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JOURNAL

Of an Expedition overland from Auckland to Taranaki,by way of Rotorua, Taupo, andthe West Coast, undertaken in the summer of 1849 — 50, by His Excellency the Cover-nor-in- Chief of New Zealand. [From the Maori Messenger."] 1 (Continued.) Tuesday,#December 18th. — Rose at four, but we had so much trouble in procuring additional natives as bearers for our things that we were delayed a long time before we could start. The natives are certainly a most provoking set in' this way. At first there were plenty of men willing to go, but somehow they had made up their minds that they were to receive half-a-crown a day each, and nothing would induce them to stir for less ; so that our rate of wdges being fixed at eighteen pence which could not be raised without either increasing the pay of all those we had already engaged or else~d"oiiig them a great injustice, we seemed to have but a poor chance of starting at all. Had we engaged to give them what they demanded, we should have not only run short of funds ourselves, but we should have been committing agieat injury on future travellers, who^could never have obtained bearers afterwards at a lower rate. Te Waharoa had no men of his own to give us, as they were all absent at the plantations at Waikato, and William Thompson was, as has been already said, from home ; but through the influence of a petty chief, we contrived after considerabledelayto procure the services of three men, one of whom would however- only accompany us as far as Patetere, where we expected to obtain the assistance of some more men. At last after taking leave of Te Waharoa and bis friends, and thanking Mrs. Nicholas for all her kindness, we quitted Matamata at about nine o'clock, having lost five hours in bargaining for the additional men. Our natives were all very heavily loaded, as from our having calculated on being able to obtain as many men here as we might require, but a small number had been hired in Auckland, on account of the difficulty of procuring water conveyance for them in the first part of the journey. We soon passed through the belt of wood which lies to the southward of Matamata, and which is only about half a mile in breadth in this part ; and at a distance of about three miles from the settlement we came to the site of the intended mill, which is a pretty spot on the banks of a small stream running into the Waitoa, and just where a bend in the watercourse forms a sort of natural pond affording great facility for the construction of a considerable reservoir of water by throwing a dam across the stream in a narrow place, which looks almost as though it had been so arranged by nature for the purpose. The pakeha party, with Te Heuheu and his wife, soon passed ahead of the others, for which we were afterwards very sorry, as we took the wrong path at a cress road and iouud ourselves advanced about three miles in the direction of Tauranga when a native came running after us to tell us we were wrong, and we had to return the whole way, thereby losing about two hours in a scorching sun, which rather disturbed the accustomed tranquillity of the old

chief's temper. We halted at noon by the side of a stream, and had a most refreshing bathe in the clear cold water, whilst some lunch was being prepared, consisting of tea and fried bacon, of which we partook with great satisfaction, having eaten nothing since five o'clock in the morning. As we were on the point of starting again, Mr. Nicholas rode up on his return to Matamata from Gtawhao, and he gave us rather a disheartening account of the swollen state of the rivers, which he said were very much swollen from the late rains. However, as he had managed to get his horse across them we thought upon reflection that we might contrive to ford them on foot. Having remained here about an hour altogether we started again, but did not find our difficulties so great as we had been led te expect; we -crossed three or four swamps, some of which were of considerable size, but none very deep. The worst obstacle we mel with was a creek called Mangawhero, which was rather deep, and the ford over which we had great difficulty in finding, in consequence of having left the natives behind. We goi over pretty well however, the only accident having fallen to my share. I missed a somewhat precarious footing upon the root of a bunch of reeds, about eighteen inches below the water, and tumbled over head and ears into a deep hole, getting of course completely ducked. It is a very bad plan to travel too far ahead of the natives on one of these journies, as we found on many occasions upon this expedition, as they are constantly stopping to rest and smoke their pipes, by which means, if the pakebas are not with them to urge them on, a great deal of time is sure to be unnecessarily thrown away. On the other band I know of nothing more irksome than to be obliged to travel at the pace of the natives, which' to a European is, in a day's journey, infinitely more tiring ihan stepping out at one's natural rate, to say nothing oi the disagreeableness of being obliged to be incessantly scolding and urging them on. Upon this occasion — though we reached Mangawhero certainly not later than four o'clock — it was nearly dark before the natives came up, and we were obliged to encamp at a distance of about half a mile beyond the creek, although on leaving Matamata we had hoped to reach Patetere this evening, the distance as computed by the Bishop, and published in the Itinerary in the Church Almanack being six-and-twenty miles. About nine o'clock two women arrived at the camp on their way from Paletere to some of the settlements near Matamata, who proved to he relations 01, or in some way connected with, Te Heuheu, whom they were much surprised to meet so unexpectedly, and their joy at seeing him of course expressed in the doleful manner usual with the Npw Zealanders. Wednesday, December 19th. — Rose at a quarter past three and started at four after our usual breakfast of a pannakin of hoi tea and a biscuit, which we ate during the time the natives were striking the tents and preparing for a start. I may as well here explain our usual dietary, which consisted first of the breakfast above-mentioned (if breakfast it can be called) ; then at some time between halfnine and eleven (occasionally even as late as noon) we halted and partook of a regularly cooked meal, consisting generally of fried bacon, or of fresh potk, lowls, or any other provision we might chance to have, with the invariable accompaniment of tea. The bacon was kept as a stand-by, and only used as a pis-aller when nothing else was attainable, as the thirst it produces is by no means pleasant on a long day's march. Our halt for this meal generally lasted about an Lour and a half, and sometimes even two hours, especially if it chanced to be at a settlement, and on startiug again we travelled until a final halt was made for the night, usually at five or six o'clock, when the dinner or supper, whichever it may be called, was generally ready, the tents pitched, and the travellers returned from bathing in some neighbouring stream, at about the same time. This meal was of precisely the same description as the one preceding it, tea, that invariably found and almost indispensable travelling beverage, being the never failing accompaniment to every meal. At a distance of about a mile from our camp of last night we bad to cross a very rapid creek, waist deep, called Oraka. The morning was beautiful, and the view, as we walked along, was very fine, being bounded on each side and in front by wooded hills at various distances, whilst behind us stretched an immense plain, the prospect over which was terminated by the Matamata wood, which now began to look very distant. The plain we bad walked over yesterday and had still to travel upon till we reached the high land at Patetere, stretches in one unbroken level from that high land to the sea in Hauiaki gulph, a distance of about a hundred miles. The laud between Matamata and Patetere is very low, and though intersected by several creeks, is still insufficiently drained, and contains many swamps. The soil is, except in detached pieces here and there, ol inferior quality, produ-

