatu
Henare T Hutana, Waipawa
Hira Paenga, Whangara
Anaru Matete, Tokomaru
Bob Tutaki, Moteo
Matene Whaanga, Nuhaka
Peta Nepia, Nuhaka
The President opened the opened the Hui with prayer. Wharetini Rangi was appointed Secretary. The following matters were dealt with.
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(1) ORGANISATION. Actions which promote the growth of the faith.
Many members spoke in support of this matter. Paraire Tomoana moved and Paora Te Muera seconded:
‘This Hui asks the Bishop if it would be possible to appoint an independent person to visit each parish in the Diocese every year to give advice about the management of their accounts and other matters for the benefit of the parishes amongst the Maori People.’ Passed.
(2) THE BISHOP FOR THE MAORI PEOPLE. This matter was returned by the [?General] Synod for discussion by the Maori Synod for the members to make known their thoughts on the matter. The motion laid before the Synod was as follows: ‘That a Pakeha be the Bishop for the Maori People with a Maori ‘Suffragan Bishop’ to assist him.’
Many members shared their thoughts on this matter, Bennett moved and Tomoana seconded:
‘That the President explain to the [General] Synod that the Maori Synod has no objection to this motion but is not able to vote on the matter because at the Hui in Wellington last year the Maori agreed that Maori should not participate in the vote on this matter.’
(3) GREETINGS TO THE MISSES BULSTRODE. Many members stood to express their gratitude to these women, and this was the motion passed by the Hui.
‘That this gathering of the ministers and lay-representatives of this Diocese expresses its gratitude to the Misses Bulstrode for the huge benefits that have come to the Maori People as the result of their work over the past 26 years. And this Hui is delighted that they are to continue their association with the Maori People by being involved in Mission work. We pray that the blessings of God will continue upon them for many years to come.’
Bennett is to write a letter of thanks to them.
(4) THE MISSION HOUSES. Bennett moved and W Rangi seconded:
‘This Hui is grateful to the Bishop for his generosity to the Maori People in continuing to set up Mission Houses. But the Hui requests the Bishop to set up a Commission consisting of some Maori clergy and some Maori lay-representatives to assist him in supervising the work and the expenditure on the Mission Houses.’ Agreed.
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(5) THE WAIPAWA MINISTER’S HOUSE. H T Hutana stood to explain this matter. The amount collected so far is £526. The amount required to build the house is £800 and the [Diocesan] Office has been asked for £200 so that work can begin on the house. This was granted on the proviso that it was a loan.
Bennett moved and R P Hakiwai seconded:
‘That this Hui thanks Lady Hunter, the Misses Bulstrode, H T Hutana, the Church in Porangahau, and the members of the management committee , for the work they have done in raising money to build the Minister’s House for Waipawa.’
(6) THE BOUNDARIES OF THE PARISHES OF ROTORUA.
This Hui agrees to the boundary separating Ohinemutu and Te Whahakarewarewa, and that the new name for the parish of Te Whakarewarewa shall be Te Ngae.
(7) FINANCE. Bennett stood to explain the problems facing the Church at this time with respect to money because of the ‘slump.’ The banks are not in a position to make loans, even to the Church. Therefore, the Maori section as to make every effort to help the [Diocesan] Office make money and to support the work of the Maori section. He moved and P Te Muera seconded:
‘That this Hui agrees that every effort must be made to settle the debts of each parish, but that the H & W Williams Memorial Trust be asked to provide for the maintenance of the children so that they do not become a burden on the parishes.’ Agreed.
(8) DUPLEX ENVELOPE SYSTEM. W Rangi moved and Paraire Tomoana seconded:
‘That this Hui supports the motion passed by [Diocesan] Synod concerning the Duplex System, and that this be adopted by the Maori section, and this Hui agrees that this is a way of lightening the burdens on the Maori section.’ Agreed.
