THE ASCENT OF TONGARIRO.

Kumara Times, Issue 407, 15 January 1878, Page 2

THE ASCENT OF TONGARIRO.

The "New Zealand Herald" publishes the following, letter !l from Mr Connelly. It gives a very graphic account of the experiences which he had to encounter:—• *'■ ToKANO, TAUPO. 4 ' It is quite useless for me to attempt to give any account of myself, but I am quite safe, sound, well, and only deprived of my things, which I hope to get back. News flies, so you may have heard 1 have been up Tongariro, but my Ixol*B6B, gun, Baddies, 'all sorts of things were taken, from me. So many Maoris were in my favour that I was got away with blankets and various things. My sketch-book they have got, but only the Tongariro sketches, and those I have already nearly, got right again. I was for uine days, by various accidents, without' seeing a piece of bread. The first night I came down Tongariro, I was lost in the night. I had gone up alone, and not reached the top till after sunset I left the boy below, not daring to let him know where I was going; I thought he would get .frightened. He only went to sleep, and when I got down and had a mile or two to go to where I left him, and counfed on his hearing my whistle and showing his fire, no Bound answered, and for an hour or so I thought I was done for till morning. Fortunately he woke, and as I kept en whistling he auswered, and «all's well that ends wel).' Then I told him I would take him up too. He said, * Me dead,' Wut he came and eventually seemed ready to come anywhere with me. We explored the whole region of-the. summit next day, and crossed over on the Ruapehu side

[ afterwards. If I had had ship biscuits, J and the horses did not show signs of I starvation, I think we would be there i now; but from that time till now has been just horrible scenes of every description, swamp, rain, cold,, and the horses so bogged that one Had to pull the other out with a rope. It was just frightful, and once or twice I thought they never would all get out alive. Only a few matches loft, and the potatoes nearly gone. It was very lucky before I started I had some experience in lighting a fire on a rainy" day, and had determined that a match could not compare with a candle; those candles I brought with Die; just lighted our fire. s We green wood burn. I think I couuted.up that in fifteen nights' I - had only/ been twonights in a bed. If it only ddea not rain I- don't inind." it in the least, but we had an unnecessarily hard time of it; but, it is all right 'I have pretty wellused upibree guides; they are all gone iiow,' so I ain alone and happy in the house at Tokano, and this time I am going to rest. You know. Tongariro was a second edition. I had already had five' days of Tauhara, but it is useless to write. I expect to beable. to bring down pictures of. the crater when I come down. I wish it was now. lam very sick of Maoris; I don't mind sleeping on.the mountains, but I do.hate :; the whares—except when I have alreadybeen used lip with wet weather, theii* shelter seems safivit, though disagreeable. I do hope I shall get my thingn back ; they have got nearly everyjtfiipg. 'Te Heuheu is trying to get them, and I shall get Rewi aud Topia to. help if he can't get them ; it is just one old chief in Otuku or Eotoaira. I have used up Tongariro. I can tell ..anyone bow, to and will send up ever so many, I think, before they can. stop, it, X could put up the trig-statjofis for the., surveyors any day, .even I,•had, to-, do it at niyht. I have had immense kindness shown to me by everybody but that ..oue man. All the Europeans have bepn ready to do anything and everything; jin.deed it was the extraordinarv interest flhowntin my •* succeeding in, doing all I wanted madj&Y me so wilful. The meeting of ;■ tives is commencing; 200 have been seen across over by Tuhua; they are all coming to Te Heuhetfs great feast. They say they wil} "have the korero, and there they will"/see. about . my affair. I think the majority here are very ant>iy with the has got my hornes, &c ' I •d^s ,: know as yet how you are to get this : letter, but I williget some one totaka-it. Tokano is at the Tongariro end of Lake Taupo. Tongariro is my name now." They say to me, " Good ' mbrnin,• Topia, the chief whose son was. with me, and who just started off and left me alone at Otaku, is at the. ; ? roent Hous<% Wellington. He is the biggest chief here. His wife, is uow at my elbow—a fine specimen. I have got a room to paint in, but oh, the place is infested with Maoris, lunatics; pius and, hornes—no, not the last, they : crowd, but d«» not ihfesta. place. Till 1 o'clock at night and from in the morning, the only soiud is * Pakeha, pake-ha,' You would think it expressed every sentiment known, and ' was the Alpha and Omega-of. the Maori tongue. I really don't know if they, will leave me alone to paint. As yet they do not' come' to my bedroom, but it takes a great deal to get away from them. I expect-fun and sights at the meeting. I can/generally j win them 1 when I choose, but :I don't believe in pleasingthem tftomuch—top much familliarity breeds despising. I have not got my paints frdta Tapuae- . haruru. lam in high spirits at the mere thought of returning." '