488 Transactions . — Miscellaneotis . 



names of men pre-eminently champions of the race at a time 

 when it had but few friends. 



On New Year's Day of 1842 the first number of the Karere 

 o Niu Tireni, or New Zealand Messenger, made its appear- 

 ance. It was of foolscap-folio size, usually of four pages, 

 published monthly, and diffused amongst the natives much 

 varied and interesting information. It also contained occa- 

 sional addresses and letters from the Governor of a concilia- 

 tory and judicious kind. It ceased publication, after an issue 

 of forty-seven numbers, towards the close of 1845, in con- 

 sequence of the disturbed state of the natives and the out- 

 break of the war in the north, but reappeared as a demy 

 folio — the same size as the New-Zealander newspaper, at 

 which office it was printed and published — in January, 1849. 

 In other respects it was considerably altered : its title was 

 the Maori Messenger, or Karere Maori, and it was to all 

 intents as much a newspaper as the New-Zealander itself. 

 But its great feature, and the one that makes it so valuable 

 to us at this day, is that every alternate column consisted 

 of an English translation of the Maori text. It was issued 

 fortnightly until the end of 1854, and then, in January, 

 1855, it entered upon its third and last stage of existence 

 as a small 4to in a bright wrapper, presenting somewhat 

 the appearance of a magazine. It usually made its ap- 

 pearance fortnightly, and varied in size from eight to even 

 seventy-nine pages, and is full of a section of history to be 

 gained nowhere else. This valuable periodical gradually cur- 

 tailed its pages, and closed its existence in September of 

 1863, after a life of nearly twenty years. It was always well 

 edited, such men as Dr. Shortland, David Burn, C. O. Davis, 

 and Walter Buller conducting it. Its influence upon the 

 Maori race was great and good, and, though since that date 

 a periodical of some kind has never been wanting, none has 

 thoroughly supplied its place or been conducted on the same 

 lines. 



Throughout this comparatively long period of twenty years 

 no efforts were wanting to elevate the Maori from his previous 

 state of barbarism by means of the wide diffusion of literature. 

 Time will not permit more than the barest reference to this ; 

 indeed, the subject is one so extensive and so interesting as 

 to merit an additional chapter, which must some day be laid 

 before you. To make this bare reference I must avoid all 

 narrative of the numberless religious publications which the 

 increased facilities for printing brought forth. Points of in- 

 terest attach to many of these. Lady Martin, for instance, 

 was an indefatigable bookbinder, her implements being 

 merely thread and needle, strong brown paper, and a pair 

 of scissors. Piles of these publications owe to her deft 



