NOTES FROM A JOURNAL

New Zealander, Volume 3, Issue 162, 18 December 1847, Page 2

NOTES FROM A JOURNAL

Kept during an excursion to the Boiling Springs of Rotorua and Rotomahana, by way of the Waikato and Waipa countries, in the Summer of Eighteen Hundred and Forty-six, and Seven.

(Continued.) i We had teen immense volumes of smoke isiuing all day from the foreground Mat* Matu, and when with*' in tiro miles of it, we distinctly jaw it» northern extremity on fire, which extending the plain had ignited the dry grass and fern and eyen reached our track. We had to watt until the burning torrent pasted beyond vi before we could continue our' route, and then we had to pick our steps over the blackened surface amidst hot ashes. After passing through a. part of the forest, we came to open ground and reached the Christian pa where the converted natives under Tererapipi, or, as he is more generally called by Europeans, Wi|liam Thompson/ had separated from their Pugan brethren and had established themselves about half a mile from the ancient pa. We found the inhabitants in the greateat consternation for fear their houtes should follow the fate of those in the adjacent' one, which Had been totally consumed the ( precedinir, . evening. There seemed, indeed, a great probability of such a catastrophe, as many trees were on* fire in, the immediate .vicinity;-— From thence we proceeded to themisiioDary home, a few hundred yards distant,' wtiere we were informed that the officiating in'usioharies «f the surrounding districts were holding a committee. On reaching it through an atmosphere of smoke we found that the fire had brought their deliberations to a sudden close, for these gentle, men were busily engsged in packing up their baggage to be ready for instant .removal in case the hou>e, which, was built of raupo,- should take fire ; at, from the inflammable nature of the, materialist .would be burnt to the ground in a few minutes. As. the evening came on, the sight was terribly magnificent. Hundreds of gigantic trees were in flames irom their root to the topmost branch and were continually falling with a loud crash, sending up clouds of fiery sparks which the wind hurried along in meteor like streams, but, fortunately, the wind was not in the direction of the houses,—otherwise, not one would have escaped. The heat and glare when the smoke rolled away was almost Unsujipor table, and when it enveloped the house, was quite stifling ; while the crackling and hissing of the flames, and the thundering noiie of the falling trees, with tbe terrified shouts of the people, affected every sense in n manner that w*s almost stupifjing. Yet, such was the grandeur of the scene, that it was almost impossible to quit it, and we remained gazing at the/eat fu( spectacle 'till a late hour. At length we retired to that part of the pa furthest from the fire, while the missionary gentlemen encamped in their little travelling tents in an open space adjacent. Here, for the first time, I enjoyed the luxury of a bedstead in a native houte, and on enquiry I fouad that it had formerly belonged to a Catholic

Missionary! who had established himself in the par bat, from some csuie I cpuld not learn, had been unceremoniously expelled andhis house plundered. - The bedstead had fallen to my host's share — a Tery truculent looking Bur age, who, from some traits of character not of a very amiable nature, had been sornamed " The Serpent." He was very civil,, however, from knowing my companion, and did all he could to make us comtortable. Ik was long before I ooald sleep from ihe noise of the falling trees which sounded like the report of a cannon, but the fatigues of the diy at length overcame the din around me and I slept until daylight, Jan 15th.— On going out in the morning we found that the fire had passed beyond the pa, but numbers of tall trees were still burning, and the rest of the beauti- \ ful forest I had so much admired on a former visit was now a mass of smoking ashes and charred trunks. Mata Mata, the principal residence of the Ngatihoua tribe, ia situated on a broad level plain, once surrounded by noble wood, which even before this last catastrophe had been gradually disappearing under the destructive principle of native cultivation to which 1 have .so^often alluded, and ai the soil is a rich, friable, alluvial clay, noted for producing finepo atoes, the plantations are very extensive ; indeed' the spots on which these were successively made, maybe traced all around by. their being covered with fine grass, and dotted with stumps, ,and burned trees; '1 he Waitoa, a tributary to> ihe fiako, into which it falls about twelve miles to the north^is a fine stream running in\ a deep" bed, but not navigable to the settlement from being encumbered by fallen ; trees. It winds along close ■to both of the pas, to which it forms a defence, and the jb!d pi wasfurther.,strengthened by a swamp that enclosed it oa the other two • sides, while in the only exposed part it was guarded by a .stockade of great strength.