(9) HUKARERE AND TE AUTE COLLEGE. Bennett moved and P Hakiwai seconded:
‘That the members of this Hui are very grateful for the excellent running of Hukarere School and Te Aute College. It was said in the Reports of the Government Inspectors that the quality of learning and understanding in these schools continues to improve. This Hui is grateful to and praises the members of the Te Aute Board and the teachers at those two schools for their kind support of and their contribution to the growth of the Maori children.’ Passed.
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(10) THE RUATOKI MINISTER’S HOUSE
‘That Mr Pilson be asked to approach the appropriate committee for the £40 necessary for the urgent repair and decoration of this house. Agreed.’
(11) THE RUNNING OF MISSIONS H T Hutana moved and W T Puha seconded:
‘That (a) Canon Arthur Williams, and the Reverends Bennett and Hakiwai, be a Committee for the running of Missions, reporting to the Bishop, and (b) that the Standing Committee be asked to publish a booklet detailing the erroneous ideas of some religious groups.’ Agreed.
(12) LANDS GIVEN TO THE CHURCH
‘Lands have been given to the Maori Church at Maketu, Tauranga and Ruatoki (Opouriao). Mr Pilson is to deal with this matter and provide a report.’ Agreed.
(13) CONCERNING THE SCHOOL FOR MINISTERS.
(14) Pine Tamahori said that Waitohu Tautau, son of Nikora Tautau, with his parents’ encouragement, wishes to go to St John’s Theological College. This was approved of and is to be brought to the attention of the Bishop for him to deal with.
(15) Here the Hui was adjourned.
‘WORK.’
By Thomas Carlyle
(Translated from the English by T Wi Repa.)
[This man, Carlyle, was a leading Scottish writer during the reign of Queen Victoria. He preached the gospel of agriculture. It is worth paying attention to this sermon by that man.]
It is a permanent good; but there is also something sacred about work, Although a man be enveloped in deep sorrow, although he is oblivious to the voice calling him to climb upwards, there is a recollection of hope for the one who works for something worthwhile. Laziness is the home of never-ending sorrow. Work, even if it is perplexing is a pathway to the light. The desire to complete honestly one’s work will lead you to such honesty, to the laws and commandments of the world, and that is integrity.
The World’s new gospel is: ‘Master your work and do it.’ But the aim is to know yourself. How long have you been troubling yourself, and yet you still do not
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know yourself. Enough! Stop such wrong thinking – this examining of yourself. You will not truly see yourself. You are a treasured object that cannot b understood. But what yo0u can know is your work. You work at it to utilize your strength. This is the right path. It has been written, ‘In work one has an endless teacher.’ As a man works he extends his learning and his expertise. By work he exposes the new growth, he grows food, he builds a beautiful town. Also, by working, by cultivating the ground energetically, he exposes the weeds – that is the weaknesses, the mistakes, and the sorrows of the heart and the mind. Contemplate work again. You may rather bask in the sun. Your mind is idle. You are warm. You fall asleep. You descend to entertaining such thoughts as the lazy mind can grasp. Some people are working over yonder. Whether the work is of little significance or important, those people are fulfilling the instructions for our lives, for our world. They are happy, they are entertained, their thoughts are easy. What is right grows amongst them. They climb upwards while you, the lazy man, are basking in the sun God gave you but not repaying him for his gift of warmth by cultivating the soil. You should be ashamed. God’s sun was given to scrutinize the earth and so that you can see to work. He did not give it so that you could doze in its warmth. He did give the sun to shine on the righteous and the unrighteous [Matthew 5.45]. On the basis of that ancient saying the lazy man goes to sleep. The man who is awake welcomes that sun which will show him the path he is to take; he sees it and takes that path. The sun, the moon, the stars, the wind, the trees of the forest, the waters, the vegetation all have their work. People also have their work. Amongst this assembly God gave man auth0rity over the beasts and the vegetation. However, only by the sweat of his brow was he to eat food. It is not because of the warmth of the sun that that sweat is to break out but by the effort that you put into work; that is what brings out that sweat. The world is not your family. The world climbs up and the world descends; at one time it is hot, at another time it is cold; at one time there is fruit and none at another time; it is productive at one time and sparing at another; this is God’s prescription for the world. ‘Heaven and earth will pass away, but my laws will not pass away.’ [cf Matthew 24.35] So, the way by which you may subdue the earth is by work. If you work, if you put all your effort into work, you will find yourself at peace with the world; that world will eat from the palm of your hand. The world is without end, while the length of time you have been given to apply yourself to work in the part of this endless world assigned to you is seventy years.
