which lasted until the much-criticised action against Te Whiti at Parihaka in 1881. Te Whiti-o-rongamai was a prophet of non-violence, perhaps the first of New Zealand's passive resisters. Born at Ngamotu in 1830, he was educated at J. F. Riemenschneider's mission school at Warea, w here he showed great diligence in Bible studies. He lived peacefully on the coast near Parihaka, making occasional visits to New Plymouth. He con- ducted a flour mill at Warea until 1865 when the European troops burned his village. As a result he moved inland to Parihaka, refusing to let his people, over whom he exercised great influence, to take aggressive action against the troops. His doctrines were cloaked in mysticism, but his fundamental ideas were simple: he believed that the Maoris should be left to work out their salvation in their own way; that no land should be sold to Europeans, and that the only reaction to encroachments by Europeans should be peaceful, by civil disobedience and passive obstruction. He added a peculiar myth based on his studies of the Bible and the teachings of Hauhauism, which looked forward to a 'special Day of Reckoning' when all Europeans would voluntarily leave the country. As a policy, passive resistence appealed to the Maori sense of humour and proved very difficult for the Government to counteract. Te Whiti launched his campaign when, in 1879, Government surveyors began to work on confiscated Maori land. His men removed survey pegs and ploughed up newly constructed roads. The settlers became alarmed and pressed for action against Te Whiti's followers. This alarm-and confusion-was epitomised in a series of urgent telegrams exchanged in September, 1881, between Wellington, New Plymouth, Opunake and Pungarehu: William Rolleston to H. A. Atkinson (Colonial Treasurer) from Pungarehu: 'No cause for alarm till we take active measures. Only people alarmed are New Plymouth who anticipate invasion by Te Whiti immediately and burning of town. All quiet here . ' Atkinson to Arthur Standish in New Plymouth: ' . I am thoroughly acquainted with all that is going on and am ready to come up at any moment when necessary. Important to avoid anything like panic.' Rolleston to Atkinson: ' .
There is no panic on the spot the newspapers and New Plymouth people are making quite a scare. I am satisfied there is no preparation among the Maoris for fighting. They are very busy cultivating, which does not look like war. ' Notwithstanding these assurances, the Taranaki Rifle Volunteers were called out for service on October 25, and nine days later the company of 51 men under Captain Ellis was 'played out ofthe town by Mr Townsend's Band amid the cheers ofa large crowd assembled to see the force off.'
They joined Militiamen and an Armed Constabulary force, and on November 5, with 'Honest John' Bryce, Minister of Native Affairs, mounted on a white horse, the company of 1600 moved to surround Parihaka. Although greeted by chanting boys and skipping girls and women offering them bread, instead of the hostile warriors they had expected, the 'action' ended in anticlimax. H. A. Atkinson telegraphed his brother Arthur (who was then in Nelson): 'Te Whiti, Tohu and Heroki taken prisoner without resistance. Riot Act and Proclamation read. No demonstration except of surprise.' Te Whiti had his champions among the Pakehas, one of whom was Sir Arthur Gordon (Governor of New Zealand, 1880-1882). Gordon was in Fiji when the Government decided to force the issue, and arrived home too late to take any action. According to a diary in the Hughson family papers, Thomas Pole Hughson, 17 at the time, was stationed at Opunake township as a member of the Armed Constabulary, at 30c a day. The township 'comprised no more than an armed camp, the signal station, Mother Bartlett's Hotel and Newman Brothers' store. Nine other recruits were landed with me through the surf, with Mr George Taylor, a Maori, as coxwain. We found the accommodation somewhat primitive, even in those days, for each man was allocated a floor space of three feet by seven feet on which rushes were spread to sleep on and keep your belongings.'
