PARIHAKA SIEGE

Hokitika Guardian, 29 July 1931, Page 5

PARIHAKA SIEGE

LAST MILITARY ACTION AGAINST MAORIS. MASTERTON SURVIVORS. MASTERTON, July 21. Three out of .the 50 Masterton volunteers who took part in the siege of Parihaka in 1881 are among the lew survivors of the last military action against the Maoris. They are Messrs William Andrew, George Ward, and Charles Bannister. All are living in Masterton to-day. The disappearance of the Hauhau leader, Te Kooti, really marked tlici finish of the Maori war, but Pa rah aka became a dangerous, if small, storm centre, shortly afterwards, checking j the growing friendship between Maori and pakeha. The leader of the Maoris with whom the trouble arose was To . Whiti, who has been described as a J “Christian and a mystic with more' than Ills fair share of keen Maori intelligence.” He was not a fighting ' man, and he preached 1 peace, but he j had much of a. power of the old to- j hungas. Te Whiti adopted a policy of passive resistance te the opening of 'the Waimate Plains for settlement. He pulled up the pegs of the surveyors and ordered the workers off, but when bis followers were taken to prison he would not allow ai hand! to be raised in their defence. Instead he retaliated by ploughing up the grass lands of the pakehn. “Put your hands to the plough,” he is reported to have told his followers. “Be not afraid If any c-ome with swords, and if they smite, smite ye not again. Neither touch their goods nor steal their flocks' •' and herds. My eye sees all of you, and I will punish the offender. Let' the soldiers seize me if they will.; ; They’may come and I will gladylet them crucify me.” ' “V AN U-NMILITARY BAND. When for a second/ time the pegs of j the surveyors were pulled up. the Government did send soldiers. There were in Taranaki at the time 500 or "600 armed constabulary, and these were supplemented .by about 1500 , volunteers, drawn from all over New Zealand. Of these latter 50 were from Masterton. iiThe story ,of this -little band was sbld a. “Dominion.V representative tip day by. Mr Andrew, ope . of the threp: sui*vivofs, who >is still active and .retains unimpaired his memory of the stirring days. With., touches of humour he recalled the*” lunmilithry hearing of the volunteer company.,of l which- he was’ a member. He remarked that the fmen from Masterto.iv were' the most raggeclvlot; of atlrifheMtolunsteers. “They didn’t know one end of a rifle from the other,” he said. “As for drill or keeping, in step, it was all foreign to them. ■ • Gnr uniform and equipment consisted, of blue serge trousers with a red stripe down each leg," a blue jacket, glengarry cap, a greatcoat, a Lee-Enfield rifle, and a sword-bayonet that wouldn’t have cut through butter.” v ' ' ’ }> The party, which was commanded by MajoV- Donald, assemhlec! at Wellington, and was taken by boat to Opunipke.. Mr Andrew did not travel with tile main Body, as he was given leave to visit his dying sister at Nelson. He was fortunate in connecting with n. boat, there, however, and 24 hours after 'the troops landed on Onurmke bench he stepped off on to the New Plymouth breakwater. " \ A DARING ESCAPADE. ' a He was then faced with the difficulty of rejoining his company. The country between was seething with enemy Maoris, so that it is not surprising that ,he was unable to find anyone who would accompany him. Then he started on an adventure that earned him a name among all the daring young volunteers of the day. A hotblooded youth of twenty- • with - his. . greatcoat, rifle, and blunt swordbavonet and 60 rounds ;of ball Cart- .. ridge, he set out alone to travel through the enemy country to rejoin ‘his comrades. “i? left- at 10 a.m. ■ and did the 33 rriileibright through' the disaffected area,, arriving at 6 p.m.” he said, telling the story.. “What a silly thing to do! Imagme walking through enemy country, armed and in uniform! lam quite certain now that the Maoris evidently thought me one* of those afflicted by God,” he added, touching his forehead- significantly.’ “Anyway, I received every assistance from them and they even gave me food.” Arriving safely where the troops wer e encamped before PariTiaka, Private Andrew, in spite of his long journey, was immediately placed on sentry go. The following morning, November 5, 1881. the troops took up positions round Parihaka Pa. Exactly opposite the Masterton Rifles were, the Nelson Artillery with their 18^pounder muz-zle-loading gun. which Mr Andrew observed dryly “would not depress, but was depressing to us as we could look right down the muzzle.” The Maoris made no resistance, however. - Major Brice, the officer in charge, rode up. and the Riot Act was read. Te Whiti then turned to” his people and whimsic- ' allv remarked. “The potato is cooked.” meaning in modern parlance that ■ “the game was up,” and he and his ■ lieutenant. Tohu. were led off in irons., i Manv considered that Te Whiti had had right on his side, however, and in February, 1883, after 16 months’ imprisonment, be and Tohu were liber- ■ ated and given reserves of land. ' Te Whiti lived peacefully at Parihaka until November, 1907. - “The only shot fired,” s?jd Mr An- - dew. “was fired bv a trooper who was cleaning his revolver and didn’t know

lit was loaded. He was shot _in th Lfoot.” While at Pamhaka, Mr An drew was concerned in another escapade. He actually broke into Pan haka Pa itself and went calmly about among the enemy Maoris,, bringum back as a- souvenir of his visit a carve water-bottle which is now An the Ma^ terton Museum. Stranglpy, as ha been the case during his journey from New Plymouth, not: a hand was raiselagaiinst" him. i*?r« q’” te sure . thou ah t T was a harmless lunatic, • ho chuckled—“as perhaps I was.”