A WINTER JOURNEY TO TAUPO. (Concluded from No. 174.J

New Zealand Spectator and Cook's Strait Guardian, Volume III, Issue 176, 7 April 1847, Page 3

A WINTER JOURNEY TO TAUPO. (Concluded from No. 174.J

2nd July. — A rainy day. I walked along the beach to a little kainga, and entered a warepuni, which may be likened to a kind of oven for sleeping in, where I found about 40 persons crowded together although the heat and effluvia were almost overpowering, as they invited me to enter I did so and stayed about two hours conversing with them ; they were all heathens and agreed their gods were very bad ones and they thought our's was no better as the Christian natives were destroyed as well as the others. I endeavoured to make them see this calamity was occasioned by natural causes but they would by no means agree to that, they said there was a taniwa concealed in the mountain and he occasioned the evil ; their idea of a taniwa is, that he is a fish of immense size that there are many of them residing in caves under the mountains, whereever there are quicksands or a tendency in cliffs to fall, it is said to be occasioned by a taniwa. Iwikau said be dare not reside in his old place because he knew there was a taniwa in the mountain above ; after carrying on a very amicable conversation for soms time I returned. 3rd. A fine morning, about ten the fleet of canoes containing the langihanga or crying ; party appeared in sight, they formed a close body of canoes and then fired their guns, the natives of Pukawa assembled to see them and each gun which made a louder report than another elicited a shout of admiration ; as the fleet drew near it was loudly cheered and it presented a very interesting appearance, it approached in the. form of a close triangle and

appeared to be ofte mass of human beings each having his head ornamented with , a green branch, the usual sign of mourning, they were received with the waving of branches and a loud haere mat or welcome ; a long fence of fern six feet high had been previously made which formed the court of reception, there the visitors stood in the form of a half-moon the people of the place being arranged in a similar way on opposite side, the principal chiefs with some females (the foremost of which was the crying lady of Tuware) stepped before the rest and then immediately the tangi commenced, there must have been a concourse of little short of a thousand of which fuH"6OO engaged in the tangi and such a loud continued cry I never before heard, the sound was distressing to me having seen it was a mere form or rather pleasurable amusement of the women, when it was over then speeches were made each speaker repeating one of their songs which he thought appropriate to what he was speaking of, it is surprising what a number of songs they have and how much they think of them. Iwikau got up and spoke in a very animated way and danced and kicked up the earth with his heels to the admiration of all, the subject Was his disgust at the land for having overwhelmed his brother and his determination to leave and thus punish it by rendering it taurekareka by his abandoning it ; others followed, and at last Pehi got up but immediately he had commenced his speech with a great flourish, in burst about 60 persons each bearing a basket of food, this stopped the speaker, he immediately sat down ; some time was occupied in arranging the food Iwikau superintending the placing of each basket himself, skipping about and bawling and making such grimaces that he reminded me of a little cork figure which was electrified ; after the pigs, potatoes, and kumara, and other dainties were disposed in order, they were portioned out in grand divisions for Wanganui, Rotoairo, Waikajp, Rotorua, Tarawera, and then a native of each of those districts sub-divided them amongst the different villages from whence they had come, afterwards a native advanced in a bent position turning his hands behind and 4hrusting forward his head which he turned to each side alternately making only the white of his eyes visible and kicking the earth back with his heels, his whole frame quivering as he moved, he was followed by other men and women who only disclosed the white of their eyes and brandished spears, some protruded their tongues in a most unnatural way and then they uttered a kind of song jumping in concert with both feet first on one side then on the other, the whole had a horrid appearance they seemed like so many evil spirits breathing defiance in all their movements with a great show of strength and perfect command of their persons ; this dance is called the maimai, it is intended to express grief. We reached Tokanu a little after sunset, the water of the river which is usually as clear as chrystal was very thick and we found afterwards was unfit for use from the boiling water which had flowed into it. Herekiekie told me that a very remarkable thing had occurred last night and this morning, which the oldest men only recollected having once happened before, the ground under his pa trembled and the large boiling spring, about a mile distant, suddenly threw up an immense volume of wa>ter to the height of full 50 feet with a loud rumbling noise, the boiling water thus discharged overflowed the surrounding ground and rendered the water of the river quite muddy, this volume of water Le saw from his house and felt much alarmed lest the ground under him should sink. I had prayers in his house in which he united. He informs me that Iwikau dare not stay at Puk;iwa as he does not possess strength to retain his post, that the Waikatos threaten to have Pahi Kauri the name of Heuheu's mere which is in fact the chief emblem of the sovereignty of New Zealand and may be styled with some justice its sceptre ; he has buried it ; he does not succeed to his brother's rank because he is not the first born, who is styled the ariki, and therefore it is not probable the powerful tribes around will allow him to retain this much prized token of supreme chieltainship. 4th. We had a very cold frosty night ; about ten we left, a very fine day, Herekiekie accompanied me as far as the hot springs, I found that the ebullition of the chief one had entirely ceased and that another about fifteen yards off boiled up instead most furiously, throwing up the water five feet high and it was this which was seen so agitated yesterday j the water in the former instead of being clear was very muddy and all the ground for many yards round on which the hot water had been cast was covered with a brown mud, together with a number of green stones very mudh resembling Lydian stone but quite soft together with a white substance like Celt-spar which also was quite soft ; the greenstone 1 have found in all the volcanic formations in the north of the island but there it is extremely hard ; many of the Manuka trees growing near and which had attained a considerable size were scalded and I fear many of ray date seejfj

