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apprised of this, returned in haste, to find both parties already on the ground. One of the chiefs, seeing him ride up, determined not to be frustrated again, stepped forward and fired, killing his man. The fire was returned, and during the day, three were killed on one side, and two on the other, besides many wounded. Mr. Williams himself, with Mr. Hopkins Clarke, narrowly escaped, having been covered by a party who were just about to fire, but found their mistake in time.
Blood having been once shed, the whole district was being rapidly drawn in. There is no escape from relationship in Maoridom, even to the fortieth degree. The bitterness became intense; a general infatuation prevailed, and a day was fixed for a general engagement, a pitched battle, the result of which would have been, to plunge the North into irremediable conflict.
The eve of the appointed day had come; at daylight in the morning the fight was to commence. But suddenly, passion was stayed, arrested in mid-course. The word had been passed round, on either side, that Te Wiremu was dead.
On the eighth of July, he had transacted business with Matthew Taupaki and Renata, native ministers, who had come up to take instructions about Kaitaia. Three days later, much depressed at the folly of the natives, he felt illness coming on. Dr. Ford was called in, and remained three days. On the sixteenth he left, not apprehending any serious result. So little apprehension of immediate danger was there, that all the sons, in accordance with their father's wish, were away among the combatants, seeking to persuade them into peace. But his own words to the doctor were--"I hope this may be the last time you may have to visit me. I am weary of this life; I long to be with my Saviour."
No pronounced ailment was discoverable, but the force of life was exhausted. In his weakness, his thoughts reverted to the treatment he had suffered, and the words "cruel, it was cruel," would from time to time escape his lips. On the evening of that day he was seized with a fainting fit, and in less than a quarter of an hour he fell asleep without a struggle, so gently and quietly that none could tell the exact moment when he ceased to breathe.
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The natives were paralysed: naku i mate ai a Te Wiremu, said Haratua; 1 "I have killed Te Wiremu." Four chiefs immediately left the pa to act as mourners; Haratua gave orders that his people should confine themselves strictly to the defensive; time was gained for angry passion to subside, and peace was at length effected, a large party from Hokianga acting as mediators. 2
The description of the peace-making is given in Mr. Henry Williams' words:--
The ceremony was a very interesting one. At nine o'clock in the morning, Haratua's people issued out of their pa, headed by Abraham Taonui, with a white flag. On arriving at the battle field Taonui took out his Testament, and read appropriate texts of Scripture, concluding with "Blessed are the peace-makers, for they shall be called the children of God." He then bid them all kneel down, while he offered up a prayer for a blessing on the work of the day. Then he marched them up to the Uritaniwha pa, where the two forces met,--between five and six hundred,--the largest number of armed men assembled in the district since Heke's war.
They first had the war dance, with every demonstration of defiance, one for the other; and as they stood confronting each other, Taonui again took his Testament, read as before, then made them all kneel down together, and again prayed for a blessing on the work. After this they sat down and made speeches for several hours, each side presenting the other with valuable peace offerings. Then came the kai, and later in the day they might be seen at the tangi, crying as if their hearts would break over the dead they had slain. 3
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Bred up and inured to war, in death itself, as in maturer life, Henry Williams had been still "The Peace-maker." 4
"Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them."
Of worldly gear he left but little behind; yet bequeathed to his family a rich heritage,--the memory of himself. To shew how dearly that was prized, the story must be carried a few years onwards.
It will be remembered that when Henry Williams was driven from Paihia, he took refuge at Pakaraka, where his sons were established, farming their own land. His first care was to build a church, wherein he might continue to officiate; for although ecclesiastical relations between himself and the Bishop were held to remain undisturbed, in reality he had no longer foot-hold upon his proper ground. He refused to permit the building of a house for himself until a fitting place of worship should be provided, saying with David,--"I will not go up into the tabernacle of my house, until I find out a place for the temple of the Lord, an habitation for the mighty God of Jacob."