Hughson was ordered to join a guard of 20 men to protect labourers forming the road from New Plymouth to Opunake. 'We were stationed on the hills each side of the working party and we piled arms so as not to be more than ten paces away.' The party encountered' native protests at the progress of the road. When we pulled down the fences and formed the road they protested by re-erecting the fences as often as we demolished them. Eventually a Maori party, contrary to Te Whiti's orders, I believe, clashed with our detachment. The result was the arrest of Te Whiti and his Maoris who were sent away for safe keeping where they were provided with all they needed, including a plentiful supply of tobacco.' Te Whiti and Tohu were held without trial for about a year before being allowed to return home, where Te Whiti found he had lost some of his mana. But within months he was in as strong a position as ever, renewing his policy of passive obstruction. Constable John Twomey, No. 396, was stationed at the Opunake Police Station, with headquarters in New Plymouth. He kept a 'Diary of Duty and Occurrences' in a big leather-bound volume, written in a copperplate hand, which stamped him as perhaps a cut above the ordinary policeman of the time. He was stationed at Opunake between 1884 and 1897, and although it was not his duty to record any more than his brief part in the events at Parihaka, it is tantalising to find fragments of information referring to Te Whiti and his followers during his absence. Feelings were still running high and there were many entries in the diary involving 'Natives trespassing,' 'Natives gathering fungus,' 'Natives stealing animals' and 'Natives cutting trees.' On July 20, 1886, Constable Twomey 'assisted in the arrest of Te Whiti from 5 a.m. to 7 a.m. and reached town (New Plymouth) at noon. Te Whiti was jailed for three months. Early in the 1890s he fell out with his fellow prophet Tohu over the disposal of the 'Day of Reckoning Fund' and the movement split. He died at Parihaka on December 18, 1907. Following the events at Parihaka a period of peace and comparative prosperity ensued. The need for a local military force lessened; the Armed Constabulary was divided into two the Police Force and the Field Force. The latter had comparatively little to do and were employed mainly on public works. The Volunteers were retained, in spite of public apathy, and it was not until the last decade of the century that official encouragement in the shape of increased Government capitation, new equipment and drill manuals, was given. The reason was the increasing likelihood of New Zealand involvement in the troubled situation in South Africa. The Taranaki Rifle Volunteers, reorganised as a battalion, in addition to their usual drills and parades, were in demand for the processions and celebrations which marked the decade. On May 18, 1891, a week's holiday began in the town to celebrate the town's 50th birthday.
A grand exhibition, sports meetings, dances, including a grand military ball, and two days of racing were held-with the Volunteers attending most functions. At Queen Victoria's diamond jubilee celebration on July 17, 1897 (a monument fountain to the occasion still stands in Pukekura Park) ten thousand people assembled in the town for a day of general rejoicing. The same year Lord Ranfurly, the Governor, visited the town to lay the foundation stone for the Whiteley Memorial Church, at which the Volunteers were present. Fifty years' service to the Anglican congrega- tion of the town by Archdeacon Govett was celebrated with a special service in St Mary's, at which a memorial hatchment to the officers and men of the 65th Regiment who died in the land wars was unveiled; the Volunteers were there. And they were in full attendance in the Drill Hall for the presentation of the Imperial Volunteer Officers' decoration to Brigade-Surgeon Colonel P. J. O'Carroll in reward for 'totally efficient service over 26 years.' More serious business was ahead. The trouble in South Africa was coming to a head, and Premier Richard John Seddon, noted for his imperialistic leanings, offered military help to Britain. This gave Volunteers a new stimulus, and for many weeks before the Boer War began in October, 1899, the recruiting office at the Drill Hall was a busy place. Only the best were chosen. Prime qualifications were marksman- ship and horsemanship. Ten contingents of Mounted Rifles comprising 17,000 men and their equipment were sent by New Zealand; Taranaki contributed 25 men and their horses and equipment to the war. Each trainload of troops 'bound for training in camps in Wairarapa before leaving to fight 'for Queen and country' was seen off by enthusiastic crowds. Some of the soldiers were sons of men who had seen fighting in the areas near the town in the 1860. News of their exploits was sparse, but it was known that conditions in South Africa were difficult. Food was scarce, and because of the persistent belief that it would be a short war, little was done for the welfare of the soldiers. Lee Enfield rifles replaced the older weapons used in the land