JOURNAL

Maori Messenger : Te Karere Maori, Volume 2, Issue 46, 26 September 1850, Page 3

JOURNAL

Of an Expedition Overland from Auckland to Taranaki, by way of Rotorua, Taupo, and the West Coast, undertaken, in the Summer of 1819—50, by His Excellency the Gover-Nor-in-Chief of New Zealand. (Continued from our lait.) Saturday, December 15 —Fine morning but ' lowering, fortunately however the weather held up, so we started at between seven and eight, a.m., lo walk to Matamata. Wc all set out in the full expectation of having formidable dilli- ! culties to encounter from streams, swamps, Sit., in consequence of the representations made to us by several people who had previously traveiled the same route. Wc only met with two creeks, the largest of which, called Te Iloro, ■ only wet \is as far as the knees and took hut three steps to cross, whilst the other, about half-a-mile fuither on, was but a moderate jump. The swamps, however, were toule autre chose, and certainly the representations made ' to us in legard to iheni by peisons who had crossed them previously turned out to be by no means exaggerated. We had to encounter . four of these, the average depth of the fust I three of which was between the knees and the , waist, and the distance across varying front a ! quarter to rather belter than haH-a-mile, with an interval, upon the average, of about live I hundred yards of terra Anna between ihcm. Then came Manga pouri (rightly named the dark swamp), last but certainly uot least of all. This is a regular ranpo swamp of the worst description, and from the late rains was full of highly odoriferous black water •, it is about half-a-mile in breadth. We were lucky enough to find a small canoe which took us safely across, four at a time. Our finding this canoe, the natives told us was a very fortunate circumstance as the swamp is, it seems, infested by a very wicked Taniwha called llito, whose favourite food is pakehas (he never cats maories), whom he draws under the water as they cross the swamp, and devours bones and all >n his hole in the mud. The natives who waded and dragged the canoe across, sunk to their chins in the mud and water in the centre of the swamp, and certcs, taniwha or no taniwha, we all considered ourselves extremely fortunate in getting over so well as wc did. The plain over which wc crossed between Manawaru and the first of these swamps —a distance of about twelve miles is bleak and without any indications of good soil, being covered with stunted fern and maimfca. There is no timber between Manawaru (where there are a few acres of forest) and Matamata. We had the Thames —of which we caught occasional glimpses here and there . on our left, beyond which was the fine range of hills before mentioned, but the top of which, finm the haziness of the weather, we could no', sec distinctly. On the right all was plain, bounded in the distance by the blue hills west of Waikato, and in front the prospect was terminated by the forest at Matamata. Wc obta'itfd a view of the fall of Waircrc in the raugV» L ' ar] y opposite to Matamata, but at such a dwauce that wc could not discern any of its bc-.uties. It must be upwards of a hundred fejt in height, and the quantity of water passing over it very considerable. Whilst we were in the midst of the swamps, the natives at the settlement having heard that the Governor was approaching, came out to meet us, bringing presents of small kits of ripe cherries which wc found very refreshing, the day being warm. They scrutinized the party, and at length asked, as they saw us coming up one by one, what had ueconie of the Governor, as they could see neither- cocked hat, feathers,

