A.—No. 12.

AGAINST THE REBEL NATIVES.

27

NOMINAL ROLL of MEN of No. 2 Division, A.C., attacked by the Enemy at Karaka Flat, 18th February, 1869.

No. 22. Copy of a Letter from Colonel "Wiiitsioee to the Hon. Colonel Haultain. Sir, — Head-Quarters' Bivouac, 7th March, 1869. I have the honor to report that I returned to mv command and reached "Weraroa on the 4th. The troops had been unable to re-occupy the positions from which I had been compelled to withdraw them when the flood came on. The punt, however, through the great exertions of Lieut.-Colonel Herriek, had been found at the Waitotara Heads, and after being taken to pieces had been carted to Weraroa and carried by the men back to Poronui —its former position —and reconstructed and secured. Lieut.-Colonel Lyon had made every arrangement for moving on, and no time had been lost. On the sth the troops returned to their former posts, and made more than a mile of road. The valley had been all under water, and the trees were marked with mud to a height of from four to ten feet, and the rough bridge, begun while you were here, was still under water. All the creeks were still swollen, and I therefore placed bridges and culverts fit for pack transport over each. This night the troops encamped in and at the edge of the bush, and I gave orders for a general advance next day. Some eighty Wanganui Natives had meanwhile come up, and I divided the Natives into two columns, the Arawas under Captain Gundry forming one, and the "Wanganuis under Major Kemp forming the other. On the 7th the Arawas ascended the range to the right of the bush valley, and took rations for three days. Captain Gundry had orders to follow up the trail of the enemy if he struck it, and to depend on me for support. Major Kemp's column moved to the end of the road, and thence ascended to the hills to the left of the valley. This column I accompanied myself. The Europeans were all placed in the bush to render the track passable for pack animals. Lieut.-Colonel Lyon remained at Poronui to protect the passage of the Waitotara. Lieut.-Colonel Eraser took charge of Nos. 1, 2, and (! Divisions in the bush. Major Kemp's column searched the country carefully, and could not find any position held by the enemy, though on the track to Okutnku we found seven horses, among which was the wellknown white one stolen some time ago from Kemp himself, and a stretcher, on which a wounded or dead man had been carried away. On the morning of the 7th I returned with Kemp's Column to the end of the road, feeling certain that either the enemy had abandoned this part of the country, or that he was in position between the line of Captain Gundry's march or my own. I therefore took Nos. 1 and 2 Armed Constabulary as a support, and pushed on some miles in the bush. At length we reached a Native encampment, where I fell upon Captain Gundry's traces of this morning, and turned to my left to support him. On reaching the summit of the range, I found he had crossed in the direction of my camp of yesterday. I therefore satisfied myself by pushing on a little further to a point from which I could see the country that the enemy was gone, and then sending the Armed Constabulary back to their bivouacs, I crossed the valleys to my former halting-place, where I found the Arawas awaiting me. They had disinterred one dead body at a Native village, evidently shot from a long distance, probably in the late skirmishes, and had found a trail leading towards Okutnku, close by this place. I feel sure the enemy has moved, probably to avoid being swamped in the flood, and to-morrow move on with the Native Column, and leave the Europeans of Nos. 1, 2, and G to open the track to Te Ori Ori, which will render all this difficult country accessible from the Wairoa, and make the labour of the troops of practical military use hereafter, if required. This work will, I think, occupy two days, during whicli I shall explore the Okutuku district, and endeavour to carry on the trail of the enemy. I feel satisfied that the whole force has moved, and that Ido not endanger the Waitotara by moving on, while I confess it is most satisfactory to get the enemy out of a place in which he could only have been attacked under every possible disadvantage, and where a single day's rain would have compelled mo to stop my operations. The troops have shown a marked improvement in moving through the bush, which I feel justified in reporting, and the Natives seem to work cordially. I have, &c, The Hon. Colonel Haultain. G. S. Wiiitmoee, Colonel.

Bank and Names. When Enlisted. Where Enlisted. Remarks. Sergeant George Menzies Lance-Corporal Geo. Horspool Constable Connell Boyle „ Abel Barris ... „ Matthew Clowcn „ Jas. Banks ... „ John Howe ... „ Eobt. Henderson „ John McEvoy „ Alfred Wakeford Dec. 2, 18G8 Dec. 8, „ Dec. 13, „ Oct. 29, „ Dec. 12, „ Dec. 8, „ Dee. 2, „ Oct. 17, „ Jan. 23, 18G9 Nov. 20, 18G8 Auckland Melbourne G reymouth Wanganui "Westmero Melbourne Ross Auckland "VVoodall's Eedoubt Kelson Killed. Missing. Killed. Missing. >> ;> Eeturned. „ (wounded slightly.) )T