AFTER MANY YEARS.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXII, Issue 44, 16 February 1912, Page 7

AFTER MANY YEARS.

A GRANGE MEETING OF WAR VETERANS.

Rather a remarkable meeting took place on the Palmerston railway •platform yesterday afternoon, says Tuesday’s “Standard.” Mr James Livingstone, a pioneer colonist of Hawera, who took a very promineht part in the Maori campaign, was passing through Palmerston on his way from Hawke’s Bay, and had expressed a wish to meet Lieut, C. A. M. Hirtzell (now custodian of. the Palmerston museum), whom he had not seen since a few days after the engagement at Te Ngatu-o-te-Manu, on September Bth, 1868. Mr Hirtzell made his way to the railway station, and there the two old campaigners met after the lapse of over 43 years. There was much of interest to exchange between the two during the short time that elapsed before the train took its departure. “I have not forgotten,” said Mr Hirtzell to Mr Livingstone, “that fearful grasp you gave my throat on that night after the battle, when we were waiting in the bush till the moon rose. You see,” he explained to two friends standing by, “I had blind myself down by the side of Livingstone and had fallen asleep, worn out with the terrible experiences of the day, and lamenting the losses we had sustained. I had been dreaming, and in my dream had yelled out, when my throat was clutched in the muscular grasp of this giant here (Mr Livingstone is about 6ft tin in height) and 1 was peremptorily ordered to shut up, as the Natives were supposed to be following us up, to attack us again as‘ soon we got on .t)ie move. It'was a tofyil'de' flight following oil a terrible ’’ A Jew in ore briefly told reminiscences, a last hand grasp, and the comrades again parted as the train steamed away. There were also present at the interview Captain Proece, who had seen so much service, and Mr A. McM iTiiV, who, as correspondent of the Wanganui Herald, arrived at Camp Waihi the second day after Jtli£ To Ngatu-o-, te-Manu disaster, and .who got PiivS ate Bore’s (Wellington Rangers) version of his experiences while trying to : make his way back through the bush when desperately wounded to the camp, and who maintained that he had hoard the screams of the wounded being tortured. It will be remembered that it was at To-Noratn-o-to-Mann (Anglice Beajv of the Bird) that Major Von Tempsky, Captains Buick and Hastings, and Lieut. Hunter met their fate. It was probably the worst reverse of the whole campaign on the West Coast, the European forces suffering very hoUvily. ■