Te Ohaki Tapu: John Stuart Mill and Ngati Maniapoto

Copyright M.J. Ormsby 2015

Introductory Note
Te Ohaki Tapu: John Stuart Mill and Ngati Maniapoto is a work in
progress, although it is complete in its most important detail. It is to be hoped that
more research will reveal important photographs of the main protagonists, cartoons
expressing the viewpoint of settlers and images of important Maori texts, such as
the letters from Rewi and Wahanui to Bryce and Ballance, and Sir George Greys
letter to Tawhiao making his settlement offer. It would also be useful to find the
original notes made of Ballances 1885 meeting in Kihikihi to check whether the
version printed in the Appendix to the Journals of the House of Representatives is an
accurate record.
The work also needs further editing since it is prolix and sometimes repetitive.
However I am publishing it on the Internet now because I believe it is important to
the Treaty of Waitangi settlement process. It is also of wider interest because
canonical historical commentary covering the same period makes no mention of the
Ohaki Tapu and the canon has also paid scant attention to the influence of John
Stuart Mill.
Contents
This posting contains 1. This introductory note 2. A text setting out the full details of
the 1885 agreement between the New Zealand Government and the five Iwi of the
Rohe Potae.3 A synopsis of the complete text. 4 The complete text of the full seven
chapters.
Acknowledgements
The ideas in this text have been discussed with many people, especially members
of my family. I am particularly indebted to Jock Phillips for commenting on the first
chapter and for saving me from making the howler that Mill was an egalitarian.
Malcolm McKinnon was very encouraging early on in the process when I had
decided that historical research was too hard and that I had better stick to
philosophy. Geoffrey McKee was also encouraging, urging that I had a moral
obligation to tell the story if I felt that it was unlikely anyone else would. Wendy
Harrex edited the text for the internet which set out the detail of the agreement, Te
Ohaki Tapu, and John Kaiser suggested using Weebly to put the text on the Web.
Louise Ormsby read and re-read the text, making innumerable suggestions and
guiding my understanding of New Zealand history in the 1880s. I must also
acknowledge my late grandfather, Richard Ormsby, who worked for his uncle John in
his youth and always spoke admiringly of him. When I argued that he should write

his memories down of this pivotal figure he said it was unnecessary, since all the
relevant facts were on the public record.
This proved to be correct, but I am sure he had no idea of the amount of work
required to dig them out.

The Author
Maurice Ormsby of the Ngati Te Waha hapu of Ngati Maniapoto was born in Te Kuiti,
New Zealand, in 1945. He graduated MA in philosophy with first class honours from
Canterbury University, New Zealand, and D. Phil. in philosophy from Oxford
University in 1977.
Email: maurice.ormsby@gmail.com