wars, and history was made when the Boer War troops were issued with khaki uniforms. When the war ended with the surrender of the Boers in 1902 several New Zealand soldiers remained in South Africa to join the police force or take up farming. Returning men found they had little to reward them for their sacrifice, and many were hard put to find employment. The Mayor, E. Dockrill, opened a fund for Christmas presents for the men and their families. But apart from that, and a few private welcome-home parties, the 25 returning 'heroes' were quickly absorbed in the civilian community. They were, however, an exclusive body, for they founded the New Plymouth branch of the South African War Veterans' Association, later to become the Returned Soldiers' Association and still later the Returned Services Association. Each man received the South African Medal, with various clasps to indicate actions in which he had seen action. The 'strangest military award of modern times'!" was the Queen's Scarf. During an audience with Queen Victoria in December, 1899, Lord Roberts, the Commander-in-Chief of the Imperial Forces in South Africa, was presented with four scarves knitted by the Queen, to be given to selected ncos and men as reward for 'outstanding conduct'. Later four more scarves arrived in South Africa and these were presented to Colonial troops serving with Australian, Canadian, South African and New Zealand forces. The scarves were knitted in plain khaki wool, and each had the cypher 'VRI' worked with khaki thread into one corner. The New Zealand Scarf was awarded to Trooper Henry Donald Coutts, New Zealand Mounted Infantry, for outstanding bravery at Sanna's Post on March 13, 1900, when he rescued a wounded trooper of the Burmese Mounted Rifles, under fire. Most of the Boers, recognising Coutt's courage, held their fire, but others did not, with the result that the New Zealander's life was at peril. After the battle-a disaster for the British-Coutts carried the man 12km to the nearest medical section, only to find that he had a corpse with him on arrival. When he returned to New Zealand in January, 1901, to take his discharge (the term of service was for one year) Coutts toured the country on a lecture tour, and his addresses in New Plymouth drew large audiences and were reported at length in Taranaki newspapers.
Coutts' Queen's Scarf was loaned to the Taranaki Museum in 1975 by the General Assembly Library, where it had been held since Coutts presented it to the Government in 1913. It was allowed to come to Taranaki because Coutts, though born in Kaiapoi in 1866, moved to Taranaki as a young man to take up farming at Ngaere. His military service began in the province, where he served in various Volunteer units from 1881 until his enlistment for South Africa. His second term in that country was as Quartermaster-Captain and following his second discharge he served with the Volunteer Militia until 1910 when he was posted to the reserve. His Queen's Scarf was transferred to the Waiouru War museum in 1980. On the outbreak of the 'Great War' in 1914 New Zealand offered Britain an expeditionary force, and a new and more serious bout of patriotic fervour came to the town. Under the new Defence Act only volunteers could serve abroad and once again the Drill Hall became the scene of feverish activity. Many New Plymouth soldiers joined the 'Main Body' of 8427 men, and subsequent reinforcements. They were officially farewelled, once a month, by the Mayor and councillors, who had been appointed as members of the recruiting board, in the presence of large crowds at the railway station. Mothers and sweethearts may have wept, but there was pride behind their tears. Ties with 'Home' were strong. So was the spirit of militarism, even though the war was 19000 km away. There were few, if any, critics in the town of New Zealand involvement. The war gave new impetus to community spirit. Parties, bazaars, gala days, competitions and other social and money-raising projects were held with more enthusiasm than usual, for proceeds went to the war effort. Sewing and knitting circles made comforts for the troops; people donated clothing and money willingly; young men (most of whom required little encouragement, though later a few 'white feathers' were flourished) were urged to volunteer for the 'great adventure. ' It was many months before reality set in and invalided and wounded men began to return. Some bore hideous wounds and crippling injuries. Many, indeed, never returned. But the spirit of the community was not allowed to flag. 'On August 14, 1916, the Second Anniversary of the Declaration of War by Great Britain, a very large and representative public meeting convened by His Worship the Mayor at the request of the Governor, was held in Robe Street fronting the Courthouse. The Mayor moved the resolution which it was proposed to carry simultaneously throughout the Empire, affirming the inflexible determination of the people to continue the war to a victorious end, and it was unanimously carried with intense enthusiasm.'
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