The various sections of the tribe are ruled by chiefs, of whom the principal during my stay in the country were Wagombi, Karkerrie, and Karuri, but in addition to these there were innumerable petty chieftains, many of whom owed no allegiance to any higher authority in the country. Kingship, or chiefship, seemed to be decided mainly on the principle that might is right, though it was of great advantage for a candidate for the headship of any section of the tribe to have a reputation for magic—or medicine, as they call it. Wealth and intelligence also counted for something, and a chief who had proved himself a brave warrior and good administrator would generally be allowed to retain his headship of a district so long as he lived, though it did not follow that his son would succeed to his honours unless he were capable of taking hold of the reins of government with a firm hand. In spite of the apparent uncertainty of succession, there is seldom any trouble with regard to it, as it is generally pretty well known some time before a vacancy takes place who the next chief will be, although I never found that there was any sort of election to the office.
The chief, once accepted, is autocratic in the ordinary details of government, trying all cases himself and pronouncing sentence, from which there is no appeal; but in matters of moment affecting the general welfare of the people he is aided in coming to a decision by the counsels of the assembled elders of his district, a body something after the fashion of the old Saxon Witan.
For ordinary infractions of the law, or offences against his authority as chief, he pronounced such punishment as his discretion and judgment dictated; but for cases of wounding or murder a regular scale of fines was laid down—fining being the usual punishment, except in cases of open rebellion. Open rebellion generally entailed a descent on the offenders by the chief’s warriors, and the wiping out of the rebellious villages and their inhabitants. For an ordinary case of wounding the fine was ten sheep, while for the murder of a woman it was thirty sheep—the price which her husband would have had to pay for her on marriage—and for a man a hundred sheep. The tenure of land is very simple, the freehold being vested in the man who takes the trouble to make the clearing, and as there is plenty of space for all, and the wants of the people are few, anything in the shape of agrarian agitation is unknown; in fact, during the whole of my stay in the country I never knew any instance of a dispute over land.