THE MAILS. TE NGUTU-O-TE-MANU.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LI, Issue 225, 16 September 1908, Page 4

THE MAILS.

TE NGUTU-O-TE-MANU.

FROM THE BECIIXNIXti. AX IXTKKKSTJXd ACCOIXT OF Tlffi SEVERAL EXPEDITIONS. BY OXE WHO MARCHED OX KACU iKX'ASIOX-. It is not generally known thai Colonel McDonnell visited Te Xgutu-o-te-Manu pioper on three occasions, each time with an armed force. In April, 1808, horses were stolen from settlors by natives. In May the Armed Constabulary .stationed at* Waihi, reinforced by the Patea Light Horse and all the settlers that could lx» commandeered, were marched to Te Xgutu to try to get tlie horses and arrest the thieves. The village was reached in the afternoon. There was a large square in the centre, into which the forces, about 120, were marched and paraded around a Hag which had been presented to Colonel McDonnell bv. 1 think, the ladie s of Wanganui. The standardbearer said afterwards that he expected a volley at the Hag. McDonnell, being a good Maori linguist, did an amount of talking as well as some Maori men. They seemed to agree. Then it was explained that the thief -and the. horses were not about the .place, but that they would be sent to Waihi on the man s return from a pigeon-shooting expedition, upon which they said most of the natives then were. The men were all invited into a large meeting-house and hospitably entertained, food in plenty j being provided. This house was one of the largest and* finest that the writer has ever seen during a fifty years' residence in New Zealand. The men slept in this house. In the morning breakfast was provided, and the force returned to Waihi. A few days later the horses were brought to canip, but the thief did not turn up. Almost at once McDonnell decided to go in again, and this time capture the culprits. A scratch force was again got together of about 60, and a dash was made on Te Ngutu, which nearly resulted in bloodshed. It was only the pluck of Captain Cummings that saved the situation. He took hold of a native of some note, and as a hostage marched him into the midst of the A.C/s with a revolver muzzle at big-head. Then a quick move was made, and the party with their prisoner reached camp, Waihi. Firstly, this native was seized to secure the safety of the party, but also to ensure that the horse thief would be given up. The prison at Waihi was a bell tent, with a sentry placed ovei it. Our hostage seemed to get reconciled to his position, and for a few days was extra good. Then one morning it was found that he had quietly slipped out under the back of the tent, having cut tbe bottom strings from the tent pegs. Mr. James Booth, the Native Magistrate, came to camp, and visited 1 and parleyed "with the natives, but they were determined on revenge for the indignity inflicted on our late prisoner. I now forget his name. - On Juue oth two natives visited live settlers at work on a bush section; which is now a portion of Mr. Burr's farm, near Xormanby, and warned them not to return to work or they would i be killed. Two of these s ettlers heeded their warning, but Messrs. Squires. Cahill and Clarke returned to their work as usual, and were killed. Their bodies were buried in Waihi cemetery. Strict, orders were now issued for everyone l o keep within the camp lines, the settlers being all called in. lint these orders were evaded, and I think it was on the lOthJune Trooper Smith went in search of his lost horse and was shut on what is now Mr. Inkster'. s farm. The place was on the bank of the Waihi stream, about 80 yards above where the Xor-manby-Manaia road crosses it, not at Tongaihoe. Smith was cut in half, Ms legs and entrails being left and other portions carried oil". What was left was buried in Waihi cemeterv. t saw a member of the Patea Light Horse at the gathering on Sunday who participated pi these trips to Te Xgulu. ihere was now a mouthy speculation a-s to what was to be the next move. Redoubts were built, the Constabulary were reinforced by companies from the Waikato and Xapier, and volunteers were enrolled. One of the redoubts was close to Hawera, somewhere near the residence of the present Mavor, Mr. ♦Sutton. Tlii s was called the Cauaditn redoubt, being built by the Middlemas and Douglas families/ and manned by them, Messrs. Bradshaw, Thompson, and other settlers. The old Tunituru-Mokai redoubt was repaired and occupied by a detachment of Armed Constabulary, and it also sheltered settlers. On Juiy Ilth native women, children, aud a few men visited that place selling potatoes, fowls, etc., to the men, and no doubt reconnoitring well, for about daylight on the 12th the redoubt was attacked. Captain lioss and I forget how man> men were killed and wounded, only a few escaping. The only survivors now known to the writer are Mr. Beamish, Patea, and Mr. Coslett Johnston, Kete<>natea. The latter and th e laite Mr. Milmoe were the only men not wounded within the fort, and practically held it from complete capture until relief arrived from Waihi. The men killed there

