1863 - Hodder, Edwin. Memories of New Zealand Life. 2nd ed. - THE TARANAKI WAR

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THE TARANAKI WAR.

THE origin of the war is made ostensibly to hinge upon a very small and trivial matter. Early in March, 1859, a block of about 600 acres of land was offered for sale by a native, named Te Teira, who surrendered it in the presence of the Governor and a large assembly of natives, amongst whom was Wiremu Kingi, a chief of great power and influence.

Kingi opposed the sale of the land, alleging that the right to sell it was vested in himself and others, who were determined not to give it up. Te Teira persisted that the land was his by an indisputable title. This the Governor was willing to accept. A part of the purchase-money was paid to Teira in November. Instructions were given to Mr. Parris, Assistant Land Commissioner, "to take steps to make Wiremu Kingi and his natives aware of the Governor's firm determination to complete the purchase, and that he was to set about the necessary survey; but in case of any resistance being made,

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the survey-staff was to retire, and he was to intimate to Lieutenant-Colonel Murray that the assistance of a military force was necessary, who was thereupon, agreeably to instructions he had received, to take military possession of the block of land, and the survey be prosecuted under the protection of the troops."

The survey was resisted, but only by about eighty unarmed men. Immediately a proclamation of martial law was issued, to assert the Queen's sovereign authority against natives in arms; in accordance with the provision, "Should Wiremu Kingi, or any other native, endeavour to prevent the survey, or in any way interfere with the prosecution of the work, military force should be used, martial law proclaimed, and the volunteers called out into active service." Up to this time the matter had been confined to those immediately interested in the sale and purchase of the land,--now the settlers had no option about entering into the quarrel, as all from the age of eighteen to sixty were compelled to do so, unless legally exempted.

The natives, headed by the rebel(?) Wiremu Kingi, determined not to part with the disputed land. They had no legal and peaceable means of redress through any tribunal capable of entertaining their suit, and their resistance, instead of being treasonable or rebellious, had only for its object the

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assertion and maintenance of their own right to a particular piece of land. A stockade was built upon the spot, and a pah erected on the direct road to the camp. A notice was immediately sent to them in these words:--

"To the Chief who obstructs the Queens Road.

"You have presumed to block up the Queen's road, to build on the Queen's land, and to stop the free passage of persons going and coming.

"This is levying war against the Queen! Destroy the places you have built, ask my forgiveness, and you shall receive it. If you refuse, the blood of your people be on your head.

"I shall fire upon you in twenty minutes from this time, if you have not obeyed my order.

(Signed) "T. GORE BROWNE."

"Camp, Waitara, 6th March, 1860."

Such is the ostensible cause of the war. Its real origin may, I think, be ascribed to far weightier causes.

In the Northern Island of New Zealand are the two races--British and Maori; races differing in thought, habits, and civilisation, almost as widely as it is possible, but both subject to the same sovereignty. According to the statistics of 1859, the proportion borne one to the other of the male population was 22,000 British to 30,000 natives. The land (which, be it borne in mind, is the birthright of the natives)

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is divided in the proportion of seven millions of acres to the British, and eighteen millions to the natives. The superior intelligence of the Europeans, however, has been made manifest in the selection of that division; they having the best harbours, the most accessible and commanding positions, and the best share of available land; in short, in what they have already obtained, they have had the one oyster as their share, and the natives have had the two shells.

There is one Government. The British elect their responsible ministers, and put them in office as their representatives. But these ministers have "no power to interfere with the native race, in any way, by virtue of the functions delegated to them by their constituents. They are at liberty to make suggestions, offer advice, and make laws; but with the express proviso that their counsel need not be taken, and that the laws must not have force until sanctioned by the Government at home." That Government has entered into a solemn treaty with the natives, by which, in return for their allegiance, it guarantees to them its protection and support; yet, practically, they have never, as a body, been under our law. Had they been allowed a separate council--a competent tribunal for the investigation of their rights and liberties, and a local self-government, invested with powers similar in kind to those of the British--

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the footing upon which they stood would have been more intelligible to them; or, even had the settlers been allowed to legislate for and with them, and been intrusted with their interests, their position as British subjects would have been better understood. As it has been, the Governors, as representatives of the Government, have had to make promises which they have been unable to perform--to use threats which they had no power to enforce--in short, their position with the natives has been, that "their authority was not real, but merely nominal; that they governed merely by sufferance, and had to connive at what they were afraid to punish." The paternal relationship of the Governors to the Maories has been impaired greatly by the growth of representative government. No chief has yet stood for a seat in the Assembly, and it is not, therefore, with an altogether unreasonable jealousy that they have watched the increased organization of the colonists, knowing, too, that their natural guardians have been shorn of much of their power in reference to themselves.

The obligations due to her Majesty, and allegiance to her sovereignty, have been myths and mazes in the native mind which they have never clearly understood. They have not comprehended their position as British subjects, nor the relationship in which they have stood to the Government; and have

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imagined that there has been a law for the white man and a law for the Maori, when they should have been "all the same as one,"--nor has this been altogether without foundation.

