This genealogical table will take you from Jean and Peter Bell to the latest generation in the family of Mac and Pat Bell. Then, one-by-one the same will be done for each of the others. Only names appear on this chart. A full descendant list of Jean Waireti can be provided upon request with birth, marriage and death dates as I have them, and any other genealogical records you might be interested in. Some may need correcting and you may have information that needs to be added. Please check the information and email me at dwbell18@gmail.com for any additions and corrections to be made. I am reluctant to put detailed lists out on the blog because of privacy concerns, but I can send full copies to you personally if wanted. The primary purpose of these simplified charts is to help us all to know our immediate whanau, especially the rising generation.
Bell Family 1: Peter McGruther Bell and Patricia Thirza Brown
Jean Waireti Ormsby McGruther+Peter Leslie Absolum Bell
___________________________I_____________________
I I I I I I I
I Colin Walter Glenda David Maurice Stewart Jan
I
Peter (Mac)+Patricia Thirza Brown
________I__________________________________________________
I I I I
Denise+Barry Blyde Kelvin+Rachel Karen+Peter Yates I
_____I_____ _____I ________ __I_______________ I
I I I I I I I I I I
Halie Heath Dennon Shane Olivia Jaime Clayton Darcy Wade I
____________________I
I
Leslie (Bully)+ Re'nee
______________ I_____________
I I I
Reid Anton Blair
Desendants of Mac and Pat 16
Male descendants 11
female descendants 5
Grandchildren 9
Total individuals counting spouses 22
Wednesday, 31 July 2013
Contribution
Samuel James McGruther
Our Kawhia cousin, Bella Pease, has given us some great information that we have long been missing in the family history of John (Gunny) McGruther. It's concerning his brothers Sam and Mutu whom we knew very little about. In an earlier article I referred to Sam McGruther as the 'mysterious' Sam who we thought might never have existed because so little was known about him. It appeared Mutu was well known but Sam seemed mysteriously quiet. As it turns out he was very much real and thanks to Bella the record can be put right and an important gap has been filled in.
Bella's grandmother, Iri, who was the daughter of Pera (Pohepohe) - Te Anu's sister - was a close friend and relative of Sam and as children they pretty much grew up together. In their young adult years they embarked on a holiday to the South Island together and while there Sam bought her a pair of gold-edged greenstone earrings. Some time after their return Iri lost one of the earrings at the Te Awamutu races. She kept the remaining earring and handed it down to her granddaughter, Bella. It has become a special family heirloom to be passed on to the daughters of each descending generation.
Samuel James McGruther was born at Kawhia 5 June, 1884, to Robert McGruther and Te Anu Amokawhia Pohepohe. This makes him the younger brother of our own John Honi Ruki McGruther by two years. When Robert and Te Anu separated Robert took John and went to live in Pirongia while Sam and Mutu remained in Kawhia with their mother.
Te Anu remarried to a man named French. Sam and Mutu became part of the new family and Sam became known as Sam French, which partly explains why we Pirongia Bells knew virtually nothing about him; we never knew him as Sam French. Another explanation is that our grandfather told us little to nothing about his Kawhia kin, something that seems staggeringly peculiar when we look at it from our perspective. However, we don't really know what went on during those troubled times in their lives, but reading between the lines we catch a sense that something hard and bitter must have occurred to fragment the family so permanently.
Sam left Kawhia and moved to Westport where he worked as a fitter. Westport was a coal mining town so we would suppose his occupation was mine related. He married one Mary Lucas (nee Hohepa) and they had two children, Rangi Doris (b. 1912) and Joseph Thomas Frederick (b. 1915).
On 27 February, 1916 at the age of thirty-two, Sam enlisted in the army to fight in World War One. He did his military training at Narrow Neck and was commissioned to the rank of Corporal. On July 26th he boarded the ship, Ulimaroa, bound for Devonport in England; he was probably heading for the trenches in France. Sadly, he never made it to England or France; he contracted spinal meningitis and died at sea, 7 August, 1916, less than a month after embarkation.
I feel quite troubled about poor Sam and his family. I feel even more troubled that we knew so little about him. I feel troubled that my grandfather said nothing about him and I don't even know if he mourned his death. Certainly, we Pirongia folk had no contact with him or his family prior to and after his passing. One can only imagine the grief and anguish his wife and children must have felt at the news of his death so shockingly soon after leaving for the front and I am left to wonder about his wife Mary and the children Rangi Doris and Joseph and what became of them.
Mutu McGruther remained at Kawhia but I need to gather more information about him. When I know more it will be added to the blog. He became commonly known as Mutu Pohepohe instead of McGruther. It seems that John Honi Ruki was the only one that kept the McGruther surname, the other two brothers preferring French and Pohepohe. This suggests some alienation in the family. There are also some historical whisperings about John's land holdings and money from them changing hands in mysterious ways which could have contributed to the family's fragmentation, but nothing can be said with too much certainty until more reliable information is available.
Written by David Bell
Information Contributed by Bella Pease
Sources:
1. Cenotaph Data Base, Auckland War Memorial Museum (for a full copy of his military record go online to Cenotaph Database and search for Samuel James French).
Our Kawhia cousin, Bella Pease, has given us some great information that we have long been missing in the family history of John (Gunny) McGruther. It's concerning his brothers Sam and Mutu whom we knew very little about. In an earlier article I referred to Sam McGruther as the 'mysterious' Sam who we thought might never have existed because so little was known about him. It appeared Mutu was well known but Sam seemed mysteriously quiet. As it turns out he was very much real and thanks to Bella the record can be put right and an important gap has been filled in.
Bella's grandmother, Iri, who was the daughter of Pera (Pohepohe) - Te Anu's sister - was a close friend and relative of Sam and as children they pretty much grew up together. In their young adult years they embarked on a holiday to the South Island together and while there Sam bought her a pair of gold-edged greenstone earrings. Some time after their return Iri lost one of the earrings at the Te Awamutu races. She kept the remaining earring and handed it down to her granddaughter, Bella. It has become a special family heirloom to be passed on to the daughters of each descending generation.
Samuel James McGruther was born at Kawhia 5 June, 1884, to Robert McGruther and Te Anu Amokawhia Pohepohe. This makes him the younger brother of our own John Honi Ruki McGruther by two years. When Robert and Te Anu separated Robert took John and went to live in Pirongia while Sam and Mutu remained in Kawhia with their mother.
Te Anu remarried to a man named French. Sam and Mutu became part of the new family and Sam became known as Sam French, which partly explains why we Pirongia Bells knew virtually nothing about him; we never knew him as Sam French. Another explanation is that our grandfather told us little to nothing about his Kawhia kin, something that seems staggeringly peculiar when we look at it from our perspective. However, we don't really know what went on during those troubled times in their lives, but reading between the lines we catch a sense that something hard and bitter must have occurred to fragment the family so permanently.
Sam left Kawhia and moved to Westport where he worked as a fitter. Westport was a coal mining town so we would suppose his occupation was mine related. He married one Mary Lucas (nee Hohepa) and they had two children, Rangi Doris (b. 1912) and Joseph Thomas Frederick (b. 1915).
