The young missionary was nervous; nervous because he had heard more than he had seen, nervous because he was going in alone and nervous because this was what he had been waiting to do for many months. He was to travel to the new settlement on the eastern coast and to teach the natives, teach them to read, teach them to write, to teach them about God. Such excitement he had never experienced and hoped that all he had imagined would be true.
When he arrived at the settlement he was surprised; he had imagined a few huts and larger meeting hall but what he saw was a bustling settlement closer to what his village in Britain, wooden houses had been constructed for families to live in, a larger building seemed to be the hospital and next to that a building of a similar size but with a large cross adorning the peak of the roof. The door was closed; the man who had driven the carriage explained to me that the Minister, a military representative and Maori Chief were discussing the suppression of guerrilla forces.
Inside the doors an intense discussion of tactics was taking place the Maori chieftain named Te Kirangi was becoming enraged. “They will not give up their land peacefully; sending the boy in will do no good he is uneducated and inexperienced with such matters! Such foolishness will certainly lead to conflict.”
The reverend who went by the name of Williams jumped in “ We do not need to rush the process, perhaps we can send him as an envoy, allow him to get some standing within the tribe, establish a relationship with the tribe”
“How is that going to allow us to move in and establish our control? That’s what this is about; if we cannot prove that they have intentions that are anti-government we cannot get what we need. Sending in an envoy to get closer to the tribe will give the appearance that they are working with us.” The military representative was a nasty grey haired man; Colonel Richardson a man with little tolerance for the Maori people and an even greater passion for power.
The issue being discussed was that of the Ngati Tuhoi tribe and the land they were in possession of; land which was rich in food, much needed by the settlers.
“We will send the young missionary in our stead, allow him to make contact, establish a relationship with the tribe, allow him to find out what he can about their supplies and from there we shall make our move; but not until he has returned safely, with the information we need.” The Colonel stated. He was the most senior of the three members in the discussion as Te Kirangi had already established an alliance with the government.” He is to leave at first light tomorrow.”
The young missionary strolled around the settlement, smiling and greeting people as he passed. Many of the people in the village were of European descent but he was surprised at the number of Maori who had joined the settlement too, he had heard that the government had an ally here in Chief Te Kirangi. He was glad, this gave them an established base from which he could begin his mission without worry of conflict in his new backyard. A young Maori boy called out to him “ Father, father, they want to see you” He followed the boy back the way he had come and up the path to the church. Inside he greeted the trio, a handshake for the two Europeans and a hongi with the chief.
“We are very glad to have you here, I have been in dire need of assistance and your arrival comes at an opportune moment. Reverend Williams explained. “ We are in need of a missionary to travel to the Ngati Tuhoi and establish a government presence, we need diplomacy between the government and the tribes but so far we have been short on volunteers”
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