A.—No. 8a

AGAINST THE REBEL NATIVES.

69

destroying the Arawa's houses and crops. About 1 o'clock I got up near the bush at the Paiaka settlement, and found that the Urewera had offered terms of peace to our people. Te Mamaku and Kepa Te Ahuru had been up to see Te Kooti; the former returned with his younger brother Te Korowhiti, who had been taken prisoner by Tc Kooti at Tauaroa in 1869. Petera Pukuatua, Paora Te Awahou, and some of the other chiefs believed in the sincerity of the proposals made by the Urewera, and were strongly opposed to an attack being made upon Te Kooti's force. I saw at once that it was only a pretext to gain time byr the enemy, and ordered the men to advance. On reaching the wood I found a letter (enclosed) purporting to have been written by Kepa, but in Te Kooti's own handwriting. The enemy had made good use of the delayr while the peace proposals were being discussed, and had got nearly two miles start. The young men started forward most eagerly, and, on topping the hill, saw the enemy in the valley below in great force retreating in the direction of Kaitcriria. A sharp run of half an hour brought us up to him; and he opened a heavy fire from a well-chosen position. It was some time before he could be dislodged, and he then retreated along the road, fighting every inch of ground. About a mile from his first position he made another stand on the top of a small plateau. When I first started I had 120 men, but the sharp run across the heavy country had been too much for them, and I now found myself opposed to about 70 of the enemy's picked men with a small force of 25 or 30. A brisk skirmish now ensued, and the enemy, headed by Kereopa, made a most determined charge— clubbing their guns they rushed up to within fifteen or twenty yards of us, but a steady fire caused them to retreat, leaving three dead on the brow of the hill, aud two down by a swamp a quarter of a mile further on. We followed them up, but they travelled at such a rate that only a few of the fastest men were able to keep up with them, and, by making a short stand at every rise, they were enabled to keep their women in advance, and lead off the wounded. With my glass I plainly recognised Te Kooti and his wife both mounted in the advance, while Ihaia Mokomoko acted as guide. When within three miles of Kaiteriria the Tuhourangi and Ngatirangitihi at length came up, but instead of taking the enemy in front or flank, they joined us in the rear. We followed the enemy across some very broken ground and several deep swamps, dropping one every now and then, besides wounding a number, as he left his trail covered with blood. Just after sunset we were rapidly closing up with him, and killed one of his best fighting men, the notorious half-caste Peka (E. Baker, the bugler), when the enemy suddenly turned off the track to the right and disappeared in the Tumunui bush. It was now too dark to follow him any further; and the men, now about 40, were so completely knocked up, having marched about sixteen miles all day without any breakfast, that I decided to fall back on the Kaiteriria, settlement for the night. The next day I found it impossible to get the Natives to move in pursuit, but went out with a small party as far as Waipao to see what direction the enemy had taken. The Ngatiwhakaue all returned to Ohinemutu, while the Tuhourangi and Ngatirangitihi came back to Parikaranga to look for a small party of theirs which went out to scout on the morning of the 7th. On the 9th they said it was useless following up the enemy any further, as he had got clean away into the Urewera country. In the evening I assembled the Tuhourangi and Ngatirangitihi at Kariri, intending to cross over to tin; A'riki next morning in canoes and go to Motumako. On the evening of the 10th,- however, there was too much sea to cross the Lake, so I went from Te Oneroa with 10 men up the Wairoa Valley, and struck across country to the enemy's trail at Ngakaro Lake, followed it on to Rerewhaka-aitu, and finding that it pointed in the direction of Motumako returned to Kaiteriria, which we reached at 10 p.m. Te Kooti never stopped retreating on the night of the 7th, except at Ohau for a short time, to roast potatoes. They would reach Motumako by daylight, and Ahikcrcru the evening of the same day. The day T after the fight I sent a party of men out to search on both sides of the track. They returned in the evening, and report having found eleven bodies. They think it is very likely that some of the dead arc concealed in the swamps on each side of the track, as several were scm to fall which have not been accounted for. lam glad to say that our casualties were light; Te Waka, shot through the neck and out at the back, is in rather a dangerous state from want of medical assistance; Ilori Te Rapa, shot through both thighs, is getting on well; Karanama of Tuhourangi, shot through the knee, severe; Mikaere Ngatai, slight graze on left shoulder. Several arms, viz., 1 breech-loader, 1 rifle, 1 revolver, 1 double-barrel gun, 3 single-barrels, and 1 musket have been taken, together with a great lot of clothes, which were thrown away by the enemy in his retreat. The men who behaved particularly well arc, Kiharoa, Tohe, Tc Raika Metai, Hie, Ilori, Te Waka, Marino, Tari, Tackata, Tc Waiehi, Hakana, and Tupara. I hope the Government will feel satisfied with the effort these men have made; and had they only been supported by the others, the enemy would have suffered much more severely. With the small force under my command, it was impossible to guard every point. The enemy mustered at least 200 fighting men, well trained and accustomed to fighting, while I was never able to get up to him with more than 40. Te Korowhiti reports that Tahau with 30 men, besides women and children, is still in the woods on his way through; I will keep a sharp look-out on him. 18