which I had planted in the vicinity had the germ of vitality destroyed ; from the size of the trees growing amongst the hot springs it is evident such violent eruptions are rare. Herekiekie said that if they cast into the large boiler trunks of trees it often caused the ebullition to cease there and to commence where I saw it to day ; I sounded the depth of the large boiler when last here and found it nine fathoms ; the orifice through which the heated air ascends is, I am convinced from seeing many of these apertures which were dry on the sides of mountains, very narrow, a tree might effectually stop it and thus cause the steam to seek another vent. We had a long and wearying Valk and reached Foutu, seated on the south end of Rotoairo lake, a little before sunset, where we have taken up our quarters for the Sabbath ; the mountains all around are covered with snow ; Tongariro has on his mantle of white even to the edge of the crater, from which a white smoke is constantly receding ; the scenery is beautiful could it but be contemplated without feeling the coldness which such neighbours occasion. My natives are edifying their host by recounting all that has taken place and repeating every speech in the particular tone of the speaker. Horopapera, the only man saved from the destruction of Te Rapa, is one of my companions for the journey ; he is going to seek some books I promised to give him, a hundred and fifty miles in the depth of winter. 6th. A very strong wind ; about ten we started, the wind was so high and cold blowing right in our faces that we could scarcely make head against it, in addition my natives were very heavily laden carrying a week's provisions ; we soon began to ascend the loftier parts of the plain aud first saw little spots of snow here and there, these gradually became larger and at last we had one continued plain of snow varying from three inches to three feet deep ; about sun-set we reached the Wai hohonu a very romantic stream, having bold circuitous rocks rising abruptly from its bed, the sides clothed with trees ; the little clumps of trees on these plains are exceedingly beautiful having little or no underwood and composed of beech and toatoa trees* which grow very gracefully. We several times lost our path which at the best is not so good as a sheep walk, and during the earlier part of the day we had a cold sleety rain the sun all the time shining and producing a very perfect rainbow which continued all the morning, afterwards we had a slight snow storm. lam encamped on the snow which I have covered over with bushes and my natives have built themselves a shed ; a very fine frosty clear night; we may have come sixteen miles to-day. 7th. VVe had a very severe frost last night, a mug of hot water which I left on my box, this morning presented a very singular appearance being frozen into a solid lump, but it was higher in the centre by an inch aud a-half from what it was at the sides. I slept very little from the extreme cold and I distinctly heard ths water freezing in my tin pot, every time a spicular of ice was formed it gave a click, I could not tell at first what occasioned the sound ; even when I was washing the wet end of the towel froze hard whilst it laid over my knee. We did not start before ten on account of the difficulty in getting the fire to burn : a very fine cold day with the wind at our backs ; we found great difficulty in discovering the road and as we ascended the difficulty increased, the snow also deepened from six inches to a foot and in places six or eight feet, when we thrust our poles in the deep snow the bottom of the hole was an intense blue ; at last we reached the plain which is covered with cinders and large masses of stone, some bad little ones put on the top and they were the only guide we had ; there can scarcely be a scene of greater desolation than that presented here ; the smaller streams were all frozen sufficiently hard to bear, I slid over several to the infinite amusement of my natives ; after the stony plain we had one of ashes intersected with deep ravines all covered with snow which rendered them very bad to pass as the snow in some places was frozen sufficiently hard to bear when in others we sunk up to our middle, but the worst places were those covered with bushes the intervening spaces being filled up to near their tops, here we forced our way with great difficulty, I think we did not advance more than a mile in the hour, my poor natives also suffered very much in their feet their ancles being cut by the frozen snow and they literally left a track of blood ; a little after three we managed to reach a little clump of trees the only one for miles, here we have encamped for the night on snow several inches deep; the wind is very high and bitterly cold it threatens to upset my tent every monfent ; but we have great cause for thankfulness that we have reached our present spot where there is plenty of fuel, it is at the base of Rua pahau, we cannot have come more than ten miles if that. Bth. We bad a cold rainy night ; this morning I arose at six but tried in vain to arouse my natives, it was quite dark and their fire was put out by the rain jvhich continued to