Your ancestors came from Hawaiki in small canoes. They contended with unceasing strong winds and towering waves. They had no compasses. There were dangers behind them, dangers ahead of them, and dangers alongside them.
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They heard no caring, gentle voices. Through their efforts they made land here in Aotearoa.
If you are committed to working you are spoken of as someone with ‘fire in the belly’ when it comes to agriculture. This good fire will burn the poisons inside you and will make sweet the bitter smoke of your sad home. There is no school for us other than this.
‘Redeem the time for the days are evil.’ [Ephesians 5.16] Do not waste time. Work morning and evening. The earth was given to provide its fruits. In the hands of the Pakeha these fruits are abundant; in our hands they are scarce. When we work as dairy farmers and suchlike our homes improve. But the man who is content to sit in the one place under the sun should be ashamed. We have the knowledge at this time. Welcome it while it is day. If we do not make the most of it we will retreat and be hidden behind dark clouds from which come lightning and thunder. ‘Work while it is still daylight for the night is coming when no one may work.’ [cf John 9.4]
THE TE ARAWA COUNCIL
These are the Supplementary Bylaws produced by the Trust Board of the Te Arawa District for the Maori Council of the Te Arawa District under Section 16 of the Maori Council Act, 1900.
The Bylaws
69. A person may be punished and fined not more than £5 if they commit any of the following offences in a Maori village, a Maori Pa, or on the marae of a meeting house,
(1) If they ill-treat any animal; if they tie it up without providing it with water.
(2) If they leave anything inflammable on the marae or beside a house.
(3) If they cause a disturbance at any gathering of people for worship, at a hui, or at an entertainment.
(4) If they do anything which causes distress, disgust, fear, [?ateate], or breaks the law, or engages in activities designed to hurt others such as cursing, or uttering words that inspire fear, [?ateate, ?poke], which can be seen as an attack on another.
(5) If they deliberately display themselves by lying naked or do other disgusting things.
(6) If they go into a Maori Village without permission and do not leave that village after having been ordered to do so by a member of the Te Arawa Trust Board or of the Marae Committee or by someone authorised by that Board or Committee to do this.
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70. (a) No-one may screen films or show similar entertainments in a Maori Village without first obtaining a licence from the Marae Committee. The licence is to be signed by two members of the Marae Committee.
(b) The cost of such a licence is one pound a month or part of a month, but it is in the power of the Marae Committee to remit that charge or part of it.
(c) The person transgressing this bylaw, when he has been warned of his transgression, is liable to a fine of not more than £10.
Authority under these Supplementary Bylaws does not contravene any other law.
These provisions were passed at the meeting of the Te Arawa District Trust Board held at Rotorua on 19th May, 1927, and are issued under the seal of that Board.
H Tai Mitchell, Chairman.
This information was published in the Gazette on 13th October. Congratulations to the Te Arawa Council on being given these new powers. How was it so easy to get the Government to comply with your request? Perhaps it was the tastiness of your crayfish and freshwater mussels? We salute your purposefulness and the clarity of your rules.
Best wishes to the Council, - Editor.
A NOTICE.
Come, breath of life, to the daylight, to the world of light!
To the tribes, to the languages, to the hapu, to the gatherings of people living on the remaining [?oinga] of your ancestors, greetings to you all.
