MAORI WAR.

Bruce Herald, Volume v, Issue 241, 9 December 1868, Page 5

MAORI WAR.

(From the Daily Paipers.) Wellington, Dec. 2. The West Const Constabulary, all told, number about 800, of whom 250 ore stationed at Pa left and Wniroa, ami the remainder, including I 'the cavalry, at Kai Iwi. A postscript to a private letter received here announces that Tito Kowarn had just made his appearance close to th« Kai Iwi stream. Both forces were in sig'lu of each other, and skirmishing 1 was g f oin«" on. The recounts from 11.-ing-itikei and other places along* the coast are reassuring : so much so, that M.' Chevalier starts thither tomorrow for the purpose of sketching', taking* with him introductions to several of the principal chie.fs. 605 * • wives, mothers, and daughters of Wangamii settlers," have sent the Governor a petition, requesting him to forward it to the Queen. It concludes by entreating: Her Majesty " ro iiveft the extinction of ourselves and those dearest to us, under circumstances equnl to, if not exceeding 1 , the barbarities perpetrated in the Poverty Bay district. Your memorialists humbly supplir-ite your M.-ijesty rli;<?ct, that the efforts of ilm Will iind well-affocted district, and of the whole f^hind, m:iv l>e sjieerlily supplemented by the ;iiil of the Imperial troops." Privafe telegrams from N.ipier are by no means hopeful iliac the proposed removal <>f the Constabulary to the l-'ast Coast will do any good, a strong 1 p^judice being 1 felt against Colonel Wbirmore sis a cdintuander. The total number of the Constabulary now in thu colony is 1,200. Nap: kr, Dec. 2. A skirmish has taken place between the escort and a foraging 1 party of Ilau-haus. On« of the enemy was killed, and 50 horse?, ]000 round's of ammunition, and seven cases of biscuits recaptured. The Wairoa Contingent arrived here on Monday, and proceeded to ihe Front on Tuesday. Cavalry to the number of 62, for escort dn'y, have arrived hpre. People here are amazed at the withdrawal of the f'irce from Wanganui, and sti'l more at Colonel Wbirmoie's coming 1 . The. Ahuriri, with JMr Richmond ana th« Volunteers from the South oh board, has s;ii'ed for Poverty Bay. All is quiet in the Wuikato as yet. Wkllinoton, December 3rd. Colonel Whirmore, with the Ist and 6th Companies of tbe Armed Constabulary, sailed in the Lady Bird from Wanganui, for the East Coast, on Wednesday, at 4 p.tu. The Sturt wns also ready to sail for the some destination. On Tupcday, the Militiii vere mustered, and six'v of the first class were brtllo'.tei! out and sent to the Front the same evening". People in Wan-g-anui are greatly annoyed at the. removal of he Coiistiibulwry to IJaH-ke\s Bay. Mr Rnssel, proceeding from Kai Iwi, fell in with the Militi:"*, camped out for the nig-ht. The pentrv, a man named Williams, challenged three time* ; bu? 1 , rerpivinr.- no answer, n'reii and shot: Mr Rnssej in the leg, wounding him severly. The Wanganui Chroniclfi, of the Ist inst., says: — "At. d.iy bread on Monday, the 3rd, 7th, and part of the 2nd divisions, with "heir Headquarters, and the Mounted Constabulary, moved in the direction of Nukumnru. What they have done, or not done, has not yet transpired ; but we have been given to understand that, this is Colonel Whitmore's final demonstration before leaving tbe Wanganui district, and for which be barely conceals his concern. 1 ' The Herald of thesam^dafe says, l{ 100 of Mete Kingi'.* men, under command of Hyman and A pern mi ko started yesterday movning" on an expedition against tlm enemy, their expre p sei! intention bwing tocut off stragglers, and do. as- much mischief as they can m th« way. This is a move in tbe right direction,. and we wish them every success. Another fire hasoccured at New Plvmou'h, causing damage to the amount of LI O,OOO. ft is supposed to have been the act of an incendiary. The condition of the Waikato is the subject of daily varying rumours in the Auckland newspapers The latest report in the Southern .Cross is the following telegram from Ng.'-rnawahia : — ■' Nothing worth mentioning has occurred, all hands being bard at work on the reoonbt. At other parts also the redoubts are being put into a state of'repair, but with the h»pse of every day the hope becomes stronger, that we Hi>iy not have to fight at all in tbe Waikato. Mori Tauroa, of Wairuku, U«s received a letter from his sister, who is a-fflongst the King'ites. which contains very positive assurances of peace. The writer reports that M-itotaera has said that no clouds shall ever arise in the Waikato' unless the English fetch him from inside his house and drag him out. Do not heed the talk that proceeds from the Waikato. There is nothing in it. Do not listen to it." Yesterday was the day appointed at Taranafci as a day of mourning and supplication on recount of the late massacre at Poverty Bay. Sunday morning disclosed the rebels within 1200 yards cf our position at Woodall's redoubt- The rebels had during- the night, thrown up a breastwork opposite our camp on the farms of Moore and Carrie. Besides this breastwork, a palisading has been erected, so as to command tbe track leading from the high road. The enemy opened a brisk fire, but, owing to tbe long range, without doing any damage. The Armstrong gun was utterly useless. The firing continued briskly all the morning, and ceased at about two o'clock. No attempt was made to dislodge the enemy —indeed it was conjectured that their showing front so boldly was but to cover I some other movement. To prevent this,; the cavalry were dispatched in the direc- ■ tion of the Brunswick lin°, being supported . bj r the 6th Division. Events showed how opportune this movement was. During the night Baker's house, the furthest one on' "that line, was burned down, but the