After ten months' service in the barn, a church was opened, small, but so planned as to form a chancel to a larger edifice which he intended, but never had means to build. His intention was taken up, in the form of a memorial to himself. The old church was removed, converted by Mrs. Williams into a Maori hostel for natives who might come from a distance to service, and a building put up in its place, which is at least most creditable to a mere out-lying district in a colony. The church was opened by the Bishop of Auckland, November 27, 1873.
The following account is taken from the Auckland Church Gazette:--
PAKARAKA, BAY OF ISLANDS.--On the 27th of November last, Trinity Church, at Pakaraka, founded by Archdeacon Henry
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Williams, and built by his family, was formally opened by the Bishop of Auckland. There were present, the Bishop of Waiapu, the Archdeacon of Waimate, the Rev. Matthew Taupaki, the Rev. Reuben Paerata, about four hundred natives, and about one hundred and fifty Europeans.
Before narrating the proceedings of the day, the history of Pakaraka Church must be traced back, in few words, to its commencement. In this wise was the building of it brought about:--
Forty-one years ago, Mr. Henry Williams was returning from one of those many voyages which he made to the South, in the hope of putting an end to the war which was being waged between Ngapuhi and Tauranga. The vessel was unseaworthy; one of those old fashioned craft, spoken of as being built by the mile and cut off by the yard, as required. When nearing Cape Colville, they were caught in a gale, so violent that they had to take in sail, and drift. It was an iron-bound coast, with rocks and small islands scattered up and down. Night came on, so thick, that they could not see the length of the vessel; the gale raged harder than ever, bringing before them, to use Mr. Williams' own words, shipwreck in its worst form. When the day broke, they were able to make out the hazy loom of high land close on the lee-beam. Making what sail she could bear, they stood on endeavouring to weather the point, but of this it soon appeared there was no hope. The master gave orders to wear the ship, which had missed stays repeatedly during the previous day. But for this manoeuvre there was no room; it would have been certain destruction. Mr. Williams, who had been for many years a naval officer in the service, assumed the command, countermanded the order, took the helm, watched a smooth of the sea, and put the vessel in stays. For the first time, unexpectedly by all, himself included, she came round, and in a short time was the inexpressible relief of leaving the rocks in her wake. Nothing could have saved them had they struck; the deliverance was felt to be providential.
But that dark night had awakened anxious thought,--how the family was to be provided for should the father be called away. The Church Missionary Society could not accept the charge; the neighbouring convict colonies were not to be thought of; but it was possible to earn a livelihood out of the soil of the land in which they lived. In the course of the ensuing year Mr. Williams effected his first purchase from the natives, and, after setting aside one-tenth of both land and stock as an endowment for a church, handed over the rest unreservedly to his children. The sons laboured hard, and prospered accordingly.
* * * * * *
At 9 a.m. on the day already mentioned, Maori service was held, when the assembled natives were addressed by the Bishop of Auckland. He drew especial attention to the immediate object of
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the meeting, attributing the largeness of the attendance to the reverence in which the late Archdeacon's name was held among them; and reminded the Maories of some of the more striking features of his character, especially of his fearlessness of consequences in the discharge of what he believed to be his duty. "He feared God, and therefore had nothing else to fear."
At noon, European service, read by Archdeacon Clarke and the Bishop of Auckland. The Bishop of Waipu preached from Isaiah XXXV., I,--"The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them; and the desert shall rejoice and blossom as the rose," making one touching allusion to his brother's work, but evidently afraid to trust himself with more.
The processional chant (Psalm XXIV.) for the entry of the clergy, the Venite, the proper Psalms for an opening service (LXXXIV., CXXII., CXXXII.), the Te Deum, Benedictus, Farrant's anthem--"Lord, for Thy tender mercies sake," the Kyrie, and the Nicene Creed, were sung by the Pakaraka choir, consisting entirely of members of the founder's family, with a precision and accuracy of intonation that left nothing to desire; the result of systematic training, and unsparing reproof of the most trifling inaccuracy. Moreover, that unity of feeling and purpose, which is in chaunting so especially necessary to success, were there in high degree.
The collection amounted to £18 from the Maori, and £40 10s. from the English congregation.