fall in torrents, at last however, after it was light, I managed to get them up, but so disheartened and dispirited with the wind rain and cold, that I had even to fill my tea kettle myself ; the day was not /cry agreeable for travelling, pouring rain, high cutting wind, and deep snow to wade through without any track, the ground was intersected with deep ravines partially filled with a depth of ten or twelve feet of snow. I rated as pioneer having shoes on, and made footsteps for the party ; in about an hour we came to a ruined shed and then my natives sat down and it required all my ingenuity to get them to leave it ; at noon we reached another little broken down shed surrounded by snow, into it they all bundled and not a step further would they go, although about one it cleared up and turned out a very fine day, and I told them if we lost this day we should have to spend the Sabbath in the forest ; it did not signify they said, they had plenty of food and would stay, so I was obliged to make a virtue of neces-sity and acquiesce in their wishes. I set about selecting a sheltered spot for my tent, and having found one with two or three trees between it and the wind, I got it pitched and a fire lighted ; it took me the rest of the day drying my clothes. In the evening I noticed a halo round : the moon and around my candle, also a lunar rainbow; after prayers I plaistere I my natives' feet up as well as I could and sowed bandages on to protect them from the snow, poor creatures their unwillingness to proceed is not to be wondered at, sore feet and no shoes, although it is at the same time very annoying to be detained in this place. We have had some thunder this evening which I fear is a sign of rain for to-morrow, but sufficient for the day is the evil thereof. 9th. My natives seemed determined to make up to-day for what they lost yesterday ; the boy who acts as my steward had my fire lighted and the potatoes almost cooked before I was up, and we managed to start by halfpast eight, which is very early for this time of the year. It was a cold snowy morning with a high wind when we started ; we repeatedly lost the path, which delayed us some time, but an hour's walk began to show us that we were approaching the limits of Tongariro's snowy domain. The plain soon ceased to be entirely covered, and then the snow laid only in patches and then in little spots, and at last, about eleven, we had no more of it on the plain although it still lay on the hills. As we descended to the lower plains the temperature became perceptibly milder, and the wind not so cutting, and instead of snow we had heavy rain, which continued the remainder of the way. I found the mountain air affected my lungs in a very disagreeable way and the glare of the snow and the cutting wind rendered the eyes very sore, and partially affected my sight. We walked very fast and reached my rua (a hole which my natives dug when we reached this wood in coming across the country from Patea) by noon, and the entrance of the wood by three, thence we walked until five in pouring rain, and over one of the worst roads immaginable, deep swamps in places, in others the road obstructed with fallen trees, in some places steep hills of clay rendered so slippery with the rain that we could scarcely get on ; there are still patches of snow in the forest. We have encamped on the summit of a hill and by means of a good fire havegot all my clothes pretty dry and my tent pitched for the night. Until this evening, for the last three days, I have had my tea made with melted snow, no water being procurable where we encamped. We must have come near 30 miles to-day ; we felt very glad to leave the Mania although the good walking ceases with them. These interior plains of grass are very difficult to account for, my first impression was they were the ancient bed of an immense lake, especially as they are bordered by higher ground, and that the rivers wearing themselves deep channels in the soft pumice formations gradually drained them — but this opinion does not appear tenable as these plains vary in elevation so as to outtop the surrounding hills, and have moreover increased and are daily incroaching on the forest, for, as the outskirts get burned every yeat, grass springs up, and the blackened stumps and trunks of trees still standing in them attest how much they have incroached. Again, I thought the elevation of the plains might account for the entire absence of the fern, and their having a flora peculiar to them, buMhe surrounding hills, if not covered with timber, are with fern at a greater elevation, nor do they contain any indications of a fresh water deposit. I am of opinion they may have been formed by the continual eruptions of the volcanic mountains which stand in the midst of them, and certainly have had much to do with their formation as they are volcanic, the superstratum being generally pumice or ashes with ochre and iron below. I noticed that on the surface of the sub-stiatum are great numbers of charred trees, which most probably became so when they were burned beneath successive showers of hot pumice stone, and on the level of the pumice there are also charred trees which show that

