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needless destruction of nature for personal interests and commercial gain, especially when it
leaves the beauty of a landscape permanently destroyed and rare flora and fauna at the point of
extinction. Nevertheless, he did witness a favourable balance between rural and urban centres in
numerous locations, and particularly admired the pristine condition of the Hot Lake district and
Southern Alps.
In respect to the Maori, Hochstetter presents an image of transition from Dieffenbach’s
‘Romantic Savage’ to the Social Darwinian vision of the ‘Dying Savage’. Not only are the Maori
of a superior Polynesian stock when compared to other Pacific races, but Hochstetter also
develops their apparent connection to the Germanic tribes further than Dieffenbach. Thus, instead
of the battle-scarred relics of Maori ‘pa’ he sees the ruins of old German mountain forts (a
connection first made by Haast), and instead of aged warrior chiefs he sees representatives of a
Romantic and noble past, whose natural skills in oratory, poetry and storytelling, and enduring
mythology he blends with that of the ancient Greeks, Romans and Germans. Being a man of
science, these philosophically Romantic visions, however, soon gave way to bleak images of
decay and extermination, as Hochstetter’s outlook on the Maori was increasingly influenced by
the Social Darwinist mentality of ‘fatal impact’, namely that their ultimate extinction cannot be
prevented and more than likely will be accelerated through man’s intervention. This belief was so
strong that any liberal views, other than profound sympathising with Maori resistance, would
have been surpassed by the inescapability of their situation and the certainty of their demise. As
he relies on Dieffenbach’s central arguments for the effects of colonisation on the Maori, the
same demoralising and negative conditions again manifest themselves, this time in connection
with the Darwinian ‘struggle for existence’, which simultaneously explains the Maori position in
the colony, the extinction of the moa and the rise of cannibalism. Hochstetter’s perception of the
Maori was a necessary balance between his scientific view and his personal experiences. On the
one hand, he was a scientist first, and was bound to the scientific-philosophical traditions of
Social Darwinism and the greater emphasis on negative stereotypes which accompanies it (e.g.
laziness, greed, dying out). As a result, he came to the conclusion that the inability of Maori to
take the final step toward civilisation was their undoing, leading to only superficial conversion at
best. Despite any humanitarian or philanthropic endeavours by the Government, he was
convinced of their ultimate extinction on a scientific level, even though admissions from positive
experiences seem to point to a better outcome. These scientific beliefs did not prevent him from
acknowledging their remarkable development in many situations, such as their general progress in
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