After the second service, Maories and Europeans were entertained in the old English style, ample accommodation having been provided in the grounds attached to Mrs. Williams' house. In the evening a musical party was given in the house of Mr. John Williams, the member for the county; and thus ended a day characterized by perfect unanimity of feeling, and by one prevailing thought,-- how to do most honour to the memory of that patriarch who now sleeps the sleep of the just in the graveyard of Trinity Church.
THE MAORI MONUMENT.
The Memorial Church was built almost entirely from European funds. But the natives determined to take up the question of remembrance for themselves. Their means were small, but the good-will was there.
Matthew Taupaki, the Maori minister at Paihia, took the lead. Refusing to admit European contribution, he organised a gathering of Maori subscriptions over the whole of the Northern Island. A memorial window was suggested; but the natives, practical men, opined that glass might break, and determined in favour of a stone cross, in the Churchyard.
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The site had to be determined. Henry Williams lay interred at Pakaraka, to which he had been driven from his old home; but his thought during the latter years of life, had never been far away from the main scene of his early work, which his expulsion had only made more dear. For want of the master mind, it was falling from its high estate. 5 He had tried hard to acquire the property by purchase or otherwise, with the view of dedicating the whole to the Maori Church, but was not allowed. Paihia was therefore chosen as the standing-place of the memorial stone; although to the last, some of the natives found difficulty in realising the idea of a "cenotaph,"--a monument to one buried elsewhere. The tupapaku and the kohatu, they said, should have been together.
The Kawakawa natives had chartered the "Black Diamond" steamer to carry them down; the "Iona" brought up the Bishop, with visitors from Auckland. Shortly before noon, a cluster of women ranged themselves on Horotutu Point, began the tawhiri [beckon], a welcome to the hui, about four hundred strong, which advanced in a compact body from the Ti. Altogether about eight hundred, including Europeans, were on the ground.
The Paihia memorial stone may be taken as a counterpart to that which had been set up by the Government, on the opposite side of the water, to Thomas Walker Nene, our staunch friend and fighting ally, when British sovereignty, to hazard a bold expression, came so near to being driven into the sea: the Maori tribute to the Englishman; that of the English to the Maori, betokening the long endurance of good feeling between two races which are not likely ever to amalgamate.
On the 11th of January, 1876, the monument was unveiled, in the presence of the Bishop of Auckland, Mr. Edward Clarke, successor to Henry Williams in the Archdeaconry of Waimate, nine of the Maori clergy, and all the countryside.
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On the four sides are the following inscriptions:--
He
WHAKAMAHARATANGA
MO
TE WIREMU
He tohu aroha ki a ia na te
HAHI MAORI.
He tino matua ia ki nga iwi katoa,
He tangata toa ki te hohou rongo i roto i nga riri Maori.
E 44 nga tau i rui ai ia i te Rongo Pai ki tenei motu.
I tae mai ia i te tau 1823.
I tangohia atu i te tau 1867.
IN LOVING MEMORY
of
HENRY WILLIAMS,
44 years a preacher of the Gospel of Peace,
A father of the tribes,
This monument is raised by the
MAORI CHURCH.
He came to us in 1823,
He was taken from us in 1867. 6
Nga iwi na ratou i whakatu tenei kohatu ko
NGAPUHI, NGATIRAUKAWA,
TE RARAWA, NGATIKAHUNGUNU,
TE AUPOURI, NGATIPOROU,
NGATIMARU.
The tribes who raised this monument are
NGAPUHI, NGATIRAUKAWA,
TE RARAWA, NGATIKAHUNGUNU,
TE AUPOURI, NGATIPOROU,
NGATIMARU.