You leaders of the South and the North, this is an invitation from all of us to you to come on 15th February, 1928, to the hui for the church which has been built at Puketawai, Uawa. Welcome! Welcome! Welcome! And lighten the heavy burden that weighs on our shoulders. Come! Do not forget the sadness of your ancestor, Marakaia. Therefore, tribes, join our canoe. Bind on your pockets with a [tamarua] girdle, and stand on our marae. [?Haahaa uri! Haahaa tea!]
From Karaka Waru, Moana Tautau, Whare Rutene Porotiti.
Wi Manawai, Hon Secretary.
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PAKEHA FRIENDS OF THE MAORI PEOPLE.
R[eweti] T K[ohere]
Maori have a saying:
‘He taonga tonu te wareware.’
Forgetfulness is an enduring possession, [cf Nga Pepeha 739]
It is good to forget the bad things, the things that make us sad, the failings of others, but to forget the good things, the blessings, the love, is very wrong. It is said that the sign of a foolish person is that he forgets his blessings. Therefore I want to writean article about some Pakeha who befriended the Maori People over many years in the past lest they be forgotten.
I shan’t write at length about the missionaries. There love for the Maori People is clear from the fact that they left their homes and families and came to the ends of the earth to live amongst cannibals. They came close to being killed. Why did this not happen? The years they lived among Ngapuhi were years when cannibalism and inter-tribal warfare were rife.
Marsden, Williams Four-eyes [Henry] and Williams the Brother [William], were some of the great men who lived in this land and whose names will never be forgotten.
But I shall speak about Selwyn. He was the first Bishop of the Church of England [the Missionary Church]. He studied at the leading colleges in England. He was a learned, brave and capable man. He travelled on foot to all parts of New Zealand. Once when he returned to Auckland his boots and clothes were in tatters. He came to New Zealand in 1841. In 1868 Queen Victoria had him return to be Bishop of Lichfield.
Bishop Selwyn was a true friend to the Maori People. H supported and helped Maori, In the troubles over Waitara he supported Wiremu Kingi Te Rangitake. During the fighting he went among the Pakeha soldiers and stood up for the Maori; and he warned them lest they be ill-treated by the Pakeha. The Pakeha were critical of Bishop Selwyn for his trust in the Maori. The story is told of how and officer was angry with him and said that were it not that Selwyn was a Bishop he would have thumped him. At this the Bishop took off his coat, laid it down, and pointing to it said, ‘There’s the Bishop, and I’m here. Come on!’ It is said that had they fought the Bishop would have trounced the officer.
The Bishop was ill-spoken of by the Pakeha because he supported the Maori, but he was also ill-spoken of by Waikato because he was amongst the Pakeha soldiers at Rangiaowhia and they said that he was carrying a gun. So Bishop Selwyn was given as one of the reasons for Waikato forsaking the faith. But Waikato was wrong; Bishop Selwyn was a Pakeha who truly loved the Maori.
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Sir William Martin. This man was another person who stood by and loved the Maori People in the time of the troubles. He was an educated man like Bishop Selwyn, they studied at the same college, and they came to New Zealand on the same ship. One came as Bishop and the other as Chief Justice. These words were written about Bishop Selwyn, Governor Grey and William Martin: ‘We have Bishop Selwyn, the Governor and the Chief Justice, but it was Sir William Martin who ‘stood out pre-eminent in vigour of body and mind and loftiness of character,’
In 1846 a constitution was drawn up for the government of New Zealand. Under that constitution only the Pakeha had the right to vote, the Treaty of Waitangi was abolished, and the sale of land was thrown open. Governor Grey opposed the constitution and he was supported by the Bishop and William Martin. The Bishop was ill-spoken of by the Pakeha because he advised the Maori against the new law. Similarly, Martin and the Bishop advised Wiremu Kingi in his struggle against the Government over Waitara. It is said that Sir William Martin raised Maori children. Who and where are the foster-children of William Martin?
