16
Minutes of Evidence Before Select Committee on
- Advice of the Missionaries he left off his Concubines, and adhered entirely to
his Wife.
Had you an Opportunity while you were there of seeing any Arrangement for the Transfer of Lands, or any Bargains made with respect to Land?
- I have heard of several of them. There was a Dispute between Two Englishmen with regard to a Spot of Land, which was not entirely settled before I left; between Mr. Wright and Mr. Clendon. One Shot the other's Cows, in consequence of a supposed trespassing on the other's Land. They had to refer the Matter to the Natives, with regard to settling the Boundaries of the Two Spots; but they were not able to do that without the Assistance of the Missionaries. The Missionaries were invariably called forward to assist in all Difficulties of that Kind.
You say they referred to the Natives; do you mean that they referred to them as knowing the Boundaries of the Land?
- Yes. The Boundaries were walked, as we should say here; the Boundaries of the Two English Gentlemen's Tracts; but one would not submit to the Boundaries being the right ones of the Land he had purchased; the Consequence was, the Cows were shot, and they had then to go to the Missionaries to intercede between the English People and the Natives. Clendon's Property Two or Three Times was in danger from the Natives, who attacked his House, and took Goods out of his Stores. They were going to take all the Stores he had away. He had no Power at all of preventing them. He went over to Mr. Henry Williams, who accompanied him back, and appeased the Natives, and got the whole of the Things in his Store back again; the Lines and Ropes and various Things he had for Ships. Ropes are very useful to the Natives; they would be very glad to get them, but through the Influence of Mr. William's Arguments they returned them.
Had you an Opportunity of seeing any Negotiation carried on between Europeans and Natives for the Purchase of Land?
- I had not; but I have had Lands offered to me several Times. A Chief in the Cowa Cowa told me if I would remain he would give me a Piece of Land to build a House, and would not require any Payment for it, fancying that my teaching him various useful Things would remunerate him.
Had you an Opportunity of judging whether they understood, as between themselves, the Rights of Property?
- Oh yes, thoroughly; they keep any Engagement with a European perfectly sacred and binding. An Instance of that came under my Notice lately; a Person of the Name of Trapp was shipwrecked; he went to New Zealand and purchased a small Piece of Ground merely till he should receive Remittance from home. He came home with me. I was able to help him to come away from thence. He told a Person who had been kind to him in his Distress that he would allow him to inhabit his House, and do any thing he liked in cultivating the Estate; but the Chiefs would not permit that, because they had not received any Authority to that Effect. He wrote home to Mr. Trapp, who immediately answered, and gave this Man Authority to possess the Spot. Since that he has been in Possession of the House and of the Land; but at the same Time the Chief holds the Engagement with Mr. Trapp quite binding, I understand. There is an Instance of their thinking the Land to be perfectly secure in the Possession of the English, where one of the Missionaries, I do not exactly know the minute History of the Fact, has purchased a large Spot of Ground about the Kirikiri, where I have been to see a Waterfall. The Tribe had emigrated from that Spot to the East Cape, a Distance of 400 or 500 Miles; they had left the Place entirely. There are hardly any native Houses now about the Kirikiri, where Shunghi the principal Chief, who came to England some time ago, lived. The Natives are a very fine Race of People; very intellectual, and capable of any Improvement; their Foreheads are very high and very broad, quite as fine as those of our English Population in Appearance.
One of the Natives who came over to this Country has died lately?
- I have heard that is the Case. There is a great Difference between theAppearance