sword, nor silver lace on ;uiy one of the party ; and when His Excellency was pointed out lo them they seemed quite astonished and almost disappointed at beholding a man in a common shooting jacket, a Jim Crow lint, trowsers rather the woise for wear and a pair of moustaches. "Is this the Governor'?" they all exclaimed, " why we thought he certainly would have come to visit us attired in his full guhcrnatori.il costume." After they had recovered a little from their surprise, however, they very kindly lent us their assistance in getting through the suaraps, pointing out the Lest crossing places, carrying us over the worst spots, and dividing the burthens of some of our overloaded natives. After crossing Manga pouri, we had to pass through a wood, about a quarter of a mile, ■which was very dirty walking. Beyond this wood lies Malauiala, situated in a rich and fertile plain covered with abundance of excellent feed for hundreds of cattle, with a fine piece of forest on the eastern and southern sides, and bounded at the back, or west, by a creek called the Wniloa, which runs into the I'iako. To the northward is the swampy plain between the rivers Thames and I'iako. The first house we arrived at was that of a European, a Mr. Nicholas, where the natives led us to believe we should be able to purchase some stores lo replace those which had besn destroyed, but in this hope we were disappointed. Mr. Nicholas was unfortunately not at home, having gone to Otawhao, about three days journey, hut his native wife told us we were mistaken in supposing we should be able to purchase supplies here. She very kindly gave us however a quantity of tea, sugar, and butter, a damper, some salt pork, a quantity of eggs, and a bucket very nearly full of milk, for which nothing could induce her to take any payment whatever. Mrs. Nicholas is a i a- very '*ood looking native and must a short time ago have been very handsome; she has six beautiful half-caste children who are neatly dressed and remarkably well behaved, and she herself has a clean and respectable appearance with a" sweet, good humoured expression of countenSiifg,; which arc rarely to be met with ;uirlauW'womcu. 1 After having sonie conversation with Te Waha- | roa, younger brother of Win. Thompson Tara pipi, the chief of the settlement, we went to I see the chapel, which is a large ranpo building supported by immense Totara posts with European made door and windows, and the altar, pulpit and communion railings being neatly made of Totara and much resembling those of the chapel at Malaparu. The building is seventy feet long by foily wide, and about thirty feet high. It iry however, like must of the other native chapels, sadly in want of repair. The river Waitoa runs close to the hack of the chapel, and from its banks is a line view towards the south-west and west of the hills in the neighbourhood of Waikato and towatds Manngataiitari, with a beautiful and well watered plain intervening. Having seen the chapel we went to the deserted Mission house, which had formerly been inhabited by ArchJeacou Drown but was left and the station removed to Tauranga at the time of the last war between the Thames and Hotorua tribe 3. The place has a sadly desolate appearance. The house which is built of ranpo in the best Native style, is well constructed and commodious, containing six rooms, all of which ate floored with boards and lilted with English made doors and windows—every pane in the latter, however, being broken —the ehininics 100 have all been pulled down. The house 3(i(t contains some ailiclcs of furniture. It miaht easily be repaired, and would make a comfortable residence. The garden and orchard are in a state of perfect wilderness ; they contain peach, apple, cherry, plum, and raspberry trees, with quantities of strawberries honeysuckle, roses, mimosa, and elder trees, with various other plants all running wild, in the most admired disorder and inextricable confusion and degenerating fast for want of culture. The place has evidently been made with great care and labour, and it is quite distressing lo see it in its present condition. We then walked over the rest of the settlement, which presents little or nothing to distinguish it from the majority of other liative kaingas. The chiefs are WAUjfMtfl'hfyntQn and Te Waharoa, sons r/ fji-WoKatoY of famous memory who headed the Ngatihaua tribe and defended the old with great bravery against -The NgaliwhaUaue peTqiW Hi the late war. We did not see (he former, who is the principal chief, he being absent on a visit to Tauranga, but Te Waharoa received us in the usual manner, and feasted our followers gccotdiug-to_the regular ritenga.jnjuuri The settlement, as I have before observed, lies in a beautifully fertile--/ tSfiTabounding with wild oats, rye and several indigenous grasses gfcwing spontaneously, but we saw very little land under tillage, perhaps not more than live or six acres, their principal cultivations being at llorotiu,and at the foot of Maungakawa, whulier the greater portion of the population had gone for the planting season, there being scarcely a hundred people left at Malauiala, which they are gradua.ly