— Indeed, as I have before remarked, the Maori have quite ( a military eye in the disposition of their pas. TheChristian pa, however, being erected in peaceful times* has no particular advantages of situation, and is merely enclosed by what may be called a fence, rather than a defence. It is however regularly laid out in- embryo streets which are neatly gravelled with the putniceout subsoil from the banks of the river, and many of the gardens are filled with peach trees— while the Heathen pa teat, for it no longer exists, a chaos of houses* huddled together without a plan and abominably filthy. William Thompson, or Wiremu, as he is fkmiliarly called, was the founder of the former, for after his conversion, he was so annoyed by the dissolute habits and continual quarrels of the Pagan portion of his tribe, thit'he induced his fellow-converts to separate; them* selves from them and' builda pa : tuuder hii auipices a very handsome Chapel has been built, eighty feet ia length, by forty in breadth, of iultable' height, furnished with glass windows, and having a portion neatly railed off, containing a- Communion-table. But here his turbulent tribe would not let him rest in peace, for on an occasion when he interposed his 'authority, as the son of Waharoa and Chitf of the tribe, he was told he had.no right to interfere as he was not living upon his own ground, on which he said— 11 If that be the case, I will live on my own ground,'' and he accordingly removed to bis patrimonial possessions ........... on tue Maungakaua Hil's, where he was engaged- ia building aaother pa, in which he was joined by bis fel-low-Christians, and was at present abjent from Mata •Mate* on that employment, He is a most interesting young man-, and to all appearances a sincere Christian. His father Waharoa. was one of the most famous warriors in New Zealand, fail exploits would filla volume, and the Ngatihoua, led by him, were the ts'rror of their enemies, indeed in looking now at their nervous active figures, for they a>-e all sinewy spare men, and* their quick, restless eye, one can- imagine - what deeds they would be capable of performing .under a warlike and ambitious Chief. They have a frank bold bearing that distinguishes them from other tribe*, and have an openness of character, which those who trade with" them find much more agreeable than the cautions, Jewitk habits of most of their countrymen. A bargain is soon concluded with them, without that narrow examination of (he utu t if paid in European, manufactured goods, which is so annoying on the put of other tribes, who seem to scrutinize every thread of a blanket in order to discover a flaw. They are ipdeed said' not to distinguish very nicely the difference between meum and iuum, and are consequently inclined to pilfer, it softening down, probably, of , their former predatory habits, but if ready to takt, they are equally ready to 'give, and are very hospitable. » I have mentioned some of Waharoa's warlike exploit! in a former part of my journal; I Heard some furtner " details while at the pa, which show his. fearless and ' oaring character, ft appears that his hostility -to the Ngatiwakaua of* Roturua was more ipveterate than against any of .the other tribel with whom he was at feud. ' He often carried taua or war-parties into their territory, and ia his Ust incursion, having defeated and forced them to retreat into their pa, which was too strong to take bf storm ; hi* endeavours to draw.' them put were in vain, and at length, losing all patience, he advanced singly in front of the stockade, but out however of musquet-shot, and brandishing' his tomahawk and dancing tlie^war-dance, made use of such iniuHing; language and gestures, that some of the young 'men within became ao irritated, :that they rushed out : with their mutqueti, and fired at him without effect while he was slowly retreating— he instantly darted like lightning upon them before thr y could ' reload, ., and slew several of them ere they could regain the shelter of their pa. '" The fugitives being reproached with > their maladroitness in missing their aim, one of them very namely ■«id—". Who could shoot straight when Waharoa was making such* frightful faces !" '- It was on this occasion th it Mr.Xhapmnn's hbuio, who then resided- near Ohinimutu, w»s pluadere'd-i-rthe Bghth&Ving. taken place jatt ia front of it:? Two Mis- ■ sionary gentlemen, Meisrs.Pedley and Knight, were at that .time in charge, during Mr. Chapman's' absence at Mata Mats— they were, instantly stripped to "their shirts by some of the victorious party, and, carried to. an eminence close to the field of, battle,- where 'they % were made to stand and witness* the cutting 'to pieces ' of the bodies- of .the Main Ngtiwikaua, preparatory to cookint them for the horrid feait, which. ia those days was tbs consummation of a victory. They stood trembling, expecting soon to follow the fate of the ilaii^; when Wahftroa,. returning from the pursuit,- perceived them and was info-med who they were, he instantly went up and taking them by the hand, placed them Under tapu, that is made them sacred, so that none dare molest them, and insisted at the same' time that their clothes shauld be restored, 'J for,*' said he, addrcs ing his peopU, " if you make slrvi-s of the white men, you may expect the anger of the white men's God I'/ He treated them with great kindness, and afterwards conducted them in safety to the Missionary house at Mata Mata. A laughable circumstance occurred at this time. One of the Chiefs had taken Mr. Pedley's watch, which he refused to return, but not being aware^of Ihe^necessity of winding it up, it of course ran down and stopped, no sooner had he observed this than he bursting loud lamentation, saying— " J he white man's AiudlmU surely kill me as utuV The sjmple.tninded.savage ■ believing that it was' a living creature whose death he had cauted, and that by the /ea?7aWoHi>, he.would ne» nesurily suffer.' > He immediately ran and returned it to itsjowner, who, rtvivifitd'W, by winding it up, allayed his fears* t{

Waharoa, it teemi, could practise the art of itrategy when necessary, .with is much success as he could exhibit boldnen in the open field, which the following anecdote will show. On one of the occaiiom when his • inveterate enemies the Ngatipaua and the other Hauraki tribe* in conjunction with the Ngapuhi, came in such force to Mata Mata, that he did not deem it prudent to meet them beyond his pa ; while they on their part dare not venture on an aiiault ; they therefore lay before it for tome dayc, both parties occupying themselves with desultory skirmishes, which led to no decisive result. Tired ot this indecisive warfare, Waharoa devised the following stratagem to bring his ene- ■ miei within bii power, and most probably defeat them. He- accordingly directed his people to cook two days provisions and to put out all the fires carefully, making them dig at tht same time a deep ditch within the pallisndes of that part of the pa that the enemy could alone approach. In the mean time he caused all the dogs of the place to be taken outside and tied to trees in a wood which lay immediately in the rear of the place, where these animals kept up a continual howling and barking. The Ngatibona now hid themselves ia the trenches 1 have described, until the time for action— Waharoa wisely judging that when the enemy law no fires, and heard the noise of the dogs, they would imagine that he and hit tribe hid fled, but had left the dogs behind for fear their barking should discover tbeir line of retreat. He was correct in his predictions, the besieging party seeing no fires, nor appearance of movement, and hearing the howling of the dogs, naturally thought that the pa was deserted, and at the end of the aecond day marched in a body to take possession of it. • Waharoa permitted them to approach' within gunshot when, on. a given signal the defenders starling up, , poured in such a>witheiiug fire* thatt*ie enemy, panic* struck,, broke and fled and were pursued with great slaughter to their canoes which lay in the Waiho. The Hmraki tribes, though still at feud with the Ngatihona, have neyer again ventured to attack Mata Mata. Waharoa- on his death bad sent for hit ion Terarapipi, or Werimu as he is generally called, and taking his hand, said — " I have three requests to make — for- . suke the Missionaries." •' I cannot," said his son — 4i Well I make war on the Ngatiwakaua." •' I will not," answered he. "Then always be the friend of the white man." "I will.' 1 said Werimu, and he has faithfully kept his word for he is still a Chrutian. Like his father he it the friend of the white man, for on the occasion of Rauparaba's seizure, when emissaries from Taupo came, to Mata Mata, and urged the Ngatihoua to make common cavie with them and expel the Eng- " lish ; the tribe, at bis solicitations, flatly refused to , listen to their overtures, and when the question of the projected road was mooted, he persuaded the younger , member* of the tribe to accede to its formation, though the older Chiefs, wKh a senseless ant! anile jealousy* were loud in opposition, reiterating the usual objection, that when it was finished the soldiers