George Grey. In his time Sir George Grey was one of the leading Englishmen. He was appointed Governor of part of Australia, he was twice Governor of New Zealand, he was also Governor of South Africa, and he was Prime Minister [Premier] of New Zealand. In all these countries he revealed his sympathy for the indigenous people and his love for the Maori People of New Zealand. In the Waitara dispute he advocated the return of the land to the Maori and it was the fault of other Pakeha that this trouble was not settled peacefully. Swainson and Dr Featherstone were two of the leading Pakeha who supported Wiremu Kingi’s case. I have spoken of how George Grey stopped the passing of a new law to defeat the Maori. George Grey was very concerned that Maori should live well and not be engaged in war. He provided flour and sugar for Maori and it was said that there was so much flour that were it spread out it would have made a road to the bag of flour. But we have to remember that George Grey was Governor, and a protector of the honour of England. Rewi Maniapoto did not believe George Grey was trustworthy because he arranged for a road to be built into the Waikato. George Grey was buried in St Paul’s Cathedral in London in 1898.
McLean. Sir Donald McLean was a person who was extensively among Maori in the days of the troubles, and it is right to speak of him as a friend of the Maori People. He was appointed to a position in the office of the Protector of Aborigines but he became widely known when he became Native Secretary. By his efforts he brought about peace between the two peoples,
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His major mistake which will not be forgotten by those whose land was alienated was his energetic purchasing of land at a very low price. In those days people did not appreciate the value of land and the Government wanted land on which to settle Pakeha. Although McLean was a friend of the Maori People and his name is known to the Maori People, his memorial, as far as Maori are concerned, are the scholarships which support our children at Te Aute.
These are the Pakeha friends of the Maori People I have written about. But there are others such as Mr Pope and Mr Thornton and some still alive. To those who have provided me with the material for this article: Sleep well, sirs, in your long rest.
DISEASES OF THE EYE
(Trachoma; Granular Conjunetioitis; Granular Ophthalima; Granular Eyelids.)
T Wi Repa MB ChB
This is one of the main afflictions suffered by Maori. This is a disease that the law requires a doctor to report to the Health Department. It is also an infectious disease. This disease is confined to the eye and begins with inflammation which leads to irritation of the eyelids, then to exposure of the cornea of the eye and eventually it results in the reddening of all the white part of the eye, after which there is pus and blindness. As far as I know, of 60,000 Maori, 40,000 have this disease. Yet this is an eye disease that people make little of. It is a small infection and so people ignore it. But as it develops there is great pain and it cannot be cured.
This is a disease that must be notified to the Heath Department; there are many diseases that fall into this category. They are infectious diseases. That means that if filth from those illnesses clings to the parts of the body of a person that are susceptible to such diseases that person will get those diseases. Such illnesses affect the well-being of all. Therefore the section of the Government which protects the health of everyone, the Department of Health, steps in. If the doctor comes across those illnesses he must inform the Health Department. If the doctor fails to report them he is fined ten pounds. Some of these diseases are Typhoid Fever, Pneumonia, Tuberculosis, Scarlet Fever, Diptheria, and many others. One thing on that list is diseases of the eye. If a person has that eye disease or has had it and is now better, and arrives at a port of entry to America, he will not be allowed to land. One sees from this how seriously people take precautions against people getting this disease.
How this illness comes about.
This illness infects people who live in dirty and overcrowded houses such as those
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who live in the poorer parts of London, or those who come into close contact in schools, or those whose bodies are weakened by other illnesses, or those who live in smoky houses or who work in cooking houses or in places where one is not permitted to open the windows. People whose teeth are decayed also get it.
Symptoms of the disease.
The eye is red. It feels as if there is gravel in the eye. The eyelid [?uhi] feels heavy and, when one wakes, the eyelids top and bottom are stuck together. This is the beginning. If it is left for long it cannot be treated – there will be sticky liquid and pus. It is something that spreads; it infects this person and the next. The eye swells. If the disease is allowed to progress the cornea is exposed.
Treating the disease.