i cinq principally fern and manuka of stunted growth. Still tbere ate very pretty spots, by the banks of the streams where may occasionally be found a patch of wood and a small piece of most excellent soil. At a little distance from Oraka, we came to a small lake, about an acre in extent, in the middle of a swamp, and which the natives said abounded with eels, and on the top cf a little ridge just above, a rahui or mark to preserve the eels was erected ; it was made of an old rusty musket barrel stuck in the ground, to which the stock was tied with a piece of flax, and a bunch of kakaho (reed) tops stuck on like a plume of feathers. The natives always treat a rahui with much respect, considering it an act of great dishonesty to catch eels, or any other fish, to hunt pigs, snare ducks or parrots, or in fact destroy in any way game of whatever kind which it is erected to preserve. So strictly is this rule carried out, that a short time ago — (and even now in some parts of the island) the infringement of a rahui would be considered quite a sufficient casus belli to give rise to a bloody war between two tribes. In passing this rahui, Symonds who was in advance of the rest of the party (liis usual position), cut the Governor's initials on the stock of the musket. Just beyond this we had to pass the Waihou or Thames, which is here but an insignificant creek, running in a north-easterly direction. It is crossed upon two little sticks forming a somewhat crazy kind of bridge, anything but pleasant to venture over, as the water is a considerable distance below, and a false step, or a breakdown of the ricketty bridge would precipitate the traveller souse into the water below, from which he would probably find considerable difficulty in extricating himself owing to the steepness of the banks which are moreover thickly clad with a tangled mass of briery vegetation, by no means easy to scramble through. On reaching the high land beyond the river, we came to a cross road, one way leading to the main track to Tauranga, and the other to Patetere. Here we found the advanced party halted being uncertain which was the right load. We found written, or rather cut in the ground on one of the roads, the following woids — " E hoa ma, haere ake, kei Oraka matou. Na ." (illegible name) ; i. c. y " Friends, travel on, you will find us at Oraka." We had not been here many minutes before two natives arrived who had come from Patetere to meet us, and who soon relieved us from our difficulty in regard to the road. They told us the message on the ground had been written by the women who arrived at our camp last night for directions to some men who were to follow them. We at once resumed our journey, Symondh and I starting a-head with our native guides, whom however we soon left behind, as we did not want them, there be ng only one road, and that so plainly marked, that we could not go astray. A little before reaching Patetere we entered a very pretty valley, or gorge, of somewhat strange formation, the hills on each side, which are very steep, being composed of a kind of conglomerate rock which crops out in several places in huge steep blocks. A small creek runs down the centre of the valley, the soil of which is of the very best desciiplion, and which would form a remarkable nice situation lor a farm. There are great numbers of these gorges in the neighbourhood of Patetere, running down from the base of the high land behind, and opening out upon the plain, and at the head of nearly every one is a patch of pretty wood. Having walked to the head of the abovementioned valley, we ascended a very steep hill, and on the top found ourselves at a small cluster of houses, fenced round, called Te Toa. A native came out and told us there was no person there, but that we must cross a valley, through a dense wood to the principal settlement about a mile distant. We accepted his offer of guidance, and after scrambling through the forest, thick — as the New Zealand woods always are in a valley — i with kareao, or supplejack, and ascending a ! precipitous hill on the other side, we arrived at Patetere at half-past eight o'clock; having > been, it must be remembered, all the morning without anything to eat except the biscuit we had taken with our tea previous to starting, since when, from the time we had been walking, and the pace at which we traversed the ground, we certainly could not have travelled less than twelve or thirteen miles. We were therefore, as may be imagined, pretty hungry by this time, and immediately got the natives to boil a few potatoes for us, expecting the remainder of the party to arrive in little more than an hour, as it had been arranged to breakfast at ten, and we thought they could not be much more than an hour's walk behind us. Having regaled ourselves with half-a-dozen potatoes, some cold water * and a pipe, we turned to look about us. Pa- t tetere is a miserable place, containing about half-a-dozen small huts, inhabited by twenty * or thirty of the most squalid-looking crea- I(.