By dwelling upon this idea they have at length come to regard the Government as their enemy; they have seen the land, once indisputably their own, pass from their possession; they have watched the rapid ascendency of the British race, and eyed with a jealous eye the improvements and alterations wrought by the white man; finally, they have seen their own race fast losing power, and rapidly dying away,--and the present war has followed as a last struggle for deliverance from the foreign yoke, from which they have derived immeasurable advantages, but which they now regard with suspicion, and are desirous of expelling for ever.

The desire to revenge what they deem injustice, and to free themselves from a power which treats them, in their own land, as alien and intrusive, is partly the result of their educational training. They are, for the most part, good Biblical scholars, and are wont to regard the Old Testament histories as applicable to themselves. The wars of Israel, and the deliverances which were wrought for them, they take as typical of their own state. Gideon, for instance, represents their chiefs, and the Midianites the British. Confident in their own powers--for

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there is scarcely a boundary to their conceit--they vainly imagine that in the end they must come off victorious. Nor is their patriotism fostered by Biblical history alone; the knowledge they have acquired in British history has exerted a great influence over them. They love to talk of the wars Englishmen have fought against the world in defence of their native land--treasure up in their minds the watchwords for battle which they have used--and argue, that if the British have gained such wonderful victories, sometimes against overwhelming armies, why should not they, who have been incorporated into that nation, and been instructed in the use of their arms and modes of warfare, do the same.

It is not to be supposed that such a people can form any clear idea of their own relative strength; all they perceive is, that man to man they are equal, if not superior, to our soldiers. They have their own system of warfare, coupled with an astonishing proficiency in the arts of war as practised by the British, and are naturally endued with a strong warlike spirit.

Many causes have tended to foster in the imagination of these unfortunate people the idea that the aim of the Government is to secure all their land, and to drive them off, one by one, until the whole should be absorbed and they for ever exterminated.

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They saw the increasing European population, the establishment of soldiery, and the encouragement given to volunteer rifle corps. "Their frequent inquiry was, 'Why all this preparation? Why should every settler be made to bear arms, except it be to exterminate the Maories?' And again and again was the question put--'How much the Governor make a pay to you to fight the Maories for their land? You don't want land; you plenty land; the Governor want land!' No explanation would satisfy them, or remove the fears they entertained. Could the natives stand still and see all this preparation for war without feeling that in the future there was a dark and terrible ultimatum for them? They knew nothing of the white man's more than questionable policy, 'That the best way to promote peace is to be prepared for war.' Their history and experience taught them that preparation was ever the antecedent of ruthless, bloody, and unsparing war." 1

Hence arose the King Movement and the Land League; the former as a protection against any encroachments upon their rights by the Europeans, and the latter to preserve to themselves, as a people, all the land still remaining in their possession. It is but just to the Maories to admit that there is every excuse for them in desiring a King. They have consistently put forward the inefficient administration of

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English law in their villages; and the necessity of checking the bloody land-feuds among themselves, more than any direct re-action against the sovereignty of the Queen, was the original motive for this innovation, although, as events have increased and fresh causes for distrust have arisen, it has practically resulted in a determination to ignore the authority of British government altogether.

The King Movement had its origin in rahter a singular manner. "William Thompson Tarapipipi, principal chief of Ngatihana, a man of high rank in Maori society, and son of te Waharoa, a renowned warrior of the last generation, waw its chief promoter. Thompson, in conversation with a friend, expressed his great admiration of some of our usages, and especially of the manner in which justice is administered in our Courts. His friend replied, 'E tomo koe i raro i aku huha.' (Your path is through underneath my thighs.) He inquired the meaning of this strong figure, and received for reply, 'Me rapu koe.' (Search it out.) He thought, he pondered, and at length arrived at the conclusion that it must point to oppression and slavery. 'That path,' he reasoned, 'is the path of dogs only; then are we to be treated like dogs? Does the Pakeha intend to put us beneath his feet? But he shall not be permitted.' And he resolved on devising some means to preserve himself and countrymen from the degradation thus figuratively

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described." The statement is given as it is commonly related in Maori circles. Whether the idea of setting up a King was suggested to his mind by the events already alluded to, or whether it originated with himself, does not appear; but this idea was adopted, and he began to work it out. "We want order and law," said he; "the King could give us these better than the Governor, for the Governor has never done anything except when a Pakeha (white man) was killed."

The King Movement and Land League, once originated, soon became popular, and the unfortunate dispute about Te Teira's land in the Waitara was the occasion to try them. The colonial Government took possession of that block of land without lawful authority. Wiremu Kingi and his people had no option as to their mode of procedure; there was no tribunal to which they could appeal; they were determined to maintain their position against the aggressive Government, and hence the quarrel, which commenced with the assertion of Wiremu Kingi's mana, or tribal right and authority to a few paltry acres, has resolved itself into a question of British or Maori supremacy in the Northern Island of New Zealand. King Potatau v. Queen Victoria; Barbarism v. Civilization.

