TAUPO.

Bay of Plenty Times, Volume V, Issue 487, 16 May 1877, Page 3

TAUPO.

(fbom oue own cobbespondent.) This remote inland township is rapidly assuming a lively aspect, the result chiefly of the late changes in the disposition of the A.C. Force. The hammer of the woodpecker (I beg his pardon, the carpenter) is heard busily tapping from early dawn till dusky eve, andneatlittle cottages, the quarters of the married A.C, begin to dot the once lovely landscape. Besides that übiquitous camp-follower, the general storekeeper, of whom we have several

specimens, there are also the baker, the blacksmith, the saddler, the tailor, the chemist, and last but not least, a disciple of Saint Crispin, all apparently waxing fat on the new-born civilisation of this the New Zealand Siberia. Tempora mutantur'. My experience of colonial warfare contrasts somewhat strangely with the pride, pomp, and circumstance of these piping times of peace. In the good old days each rough and ragged but ready soldier carried his house on his back, and was his own baker, tailor, and shoemaker to boot. N o wives nor paper collars had they to carefully tend or distract their minds from the stern realities of an active campaign, but with bared breasts and iron thonged limbs, they scaled the heights of Te Ngutu o te Manu and Ngatapa, and plunged into the swamps of Te Ngaire and Te Awa o te Atua, without a thought of self or the reward which a grateful country has hitherto forgotten to bestow upon them. Doubtless our present highly trained and polished force contains many heroes of the above stamp in embryo, but I am sorry to see so few of the " old guard" (blackguards methinks I hear an unmeaning cynic whisper!) answer the roll call, and I fear the country will yet have cause to be sorry too. Nevertheless, it is pleasant to see the progress being made here, and who knows but the small garrison now doing duty in our little town may be only the germ of that distant imperial city which will one day rule the destinies of the human race, as Sir George Grey would say. The garrison at present, however, only musters 38 all told. It is a mixed force, about one-third being Caucasian ("is he played out?") and the remaining twothirds of Malayian origin, mostly from Ohinemutu or Matata. The commissariat department seems to be in excellent order, judging from the sleek facial anatomy of these dusky warriors, who seem to bear the responsibilities of their position with native dignity and grace. It is very pleasing to see the two races clad thus in the same blue uniform, and mutually drawing their pay in amity and goodfellowship. Exeter Hall could desire nothing more edifying ; the amalgamation of the two races being at length achieved. Macaulay's Few Zealander may start off for London Bridge at once and St Paul's Cathedral prepare for immediate ruin. GENERAL NATIVE NEWS. General native intelligence from this quarter at present contains little

of interest to you " outer barbarians." From all points of the compass come rumours of Native Land Courts ; at Whangaimi, at Napier, at Cambridge, &c, but the date of our Taupo Court remains still in the .womb of futurity.. Poihipi, the chief, is well, and still a staunch Good Templar : he is taking steeps to establish a Templar Lodge in this district, and a -considerable- following promise t'6 become . members. . This movement is much wanted, whether viewed from a European or a native standpoint, and it is hoped that Europeans will shew their native friends a good example by joining the Lodge as soon as it is established. Whether it is the quantity of good liquor which is not drunk in this district or the good quality of that which is, remains a problem unsolved and perhaps unsolvable by the philosopher who would endeavour to account for the evident decadence of the aboriginal, in and around the shores of this inland sea. "We have had a long season of very beautiful weather, but I'm afraid from the cloud-capped aspect of the slumbering volcano across the lake we are on the eve of a change. The roads are still, however, in splendid condition, and the real winter will probably not arrive till next month, by which date the new barracks for the troops in garrison here it is expected will be completed. Captain Grascoigne left here last week with ten men to guard the mountain passes of Tarawera, and to keep the Napier road in repair.