Vivian Young of Paeroa talks about his father William Young's experiences as a surveyor with Sir Julius Von Haast. He says his father was born in Auckland on 20 July 1842 - he says he believes he was the second white child born there.
He trained as a surveyor and spent a lot of time in the South Island surveying. He surveyed with Haast and also a Māori man named Kawana, to find the pass to the West Coast of the South Island. He says his father would climb the highest tree and draw sketch of what he could see, then they would use that to find their way. They carried very little in the way of supplies, but shot birds for food.
Haast was very interested in finding a kākāpō, and gave a sovereign to the man who found one first. The bird William Young found is still in the Canterbury Museum today.
Viv Young says the bush went right down to the seashore on the West Coast, so the group his father was with were surprised when they reached the sea. His father stayed in the South, tracing rivers and drawing-up sheep runs, but he eventually moved back to the North Island and farmed at Kaipara Harbour. He describes how his father brought back bone dust from Sydney to top-dress his farm by hand in 1874. His father then moved to Taranaki to farm.
He tells the story about Tom Adam, who set out to capture Titokowaru for the reward set on his head. He captured the wrong man and beheaded him, and was almost given the reward before the British forces realised the trick. He goes on to speak about Tom Adam's one-armed brother, Steven Adam, who used a hook to slash the horses being used by Māori when they were ploughing up disputed land [possibly at Parihaka.]
Viv Young then tells some tales about Newton King and a shipment of barbed wire, and also some lost pheasants. He goes on to give details of Te Whiti's speech at Parihaka, and an incident from the Parihaka raid.
Mr Young then talks about when he first came to Hikutaia near Paeroa - early settlement and industry; bached in a shack his brother had built; goods brought in by boat; description of taking milk to the creamery and back again; the steamer drivers ; land very boggy - drained to make way for pasture; settlers trying to drive sheep from Waikato to the Hauraki District blocked by the paramount chief and his slaves; election time at Te Aroha - Sir Joseph Ward's candidate not acceptable because his father had murdered a neighbour; a man who was able to buy 200-300 acres of land for a mare and foal; Hopertown Jack the great endurance runner who could beat the coach from one town to another;
He talks again about the capture of Titokowaru - this time the settler captures and kills the real Titokowaru and collects the reward money. Te Whiti's famous speech at Parihaka and a story about Viv’s uncle who was part of the team guarding Māori that had been captured at Parihaka. A story about a group of men (Mr Young's father included) who narrowly escaped being caught up in the Gisborne Massacre.