On 27 February, 1916 at the age of thirty-two, Sam enlisted in the army to fight in World War One. He did his military training at Narrow Neck and was commissioned to the rank of Corporal. On July 26th he boarded the ship, Ulimaroa, bound for Devonport in England; he was probably heading for the trenches in France. Sadly, he never made it to England or France; he contracted spinal meningitis and died at sea, 7 August, 1916, less than a month after embarkation.
 |
| The Military record of Samuel James McGruther. Right click to enlarge. |
I feel quite troubled about poor Sam and his family. I feel even more troubled that we knew so little about him. I feel troubled that my grandfather said nothing about him and I don't even know if he mourned his death. Certainly, we Pirongia folk had no contact with him or his family prior to and after his passing. One can only imagine the grief and anguish his wife and children must have felt at the news of his death so shockingly soon after leaving for the front and I am left to wonder about his wife Mary and the children Rangi Doris and Joseph and what became of them.
Mutu McGruther remained at Kawhia but I need to gather more information about him. When I know more it will be added to the blog. He became commonly known as Mutu Pohepohe instead of McGruther. It seems that John Honi Ruki was the only one that kept the McGruther surname, the other two brothers preferring French and Pohepohe. This suggests some alienation in the family. There are also some historical whisperings about John's land holdings and money from them changing hands in mysterious ways which could have contributed to the family's fragmentation, but nothing can be said with too much certainty until more reliable information is available.
Written by David Bell
Information Contributed by Bella Pease
Sources:
1. Cenotaph Data Base, Auckland War Memorial Museum (for a full copy of his military record go online to Cenotaph Database and search for Samuel James French).
Sunday, 7 July 2013
John Hoani Honi Ruki Pohepohe McGruther
JOHN
McGRUTHER
Written by David Bell
Written by David Bell
JOHN McGRUTHER, also known by his Maori name of Hoani Ruki Hone Pohepohe, was born 16 November, 1882 at Kawhia on the western coast of New Zealand's North Island.
His mother was Te Anu Amokawhia, the daughter of Pohepohe, a prominent Maori chieftain in the Kawhia and Waipa surrounds. His father was a Scotsman named Robert McGruther who arrived in New Zealand with the British military. He was involved in the Waikato Maori-Pakeha (British) military campaigns and later, in 1867, the land war at Waitara, Taranaki. During that campaign he had a falling out with his British superiors and left the army at the conclusion of the conflict. He went from Taranaki to the coastal town of Kawhia which in those times was an important commercial and residential community for both Maori and Pakeha. It was here he married Te Anu, the high ranking daughter of Pohepohe, a local chief. Ironically, her father (Pohepohe) and Robert McGruther had only recently been fighting on opposite sides at Waitara; they may well have even taken pot shots at each other.
John had a tough childhood. His parents separated when he was a young boy. His mother was thoroughly Maori and his father a dour, stern, traditional Scotsman with an extreme fondness for drink. He either walked out of the marriage or Te Anu kicked him out, probably the latter.
Robert departed Kawhia and taking
John with him, moved inland to live at Pirongia, leaving his other children,
Mutu and Sam, with Te Anu. However, doubt hovers about the identity of Sam; no-one
seems to know anything about him. John’s wife, Daisy, never met him and John
himself believed he was nothing more than a ‘straw-man’ (fictitious character)
made up to sign land-claim papers. He held the strong impression that some in
his family were helping themselves to his holdings by using the name Sam McGruther to sign the documentation.
Being so young and away from Kawhia he had no knowledge of what he, as the
oldest son, had rights to. Another thing that makes one suspicious of the
existence of Sam McGruther is the
fact that unlike Mutu who was well known to everyone, none can recall ever
seeing the mysterious Sam.
Sometime later, Te Anu remarried to another Pakeha surnamed French. It seemed to be a more stable union and other children were born from it - notably, Tom and Besse, John's half brother and sister.
Sometime later, Te Anu remarried to another Pakeha surnamed French. It seemed to be a more stable union and other children were born from it - notably, Tom and Besse, John's half brother and sister.
Robert and John became a familiar
sight in Pirongia, Robert being well known for his heavy drinking. Adele Aubin,
the daughter of Jean Aubin, the popular and wealthy local trader and medical
practitioner, often saw John waiting and minding their horse for hours on end
while his father was drinking in the public house. She said she always felt
sorry for 'Johnny McGru'. On hot, summer days he would sit in the shade of the
old tree that grew nearby, and on cold or wet days was forced to huddle under a
makeshift shelter in his old oilskin coat. Little did Adele know that 'poor
Johnny McGru' would one day make something of himself and that one of her
future sons would marry his future daughter.
When Robert finally came out of the
pub he would haul John up behind him onto the horse and they would head home to
their house. It was little wonder that with such exposure to the elements,
coupled with a poor diet, John developed tuberculosis, an ailment that would
dog him all his life.
About his tenth year two aunts, Te
Anu's sisters Rangi and Pera, took it upon themselves to get John enrolled in
St. Stephens school at Auckland. Why they singled him out over his brothers in
Kawhia can only be a guess at best. It may have been out of respect for Te Anu,
or pity at his plight. Perhaps they saw greater potential in him. Whatever
their motivation, it was the making of John. It gave him a sound roof over his
head, three square meals a day, and the opportunity to learn.
Rangi and Pera, themselves of small
means, sacrificed much to give John the opportunity for a good education. He
did not disappoint them. He proved to be an intelligent and keen student right
from the start.
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| St. Stephens School |
St. Stephens was a boarding school
and during the holidays he would ride the stage coach from Auckland to Pirongia
over nearly three hundred miles of rough, dusty roads. At Pirongia he would
find a horse and supplies arranged for him. He would then ride the horse to
Kawhia, a further seventy to eighty miles. One can only imagine how grueling and potentially dangerous that journey must have been for such a young boy. But
one should also consider the generosity and sacrifices of those two old aunts
in Kawhia who scraped together the money for his schooling, provided his coach
fares to and from Auckland, arranged at no small cost a horse and supplies at
Pirongia, and then, when he finally arrived at Kawhia, treated him like a
prince.
From all accounts he loved his
holidays at Kawhia as these were probably the only times he experienced any
kind of stable family life. One would naturally presume he would have been very
grateful to those two kindly aunts, but from various reports it seems he never
expressed any such feelings. Jean, his own daughter said that he seemed to lack
a feeling of family or kinship towards them, even though they did so much for
him. Perhaps his harsh upbringing may have had something to do with it. He
seemed to think it was their duty to treat him specially. Even later in life,
knowing his great fondness for mussels and pipis, they sent large sacks of the
shellfish to him at every opportunity, yet no-one ever heard him thank those
kindly old ladies. One can only wonder why he didn't have a greater affection
for them because if not for their love and sacrifice his life would have taken
a far different turn.
When he was about fourteen Toko and
Mita, two of his uncles at Kawhia, were nearing the end of their days. They
owned two sizable tracts of land at Whatiwhatihoe near Pirongia and were
trying to decide who should inherit it at their passing as neither of them had
posterity. It was during discussions with the Maori king, Tawhiao, that the
matter was settled. Tawhiao said, "Leave it to Hone Ruki!"