deseilin'; in consequence of i's unhcallhiness, iiiisimj from its low nml swampy situation. Apple, peaches, plums, themes, ami raspberries, ciciv 1" oveiy direction in a stale of nature, iingrafled, unpinned, in fact (except when I lie IViiTt is ripe) totally unheeded; the latter two fruits being just in season uc regaled onisclves plentifully with them. We. saw three or four very line marcs ami foals, which are in capital condition anil of which the natives appear very foml; they have few cows, no sheep, Iml few pigs, anil scarcely any poultry. They seem to°know little anil care less aliont their homed cattle, being very glad to allow Mr. Nicholas ..'1 the advantage of the milk and butter they pro luce for the trouble of taking caic of them. Thev have not commenced the cultivation of '.l—though the soil is eminently calculated growing it—because they have as yet no but we passed a canoe on the liver which i' pair of large mill-stone* on board, and intend to have their mill commenced so -.. ihcy can obtain an European milli to undertake the erection of it.

-•unday, Dec. 10.—A beautiful day, but remely v. arm. Attended native service in chapel, which was conducted by a young >:i, the regularly appointed Kaiwhakaako, or \alivc Teacher of the settlement, whose solemn and earnest manner whilst reading the prayers and scriptures and afterwards expounding a portion of the latter, was very .lcmarkable. He stood on the steps of the communion table at one end of the chapel, whilst the congregation were squalled on the floor, which was strewed with rushes, with their various colored blankets gathered round them, in an attitude of respectful and deep attention, repeating the ] responses in the most perfect time and exactly in the right places. Whilst singing they all stand up, but during the whole of the lest of the service maintain their squatting posture. The hymns were, sung in excellent time, but the tune (for they use but one) seemed rather unmusical to European ears ; it is, in fact, an old Native air much used in their waiatas, nifd which the Missionaries have found by experience to be easier to them than learning European limes, which take an immense deal both of lime and practice to leach them properly. The latter are however now gradually coming into more general use, and will soon supersede the old waiata air, which has, it must be confessed, a somewhat heathenish sound. The sermon was extempore, and although perhaps all the explanations of difficult points were not perfectly orthodox, nor very lucid, yet upon the whole the discourse was by no means a bad one, lnil on the contrary very well suited to the capacity of the congregation, and was certainly listened to willi a great deal of patience and attention. 'llic Kaiwhakaako, or Native Teacher, acts as a s'ott of coadjutor to llic Missionary of the District, who appoints one for every village in his circuit. It is the duty of the native teacher in the absence of llic Missionary to conduct the service every morning and evening, and three times on Sundays ; to attend to the reading and writing classes ; to see lhal all the candidates for baptism and communion learn their catechism and such other things as the Missionary prescribes for them; anil to make regular reports to the Missionary on his periodical visit as to the stale of affairs in the Church, the conduct of the members, &c, for which he is in some degree responsible, on which account he is invested, in conjunction with some of the oldest membeis as elders, with a limited authority to impose i church censure on offending members. An instance of the exercise of this power came under our observation to-day, in the case of a young man, who for some offence against society, had fallen under the censure of the church, whereby ho was not only prevented for a season from attending church service, &c., but was also temporarily expelled the settlement altogether, being obliged to remain outside the fence day and night, with no house, nor indeed any covering save his blanket, and subtiutiug on such food as the others chose to give hi n, which he cooked for himself. The poor fellow looked so lonely and miserable sitting ■■v his fire, and almost cut off from all com- • —..icfUiuu with his fellow creatures, that the > ■••riior took compassion on him, and after ce spoke to the teacher and elders begging to mitigate his sentence ; but they were Me, they listened very politely and i'i gr.'at gravity to all the Governor had to ■ , and replied that in any other case they . • mid have complied with his Excellency's .she:,, hut being sent to Coventry by the ■. urcli was a serious- matter, and the punish■nt must be carried out in this instance. I »!i:l!«vi: the poor fellow's sentence extended to a fortnight's exposure to the heat of the sun by day, and the cold air and dews by night. Sometimes he would come up and lean over the fence to listen to what was going on inside, looking on wich such a wistful air at the society he was forbidden to join, that it made one feel quite melancholy to look at him. Hut the natives do not yet understand actions for damages, and some punishment is absolutely necessary iu certain cases. ffubtciiitiil'ic.! 1