FIFTY YEARS AGO.

Pukekohe & Waiuku Times, Volume 1, Issue 64, 31 January 1913, Page 1

FIFTY YEARS AGO.

BY 15. A. CTJSPE.

First Panic at Mauku.

(Continued.) [The previous article described the beginning of the panic and the flight of the settlers to the cutter Raven. -Ed. I Early morning showed a weary, sleepless party. 'lhe sailors boiled some *vater and we were regaled with hot tea The nvn-folk then returned to Mauku, premising io gf-t back t: tie boat before night and report news. Ths captain's oukrs were if no word wa3 sent before night he was t) make for Onehunga on the nrxt tide.

We put in thd day 3s beet we could. DurinQ the afternoon a few of the men returned, reporting that nothing hsd been heard of the war party and that ths Patuinahoe na tivea kept aloof, borne milk for the little ones v. as brought, ar.d more eatables. After thii ojr spirits rose a little, but we did .iot relish the thought of being cooped up for another night. How we watched the shore with aching hearts eyes that day. Five o'clock came, when, lo! in the far distance a little cloud of dust is seen. Nearer and nearer it comes. Then on the hill sloping to the water are seen two horsemen, racing for dear life it sterns, waviig their handkerchiefs and shouting. Who are they? Arc they being chased by the foe? The horses are evidently btius: pushed to the utmost. What do those flying horsemen portend? The excitement on board is intense. Then the wellknown white-man's "cooey" is heard, and a boat puts off to meet them. We see those who took the boat grip hands with the riders ar.d give a joyful shout and wave to us. We are not kept long in doubt. Back they all come, ai d here *»as our faithful friend and pastor, the lafe Rev. Dr Purchas, accompanied by the lale Mr J. Keleher, come to tell us that through the efforts of Bishop Selwyn and Mr Maunsell, the war party had returned to Ngaruawahia. What a glad shout of thaoklulness went up from all on board.

It was near midnight when we got back to our homes. Nine of the Upper Mauku people got further than Major Speedy's, and they were thankful for a roof to cover them and a floor to lay on. That our returning was a little previous will be fully explained in two interesting letters writteD oy Bishop Selwyn at the time. Hut we were in blissful ignorance that a party of reckless Maoris had broken off from the mi»in body, bent on mischief. Tnus ended the first panic. One settler had a cow calved the day we left and another cow just after they returned, so th« calves were named "Panic" and "Peace." The followiug I have copied from the life of Bishop Helwyn, also an interesting letter from an old Mauku settler on tne subject: "Djring the Taranaki war in»1860 and IS6I the Maoris in the Waikato and those in the vrllages near Auckland became very excitable, and it needed but small provocation for them to break out into open hostili-

ties. It vfi, then that the late II:sh:• p Sel vyn kbouitd with all his might t'i pa vint a Waikato war. A page in the t.istory of that wonderful man in connection with the first panic at Mauku is interesting. i quote the loliowing from 'Mem riei f the Life of George Augustus oelwyn, 1J D.,' by the ttev.. H W, 'iucker, M.ri.lhe Bishop, accompanied by the Maori deacon Joshua, went up the W&ikato in May, 1860, ii. the hope ofarrangirg t; attnm ji.-aceably. He was invited to a large native gathering, where the Maori king's start' was erected, and lie felt h ■ had no other course open to him but to leave. In November of the same year the discovery at Patuinahoe, Mauku, near W: ik;>to, (;f the ek-a' body of a Mfoti, sup-i:ose-l to have been autdered by an n em, anu the Bishop laboured with all his might to prevent the t outbreak of hostilities which Seemed imminent. What he did, ar.d vviih what feelings, i.j best shown in two leltcra written the same day. 7 "