cavalry surprised a number of the Hanbans In the act, and they speedily de camped. The Blanche has sailed for Poverty Bay. The Governor'- visit to Nelson was postponed on account of the Superintendent, Mr Curtis, telegraphing that under present circumstances it was advisable to put it off. Wellington, Dec 4th.. The public meeting on the recent events at the seat of war came off last night in the Oddfellows' Hall, and was densely crowded. The chair was occupied by the Superintendent, Dr Featherston. The first of the resolutions put to the meeting was expressive of sympathy with the sufferers on tlie East and West Coasts. The second lesolutjon proposed a vote of thanks to Mr MLean and our native allies for their success on the East Coast. The third resolution urged the Government to apply for the assistance of the Imperial troops stationed in Australia, on the ground that the Colonial forces were unable to cope with the rebellion, should it assume the formidable dimensions it now threatens to do. An amendment affirming the contrary, and advising adherence to the policy of self-reliance, was proposed, and the numbers for the resolution and the amendment being nearly 'equal, it was put to the vote, when the latter was declared to be carried. Later dates from Auckland are to hand. At a preliminary meeting^ield there of persons favourable to the getting up a petition to the Queen and Parliament praying that the Constitution Act, so far as it relates to the North Island maybe suspended, resolutions were carried to the following effect : —That it is desirable that such a petition be forwarded home ; thiit the so-called Self-Re-liance policy of the Weld Ministry was only advocated from political motives ; and that a Committee be appointed to prepare the petition for consideration at a public meeting to be held for that object. At the meeting of the Justices of the Peace held at Ancland to consider the propriety of making suggestions to the Government relative to the adoption of measures for Ihe preservation of the pence of the Province. The chair was ccenpied by Mr James Williamson, and twenty Justices' were present. It was agreed that the Hon Dr Pollen should take steps to procure the stationing of Imperii'l troops at Ngaruawahia, in the Waikato. 350 stand of arms arrived here yesterday. The Assembly is further prorogued to the 26tli of Febuary. The usual rifle competition will, not take place at Wellington this year, but the Southern competitors will meet at Dnnedin. L-500 have been /voted for prizes on the occasion, and the same amount for the North Island. Captain Herrick, lately on Colonel Whitmore's Fast Coast stuff, is now promoted to be a Major, with the rank on the West Coast of Lieutenant Colonel, and has assumed the command there in Colonel Whitmore's absence. Great dissatisfaction is expressed in Napier at Colonel Whitmore's advent thither. The ' Hawke's Baj Herald ' says :■-«• To send Colonel Wliitmore here at the present time, with no matter how many men at his back, would be most disastrous. He posesses neither the confidence nor the goodwill of the community, European or native, and assuredly none would be found to work cordially under his command. We sincerely hope the report of his coming here is a mistake. He has already been largely instrumeiital in drawing down ruin on this province, and it only wants his presence here as a commander to precipitate the danger which at present is only seen in the distance." A verdict of wilful murder has been returned against the Maori who lately tomahawked a German pedlar. Napier, December 4th. Owing to the reported intention of our forces to assiult the enemy's position — which has been rifle -pitted— last Thursday, the return of the Ahuriri with the news is anxiously looked for. The universal disgust fo.lt at Colonel Whitmore's coining to Poverty Bay has been expressed in a memorial to the Go-ernor, complaining that in this, as in other matters, Mr M' Lean's plans have been systematically thwarted. This