Chapter 14: Chapter 14
Not far from Wakefield, Te Wharepouri sat on the beach. He casually drew patterns in the coarse sand with a small stick and studied the Pakeha soldier. He felt Wakefield was a dreamer, a man with ideas, focused entirely on accumulating wealth. As Te Wharepouri knew, Pakeha wealth was determined by money. Men like this conveniently overlooked the realities of life, fuelled by naivety, their actions driven by greed and the certainty they could take what they wanted. They believed in the conviction of their dreams and stood heavily on the toes of many to reach those goals. He knew that with little or no thought to consequence, they would exploit M?ori to the fullest. Te Wharepouri had little faith in the objectives of Colonel William Wakefield and the New Zealand Company he represented.
It was frustrating that he knew so little about Pakeha ways, but from pieces of conversation he"d overheard and understood, it was obvious that Wakefield may not be pleasing his own people in England - something he would talk with Ngaiti about later. In spite of that, Te Wharepouri still believed that Pakeha who wished to make this place their home could peacefully live amongst M?ori, without the fear of exploitation. Having a Pakeha living near the village and trading with M?ori would be useful, and learning new agricultural techniques from nearby farmers would be welcome. Perhaps there might be a person to teach the children the Pakeha way of writing. For now, he had no real option other than to appear willing to help Wakefield, but he would not make it easy for him.
Te Wharepouri believed that a man"s life was simple; you provided food for your family and ensured their safety. This was done through the support of the whanau, the family; the hapu or clan; and the iwi, or tribe. Te Wharepouri was under no illusions; he knew his own existence here was precarious at best. Other iwi wanted this land, they wanted slaves and they had many warriors to accomplish this, more than he had to defend the area. Given the opportunity, those M?ori who wanted this land would eventually fight to obtain it. If his people lived in peace with the Pakeha, then attack from other M?ori was very unlikely and everyone could sleep safely at night.
Te Wharepouri sighed, turned his attention to the sea and watched the small waves gently folding onto the shingle beach. He didn"t want Pakeha living here, he didn"t want to share his land with them, but he also knew that he could not prevent them from coming, just as he could not stop an angry ocean.
He laughed. Perhaps he and Wakefield were similar, both dreamers.
Colonel Wakefield came to a decision. After signalling Barrett, they approached Te Wharepouri, who stood as they approached.
Wakefield spread his arms and pivoted, "This land, as far as the eye can see, this is what I want to purchase from M?ori."
"He wants all this land," said Barrett
Te Wharepouri nodded in response. He had yet to hear from Chief Te Rauparaha, and could not commit or agree to anything with Wakefield.
"I will give this thought and will discuss this with my people."
"He said he will think about it," translated Dickie.
"We need to make a decision on this quickly. Ask him when he can give me his answer?"
"When will you know?" asked Barrett to Te Wharepouri.
Giving the matter some thought, Te Wharepouri responded, "Tell him I will have a decision by tomorrow."
"Tomorrow," Barrett told Wakefield, who smiled in response.
Later that day, after returning to his home in Kaiwharawhara, Te Wharepouri received word from Te Rauparaha. The message was typically short and concise. Te Rauparaha understood what Te Wharepouri and Te Puni intended and agreed to the plan.
Immediately, Te Wharepouri sent word to all the chiefs living in the area, instructing them they all needed to gather without delay at Kaiwharawhara for a hui, a meeting, where they would discuss the proposal. The hui was of some concern to Te Wharepouri, as all the chiefs needed to agree, and unanimous agreement was never a certainty.
M?ori are a freethinking and independent people, he knew. M?ori chiefs do not order their people to obey, instead, through discussion, a chief will make his argument and gain support. He cannot order warriors to fight; if the warriors do not believe in the cause then they are under no obligation to follow the commands of their chief. Te Wharepouri could not order the chiefs to obey him and accept his plan, he had to convince them it was the right thing to do. There had to be complete support.
Gifts
-- Gift
received Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone