MILITARY DESPATCH EXTRAORDINARY.

Anglo-Maori Warder, Volume 1, Issue 22, 21 September 1848, Page 1

MILITARY DESPATCH EXTRAORDINARY.

(From the New Zealand Journal Feb. 12) Amongst the despatches recently received at the Colonial Office is one from Major Alfred Wyatt, 65th Regiment, commanding the troops at Wanganui:—as a sequel to the " pomp and circumstance of glorious war," which has of late been somewhat equivocally exhibited m that district; the i>tep from tie sublime <Q the ridiculous is perfect. Wpextract the following : " The enemy is busy planting potatoes. "As these people seem inclined to leave us alone, I have dune the like to (hem. "To prove to thera that they are not to molest the settlement with impunity, I Aa>e prohibited the settlers ft om selling to them tobacco! without tny permission. In cousequence uf this they are reduced to great straits lor want of it. *' I de.-ired Marwi to send a trusty messenger up the river, and he vriz to make good use of his ears and eyes, He ascertained that as Hora King had now set his nose towards the white men, it would not do for the children to walk over their fathei's nose. " Many of our men have not tasted a potatoe for a lone time. " Might I request that jour Excellency would for ward mean order in Couocil, m order that 1 might feel myself at ease; as in the event of any serious occurrence, Colonel MacCicterty'a dictum wouhl go for nothing, and I should find myself in an awkward dilemma. *' Pebi has solicited the aid of Hea Heu, and has received a snubbing answer. •*I am informed that there are six kegs of gunpowder at but of the truth of this i cannot vouch. " I have destroyed all the high fern in and about the place where the lale action was fought ! " In ca&e any unforeseen event should occur, I will transmit you an account of it overland." We trust no unforeseen event may occur, or as the worthy Major stile*, "he maybe in an awkward dilemma. 0 As bis meu are in such an awful state of privation for want of potatoes, would it not have beta better policy to have sent the enemy (!) some tobacco by way of a " swop," as the Yankees term it ? The passage relative to eats, eyes, and n<>se, is admirable. Perhaps the reason why the " childien would not walk over their father's nose" was that the said nose had uot got a brid'ji to it; if so, this ought to have been stated in the despatch, with the other matters of equal importance. The gallant Mujor s estimate of Colonel MacCleverty's dictum may or may not be correct; but he confesses, with great simplicity, that he himself is not a man to be trusted in the abs-nco of a superior ; an opinion in which most who read his despatch will fully coincide;—yet Captain L*ye was trusted. The •* sit kegs of gunpowder" torm an awkward affjir; nor do we see ho tv he will get ever it, unless by blockading them ; or it might b« us well to'sprinkle them from a watering c.o» He is no*, however, sure that they are there ; and if so, this would be a difficult matter. Without spartows, no boy, however clever, can be exacted to succtad m jutting salt on their tails. Like a skilful rSictuncau, the gallant Major puts his great feat,, his strong pcin*, last, and it is a rliuchcr to the **• war,''— *'/ h« r e destroyed all the high fermvht.ru ihe lute action w ;i fuught l>id he uot du troy t',ie low Itni to>?— pcrhivs some of th<» enemy might lmve ba u Uul i-ig m it. We hope, in his despatch overland, he w>U set these important muttcis at rrst. Our readers muy think we liav e been jfst ; ny, but we can assure them ihat the above ire bma fiiL' extracts trom a bona fide despatch from , the officer coimuaii.l- - >»t Wmiguuui.

* The despatch from which the above previous sample of military correspondence is taken. is numbered 10 in the recently published Blue Book. We think it necessary to men on i t this, test our reaJera ujay imagine tlint nR article frotn Pi'"-h found its W'iy into ll>e Jo hrna,' by iusUh