A.Precautions. It has been said above that this disease is infectious. Therefore no-one should use the towel of someone suffering from that disease. If there is a child agt school with eye disease it should be reported by the teacher to the school committee. The committee will summon the nurse or the doctor. That child should not be permitted to dry his face with the towel used by the other pupils. If a person goes to hui they should take their own towel. But one does not know the condition of other people’s eyes. Keep the house clean so that it will not be inflicted with the disease. Brush your teeth.
B. Medication. The Maori way of fighting this disease is to rush to get some medicine. The important thing is to prevent it. If a person gets the disease they should go to the nurse, if there is one in the area, or to the doctor if there is one nearby. Go quickly and do not delay. If there is no doctor or nurse then try this. Wash your hands in hot water until thoroughly clean. Pour some boiling water into a cup. Take one teaspoon of Boracic Acid Powder and stir it into the hot water. Stir it until the powder can no longer be seen. Leave the liquid until it is cold. Have a person with clean hands dip a very clean feather from a bird in the liquid and drip it drop by drop into the eye while you are lying down. Do this in the morning, at mid-day, and in the evening. Boracic Acid can be found in all stores. If the diseased eye is particularly painful in the light then go and lie down in the house with the blinds drawn [windows darkened]. The doctor may give you atropine drops to put in both eyes if the disease has reached the stage of pus. For now you must go to the doctor for it is beyond the ability of inexpert hands to drip medicine into the eye.
It will now be clear to you that eye disease is a dangerous and infectious disease. The eye is one of the ‘flowers’ of a person. Make every effort to protect it. Protect it well.
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MEASLES
T Wi Repa MB, ChB
This is an infectious disease. However, the law does not require it to be reported to the Department of Health. Most children who live in towns get this disease and it has not been completely eradicated from towns. Children living in villages far from towns rarely get this disease. This is a virulent disease but it particularly affects children under five. Measles does not kill people, but the major illnesses that follow the path that it has cleared do. There are two kinds of this illness. The first is English Measles. This is the kind that affects most frequently the children of the towns of this country. Once a child or adult has had it they will not get it again. The second kind is German Measles. This kind is not very serious. It frequently affects people. In 1903, 9150 adults and also children were infected. Amongst those who died 941 were children under the age of five. In the years 1893 to 1903, 10,709 adults and children died [?ia tau, ia tau – each year]. This is a disease of the children, But it does attack adults who have not had it when they were children and it can be very serious. These figures are from England.
The coming of [Rewharewha – Epidemic Sickness cf Williams].
I think it is measles which is called ‘rewharewha.’ Measles afflicted our elders when they first came into close contact with Pakeha. They were afflicted and as a result the people of Te Waipounamu were carried off to the afterlife. But I am not well-informed about that visitation. The reason why that illness was so severe was that people rushed into cold water to combat the heat. The result was that they died of pneumonia. In 1875 the man-o-war HMS Dido sailed from Sydney to Fiji. They carried that sickness, measles, to those islands. Within four months 40,000 Fijians of a population of 150,000 had died. In 1846 measles broke out on the small islands to the north of Norway. They are known as the Faroe Islands. At one fell swoop all the people of those islands died. Therefore I say that the disease was a ‘rewharewha,’ an epidemic.
Of the infectious diseases of this group, those that bring out spots (Red skin), this is the third most dangerous to people. But it is not only dangerous in itself but also because it introduces other diseases to the lungs. This is the illness that particularly affects children at this stage of human growth. From six to eight children in one hundred die when they are taken urgently into the hospitals. The cause of the illness is not known – whether it is germs or some other cause like other diseases. However, experts are still seeking the cause.
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They have great hopes of discovering the cause so that a medicine can be found to ward it off, or to facilitate a rapid recovery if one has the disease. The poison that causes the illness is not carried on the breath but in the nasal discharge, the spittle, and the phlegm of the sick person. If it is dry it hangs in the dust of the house or the room and is sucked in by the healthy man nearby. This is a way in which a person gets this disease. The thing to remember is this: THE TIME WHEN THE DISEASE IS INFECTIOUS IS BEFORE THE SPOTS APPEAR AND THE SKIN REDDENS.
