GK—6b.

Nene) drew the attention of Rauparaha to a ship that was beating through the strait and advised that cHiei, it he wished to procure muskets and become great, to migrate to such a place where he could get m touch with ships and effect the necessary trade. Rauparaha had by this time seen the value of firearms, and was shrewd enough to foresee the futility of expecting to be able to hold his ancestral lands against tribes who had greater opportunities of obtaining muskets than he had so long as he remained at ivawlua. His Waikato and Maniapoto neighbours would only respect his rights so long as they respected his power to punish them in encounter, and it was patent that they would have an earlier opportunity of procuring modern arms than he. , , 16 rp About ; 18 20, following upon increased pressure from the Waikato Tribes, the migration of iNgati loa under Te Bauparaha and Rangihaeata commenced from Kawhia. It is recorded that at the end of four days the party arrived at the pa of Te Puoho at Turangarua. Here Rauparaha left ie Akau who had been taken to wife by him when he assumed the mantle of chieftainship held by er late husband, Hapekituarangi. Te Akau was at the time in a delicate condition, and was left at ie 1 uoho spa It is not inconsiderable proof of Te Puoho's office of high priest and friend to Kauparaha that the expectant mother should have been left with him, thus devolving upon Te Puoho ner safety and the responsibility of seeing that the necessary baptismal ceremony was carried out at - ie proper time, a thing not so easily arranged if the child were born while the mother was one of the travelling party Rauparaha with his following pushed on to Waitara, returning later with a small party to Te Puoho to collect his family. 17 About this time another invasion of the Manawatu, Whanganui, and Horowhenua districts was taking place, and must be briefly touched upon. This expedition, consisting of Waikato and Jiast Coast people, raided down through Hawke's Bay and Wairarapa and up by way of the Horowhenua district to the middle reaches of the Whanganui River, where at a place called Mangatoa, two miles south of Kormiti, a party of them was enticed by a Whanganui female captive into a veritable death-trap, where they were ambushed and largely destroyed. To celebrate this and other victories a song was composed, which is of particular interest on account of its reference to Ngarau (Te Puoho) and his daughter (Tikawe ?) and the fact that his raid is noticed in a recital of considerable events, w •/+' the autumn of 1821 (say) the tribe moved on from Waitara through friendly country to Waitotara, which would be on the borders of the Whanganui tribal territorv. Here occurred a slight engagement between the party and the local people, as a result of which Rauparaha possessed lmself of some canoes which he badly needed. The party then moved on to Whanganui, where they were met by relatives of Pikinga the Ngati Apa wife of'Rangihaeata, and by whom the party was aken to Kangitikei It is more than probable that a large number of the party wintered with these people, and that they spent the next planting-season there. 19. In 1822 the migration reached Ohau, which had been spied out as the ultimate destination. A conspiracy by the Whanganui, Rangitane, and Muaupoko Tribes to rid themselves of Te Rauparaha was very nearly successful when the latter tribe invited him and many of his close relations to i-u ] Lake Papaitonga (Lake Buller) and fell upon the party while asleep. Seventeen were killed, including a number of Rauparaha's children, while he, another man, and a slave had a narrow escape, it is interesting to note that Rauparaha was warned by Rangihaeata that an attempt WOII -j? , e 6 0n I f. he went to Papaitonga, as he, Rangihaeata, had received an impression manifested by a peculiar twitching of his side that such dark purpose was in the minds of Muaupoko and Rangitane. In actual fact, he had been told by his wife's people that the attempt would be made. t-i hT i event onward > Rauparaha kept up a relentless attack on the Muaupoko lube. Me took the Waipata Pa (an artificial island in the Horowhenua Lake) by swimming his force to it ; he reduced Waikiekie, a similar but much stronger place, with the aid of canoes which had to e dragged up the Hokio Stream from the sea. His position was precarious, and he took desperate measures to secure his safety. After Waikiekie, a large body of Ngati Awa that had come with him returned to Taranaki. This reduction in the force at his disposal made it inadequate to hold the mainand against the enemies surrounding him, so he retired to Kapiti, which he had taken from a small branch of the Ngati Apa, and fortified himself against attack. From the comparative safety of the island he visited the mainland when he pleased for supplies, raiding the occupants of the Horowhenua and Manawatu districts whenever they were detected returning to the old habitations. i 21 ' f- bout 1824 the Rangitane Tribe rebuilt their old pa at Hotuiti (between Shannon and Foxton) and, with a section of Ngati Apa, occupied it. This constituted a gathering which was considered too close for the comfort of Ngati Toa, and in consequence Rauparaha and Rangihaeata proceeded to Hotuiti to disperse it. The latter was accompanied by his Ngati Apa wife, Pikinga, who was sent ™ A P V V t a r ? qU6St from Rail P araha that the Ngati Apa people should withdraw themselves. w! 1S *7 1 t0 d °V SO Eau P aralla invited the Rangitane chiefs to come out and arrange a peace. When they came out they were murdered and the leaderless occupants of the pa slaughtered. „2. Ihe remainder of Ngati Apa were incensed at this action of Ngati Toa, and, hastily gathermg a small party of thirty (Ngati Toa say there were two hundred), they fell upon a party of JNgata Toa on the mainland at Waikanae and killed thirty of them. Among the slain were three C chll „ d fr n ° f T e Pelll > who was the uncle of Rauparaha, and by birth his superior in rank. \■ 7® 1 , children deeply distressed Te Pehi, and in 1826 he managed to secure a passage on a ship to England, where he hoped to secure muskets that would ensure him a fitting revenge. ortly after Te Pehi s departure, Te Ratu, who had been captured at Kukutauaki and kept as a titw £ £ ? escaped and made his way to the South Island. This would be about the beginning at V a . cted an alllance of all the tribes that were menaced by the Kapiti situation— the Ngati Apa, Rangitane, and Ngati Kuia of the South Island ; the Ngati Kahungunu of Wairarapa, the Whanganui, Rangitane, Ngati Apa, and Muaupoko of the West Coast. A concerted attack by these allied tribes was planned and immediate arrangements made to put the plan into execution.

4