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At a signal from the Bishop of Auckland, the monument was unveiled. On the lifting of the veil, the Bay of Islands choir sang the chorus from Mendelssohn's St. Paul, "How lovely are the Messengers that bring us the Gospel of Peace." Then the Bishop addressed the assemblage, Archdeacon Clarke interpreting:--
Maori Friends,--I am glad to have been able to accept your invitation for to-day; for though I had not the privilege of knowing the late Archdeacon personally, as many of you had, none of you have a greater reverence for his memory than I have. Such men as he was do not need monuments of stone to keep them in our memory; but it is well, for the sake of those who come after us, to erect the memorials. We are told that "the righteous shall be held in everlasting remembrance:" their right doing shall leave behind permanent results, to be seen of many long after they themselves have gone to their rest, It is fifty-three years since Archdeacon Williams took up his residence at this place; and as a visible result of the Church's work, in which he was a pioneer, and took a principal part for many years, there are the nine Maori clergymen who stand beside me to-day, eight of them belonging to this Archdeaconry. But it is not only for his work as an evangelist that we revere the memory of the Archdeacon. It is also because he possessed, in an eminent degree, two virtues which are specially honoured by Englishmen, namely, courage and honesty,--virtues which are rarely found apart in any high degree. They are essential to the truly Christian character; and I trust that this monument, erected by Maori tribes, will be one means of reminding the inhabitants of this district, both Europeans and natives, that if they would be like the father of the Church at Paihia, and if they would be like the Master he served, they must prove themselves courageous and honest.
The Reverend Matthew Taupaki then rose, and delivered an excellent speech, recapitulating the services of Henry Williams during the whole of his New Zealand career. 7
Mr. Edward Marsh Williams, as representative of the family, expressed their thanks to the Maori; the Bishop dismissed the assembly with the benediction, and the natives returned to the Ti, where ample provision had been made for them.
We have been confronted, in this volume, by the Janus Bifrons, 8 but of two very different complexions. Bishop Selwyn, after
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doing good service in the war, both with the troops and with natives, for which he was most unfairly assailed, returned to England, for translation to an English See. Great in everything, even in his faults; and every inch a man. His deficiencies, such as they were, lay hidden from common view behind the display of manifest strength. But he knew not how to measure his force; he strained the bow of authority till it broke in his hands, and the shaft fell harmless at his feet. Even his own judgment was overmastered by the force of his own will, causing undue carelessness about means, when once he had satisfied himself that his end was good. Of an intellect essentially robust, he lacked delicacy of perception, and was not sure to know his man. An indifferent reasoner,--for we must not do him the injustice of supposing that his faulty arguments were used in hope of the fallacy escaping notice,--incapable of perceiving the force of a logical conclusion when it stood in his way, he had what is in practice more efficient than argumentation,--a resolute, even a headstrong will, that bore no thwarting. Nor was it until he was met by a will equally resolute, that he was baulked. But he was a grand bishop; not indeed, though he has been so-called in England, a "missionary bishop," for his influence with the natives was never much; 9 but as the head of the Church of England in New Zealand. Able, moreover, in spite of will, to profit by experience, he rose in estimation towards the last, and, excepting at his coming, was never so popular as when he left. We have to thank him for Church endowments, to which he has been himself no mean contributor; for an organised system of Church government in the Colony; and, not least, I take the liberty to say, for the nomination of Dr. Cowie, his excellent and efficient successor. Held in high respect and kind remembrance, even by those whom he had aggrieved, he can afford to leave unnoticed those puny whipsters in England who seek to win
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notoriety for themselves by persistently girding at the Bishop of Lichfield.
Of his fellow-actor I care not to say more than I can help. Non ragionam di lui. Years ago I compared the two, likening the one to the Homeric Odysseus, cast in heroic mould; the other to the Virgilian Ulysses. There is nothing to add to the description, or to take away. He is harmless now. Ignored by both political parties in England, Liberal as well as Tory, he has lapsed into advocacy of the rights of man. About this I have nothing to observe, having accustomed myself to pay more regard to the duties of man.
A few words concerning my own treatment of his proceedings are called for. I have not sought to deal hardly by him. If any one should think that enough reserve has not been used, be it remembered that I am engaged for the defence,--employed in vindicating another from his own most cruel attacks. I have sought to confine myself, so far as possible, to statement of facts, in avoidance of comment. This Memoir is open to challenge; I expect and hope it. If it can be shewn that I have in any wise done him wrong, I shall be found ready to offer the amplest amends, having care to make the reparation more widely known than the offence. The first impulse of a gentleman is to acknowledge and atone for error, unwittingly committed. But I am able to declare to the pains that have been taken, by unsparing labour and minute research, to avoid it.
THE END.
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