The coming of [Rewharewha – Epidemic Sickness cf Williams].
I think it is measles which is called ‘rewharewha.’ Measles afflicted our elders when they first came into close contact with Pakeha. They were afflicted and as a result the people of Te Waipounamu were carried off to the afterlife. But I am not well-informed about that visitation. The reason why that illness was so severe was that people rushed into cold water to combat the heat. The result was that they died of pneumonia. In 1875 the man-o-war HMS Dido sailed from Sydney to Fiji. They carried that sickness, measles, to those islands. Within four months 40,000 Fijians of a population of 150,000 had died. In 1846 measles broke out on the small islands to the north of Norway. They are known as the Faroe Islands. At one fell swoop all the people of those islands died. Therefore, I say that the disease was a ‘rewharewha,’ an epidemic.
Of the infectious diseases of this group, those that bring out spots (Red skin), this is the third most dangerous to people. But it is not only dangerous in itself but also because it introduces other diseases to the lungs. This is the illness that particularly affects children at this stage of human growth. From six to eight children in one hundred die when they are taken urgently into the hospitals. The cause of the illness is not known – whether it is germs or some other cause like other diseases. However, experts are still seeking the cause.
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They have great hopes of discovering the cause so that a medicine can be found to ward it off, or to facilitate a rapid recovery if one has the disease. The poison that causes the illness is not carried on the breath but in the nasal discharge, the spittle, and the phlegm of the sick person. If it is dry it hangs in the dust of the house or the room and is sucked in by the healthy man nearby. This is a way in which a person gets this disease. The thing to remember is this: THE TIME WHEN THE DISEASE IS INFECTIOUS IS BEFORE THE SPOTS APPEAR AND THE SKIN REDDENS.
The Symptoms of the Disease.
If someone is in contact with the person suffering from the illness and they return home well, it is possible that they may go down with the illness within seven to eighteen days. Once that time has gone by they will know that they do not have the disease. This time is known by the experts as the ‘planting time’ or the ‘waiting time’ - the incubation period of the disease. If measles take hold as they did last winter one will quickly recognise the symptoms. Therefore, I will leave this section of our article lest it become too long. We are all familiar with the measles.
The Serious Illnesses that Accompany Measles.
This is a list of the serious illnesses that can follow measles. These are those that account for the dead who have been brought down by a severe attack of measles.
1. Laryngitis (the breath is obstructed).
2. Bronchitis and Broncho-Pneumonia (the breathing is obstructed).
3. Lobar Pneumonia (again the breathing is obstructed).
4. Nephritis (the kidneys are damaged).
5. Tuberculosis.
Treatment of the Disease.
The sick person must go to bed. Bear in mind the many serious illnesses that can follow an attack of measles. The room should be light and the windows open. Give the patient a purgative. Epsom salts is best. All stores stock this. Feed the patient soft foods such as cornflour, arrowroot, or rice, cooked in milk. Orange juice and lemon juice are acceptable drinks. They should take a warm bath every night. If the patient’s temperature continues to rise rapidly, wipe their skin with a cloth that has been dipped in warm water. If the spots are slow to appear, drinking warm water or bathing in warm water will speed up their emergence. Coughing is a strong indication of measles. Stores sell a medicine called ‘Ipecacuanha Wine.’ Instructions for use are on the bottle. Baking Soda is a useful medicine for getting rid of phlegm. Use one teaspoonful in two cups of
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water. It can be sweetened with a tablespoon of sugar and taken every four hours. It is even better to mix it with honey. Although the patient’s temperature may go down quickly they should stay in bed for a further four days. While the skin is peeling the body should be wiped with Camphorated Oil, Salad Oil, or Olive Oil. Not with Carbolic Oil lest people forget to wash their hands and find themselves poisoned two weeks later. Parents should be very careful. This is a time of weakness, It is the time when serious illnesses can develop. If the illness is severe then call a doctor. But if there is a doctor near you it is best to call him when the disease first strikes,
TANGOIO CHURCH
For many years people have been talking of a church for Tangoio. There were many elders alive when the matter was first raised. Most of those elders have died and those remaining have been diverted by subsequent events. Those promoting the church at this time are the young people. But they have within their hearts the strong spirit of their parents. The children are fulfilling the dying wishes of their parents Seven hundred pounds has been contributed during the past ten years or more. The money has been sent to the Diocesan Office in Napier for safe-keeping. Now this amount has grown to £900. The cost of the completed church will be £1,200.
