NATIVE INTELLIGENCE.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 26, 22 July 1871, Page 15

NATIVE INTELLIGENCE.

(hawke's bay hekald, July 11.)

On a former occasion we described the movements of the expedition under Major Ropata, which was divided into four parties for the purpose of searching the bush thoroughly. The different divisions came together near Te Haupapa, about the 28th of June, having searched all the country between Te Haupapa and Waikaremoana Lake. During the search they captured three men, one of whom, named Rawiri, was believed to have had Te Kooti in hiding. He belonged to that part of the country. These people could give no account of Te Kooti. They believed that he had been captured by Kopata on his former expedition to Te Haupapa. "When the division of the force of which Capt Porter was in command was on its way to Te Haupapa, on the occasion of its halting for the night, that officer mounted a high hill in the neighborhood, and saw smoke in the distance, which he concluded to have come from Te Kooti's camp. As soon as he joined Kopata the whole force made in the direction of the spot in which the smoke bad beeu seen, and after great trouble

I found a camp in the bush, which had been occupied by a few persons. Considerable difficulty was experienced in finding any track from the camp, the parties having evidently separated on leaving it; but after a day or two's search, a track was struck some distance from the camp where the people had come together again. The track was there tolerably plain. Ropata selected a party from his men, and taking the small quantity of food which was left for the expedition, started to endeavor to follow out the track, sending Captain Porter out to Poverty Bay with another party to bring in supplies and to meet him on his return. If he found that the tracks led to Te Wera, where Te Kooti is known to have a cultivation ,' which has not been destroyed, Ropata ] would not have been able, to go on with the supplies which he had ; and would have awaited Captain Porter's return. Great sickness prevailed among the Ngatiporous, which made the difficulties of travelling through the country even greater than they would otherwise have been. Captain Porter reports eight consecutive days' rain immediately prior to his leaving the camp. We hear that Ropata intended to do his utmost to follow out the track, but the search is, of course, attended with extreme difficulty, and success can by no means be depended upon.