tures I ever remember to have seen, nearly every one of whom is afflicted with the horrible cutaneous disease so common amongst the natives, to a disgusting extent. The village is situated at the skirts of the great forest of Hautere, which bounds the view to the south-east and east ; but*' to the north, west, and south, there is a very fine prospect, extending to the north over' the plain we had just crossed till it is terminated by the forest at Matamata. Towards the west and south-west, the view stretches over a beautiful district of country, aud is bounded by the Maungakawa and Maungatautari hills ; and as the eye sweeps round towards the south the prospect extends over a greater space, and is bounded by various more distant bills, until it is finally terminated by the edge of the wood to the south-east. Whilst we were awaiting the arrival of the rest of the' party, I spoke to some of the men about engaging as bearers for our loads, and three fine young fellows agreed to join, apparently with great good will, on hearing the terms explained to them. At half-past twelve the main body came up, and at about one Symonds and I got some breakfast, having fasted (barring our damper of potatoes and water) since half-past three. On enquiring the cause of delay we found that the rest of the party had halted for breakfast down in the valley, and had remained there to rest for about two hours. (Mem. Never again to leave the Commissariat more than half an hour's march in the rear.) Having done ample justice° (o our long delayed meal, we were prepared for a start, and on calling the natives who had agreed to accompany us, found to our utter astonishment that not a man in the settlement would move for less than half-a-crown a- day, which change iv their mind we could not help attributing to some of our own people, who must have put them up to ask that sum thinking no doubt that if we were unable to obtain any men at a lower rate we should be obliged to give in to the demand, which would of course have the effect of raising their wages. If that was their object however they were disappointed, for we made them take up their packs again, and start with the same loads they had hitherto carried, and winch it must be owned were very heavy. \\ c parted from the natives of this settlement on very bad terms, as they became at last extremely insolent. The cultivations of Patetere lie between the village and the forest, and looked, as we passed through them, very well, the soil being ol the best quality and the vegetation luxuriant; bat they are not well kept, and contain a great number of weeds. Our road led us along the skirts of the forest over some ve*y broken ground covered with high fern, and from our natives being so heavily loaded, and rather sulky at our being unable to obtain assistance for them at Patetere, we maie but poor progress, so that it was sunset before wehad travelled more than five miles, and we had to bivouac by the side of the road for the night. The tents being pitched and the dinner under way, we set to work to see how the loads might be reduced. This we accomplished by distributing a quantity of flour and damp sugar amongst the natives, and by dispensing with two cases iv which were packed sundry bottles containing superfluous luxuries such as mustard, vinegar, pickles, &c, &c, we expended altogether, throwing them away in the fern by the road side, where in all probability they may now be found by any one whowill take the trouble of searching for them. I must do our men the justice to say that though they had grumbled in the foregoing part of the day, they behaved extremely well in the evening when they found that we really were determined (o do all we could to make matters as easy as circumstances would admit for them. They positively refused to allow us to expend numbers of things we had determined on throwing ay/ay, and actually only consumed one of the two bags of flour which were given to them ; nor did we hear another word of grumbling from any of them. One old fellow who had carried one of the heavy cases which we dispensed with, was greatly delighted at receiving instructions to convert the said case into materials for lighting a fire. He seized the axe, flourished it in the air, and down it came with a most awful crash, accompanied by an imprecation upon his enemy which had caused him such an aching pair of shoulders, and he never stopped anathematising and dancing round the unfortunate box till there was not a piece of it an inch square, (To be continued.)

Permanent link to this item
Hononga pūmau ki tēnei tūemi

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/NZSCSG18501123.2.9

Bibliographic details
Ngā taipitopito pukapuka

New Zealand Spectator and Cook's Strait Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 554, 23 November 1850, Page 4

Word count
Tapeke kupu
3,230

JOURNAL New Zealand Spectator and Cook's Strait Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 554, 23 November 1850, Page 4

JOURNAL New Zealand Spectator and Cook's Strait Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 554, 23 November 1850, Page 4

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