Extract of letter written to Sir John Patterson Mauku, November 3rd, ,1860. I am now writing from th v > house of Major Speedy, forty miles from Auckland, whose lamily have just returned from a s-hort exodus to the nearest water carriage, to be ready to fly from a party or Waikato's, said »o be 400 but actually 250. Ihe exciting cause super-hddtd to the Tararaki war, was that the fcedy of a native of toe placd (Patuinahoe) was in the for.*st apparently killed by a gunshot wound. An Englishman wtio had been shooting wild cattle was suspected of the murder, but no proot was found againot him. We have just received the news that the war party has gone quietly back after h.aring the statement of the natwe chiefs who conducted the inquiry as assessors to the English coroner. Ihe settkrs have returned to their homes, and are busy unpacking their 1 goods a"d exhuming their buried property. One week's taste of the realities of war has been sufficient for them." Extract from a Liter written to his son, William ijelwyn, Esq., England:—"The Mauku, November 3rd, l»60.--i\iy Dear William, You will not knew the place from which 1 am writing. This is a smail English settlement on one (he many creeks of Ue Manakau estuary, about 6 mil-d lrom the Waikato. About a forti.ight ago a native was found dead in the fciest near this place, and h<s friends supposed him to have been murdered by a whiteman, An enquiry was held, but no proof coulci be found and many believe that tne death had been accidental. But the excitement caused by the long continuance of the Taranaki war had so inflamed the minds of the inland tribes that a large party of armed men came down the Waikato in their canoes last Tuesday and threatened to seize the suspected person and deal witn him according to their iron law. At eight on Tuesday evening 1 mounted my trusty old chestnut, "Bona," or the "Man iu the Moon," to go and meet the war party. At three in th'j morning I reached the furthest English vill-

age, Drury, about 24 miles frrm Auckland and 12 miles fiorn the Waikato river, on which the supposed enenv were encamp.d. The village and the large inn (Young's) was as still and peaceful as if nothing had happened. I rode into the yard, opined the stable, lighted the stable lantern, fed my horse and walked up and down tlie stable for an hour befoie anyone app-arid and when at 4 a.m. the mc.s.er of the house appeared io call ins men to carry messages to warn the settlers of their danger, I could not help congratulating him 0£- the confidence which he ielt in his Maou enemies to sleep so soundly within 12 miles of 400 armed tn. n witn nothing but a furest roud between him and them He then gave me some breakfast, ana 1 rode on about .ix miles further to the edge of the wood, calling on the settiers om the way and advising them to assemble in one house and wait for further information. 1 ihen ieli the horse and walked through the wood with mud up to nay knees (fur we have had a season like your last summer) till 1 came to Tuakau, on tne Waikato, where the "taua" fighting party was expected to land.

"About twelve Archdeacon Maunsell joined me, and at two the war party arrived. But we could tee at once by the open and bright expression of their countenances that they did not mean any mischief, '''ne afternoon was spent as usual in much talk on the subject, and ended with evening service in a large house lilled with about 200 men witn thtir muskets piled round the central pillars. Their arms were well cleaned and kdpt, but nut of tha newest kind, bein,> chiefly old muskets witn flini-locks. We were glad to, find that they were itclined to back quietly. The tribe resident on the river refused to allow them to pass through their ground, and thus, accoraing to their own expression, "shut the door against them." Archdeacon Maui sell aid I, of course, gave them our advice to go back, and so furnished them with another excuse.

"Thursday, November Ist. Another service with my warlike friends and a short address on th; Communion of Saints, after which an old man, seeing me looking steadfastly at them, asked what 1 was thinking about. To this 1 snsweied that I was .thinking whether they were aealed in taeir hearit) or on their foreheaas only. He took the hint at once, and replied: 'What can we <io if the Governor makes war on us?' I then asked the chief why two of bis canoes had broken off the main body ar.d had gone on ahead, instead of stopping at luakau. He said they did cot know, but that they themselves felt uneasy about it. I offered to go in search of them, and he gave me a Utter to order tnem to return, of which the following is a translation: '0 George and Wnakapaukai, give heed. If you are overtaken by the Bishop at Patomahoe come bacK, Doth of you, ccme tack peaceably, all of vou! Your work is done. 'lhe fuotsteps sound at Patumahoe (the place where the man aied), the claim of the dead is satisfied, come back peaceably. We shall break up from hence (to return home). Enough. By Koroki, by Haua (ancestors of his tribe.") (To be continued.)