THE CROWN, THE TREATY, AND THE HAURAKI TRIBES, 1880–1980

`conquered', which description they hotly disputed. There was, however, also a level of reluctance among Ngati Maru to the land being surveyed and brought through the land court which surprised government officers. Part of that hostility derived from the longterm kingite opposition of some members of Ngati Maru who were based in the area, but objections also came from the 'friendly' sections of the tribe who did not think that they should have to bear the costs of a survey being undertaken largely for the benefit of the Crown. The Government countered by bullying leaders, and with the use of force of law when physical obstruction took place.

Chapter Crown Policy and Maori Aspiration, 1890–1914

The second chapter deals with Crown purchase policy in the Hauraki region in the period 1890–1914, delineating the escalation of loss of land for Maori, most particularly in the floodplain of the Waihou and Piako Rivers where the Government's success in bringing the first Ngati Paoa blocks through the court opened the last Hauraki territory under native title to that institution. It is intrinsic to the argument in this and following chapters, that there was plenty of evidence available to the Liberal dominated administrations of these years, both that the Hauraki people were in danger of becoming landless under the current policies, and that the operation of the native land laws and court were in large part to blame. Apart from the intermittent remarks of officers in the field and ongoing protests from Hauraki Maori, particularly in the form of Kotahitanga (discussed at pp. 74–76), benchmarks of criticism were provided by the Native Land Laws Commission in 1891, and the Stout Ngata Commission of 1906–1907 (at pp. 55–58 & 85–90, respectively). Despite a rhetoric of 'response' to Maori wishes and of ensuring that they were left with a 'self-sufficiency', the primary object of Government was to open native land to European settlement. There were frequent overhauls of the legislation and tinkering with the administration and rules pertaining to alienation and purchase, but the policy was unchanging: vigorous Crown deployment of pre-emptive powers and pursuit of land acquisition on the one hand; and on the other, frequent lifting of any restrictions on title which might otherwise interfere with the transfer of native lands into European hands.

The revival of Government interest in the acquisition of Hauraki land was signalled at a practical level by the despatch of Gilbert Mair to the district as a purchase officer in 1894; and more generally, by the trend of statutory enactment in these years. Legislation was designed to 'facilitate alienation'. In 1888 the Native Land Act had swept away the innovations attempted by Bryce and Ballance, reintroducing direct purchase of native land, but the Crown's pre-emptive power was re-established under the Native Land Purchase and Acquisition Act 1893 and Native Land Court Act 1894. The very success of the Crown's purchase operations over the next five years, meant that the Liberal Government was willing to respond to Kotahitanga grievances and allow Maori a small degree of control over the alienation process under the Maori Council Act and the Maori Land Administration Act 1900. But in 1905 the passage of the Maori Land Settlement Act signalled a change of policy back to active purchase in order to satisfy continuing

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