Thus settled, it was required that
John return from St. Stephens post haste to sign the required papers in the
presence of lawyers and land court officials. In those times travel was not as
convenient as today so everyone had to come together at a specific time and
place. Also, because Toko and Mita were illiterate they could only sign the
transfer documents with a mark; usually a cross or some other familiar symbol.
This required the presence of lawyers to witness and authenticate the marks.
For some reason, John's father,
Robert, refused to allow his son to leave St. Stephens to attend the signing.
His reasoning can only be guessed at. Was it an act of piousness designed to
impress everyone? Was he bitter about the breakup of his marriage and wanted
nothing to do with the Kawhia people? Or, did he have some other plan in mind
we don't know about? Or, was he just being plain ornery and stupid? We will
probably never know, but the end result was that John never signed the papers
and the two blocks of land were somehow appropriated by the Anglican Church.
Later, it moved into the hands of the Garmonsways, a local family of
prominence, and the land was lost. There is some cause to believe that Robert
McGruther and the Garmonsways had some kind of arrangement regarding John's
land but what that arrangement might have been has been lost over time. It may
well be that no such arrangement ever existed, that it was just hearsay.
However, it is known that the two parties were on friendly terms and the fact
that E. Garmonsway appears on Robert's death certificate as the only person
present at his death indicates the possibility of a close relationship.
Nevertheless, it is also known that the Garmonsways were kind to John and he
always had good feelings towards them. It appears that this family had more to
do with the McGruthers than we are aware of today.
In his later years John often said
that one day he would look into the possibility of getting the land back. After
all, it was declared his by none other than the Maori king. And it was suspect
how the church got possession of it in the first place and then able to sell it
on. Who knows but that we might still have had a legitimate claim to it? But he
never looked into it and the land remains lost.
Robert McGruther died on 21
February, 1897, aged sixty four when John was fifteen years old. His aunts took
John out of St. Stephens and enrolled him in Te Aute, a college for Maori boys
on the warmer, drier East Coast near Gisborne. This was much better for his
tuberculosis. At Te Aute he rubbed shoulders with top young Maori scholars with
names that later became well known in the new, emerging Maori world; names such
as Ngata, Buck, Carroll, Love and Murray to mention a few. These were young men
from prominent families taught from an early age that theirs was the calling to
be the Maori leaders of a new age. Consequently, they were driven by a sense of
importance and destiny, qualities that would certainly have had an effect on
Hone Ruki.
 |
| Te Aute College |
He did well at Te Aute and before
he left, his old school, St. Stephens, offered him a teaching post. He gladly
accepted because by this time a serious relationship with a young lady, whom he
had met many years before, had ripened to maturity. With his studies completed
and a secure job in the bag, he could now take the relationship to a new level.
As already mentioned, when he was
on holiday from St. Stephens, he travelled to Kawhia to be with his aunts Pera
and Rangi. As this was on horseback he would pass by the homestead and farm of
a very well-known Family. The farm was called Puketotara, owned by Arthur
Sydney Ormsby and his wife, Matire (Matilda). They had a very large family,
several of which were girls. One in particular caught the eye of the young
John. Her name was Mary Te Kurawhakaari, more commonly known as Daisy. Exactly
how they met we now don't know, but remembering that he disembarked the
stagecoach at Pirongia after a long journey from Auckland, picked up his horse
to promptly begin the next leg to Kawhia, it would be a good guess that he
stopped by the homestead on his way past. In those days, it was common for
farmhouses along the main roads between settlements to offer hospitality and
refreshment to weary travellers. John would certainly have been one of these
which would have afforded him the opportunity to meet the Ormsby girls.
Kura was a bright girl so it would be no surprise she was equally attracted to Johnny McGruther, their relationship probably beginning on a casual basis before blossoming into a strong, long-term affair. However, it would be a relationship that would span the years until John had completed his studies and secured paying employment. The St. Stephens appointment was fortuitous and timely; he could finally propose marriage to his sweetheart and claim the prize he had so patiently worked for.
The announcement was greeted with
gladness by the Ormsby family but was not without incident. Many years before,
when Daisy was a child, a meeting was held between Arthur and his wife's
Maniapoto cousins, the Nikora's, of Otorohanga. As was common in those old
times, marriage arrangements for children were often made between related
families. These betrothals were all about family connectedness and keeping the
mana in the whanau, among other things. In that meeting it was agreed that
Daisy be betrothed to Haparo, one of the Nikora boys. Now, with the news of
Daisy’s pending marriage reaching their ears they became outraged. They were
not about to have some bounder from Kawhia waltz in and take their mana. They
set off on an expedition to Puketotara.
Daisy and one of her sisters were
asleep in a small one-roomed cabin to the side of the main homestead when they
were rudely awoken at sunrise by gunshots and shouting. One of her brothers
burst through the door and commanded them to lie low and not come out,
especially Daisy. Peeping through the window they saw an army of men in the
paddock in front of the house pounding out a haka and blasting away with
shotguns. They had come to challenge poor old Arthur for breaking the betrothal
without their consent.
Promises were serious business to
the old Maori, and the breaking of them even more so, often leading to war.
There was, however, an old Maori law that covered broken promises and avoid
bloodshed; it was the law of muru. Muru meant that the aggrieved party
could arrive at the guilty persons dwelling and strip him of all he owned.
Moreover, the guilty party was required to stand by and watch all his
possessions disappear and deem it a great honour and privilege. The Maniapoto
folk had come for muru.
For the next week Arthur was obliged to house and feed his angry relatives, all the while striving with his most eloquent oratory and finest hospitality, to placate them. Fortunately for him, muru had declined over the years and after a week of hui (big meetings), fine speeches from both sides, and much feasting, the Otorohanga folk felt the insult had been adequately paid and departed as friends, honour intact. Arthur didn't lose everything he owned but his farm was certainly lightened of a good number of pigs and sheep. It is not inconceivable that some money might even have changed hands. While well aware of Maori tradition and custom (Pianika, his mother, was a full-blooded Ngati-Maniapoto woman of high rank), he never thought when he betrothed little Kura all those years ago that it would come to such a to-do in this day and age. And Kura, when she found out why she was the focus of all the attention, was horrified and couldn't believe her parents could promise her to someone in marriage; and a first cousin, no less! Even if Hone Ruki hadn't come on the scene she would never have agreed to such an arrangement.
With the Maniapoto gone, Arthur satisfactorily robbed in compensation, and honour appeased, John and Kura were free to marry. This little incident, while humorous now, was very serious on the day and displayed how some old traditions clung on despite the country becoming totally under European influence. The old ways were being steadily weakened and dismantled and by John and Daisy's day had pretty much lost their power - in the old days Daisy would have had no choice. It would be a few more years before many of them, like muru, died out permanently.
