Ngai Tahu Land Report

15 Rakiura

15.3 The Purchase

15.3.1 Clarke arrived in Invercargill in March 1864, but could not make much progress as this coincided with the mutton birding season. He noted in his report of 30 March 1864 that he had personally communicated with the local Maori residents (A8:II:55){FNREF|0-86472-060-2|15.3.1|12}. A letter had also been sent to Otago informing Ngai Tahu there that the government intended to proceed with the purchase and asking them to be ready to meet with the Southland claimants when called upon. Disputes about rights on the island had arisen, some Maori claiming rights through Ngati Mamoe. Patuki, as a principal claimant through Ngai Tahu, rejected the Ngati Mamoe claim. Clarke also recommended the prosecution of the proposed purchaser who had agreed to give 4000 for about two-thirds of the island. This was an agreement made directly with Patuki, who acknowledged that he had received 10 on account.

In May 1864 Clarke was able to begin negotiations in earnest. He considered his position inherently unsatisfactory, being charged with both protecting Maori interests, and buying the island as cheaply as possible. He wrote to the superintendent of Southland in April 1864:

The position in which I stand is, I conceive rather an anomalous one. On the one hand I shall be expected to purchase for the Provincial Government on the most favourable terms. On the other, I am instructed to have due regard to the interests of the Natives. (A8:II:58){FNREF|0-86472-060-2|15.3.1|13}

15.3.2 Consequently, before entering into any purchase negotiations Clarke was careful to come to a clear understanding with the Southland Provincial Government over the purchase price. The payment schedule proposed by Clarke differed in several respects from that set out in the government's original instructions to Heale.

Clarke proposed a total price of 6000. Two thousand pounds of this was to be paid over at the time that the deed was signed, and 2000 was to be held by the government, with interest at 8 per cent per annum to be paid annually to certain named chiefs. The remaining 2000 was to be used to buy land in Southland as a reserve for Maori education and other purposes. Clarke considered that the instructions given to Heale about making payments out of the proceeds of land sales were inconvenient and unworkable. He wrote on 6 May 1864:

This would be especially the case with regard to Stewart's Island. The Provincial Government may find themselves trammelled in their mode of dealing with those lands, and it may become the source of frequent disputes and complications. On the other hand I know from my knowledge of the Natives, that eventually misunderstanding and dissatisfaction would inevitably arise. (A8:II:59){FNREF|0-86472-060-2|15.3.2|14}

The general government and the provincial government both agreed to his proposal, although the provincial government did try to reduce the rate of interest that was to be paid on the 2000 invested with it to 6 per cent.

15.3.3 Clarke's letter to the superintendent of Southland on 26 April 1864 asking for approval of the revised payment schedule, contains the first official mention of an intention to make reserves on Rakiura for Ngai Tahu. Heale had previously noted that it would be necessary to make provision for the half-castes resident on the island. Clarke also recognised this, but suggested that other reserves would have to be made, including several reserves to provide Ngai Tahu with continuing access to titi. However the tenor of his comments on these reserves suggest that he did not see any conflict between making these provisions and the government's intentions.

In his letter he wrote:

The reserves necessary for the Natives will be two only;- one at Port Adventure, for William John Topi (Topi Patuki's half brother), and others residing in that locality; and one at Paterson's Inlet. It will also be necessary to reserve THREE OR FOUR OF THE SMALL Islands adjacent where the Natives procure the "titi," or mutton bird. (A8:II:58){FNREF|0-86472-060-2|15.3.3|15} (emphasis added)

It would appear that Clarke had been given authority to make reserves before leaving for the south as he saw no need to discuss the arrangements regarding reserves in his letter to the superintendent. He updated his proposed course in a letter to the colonial secretary in May 1864 (A8:II:59){FNREF|0-86472-060-2|15.3.3|16}. Clarke met with Mr Menzies, the Superintendent of Southland, in late June, and pressed upon him the necessity of settling the matter immediately. His view prevailed and Menzies arranged for the money to be made available.

15.3.4 On 24 October 1864 Clarke reported that the sale was complete (A8:II:60-61).{FNREF|0-86472-060-2|15.3.4|17} His report mentions that there was a dispute between Ngai Tahu and Ngati Mamoe over ownership of the island but does not record any division over the question of whether or not to sell, or any uneasiness about the fact that the government wished to purchase the whole of Rakiura. He had met with 120 representatives of Ngai Tahu and Ngati Mamoe on 23 June, and found that the issue of ownership had been settled. To make sure that no undue pressure had been applied Clarke went through the dispute again. He did not record the discussion, but concluded that Ngai Tahu "indisputably" established their right over Ngati Mamoe and that Ngati Mamoe kaumatua were content "to hold a secondary position, and claim through their Ngai Tahu ancestry"(A8:II:60).{FNREF|0-86472-060-2|15.3.4|18}

A second meeting was held the next day to discuss the price. Clarke claimed to have told Ngai Tahu at the beginning of the negotiations that the government was willing to pay 6000. This was thought to be too low and Patuki asked for 50,000, then revised it to 22,000, and finally dropped his price to 12,000. Clarke refused to budge as he felt 6000 "was a liberal and just payment for an Island which was of little or no value to themselves" (A8:II:60).{FNREF|0-86472-060-2|15.3.4|19}

On 29 June Clarke held another meeting with the owners, this time at Bluff, and a deed was executed. Thirty-four chiefs signed the deed which conveyed to the Crown all of Rakiura and the adjacent islands. Nine reserves were made, amounting to about 935 acres, plus an unspecified amount of land on the Neck (out of which half-castes' grants, with ten acres for men and eight acres for women, were to be made). Clarke appended to his report on the purchase a list of 28 half-castes residing at the Neck, but acknowledged that this was probably incomplete. Twenty-one of the Titi Islands were reserved for Ngai Tahu-Ngati Mamoe but there is no indication how this list was compiled. Most significant, however, was the exclusion of Whenua Hou (Codfish Island) and some of the smaller Titi Islands from the list of those reserved for the vendors.

The 6000 was to be divided into three equal portions. The first was to be paid at the time of signing, the second invested with the government at 8 per cent and the income distributed annually, and the third used to buy land in Southland "for educational, and other Native purposes". This latter endowment, Clarke explicitly stipulated related "to Stewart's Island only" (A8:II:58).{FNREF|0-86472-060-2|15.3.4|20} In essence, he was conveying to the Southland provincial government that it should not use these funds and lands to set up schools in the Murihiku area for people other than Stewart Islanders.

Although Clarke's journal of proceedings, if it existed at all, has not been found, it is clear from the detailed list of islands in the deed that they were indeed negotiated for by the vendors. It is clear that some discussion on the Titi Islands must have taken place for them to be included in the list of reserves described in the deed. This is contrary to the witnesses' testimony, that specific islands were unintentionally included in the purchase.