would come and make slaves of them. He has never again led his tribe against Rotorua, but has been instrumental in bringing about a peace between the hitherto hostile tribes. In* . .deed, shortly after his father's death he showed his determination to frustiate any attempt, on the part of his tribe, to carry on hostilities, for when, at that pe- ' iiod, a majority of them had determined to attack Maketu, the seaport of Rotorua, and had stolen away if cretly in the night, with that intention, Werimn followed them in the morning, and having overtaken the tatta, in company with a Missionary, he prevailed on the party to stop and take food, and then proposed that his comj anion should preach and pray to them to which they assented, from a superstitious feeling, that if the , Missionary prayed to his Aiua, their success would be certain. The Missionary in expounding the Scripture, us the service wai in the open air, had kept his hut on, but on repeating the Lord's Prayer, had uncovered his head, which, happening to be bald, several of the i joung men laughed, and made use of some irreverent expressions, whict', however, were not taken notice of at the time. Werimu then got them to promise that they would remain where they Were and hear service j the following day which was Sundiy, but in the morn- j ing he found that they had secretly decamped, and weie on their way to Tauranga. •. Werimu being unencumbered, while the lava having to carry provisions, could only move slowly, scon overtook it, and paving by hurried on to Tauranga, whence he immediately despatched a messenger to Maketu, to warn the Ngatiwakaua of the projected attack. On the arrival of the Ngatihoua at Tauranga, Mr. Brown, the resident Missionary, attempted in vain to prevent their advance. Arrived at Maketu, the Ngatilioua could not prevail on the Ngatiwakaua to come out and fight them on a fair field, and becoming impatient, they attempted to take the place by assault, but ,the defenders being prepared to reoeive them; although they displayed the most undaunted courage, they were finally repulsed with the loss of forty of their bravest warriors, and retreated to Tauranga, saying sorrowfully, that they had done with fighting since they had lost to many of their best men. "Yes," saidWiremu, who had remained at the mission house, '* hat is your uiu for having insulted one of God's servants." They could not reply, but returned crest-fallen to MataMata. Many of this party who were Heathens, embraced Christianity, and tht tribe have remained quiet ever since. . I have mentioned that Werimu was instrumental in bringing about a peace between his tribe and those of Rotorua. A treat feait was given by the Ngatihona to the Ngtiwtkaut, on that occasion. It took place at Mata Mata, and lasted fourteen days. T&e enormous number of one thousand pigs, and fifty thousand eels were consumed during that period, and, on the principal day, a row of kete of cooked potatoes and ' kumera," two hundred-yards' long, five feet high, ajid the same in breadth, was displayed on the'gr'bund, and , the whole party of guesti, nearly three thouiand in ' number, were furnished with raw potatoes for private cooking, during the whole period of theic jtay. Fifteen casks of tobacco were also given to the Ngatiwakaua by their hosts, the whole of whom appeared in European clothing. But the strangest part of the whole transaction, and which shows the true spirit of trade that actuates the Maori, whs the fact, that the Ngatihoua, after displaying their finery, actually disposed of it to their guests, fur th* very tobacco they had made over % them as a present. Forty umbrellas were also presented to the principal Rangntiraof the Rotor uai, who, to acknowledge the value of the present, walked two and two to Church (for my companion was present), with the umbrellas displayed orer their heads, although the weather was gloomy, and the warmth of, the sun would have been more agreeable than otherwise. It was a most ludicrous scene, but the actors paced along with the utmost gravity.. . ! On this occasion an incident octurred which showed that the effect of Missionary instruction had been successful in repressing the fierce passions of these men, for some of the hot-headed youths of either party .having quarrelled, tomahawks were brandished, when an old Christian Chief, who had come <rom Kawhia to bepreieat at the feast, and who wai in the> Chspel at the time, at ct ening servtce, hearing the disturbance, rushed out, and holding up the Testament said- We will judge the matter by this book, if it.autkonzes war— use your arms— but if peace, lay them down. The appeal .was unanswerable, a»d both parties retired to their bouiei, ashamed of their conduct. (To be continued')