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| The beautiful Kura |
At age thirty-two he married Daisy (aged twenty three) at the Puketotara homestead, 14 April, 1914. After their honeymoon in Rotorua, she went with him to Tamahere, near Hamilton where he was employed as the schoolmaster of the small country school there. Daisy was a qualified nurse. Being the sole teacher there he was headmaster, teacher and everything else. His first child was born there on 25 June, 1915. They named him John Robert but called him Jock, the name he would be known by for the rest of his life. In 1916 another child was born at Tamahere but she died after just two months of a heart defect, 10 September, 1916. They named her Moana Joy and she is buried at the small cemetery adjoining the St. Stephen's Anglican Church not far from the Rukuhia Airport.
John liked his time at Tamahere and
became highly respected by the community, which was mostly Maori. It is
probable that they felt more comfortable with one of their own as the teacher
of their children. No doubt, John would also have been more attuned to their
needs than a teacher not of their culture. When he left to take up the post as
schoolmaster at the Waerenga-a-Hika school for boys, he was showered with gifts and
goodwill wishes. Daisy, too, had made her mark, her medical skills and services
to the community being highly valued.
Because he felt the need to move up
the professional ladder, he kept his eye open for better opportunities. When
the post at Waerenga-a-Hika was advertised, he remembered Te Aute
and how beneficial the warm, dry climate was to his tuberculosis, and applied.
He got the job and the young family moved there in 1917. Two more children were
born here; Colin, 22 March 1918, and Jean, 29 January 1920.
Waerenga-a-Hika lies about eight miles northwest of Gisborne on the road between Makaraka and Ormond and the school was established in June 1890 as a boarding school for native boys. It was built on a Church of England Trust Estate and was under the control of a Board of Trustees appointed by the Church with government oversight of curriculum and other educational matters. The schoolhouse was an imposing two-storied timber building with an iron roof. It had two classrooms and boarding accommodation for fifty pupils who were taught up to the standard four level. It also had quarters for the resident headmaster and his family.
Waerenga-a-Hika lies about eight miles northwest of Gisborne on the road between Makaraka and Ormond and the school was established in June 1890 as a boarding school for native boys. It was built on a Church of England Trust Estate and was under the control of a Board of Trustees appointed by the Church with government oversight of curriculum and other educational matters. The schoolhouse was an imposing two-storied timber building with an iron roof. It had two classrooms and boarding accommodation for fifty pupils who were taught up to the standard four level. It also had quarters for the resident headmaster and his family.
His move to Waerenga-a-Hika held an
interesting surprise with ancestral significance; Wae-renga-a-Hikairo means,
the resting place of Hikairo. It was the very place where Hikairo, the
eponymous ancestor of his Maori tribe, brokered a peace between two warring
clans and the place was named in commemoration of his peacekeeping skills.
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| John at Waerengahika with little daughter Jean and wife Kura. |
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| Waerenga-a-Hika school in the late 1800's. |
The job on Mangaia offered a good
salary and the door to new opportunities. He duly went to Wellington and was
immediately offered the post. Upon his return to Waerengahika he proudly
informed Daisy of the good news and that he had also accepted a well-paid
position for her; she was to be the sole nurse on the island. He often said it
was his wife's nursing qualification that swung it his way. It would be easy to
agree; no doubt his interviewers couldn't believe their luck, the combination
of a highly qualified schoolmaster and nurse would have been impossible to turn
down.
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| John and Kura around the time they left for Mangaia |
They left for Mangaia Early 1924,
traveling on a luxury liner that sailed out of San Francisco with a load of
tourists doing the Pacific cruise. It took one week to go from Wellington to
Rarotonga and when they arrived, John anxiously went on deck while the ship was
docking. Moments later he came rushing into the cabin where Daisy and the
children were busy putting all their things together and shouted excitedly,
"We'll be alright, they speak Maori here! The boy on the dock said,
'Tiriamai te taura,' which means, throw down the ropes!"
'Tiriamai te taura,' which means, throw down the ropes!"
 |
| Arial view of Mangaia Island. |
Obviously, they had some worries about the new life they had embarked upon with one disconcerting rumour giving them cause for concern immediately upon their arrival in Rarotonga; they were told by the locals that the Mangaians were an uncivilized bunch who still practiced cannibalism. Horrified, John suggested he go to Mangaia first and see how dangerous it really was. Daisy's reply was that if they were going to eat him then they might as well eat the whole family. She and the children were going with him no matter what. They would stay together under all circumstances. As it turned out, they were assured by the Resident Commissioner, Judge Ayson that, like the Maoris, the Mangaians had long ago given up cannibalism.
 |
| A typical Mangaia scene. |
Schooners to and from Mangaia and
the other islands in the Cooks were the only means of transport. These were
small craft about the size of a large yacht, motor driven when crossing reefs
but wind powered by two masts and sails when on the open water. The Tagua and
Waipahi were two schooners that plied the seas between Rarotonga and Mangaia.
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| A picture of a typical schooner that served the island of Mangaia. |
They left Rarotonga in April, 1924,
on the afternoon sailing and landed on Mangaia the next day. The voyage could
be from ten to twelve hours, depending on sailing conditions. Because there was
no natural harbour into Mangaia, outriggers from the shore would come out to
offload passengers and cargo. This was how the family first set foot on
Mangaian soil, and it must have been quite an adventure, especially for the two
boys.
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| All the cargo and passengers had to be offloaded by smaller boats from shore. There was no wharf on Mangaia during John and Kura's time there. |
John thrived on Mangaia. He had
free reign to work as he liked and soon got the schools into shape - there were
three schools he was responsible for, one in each of the three villages: Onerua
(the capital), Ivirua and Tamarua. At the end of his contract, which was for a
three year term, he was offered the post of Resident Agent for the island, a
post that made him the New Zealand Government Representative for all the
island's affairs. By now he and Daisy had fallen in love with the island, its
lifestyle and the people, so he readily accepted. Additionally, his already
good salary became even better. In the meantime, Daisy had become greatly
valued for her medical skills.
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| Map of Mangaia showing some of the features John and Kura wold have been familiar with. |
He and the family returned to New Zealand after their three year period for a three month furlough. When they returned it was without the two boys, Jock and Colin, who remained behind to attend Kings College.
.jpg) |
| Left to right: Colin, Jean and Jock. |
He and Daisy spent a further eleven
years on Mangaia where they both distinguished themselves as tireless workers,
and as the Resident Agent, John accomplished many useful civic and social
projects. He was responsible for all commercial, educational, civil and legal
matters on the island.
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| Leaving Mangaia |
 |
Tomati Makuru and Tiare Makuru,
the flower and tomato named after John
and Kura when they left Mangaia.
|
Whilst John was a
great ideas man and superb organizer, a farmer he was not. He loved the
country life and while he was not afraid of hard work, his real skills were in
administration and organizing people as he had done for so many years in the
classroom and on Mangaia. Consequently, the more physical aspect of farming got
a bit neglected. He developed a farming formula that he believed the key to
farming success and recited it like a mantra; he called it the 'Golden Tripod',
or the three 'P's...Potash, Posts, and Pesticide. In other words, plenty of
fertilizer, good fencing, and pest control; grass grub being the farmers'
plague in those days.