And what, as yet, have been the results of this unequal contest? For eighteen months the natives

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held at bay all the force that was brought against them; they attacked our strongholds with bravery and daring; they drove away the settlers from the outlying districts--plundered and burned their homesteads--drove off their cattle in the sight--yea, under the very noses--of the troops, and retreated when they felt so disposed into the fastnesses of the Bush, enriched with plunder, where our men could not follow. There they planted potatoes, continued their ordinary occupations, and returned to the prosecution of the war at their own convenience.

In the meantime how has it fared with us? The flourishing settlement of Taranaki has been reduced to a mere citadel; rank weeds and charred wood alone mark the spots where numbers of smiling, happy homes once formed picturesque villages; ruthless, cold-blooded murders have been committed, and have remained unpunished; the old men, women, and children were peremptorily sent away from the island, and had to seek a refuge in Nelson; and overwhelmingly heavy expenses have been incurred by the Government.

Time and space would fail to give anything like even an epitomised history of the war; of the battles of Waitara, Waireka, Mahoetahi, Huirangi, or Matarikoriko; of the blunders occasioned by military incompetence; of the fruitless expeditions to storm empty pahs; or of the innumerable vexations and

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restraints to which our men have been subject. Nor can we enter into details of the mode of warfare, of "that which we call cunning in our enemies and art in ourselves; that which we describe as ferocity in the natives, but courage in our soldiers; or that which we deem stratagem in war, but treachery in a savage people." Losses, heavy losses, have been sustained on either side, and now a lull has come; whether it is the lull before the storm remains to be told. Hostilities have ceased long since, peace has been talked about, and terms of peace have been proposed, demanding submission to the Queen's authority, restitution of plunder, and surrender of arms, but the restrictions have never yet met with compliance, and at the present time the settlers are kept in the most anxious suspense, not knowing whether any day or hour may not bring to pass a second edition of those terrible scenes which took place at the commencement of the war.

The future of the war and the future of the natives are questions which demand grave consideration. To put down and punish rebellion is the first duty to be done; until then it is idle to talk of peace. But although two years have passed since hostilities ceased this has not been accomplished. The Maories must be brought to acknowledge and understand submission to British authority. A downright unmistakeable victory, not necessarily accompanied by great blood-

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shed, yet having a terrifying effect, must take place, which can only be determined by a force such as never yet has been gathered in New Zealand. But the war died out, without any decisive victory on either side. The natives abandoning it to increase their strength and means for hostilities when the fitting time arrived; and the Europeans abandoning it because they could not follow the natives into the Bush.

The arrival of a new governor, Sir George Grey, who formerly possessed almost unbounded influence over the natives, would, it was fondly hoped, be the means of settling the questions at issue, and result in a lasting and well-grounded peace. But these hopes have not yet been realised, nor in the present aspect of affairs does there appear much probability that this will be the case. It is a mistaken idea to imagine that it is enough merely to show them that Maori sovereignty can never be established; it must convince them by the power of a strong arm--which is the only power they will acknowledge--that British authority is a reality; and that if they wish to continue in existence as a people, they must submit to its authority. If half measures continue to be adopted, war, overt or covert, will always be the normal condition of affairs in New Zealand until the race dies out.

"On the action taken by the Government now will depend the fate of the settlers of the Northern Island

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for many years to come, whether they shall undergo a certain amount of suffering in the long-run. And not only consider the interests of the Europeans, but also the real interests of the Maori race. In our hands, to a great extent, is committed the welfare of that race, and we are all anxious to make a last effort to save them from drifting into rebellion, and to their own destruction. I have no doubt that it is for their interest, as well as ours, that we should take a firm and decided stand; by putting off the evil day, we shall make it worse when it does come upon us." 2

Then, when the evil day has passed, and the war has terminated in a satisfactory issue, the policy which will have to be adopted towards the Maori nation must be something wholly dissimilar to that which has already been in force. Common sense tells us, and events have abundantly proved, that imposing on the natives any form of government, to be worked in any way we please, will not do. Hitherto they have, practically, not been under our law as a body. If they are to be brought within its pale, they must have the benefit of its institutions, and be induced to give their active and intelligent co-operation, in order to work out their own social and political position, in union with the settlers.

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We leave New Zealand with a dark, heavy cloud hanging gloomily over it. "Whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap," is true in principle with regard to a nation, as to an individual. Perhaps the causes of the present unhappy disturbances which darken the silvery horizon of New Zealand's prosperity may be traced back to times almost lost in the past--in which our countrymen have not acted the true and honourable part of professedly Christian Englishmen--perhaps to more recent times, in which selfishness, the bane of a young colony, has obliterated the mark that bounds moral rectitude, and has gone beyond its limits. And who knows whether the misery occasioned by the clangour of war echoing through these once peaceful islands may not be the harvest of the seed that has been thus sown?

Be it as it may, the issue is in the hands of God. The future is only known to Him. Still we can look forward with hope to years of peace and tranquillity, when Maori and European will regard each other as brethren, and one common law of right be as freely the refuge of one as the other.

We can look forward to New Zealand rising higher and higher in moral grandeur and commercial importance, until she attains the eminence to which her position gives a title--"The Queen of the South."