memorial is being signed by nearly the whole of tbe population. Tho force at the Front is now unnecessarily large, while Wauganui is left almost unprotected. The Lady Bird arrived at Castle Point at 4 pm. yesterday. The Blanche has gone to Poverty Bay. Wellington, December 6th. The telegrams received by the Government and the newspapers disagree as to the details of the engagement on the East Coast, but all concur in asserting that the enemy was beaten with great loss. On our side one friendly native and two Europeans were wounded. The volunteers who arrived here by the Lord Ashley, sailed for Wanganui last night. They are a fine lot of f ello .vs, and only one of them got intoxicated after a day's liberty. A memorial to the Governor, now being circulated here, says :— '* Never since the foundation of the colony has there been a greater sacrifice of life and property than that, which has taken place during the la-t few weeks, and never lias there existed such a general sense of insecurity, or such a state of unpreparedncss to meet an insutrection daily assuming larger dimensions, as exists at the present time. The colonial troops, consisting almost entirely of new levies, are necessarily inadequate to cope, at once with so wide-spread an insurrection. Your memorialists therefore pray that you will make an earnest appeal to Australia for the aid of the Imperial troops stationed there." Much dissatisfaction is expi-essed at Mr^Vr Herrick's appointment to the command of the forces on the West Coasb, as two months ago he was only a gentleman volunteer in tbe East Coast campaign. 151 natives have arrived at Taranaki from the Chatham Islands. At a large meeting of the natives they expressed friendly sentiments. At a' meeting of the natives, held at Wairarapa, the King's circular was read, and a resolution arrived at that Wairarapa should not be disturbed. ! Napier, December sth. The Ahuriri has arrived, and brings news that the Hauhaus' position was attacked on Wednesda}', and the enemy routed with the loss o£ 30 men and 5000 rounds of ammunition Our loss was three wounded. The Havihaus retreated on Puketapu, whither they were being closely followed. Te Kooti has been wounded, and had left on & litter some days previously, accompanied by women and 250 men. Latest news states that they have been overtaken. Rama and Henare, two bloodthirsty chiefs are among the slain. Colonel Whitmore was off the coast last night, and was ordered by Mr Richmond to land at Wairoa. Puketapu will probably be the next scene of operations. December 6 f h. The Lady Bird has arrived here from Poverty Bay. ; ■ : j ;

The Ngatiporu came up witfi the main body of the enemy on Thursday, six miles from the scene of the fight of the previous day, attacked him, and killed 55 men, including Nekora and other leaders. The Ngatiporu were awaiting the arrival of ammunition to inflict a final blow. Major Frazer has gone to the Front from Turanga, at the orders, it is believed, of Colonel Whitmore. The total number of the enemy killed up to the present time is 10&. The Blanche is at Napier. It is thought there will be no necessity for her to go on to Poverty Bay. Latest dates to hand from Auckland are the 3rd instant. Up to that time the Waikato was quiet. Nelson, December 6th. 151 natives have arrived at Taranaki is the barque Collingwood from the Chatham Islands being the balance of the prisoners confined there. They ssem quiet and peaceably inclined, and are going to settle down. A large meeting of friendly native chief> has been held at Tarauaki, upwards of 20 being present. The meeting was a peacful ons, and great courtesy and kindness were shown to Mr Parris, the Superintendent, and the other Europeans present. A letter from the chief Patara is published in a slip issued by the Herald. Its tenor is peaceful, and it states that the new comers wish to live quietly at the settlements of Okati, Tataraimaki, and Oakuro, leaving any dispute to be settled by the law 3. The news is considered good here,