Daisy, on the other hand, having
been abroad, had widened her horizons. Immediately on her return she purchased
a vacuum cleaner and an electric stove. These were the first of these
conveniences seen in the district and were regarded with disdain by her sisters
in particular. Having hardly moved past their front gates they viewed the new
contraptions as gross extravagances and Daisy as a spoiled spendthrift, which,
to some extent, they were right. Oddly, it was their menfolk who cottoned on to
the modern gadgets and enthusiastically bought some for their own wives who
soon became converts themselves.
 |
| Family Portrait. |
The family enjoyed a wonderful few years at Puketotara. It was a happy home where anyone was welcome and food and entertainment always available. No-one noticed the black clouds of trouble gathering over their heads as Europe plunged deeper into war. When Mother England sent out the call to her colonies to join her in battle, New Zealand readily accepted her invitation and Jock and Colin were quickly called into the service. Jock was sent to Egypt and Colin to Palestine.
 |
| On the porch at Puketotara. |
John's squad would gather together
at Puketotara several times a week for military drills and training under his
captaincy. Here they would hold councils on strategies and plan for all
possible contingencies in the event of an enemy invasion.
An important part of training was
the art of marksmanship. Whilst these doughty old farmers were excellent at
shooting rabbits with their antique shotguns, few, if any, had any experience
with a high-powered rifle. Recognizing the value of the home guard, the Ministry
of Defense promised them some rifles and ammunition, but nothing ever arrived.
John, ever the ideas man, set to and had an armory of wooden rifles made
complete with triggers and sights fashioned from nails. He also had an
excellent rifle range dug out of a hill with shooting stations at one end and
enemy soldiers at the other made out of stuffed hemp sacks. For safety, and to
dull the sound of rifle shot, he lined the whole thing with sandbags.
Their shooting drills went thus;
firstly, he would have his squad take their stations, after which he would run
to the front and stick hand-drawn bull’s-eye targets on the sack soldiers.
Then, withdrawing safely to the side, call out, "Take aim...are you
sighted on the mark?"
"Yes Sir!"
"When you are sure squeeze the
trigger and say Bang!"
When the sound of gunfire ceased
echoing through the valley, they would come together to discuss how accurate
their shots had been.
Little Peter (Mac) and his cousin
Eric Ormsby, just young boys at the time, were keen observers at the rifle
range, but later forbidden to go there during training as it was deemed unsafe
for children. Mac believes the true reason for their banishment was their
obvious amusement and their retelling of it to others. Also, the older Eric
kept saying, "Those are just toy guns, Uncle. Why don't you get some real
ones?"
One day some shocking news came to
the ears of the home guard; a Japanese submarine had docked at Kawhia and the
Japanese had come ashore and made contact with some of the local Maori chiefs.
It was reported they had even entered into talks with them, promising benefits
should they throw in their support with the Imperial Japanese Army when it
returned in force. What made it worse; some of the Maoris who were fraternizing
with them were Daisy's relatives. John and his squad decided that immediate
action needed to be taken. They determined that in the absence of any effective
weapons or heavy artillery, the best thing to do was block the advance of the invaders.
Taking axes and saws they rushed to the Kawhia Road - no more than a rough
gravel track back then - and cut scarves in all the biggest trees that grew
along the sides. The idea being that since the only road inland was the Kawhia
road, and as soon as word was received the Japanese invasion was on, the home
guard would rush out and quickly push all the trees over on to the road, thus
blocking the Japanese advance so they could be picked off by troops hidden in
the bush.
Two nights later a storm blew all
the trees down and they spent the next month cutting them up and clearing the
road.
To boost morale and give the troops
a positive military experience, Captain McGruther organized a long march. This
great long march was to go from Pirongia to the top of the Kaimai ranges. Other
nearby home guard units were also invited to join. He also arranged for the
home guards east of the Kaimais to meet them at the top of the Kaimais. It was
a long journey meant to last several days. On it the troops would learn
mapping, war strategies, survival skills, marching drills and much more. There
wasn't a thing John and his committee hadn't thought of. All the young boys
twelve and over were also encouraged to participate as it would help them
appreciate the rigors of warfare and give them some ‘backbone’.
The day of the great long march
duly arrived amid much excitement and enthusiasm. Captain McGruther came
mounted on his horse while the others marched. A horse-drawn wagon carried
their supplies. It was winter and on the first night on the march it rained
heavily and the air turned bitterly cold. At Ohaupo the next day Captain
McGruther came down with a severe chill and this coupled with his tuberculosis
rendered him too ill to carry on. Hypothermia set in and he was taken home by
car to recover. The others bravely carried on, determined to do their sick
commander proud. The weather went from bad to worse and a couple of days later
one of the young boys got pneumonia and had to be rushed to hospital.
Eventually, the leaderless, bedraggled troops arrived at the foot of the
Kaimais, and looking at the torrents of muddy water rushing down the rutted
gravel road that wound steeply upwards, promptly mutinied and turned for home.
The long march was a personal
embarrassment but nevertheless hailed as a limited success; while it failed to
reach its final objective, lots of good lessons were learned from it.
The hardest thing was explaining to
the East Coasters why their Waikato brothers didn't meet them at the top of the
Kaimais.
In July, 1944, when John was sixty
two, tragedy struck; Jock was killed by shellfire in Italy. This had a
devastating effect on John and the rest of the family; Jock was a young man of
exceptional qualities and promise. Thankfully, their other son Colin survived
the war and returned safely.
After the war John and Daisy continued to run the farm, but without Jock it began to deteriorate, especially as their money diminished. The farm was eating away at their savings and Daisy's great talent for spending didn't help matters. After a while only John's government pension kept them afloat.
Throughout his life back at
Puketotara, John was heavily involved in the life of the district. He opened
the Puketotara farm up to horse shows and gala days, the river running through
it was long the favourite summer swimming place for everyone in the community,
he was the chairman of the Rabbit Board, the district dairy factory
representative, the local rugby club president and a bunch of other things that
came up as needed - like committees for organizing various annual events such
as the local Christmas and New Year functions and so on. He excelled in these
affairs and so was naturally one of the leading lights in the community.After the war John and Daisy continued to run the farm, but without Jock it began to deteriorate, especially as their money diminished. The farm was eating away at their savings and Daisy's great talent for spending didn't help matters. After a while only John's government pension kept them afloat.
Left: The headstone of son John Robert McGruther, killed 14 July, 1944, Italy during W.W.II. His grave is in Assisi, Italy.
Eventually, the good times at Puketotara ended. In 1945 at sixty three years old, John suffered a debilitating stroke that made running a farm impossible. It took a long and hard-fought battle to recover from the stroke, and even though he regained his speech and his intellect, he was left partially crippled for the remainder of his days. One leg was so disabled he had to use a cane to walk, and the hand on the same side of his body was permanently clasped shut. But he fought a good fight and beat the odds by living to a good old age.
Around the late 1940's or early
1950's, his daughter Jean, and her husband Peter, purchased an hundred acre
farm in the Ngutunui district, not too distant from Puketotara. About the same
time their son Colin and his wife, Dede, by arrangement with John and Daisy,
had taken over Puketotara. Both families had purchased these farms under the
War Veterans' Scheme, a government program to help returned soldiers onto the
land. John and Daisy bought the small cottage in Pirongia from Peter and Jean
and moved into it, accepting that this would be where they would finish out
their days feeling secure that Puketotara would remain in family hands. To
their consternation, Colin sold it not long after and moved to Auckland and
Puketotara was suddenly gone and with it an epic era going back to the pioneer
days when Daisy's parents, Arthur and Mataire, carved it from the bush with axe
and plough.
It was a big change for them; the
Pirongia house was small and pokey, a far cry from the Puketotara homestead.
Misfortune once again beset them when their house in Pirongia burned to the
ground. Mac Bell, John's grandson, was in school at the time and it is to him
we turn for an eyewitness account.
Mac was in class at the Pirongia
Primary school when another student, Raewyn Marks, came rushing into the classroom
having returned from a school errand to the Pirongia store (as a senior pupil and the headmaster's favourite, she had the assignment to go to the store every morning to pick up the school
mail and any other school needs for the day) and told the teacher that the
McGruther house was on fire. He did nothing but send her to her seat. Raewyn promptly whispered the news to the other kids and in an instant it went through
the whole class. Mac and Colin were both in the room. Mac, who was at the back, was one of the last to
know. He first noticed everyone in the class looking at him and he wondered
why. Finally word got to him that his grandparents’ house was ablaze with smoke
and fire billowing out the roof and windows. Alarmed, he quickly asked the
teacher, who was also the headmaster, if he could leave to go and see if his
grandparents were alright. The headmaster promptly told him he wasn't going
anywhere and to sit down and get on with his work. Mac reluctantly returned to
his seat but was desperate to go because he feared his grandparents might still
be in the house. After a while his friend Manell Tamaki said, 'Mac, I'll open
the window and you jump out!' Manell pushed the window up and Mac leaped out
and was gone before the headmaster knew what had happened.
He rushed to the scene to find
people flinging buckets of water on the flames, but it was an exercise in
futility as the house had become an inferno. He was relieved to learn that John
and Daisy had gone to Hamilton with the Kanutes, old farming acquaintances from
Puketotara days.
Unable to do anything more he sprinted back to the school and walking boldly into the room told his younger brother, "Come on, Gunny's house is on fire, we have to go!" Colin quickly obeyed and they disappeared before the teacher could stop them. When they arrived at the scene of the fire there was nothing left but a smoldering ruin. He would have been about eleven or twelve at the time and already he possessed that decisiveness that was always one of his hallmark characteristics. The next day he was hauled over the coals by the headmaster for going AWOL and Manell for aiding and abetting. Each received the standard punishment
for their actions; six lashes across the palm of the hand with a thick leather
strap. One can't help but wonder at the insensitivity of that headmaster. There
was some anger from the family when they found out about it, but apart from a
bit of grumbling no complaints were laid and nothing was done.
 |
| John and Daisy were in Hamilton when the house caught fire. |
A new house was later built on the
same site but the fire took with it a small shed filled from floor to roof with
all their precious memorabilia from Mangaia. Very little survived; artifacts
handmade crafts, picture albums, valuable books, precious documents, all turned
to ash.
John and Daisy received some
insurance money but the new house was mainly financed by the people of Ngutunui
and Pirongia who put their hands in their pockets as soon as they heard of
their plight, something that deeply touched them. The new house was not much
bigger than the former one but it was a house for which they were grateful.
 |
| Enjoying a tipple in his later years |
 |
| Headstone for John McGruther, Pirongia cemetery |
1. Interview with Jean Bell and Mac Bell, Pirongia, July 2003.
2. Family letters and documents.
3. Birth, death and marriage certificates.
4. Personal memories.
Monday, 1 July 2013
Pohepohe
Hikairo II was followed by his son Whakamarurangi who was followed by Te Akerautangi. The next Ngati Hikairo chief is Pohepohe. Pohepohe lived at Kawhia during the days of the wars against the British. He was particularly concerned at the loss of Hikairo land to the settlers, so much so that he went to fight the British at Taranaki where the Maoris there took up arms against the sale of their land. The following document is a word-for-word copy of a speech by Mac Bell to the Waitangi tribunal in march, 2013. He was asked to be a keynote speaker in the presence of crown lawyers and hundreds of people. It was a daunting task but the speech he delivered was both spectacular in the way it told the Hikairo story and inspiring in its delivery. He was congratulated by all for the succinctness of his account. The Tribunal hearing was in response to the Hikairo desire to be properly recognised as an independent tribe and not as a subordinate of Ngati Maniapoto. It was also a lead into future land claims. He said later that it was one the greatest things he has done in his life, not for the land claims or Ngati Hikairo's share of compensation monies, but because he was able to tell our story and put the history straight. The following speech is a must-read for any whanau wanting to know the full story (korero) of Ngati Hikairo during the land wars period.
Pohepohe
Pohepohe, son of the Kawhia chief
Te Akerautangi, lived at Kawhia during the turbulent times of the 1860's when
the Maori were clashing with the British over land. With the ever-increasing
flow of settlers into the Waikato the Maoris found their lands disappearing
from under them. The government, under pressure to supply land for farms and
settlements became increasingly aggressive in their appropriation of Maori
land. Pohepohe was among those who actively opposed the government, to the
point of taking up arms and joining the fight against the British in the land
war at Taranaki.
Mac
Bell,
our family historian and kaumatua (elder) gave an excellent and historic speech
to the Waitangi Tribunal on 25 March 2013.
This speech was given primarily as evidence of the Crown's unjustified
confiscation of our tribal lands. However, it also contains an excellent
account of Pohepohe. I have included the speech in its entirety because not
only is it is packed with information about our tupuna (Pohepohe and others) but
as time goes by it will be of significant historical, political and cultural
importance with regard to further land claims on behalf of Ngati
Hikairo.
IN THE WAITANGI TRIBUNAL WAI 898
WAI 2351
WAI 1112
WAI 1113
IN THE MATTER of the Treaty of
Waitangi Act 1975 (as
amended)
AND Claims in the King Country
Inquiry consolidated
under Wai 898
AND the Wai 2351 claim by Frank
Thorne on behalf of
himself and for the benefit of
Ngati Hikairo
AND the Wai 1112 claim by MANIHERA
FORBES and
MERE GILMORE on behalf of
themselves and
Ngāti Hikairo
AND the Wai 1113 claim by MANIHERA
FORBES and
MERE GILMORE on behalf of
themselves and
Ngāti Hikairo
BRIEF OF EVIDENCE OF
POHEPOHE MAC BELL
Dated this 25th day of March 2013
WACKROW WILLIAMS & DAVIES
LIMITED
LEVEL 14, 48 EMILY PLACE
P O BOX 461
DX CP 20503
AUCKLAND
PHONE: (09) 379 5026 FAX: (09) 377
6553
SOLICITOR: Dominic G S Wilson
EMAIL: dominic@wwandd.co.nz
Introduction
My name is Pohepohe Mac Bell. I’m
generally known as
Mac Bell.(also known as Peter
McGruther Bell)
I give this brief of evidence as a
kaumātua of
Ngāti Hikairo.