were also buried jn the Waihi cemeterv. | Now active recruiting took place in : Wellington, Nelson, and elsewhere, and a'force of about 400 men was got together at Waihi, which was the headquarters. There were continued drills to get the men into order. The Government and the newspapers were meanwhile crying out over McDonnell'* inactivity. On the 20th August Colonel McDonnell, who had been in Wanganui. returned to Waihi, had a consultation with his officers, and decided to make a move on Te Xgutu at daybreak the following morning. A day's rations were served out and everything got ready for the start. The Waingongoro river was reached and found to be considerably above its normal level, but a sergeant had foreseen what was likely to be, and taken a tether rope witii him. This was stretched across the river at a ford below where the Electric Light Company's dam is now erected. All were got safely over, but were washed off their feet and completely drenched, the ammunition in many cases being spoilt. The march was resumed, and again the same route was taken past what is now known as Mount Royal, and along by what is now Mr. Bremer's farm, and across the creek at the old mill dam. This was the native track, and was well defined, through clearings and strips of bush, across th?

Tnalia about ten chains above where the Ahaipaipa road now crosses, and where the water-pipe now runs. The track was through clearings and bnsli until Pungarehu, now Mr. Betts' farm, was reached. (By the way. McDonnell attacked and destroyed this place on 2nd October, iSOi). Killing a few natives and losing two or three of his own men.) From this, on to the pa was all dense bush, but along a well-defined track, it being the same as had been traversed

on the two previews trips. The troops had not been expected, so it was fairly a surprise. The whares were fired into anil the place, cleared of natives, they quickly disappearing in the dense bush. The fine meeting-house, in which sow of us had slept, and the other whares were fired, and destroyed. Soon we were on the move home again, having had three men killed and eight wounded.

one mortally. It is said that nearly all the natives, at any rate the men, were at a clearing threr..i|ii;irters of a mile away. However, thev soon joined with those at the pa. and gave the retreating force a warm time of it. meeting us a I every point where the bn*h was withi i gunshot of the track. There was on" man hit oh the retreat, and they followed the force right up to the old mil! dam. The river was readied and found to he still iu flood, and great. dillienHy was experienced in getting the dead and- wounded men across. At last mi were over, the rope detached, and soon the men were in camp, after a ven tiresome day's work, iu this expedition there would be about '520 men all i«»M. There was now an inferval of three weeks, when } |lH>ut a.m. on 7th September a force of about Kuropeau* and UK) Wanganui Kupapas again left Waihi to try and find TitoUowavu'stronghold, reported to be somewhere ill the rear of Te Xgutu. tlie plaee h< ing unknown to any pakeha. This tim< a native guide accompanied the expedition. The morning was line, and for the week previous the weather had bei'i •mod. The Waingongoro' river was crossed at the same ford with ease, and the route was by wav of M-iwhil iwlnl'. Th.. track was good until Uml nla<wa- reached and reconnoitred. 'I he vil-

lugo was found to be dosertcd. It was jtill iki'k, and litre our guide gave ui tin: slip. However, u northerly course was Uq>l, somewhere iilony where the Hastings road now runs, mid past wlml i s now .Mr. lie-slop's farm. The furee wiij now ill the dense Imsii, and progress »va» slow, supple-jacks, liriars (or lawyers) having to be, eut by those ill advanee, the inarch being ill single iil ( . the whole way. About 11 a.m. a halt was made, biscuits eaten, pipes lighted, and a spell of hull' an hour taken. Then the march was resinned, still ill a northerly direction. About i p.m. another halt was made. McDonnell got a Wanganui native and a pakeha to climb a. tree, and they reported smoke a little on our rear, in a westerly direction. The course was altered in' that direction, and between 3 and 4 o'clock wliiii-cg were seen, mto whicli the Wanganui native- fired, i'wo children were killed here, and one caught and cared for. lie is now a l'uspocted licensed interpreter. A little further on the clearing was discovered. The natives were ready and met the force with a withering lii'e. 'ibis was near to the place where the monument now stands. I call give no description, generally, of the engagement, nor can anvone else, as individual vision in the dense primitive bush was limited to a lew yards. The lorce got divided. ' were repulsed, defeated, in fact routed, and dead and wounded were left to Ihe mercy of a victorious foe. Colonel McDonnell and the bulk of the men got home to Waihi at dusk by way of le Xgutu and l'ungarehu. ' W.A.Q.s storv of his retreat may be correct. I Roberts and his party («2 men, ten of whom were wounded) s pcnt the liignt in the bush and returned by way o M-awhitiwhiti, crossed the river at what is called the upper ford on the Mawlutiwhiti road,' and reached AWilu camp about 10.10 a.m. You say that the actual site of Te Xgutu is in doubt the nearest landmark that 1 can give is the boundary fence between Mr. ile.:li» and what was .Mr. Cooks farm, when it crosses the Inalia stream. \ou wll see that from the first there was nothing but a series of disasters.—Haweia Star.