at any rate twice have large portions of these plains been covered with timber and as often destroyed : further, there still remain woods of considerable size, generally running up to the mountain in parallel lines to the ravines which descend from it, which proves that these ravines and plains of stones and ashes must have destroyed other portions of forest, and that now the soil is more congenial to grass than fern, which spreads as the woods decrease and even in the forest there are little isolated plains which are alternately grass or fern. The principal trees of these plains are the Tawai or beech, and the Toatoa, a pine, but on those rocky plains where the ground is intersected with deep ravines and down which the wind comes rushing with immense power, there are dwarf pine trees of several kinds especially the Rimu, Toatoa, Kahikatea and Totara, which actually lay on the ground and send out their leading shoots along its surface. The peculiar plants which I have noticed growing in the Mania are the taramea, a prickly plant with a root like a carrot, two kinds of fennel also with tuberous roots, a real carrot, two kinds of asters, a gentian, with several other plants, with a beautiful scarlet flowering burr, and several shrubs bearing berries in lieu of the cranberry, and a curious shrub, an aralia; the chief rocks are whiustone. 11th. A drizzling rain last night, and this morning I arose a little after five, and although we had everything ready to start by eight, the natives lingered so long with their pipes around the fire, that it was nearer nine this morning. We saw no more snow, but we had a very wearying walk through the wood from fallen trees, the leaves being frozen render the tops so heavy that it is perfectly surprising how many thus fall or lose their branches, most of the trees are very brittle and the younger ones which do not snap asunder are so bent down as to be even worse than the fallen ones. We reached the Mangowero before noon, it was much swollen, and being filled with large slippery stones it is very bad to cross, we reached Mangutoroa, another bad river about five, from this river the bank rises like a wall for several hundred feet. I found it difficult to ascend ; we found at the top a little spot of fern ground where we have encamped for the Sabbath. 13th. — It rained heavily all night. I was disturbed by a rat which got into ray tent. This morning my natives were very low spirited, having finished all their food ; we started about half-past nine, it cleared up for a few hours, but afterwards rained very heavily and continued so the remainder of the way. About half-past four we reached the Wanganui, and most thankful I was to stand on its banks. I had not a single dry thing on, and my clothes were so torn in scrambling through the fallen tre.s, in places having to creep on my hands and knees, that I do not think many beggars at home would think them worth picking up. 1 1 was very fortunate we forded the Mangutoroa on Saturday evening, otherwise we should have been detained there yet, as the river was too much swollen this morning to be fordable ; when I descended to the river I found a canoe waiting to carry me across^and on reaching Hikurangi, I had a parent's reception from his children. 1 have pitched my tent in a shed and although not waterproof still it seems quite a luxury after being out in the dismal forest so long. The road to-day lay along a narrow ridge of a lofty mountain top, which, in its highest part, must be near 4000 feet above the level of the river. A continued heavy rain. 14th. — I rose early, held service and school, and then departed. We had a very rainy night, and a cold rainy morning; the snow on the heights from which we yesterday descended ; my natives soon complained of having lost all feeling in their fingers, foituuately there was a great fresh in the river, which alone carried us at the rate of four miles an hour, when we reached Kaiwaiki they were so cold and hungry I was obliged to allow them to go ashore and warm themselves and get some food ; thence I pressed another hand, and about eight, reached home all very cold, but I trust with a grateful heart to our heavenly Father for his merciful care over us during this long and trying journey.