I am retired farmer and live in
Pirongia. I have lived here
all my life. I am a tohunga
whakairo and am proud to
have been one of the founders of Te
Wananga o
Aotearoa.
My evidence is about the participation
of my tūpuna in
the Taranaki and Waikato wars. I
want also to provide
this Tribunal with evidence about
how complex the
politics of the war times were. Our
whānau had to make
tough decisions to survive.
In some ways our whānau kōrero is
not fulsome. When
we asked our grandparents about our
tūpuna and the
land wars they tended to clam up
and didn’t want to talk,
despite our persistent questioning.
This was a Christian
ethic in that generation where
there were painful things
you were best not to talk about. My
parents were similar
about World War II.
We did learn a bit about which
tūpuna fought and some
broad kōrero. Much of this evidence
comes from my
discussions with Paddy Turnbull, a
tribal scholar. He
took me under his wing and told me
a number of matters
about Ngāti Hikairo and our
histories. He told me some
things about my tūpuna’s
involvement in the land wars
and I will recount some of that
here.
Taranaki
Some our people fought in the wars
in Taranaki from
about 1860. They went to the wars
to support their
relations, but most of all I think
they joined as they could
see the wider politics of what was
happening. They
could see the Pākehā trying to get
the Māori land and
felt sympathy for their Taranaki relations
losing their
lands. I believe they saw that
their lands were next in
line and they had to stop the
spread of the Pākehā.
It had been a time when the iwi had
experienced
positives and negatives along with
Pākehā settlers. In
the early times we had good trade
and sharing of
knowledge, but our people began to
see the land being
taken and we saw the vice of
alcohol entering our
community.
I will talk of my tūpuna Pohepohe
Te Ake and Toataua
Te Ake at Taranaki. They were
brothers, sons of the
chief Te Akerautangi.
I remember seeing Pohepohe’s musket
with whānau
some years back and have a photo
somewhere. It had
a star carved in the butt. It had
been hidden in Kawhia
after Pohepohe returned from
Taranaki. It is a
significant taonga to the whānau as
we know some
kōrero surrounding it. At a battle
in Taranaki Pohepohe
was part of the last contingent
surviving and was
retreating. With ammunition
exhausted he used his
musket as a taiaha and managed to
escape. In
recognition of that event he gave
his wife the name Karo
tepenete – Parry the Bayonet. She
is more commonly
known as Karopeneti.
When Pohepohe returned he came some
hours ahead
of his brother Toataua. Back in
Kawhia Pohepohe went
to Toataua’s whānau to let them
know that Toataua was
well and was on his way some hours
behind. He arrived
to find the tangi of Toataua’s wife
was happening. It had
been going for over four days and
nights. Pohepohe
requested the whānau to keep the
tangi going as
Toataua was to arrive shortly. Toataua
arrived at
Kāwhia and swam across the harbour
from pipi bed to
pipi bed to arrive home to the
tangi. The tangi had been
going for five days and five nights
when Toataua
reached his whānau. In
commemoration of Toataua’s
efforts in the wars in Taranaki and
to memorialise the
tangi, his whānau changed Toataua’s
name to Pōrima - meaning five nights.
This is now a well-known name among
the Ngāti Hikairo
whānau.
Rangiriri
When the Crown forces saw our Ngāti
Hikairo at
Rangiriri I think they felt more disposed
to killing. Ngāti
Hikairo already had a warlike
reputation from their
fighting in Taranaki. I was told
that the Crown forces
definitely considered that Ngāti
Hikairo were dangerous
and should be killed because they
had fought in
Taranaki.
Our whānau kōrero is that Te
Akerautangi and his sons
Pohepohe and Toataua all fought at
Rangiriri. We are
not certain, but there is kōrero
that Te Akerautangi was
captured and held prisoner on a
ship off Kawau Island
and then escaped.
Waiari
My tūpuna lived at Waiari. It was
an ancient pā for Ngāti
Hikairo. They lived alongside Ngāti
Puhiawe and the
whakapapa lines became merged
there.
When the fighting occurred at
Waiari a number of Ngāti
Hikairo fought. I believe my Tupuna
Te Akerautangi
(also known as Te Whakaea, Wiremu
Te Akerautangi,
or Wiremu Te Ake Kārewa) fought
there. He was quite
old at that stage but still fought
alongside his two sons
Pohepohe Te Ake, and Toataua Te
Ake. Te Mūnu
Waitai and his daughter Rangiāho
Waitai were also
there (and they also fought at
Pāterangi).
The fighting was not at all easy.
They were short on
everything. Our kōrero is that they
were short on food
and ammunition and were ultimately
outnumbered. I
understand this was a pattern for
all of the land wars for
our people.
We have kōrero that they were using
stones and even
wood pieces in their muskets. We
also understand that
there was a mix of fighting skills
among the persons who
were present. A number were not
tested warriors at all.
Pohepohe and Toataua also fought at
Hairini.
Confiscation
In my view the confiscation took
the best quality lands
from Ngāti Hikairo and other iwi of
Te Rohe Pōtae. I
have farmed for many years at
Waimiha, Pārāwera,
Mangati, Pirongia, and Waiari and
have some
knowledge about the quality of
lands for farming and
horticulture. Much of the lands
that were confiscated in
the south of the district were the
most fertile and rich in
the Waikato region. Our farm at
Waiari was only about
60 acres, and it was difficult to
manage such a small lot,
but it was really good land. The
loss of such lands was
a huge loss to Ngāti Hikairo and
the other iwi and hapū
of Te Rohe Pōtae.
Today our whānau have no lands
outside of Kāwhia
moana. I don’t believe our tūpuna
were awarded any
lands from within the confiscation
district. When I
farmed in Waiari it was on land I
had to purchase myself.
So it is confiscated and then you
have to buy it back.
The impacts of the confiscation
were absolutely
disastrous on our people. Many
researchers have
discussed the matter of “urban
drift” as a key cause of
problems within Maoridom, but in my
view some of the
worst situations for Ngāti Hikairo,
and other iwi of Te
Rohe Pōtae, had existed well before
those times. The
confiscation saw lots of our people
focused in little areas
which were absolute hell-holes.
Numerous whānau
were crammed into kainga surviving
on small stretches
of river ways. There was drinking
and many associated
problems. Our culture was slipping
away. It was hell for
some whānau. I am sorry to say that
Te Whatiwhatihoe
was such a hell-hole for a period.
The generations after the
confiscation worked hard with
what little they had. Still our
whānau were always
struggling in poor housing and
without running water.
Many resorted to stealing to keep
up and this became a
way of life. I really do believe
that the loss of land was a
key source of these troubles.
The Land Wars: A
time of confusion and contradictions
It is well known that Ngāti Hikairo
was divided during the
times of the land wars. We were quite
split up. Our
people have seen statements that
factions of Ngāti
Hikairo were “rebels” and factions
were “loyalists”. It is
so much more complex than that.
