LATEST FROM WANGANUI.

Hawke's Bay Times, Volume 8, Issue 435, 5 November 1866, Page 3

LATEST FROM WANGANUI.

■ EEPOET OF CAPTAIN M‘DONNELL’3 DEATH FALSE. ■ MOEE TEOOPS SENT TO THE FEONT. THE GOVEENOE IN PEESON TAXING ACTIVE MEASURES. Br the arrival of the Ahuriri we (New Zealand Advertiser, 29th October) are in receipt of news from Wanganui to Saturday. We learn from the Chronicle of that day, that the report of Captain M'Donnell’s death is without foundation and that the gallant officer was not even so badly wounded as at first stated, and is rapidly recovering. The pleasure which we, in common with all others feel at the receipt of this news, is only equalled by the regret that we feel that we should have been led into stating that he had died. We were led into that error ly the wording of the telegram which our correspondent sent from Nelson, and the great probability of its being too true from the account that the same correspondent had sent us from Wanganui of the action in which Captain McDonnell was wounded. Onr correspondent left Wanganui an the Wanganui for Nelson, and from the latter place sent us a telegram which simply said, “M'Domieli is dead.” As we Ld not received any Wanganui papers containing an account of the engagement in which the wound was received, and as our correspondent, who bad received the latest intelligence, did not qualify his statement by saying that the gallant officers death was rumored, but that that it was absolutely the case, we could do no otherwise than assume that he was correctly informed, and act upon the information. We enquired at the Defence Office for confirmation of the report and were informed that no information had been received of the attack by Major M'Donneli on the rebel pa, the march under Captains Newland and M'Donneli or the latter officer’s wound, and as we know of the two former occurrences having taken place, we could not but suppose that our informant was correct in the third particular also. We feel sure that our readers will acquit us, under the circumstances, of having acted with undue haste in reporting for fact what we had such strong reasons for believing to be true. The news from the front which we give below is from the Chronicle of Saturday, and is meagre enough. Our Wanganui contemporaries seem to treat the important news from the front with the most sublime indifference. Neither of them has yet given any account of the affair in which Major M'Donnell was wounded, although the journal from which we extract our information to-day says that he is recovering. A short “extra” of the Times, which which we gave in our last, with the news sent by our correspondent, appeared in that journal of Tuesday and nothing more. Wednesday’s Chronicle does not contain a word about any of the occurrences at the front and the meagre particulars we now give of subsequent affairs is all that we can glean.

The Wanganui Chronicle, of the 27th ult., says:—There is rather a stirring note of preparation from the front. The Governor is now there in person, and on Wednesday evening despatches were received from him in Wanganui, requesting as large a muster of Kupapas, as could be raised, and giving instructions to have them sent on to Patea by the p.s. Sturt, which arrived here next morning. This steamer will sail as soon as a sufficient number of the Kupapa volunteers can be got together. They will be in charge Lieut Gudgeon, who has come from the front for that purpose. Meantime the s.s. Waipara has been despatched with ammunition and and other military material to Patea, and ve understand that a hundred and fifty men of

the 18th Regiment have been, marched from the camp there to Ketemarai to hold that advanced outpost, whfisr the small field force proceeds to penetrate itill farther in pursuit of the Hjap-ltans, ; There are rumors of the Hau-haus heing joined by flying bands of the tribes from Hawke’s Bay and the Waikato, bat our readers must take all such 7 stories with large deduction.. Captain M'Dpnnell, we are glad to say, is recovering: feis ivound was reported to be dangerous-but it has happily turned but to be : otherwise.