Work is being done on the church now. It is being built in brick.
One of the new features of the building is the greenstone corner-stone. It is nearly one hundred years since the stone was brought by canoe from Arahura in Te Waipounamu to Kai-arero (Petane). That treasure belonged to the ancestors of Hami Tutu. While he was alive he gave that treasure to the minister, Bennett, for him to care for it, as a valued addition to the church when it should be built. Most of the money for the church was also the gift of Hami Tutu. Hami has died but his spirit lives on and the hopes and the plans of that elder are being fulfilled at this time. Hami asked that the building be erected as a memorial to the soldiers, Maori and Pakeha, who participated in the recent Great War.
This building is being erected as an expression of love. Therefore, Te Toa Takitini prays that we of the country will indeed be a ‘takitini,’ a large company, in our support of this sacred treasure which is being built. More information will follow.
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TOROHI-RAUMATI
T Wi Repa, MB, ChB.
This name, ‘Torohi Raumati,’ is my Maori translation of the English name, ‘Summer Diarrhoea.’ Summer is coming and this is the common sickness at this time of year. Of the many sicknesses of children, Pakeha or Maori, this is the most frequent one. Of the sicknesses which cause the deaths of one-year-olds, and decreasingly of adults, this is the dominant one. Summer is the time when this illness particularly affects children. Therefore the sickness is called ‘Summer Diarrhoea’ because diarrhoea is common in children at that time of year. Women who have grown up with this sickness know all about it. In London there are nearly ten million people. Every year 4000 children under the age of one die; most of them are the children of the poor. In our country of New Zealand this sickness took the lives of 57 children in 1925. Most of the children who died of ‘summer diarrhoea’ were bottle-fed. Of the one hundred children suffering from this sickness who were taken to Great Ormond Street Hospital for Sick Children every year, ninety-six were being fed with a bottle. Four children in one hundred suffering from ‘summer diarrhoea’ were being suckled by their mothers. The season in which the sickness occurred was usually the summer. The higher the temperatures went, so the power of the sickness to afflict children increased. August is the most dangerous month for the sickness in London. It is January and February for us. In London, if the temperature rose to 100 degrees Fahrenheit there were 550 deaths; if it went down to 90 degrees the number of deaths fell to 450; and if it fell to 50 degrees, 25 died. Therefore, you women should be aware that the months of high temperatures that lie before you are dangerous months for babies that are fed with the bottle. One reason why this is the case is that milk goes off quickly in the heat. The milk deteriorates in the cans, in the bottles and also in the breast.
The cause of this deterioration is bacteria like those mentioned in connection with the first illnesses I spoke of first. But these bacteria belong to different families. There are many different sorts that cause putrefaction, that make milk go off, It is not clearly understood which of those bacteria cause ‘summer diarrhoea.’
The contamination of the food is the main source of this sickness along with the bacteria. Much food is taken, the stomach is overwhelmed, the child becomes ill and vomits. As the stomach feels bad after so much food the bacteria invade with all their strength to help the sickness to spread.
Something that facilitates this sickness is leaving the child in the meeting house where it is hot, there is no fresh air, the air is stale, and one is breathless.
(To be continued,)
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