It is true that a number of whānau
and individuals took
quite different positions about the
land wars. Some
fought against the Crown forces,
some left the area,
some remained in the region but
didn’t fight, and some
sought to show support for the
Crown and Māori.
In our iwi kōrero we know of no
Ngāti Hikairo who fought
for the Crown against Māori during
the land wars. Some
persons did provide assistance with
diplomacy or acted
as guides to the Crown.
My evidence to this Tribunal is
that there was so much
pressure on our people that the iwi
didn’t act as one
during the land wars. The pressure
forced some
individuals and whānau to make
their own decisions
about what they needed to do to
survive.
Many of our whānau were seriously
tested during the
wars. I think a number of factors
worked against us.
Our rohe included some of the very
desirable and fertile
lands from Pirongia maunga to the
east and north. We
occupied Kāwhia Moana which was a
transport and
trading hub and which was rich in
marine resources.
We experienced some of the earliest
interaction with
Pākehā at Kāwhia. I think the Crown
forces advanced
relatively quickly to the south in
1863 and our kōrero is
that some within Ngāti Hikairo
started to fear the worst
from an early time. Indeed some of
the iwi had seen
first-hand what the Crown was
capable of in the wars in
Taranaki. I think all these factors
were part of a
pressure that the Crown exerted and
applied on us.
Our customary ways were all about
sticking together.
The first reaction was to fight
together, but we began to
find that we could not drive Pākehā
into the sea. In fact
they seemed to be growing in
numbers after the wars in
Taranaki began. Our people had to
make decisions as
a matter of survival and tikanga
was tested.
Some of our whānau decided that to
survive they should
fight the Crown forces. Others
decided that survival
required some sort of support for
both the Crown and
Māori. I say support for both Crown
and Māori as the
question is not clear cut. It
wasn’t a case of Māori being
against Māori but more a situation
where some whānau
saw their fate as Māori hinging
upon their relationships
with both Māori and Pākehā.
Some among Māori call those who
fought with the
Crown “Kūpapa”. The term is nearly
always derogatory.
It is sometimes applied to any
Māori who chose not to
fight against the Crown forces and
sought to remain
somewhat neutral. Again, the term
is usually derogatory
even when used this way.
I understand that Kūpapa means to
be neutral in an
argument. In fact, Kūpapa can mean
a person who
actively tries to peacefully resolve
an argument. I
understand the term can therefore
be either positive or
derogatory. In our kōrero the term
Kūpapa comes from
“Kū” - a pigeon. In Christian
thought the dove
represented peace. This was the
positive meaning.
However, when a pigeon became fat
we considered that
it had become fat by cooperating
with the enemy. This
was the derogatory thinking behind
the term.
The tupuna of my whānau chose to
fight against the
Crown forces. I know of some Ngāti
Hikairo whānau
who chose to keep a relationship
with the Crown and
Māori. I think most of those who
kept a good
relationship with the Crown acted
as intermediaries
between the warring parties and
tried to broker peace. I
would like to hope that today they
can be looked at as
neutral brokers of peace – using
the more positive
meaning of Kūpapa.
I have headed this section of my
evidence “a time of
confusion and contradictions”. I
would like to give some
examples why simple terms like
“rebel”, “loyalist”, or
“kūpapa” are really meaningless at
this time.
For example there was our chief
Hōne Te One. He
fought alongside Māori at Taranaki
at Māhoetahi
and was injured and captured by
Crown forces.
Hōne Te One, along with Te
Akerautangi, Kikikoi,
Pikia, Te Au Makoare and other
chiefs, placed the
lands of Ngāti Hikairo under the
Kīngitanga.
However, when the Crown brought the
land wars to
Waikato he chose not to fight with
Māori but worked
between the Crown and Māori to
broker peace.
Because of his decisions on this
issue he was
exiled from Kāwhia to Aotea Moana
(to his other
whanau connections) and stayed for
the most part
of the wars at Mōtakotako. For
parts of the wars he
lived at Pukerimu (a hill between
Te Rore and
Pikopiko) right within the war zone
and Crown
forces occupied his lands at one
stage. While still
at Mōtakotako, Hōne Te One invited
Tawhiao to
assure him that Ngāti Hikairo
remained in full
support of the Kīngitanga. It was
also during his
time at Mōtakotako that Hōne Te One
worked with
the Crown building roads in the
Aotea harbour
region. Later, it was he, along
with Pikia, and Hōne
Wetere, who invited Tawhiao to live
at
Whatiwhatihoe – onto lands he had
personally been
awarded after the confiscation. He
himself lived at
Pirongia at Whatiwhatihoe for some
time. So Hōne
Te One did not shrink from fighting
for his people,
but later promoted a relationship
with the Crown
and Māori which he believed was
necessary for
survival. It can be seen that the
situation is simply
not clear cut.
Now I think of my tupuna Pohepohe.
He fought
against Pākehā in Taranaki and in
the Waikato.
Pohepohe hated Pākehā. At Taranaki
he fought
against Mr McGruther, a Scottish
member of the
Crown’s forces. This same McGruther
was later to
marry Pohepohe’s daughter at Kāwhia.
Pohepohe
went from a deadly foe to a
father-in-law. This is
another example of the times and
the contradictions
that it created.
I think also of Rangiāho Waitai,
the daughter of Te
Mūnu Waitai. Both her and her
father had fought at
Waiari and Pāterangi. Later she
joined the whānau
exiled in Mōtakotako and was a wife
to Tawhiao.
So, she had consistently fought
against the Crown
and was to become a wife of
Tawhiao, but she lived
among the exiled Ngāti Hikairo at
Mōtakotako.
In the above examples I am trying
to show that the
situation on the ground was
complicated. Simple
explanations don’t explain the
complicated layers of
customary relationships coupled
with war and rapid
change. It is therefore difficult
to brand any particular
whānau of any iwi with a label.
One label that was branded against
Ngāti Hikairo as a
whole was “rebel”. I’m told our iwi
was listed as a rebel
iwi by the Crown at the end of the
wars. In those
turbulent times you did what you
could to survive, but
above all you defended yourself
from the Crown’s
invasion. We fought to defend not
to rebel.
Conclusion
My tūpuna fought against the Crown
and lost life and
property. Some of our Ngāti Hikairo
whānau chose a
different path for their survival.
It was a complicated
time of change and the Crown
created various
pressures. Ultimately, we all
suffered through the wars
and confiscation. Many years after
the wars and
confiscation I believe our people
continue to suffer
today. It is not just the land
loss. Our people still hold
the pain of the wars on their
shoulders.
Our iwi lost its very best
lands. In the grand scheme of
things we did not lose a huge
quantity of land, but we
lost our best quality lands. I know
this applies to Ngāti
Apakura and Ngāti Maniapoto hapū
along with Ngāti
Hikairo.
I’m told there are a few small
blocks of Ngāti Hikairo
land remaining within the
confiscation district around
Pirongia Maunga. I don’t believe
that any of our whānau
have any lands at all in this area.
All we have are small
plots our lucky few have been able
to buy back on the
open market. We now only have
whānau land in
Kāwhia Moana (and much of those
lands are the subject
of perpetual leases to others).
End
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