STRUGGLE FOR OPOURIAO

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 1, Issue 56, 30 August 1939, Page 6

STRUGGLE FOR OPOURIAO

THE TUHOE CONQUEST

LESSONS FOR LAZY WIVES The old-time Maori was usually spoiling for a fight, and it sometimes took little in the way of provocation for war to start. If one ot your tribe was killed by a member of another elan you have th? offender arrested, tried and executed but, if 3 r ou had no other affairs on hand, your tribe marched against the other people, and a delightful time was had by all. Cousins and uncles and nephews would be locked in combat in no time. In the tangled history of the Tulioe tribe there are several interesting campaigns where sub-tribes and relations fought each other, often with the assistance of a third party. Such a series of fights came somewhere between 1800 and 18'20' ? and it ended in the descendants of Tuhoe-Potiki acquiring the whole of the Ruatoki and Opouriao South districts as fn.r north as the Waimana river at Tan. eatua. In those days a Tuhoe lady named Mahuru, Avith her husband, a Whakatane man named Taka-rehe, lived at Ruatoki where her father had given them land at Nga_ hina, on the left bank of the Whnkatane, near the Ngati-Tawhaki kainga. Tama-hape lived about a quarter of a mile south of WaLkirikiri) in the pa of O-pou-tere. FAMILY QUARREL. It fell upon a certain fine day that Taka-rehc and Mahuru went forth to collect some fern.root, which they stacked up for future use, savs Elsdon Best. Mahuru prepared some of the roots to provide a meal by roast ing and pounding them, after which process the fibious strings were picked out and very often, the residue, a mealy was formed into and roasted before the fir,i. Such was the method of preparing the fern root for the table.

On this occasion Mahuru seems to have been somewhat indolent for she is credited with having handed a portion of the meal to her husband without picking* the fibrous matter therefrom. This brought on a quarrel, during which Taka struck Ma. huru on the head with his patu. causing blood to flow. His wife looked at him and said: ''You had better marry your patu as a wife for you.'' Then she fled to Tama-hapc, pursued by her outrage.d husband. She found her father working in his cultivation and told him that Her husband was hard at her heels, saek. ing her life. When Taka arrived on the scene Tama despatched him, and the family joined in the feast which the widow enjoying her share. The moral of the story is obvious t for it contains a striking lesson concerning the striking of women, but also shows plainly to what uses a sonJn-law may be put, says Best. TROUBLE BEGINS. But it caused trouble, for Talcarahe was a member of the important Ngati-Awa tribe, who joyfully rose to the occasion. Besides the slaving of Taka-rche, NgatLAwa had also lost N one Motumotu killed at Ruatoki hence they had two little mat ters to avenge, for although Motumotu had been slain many yea's before, his death was not yet avenged. So Ngati-Awa flung their blood-red banner to the breeze, or doubtless would have done so had they pos_ sessed such an article. Many of theii sub-tribes joined them. and they even had allies from Ngai-Te Rangi (Tauranga) and Te Whanau-a.Apa-nui (past Opot'ki). This force advanced t 0 the Ohae pa, near >Vaikirikiri Ruatoki, where they stopped under cover of the scrub to await a favourable opportunity to attack. However the NgatLAwa ambush wa*-' not destined to be successful for one Te Rangi-tupu-k:-waho_ (> a NgatiAwa chief of the party, who was re. lated to the people of Ohae warned them of the presence of the enemy by raising his head until the white heron plumes in his head showed above the dark foliage of the scrub in wh'tiv he crouched. This caught the quick eye of the watchman, amhe informed the chiefs of the fort of the presence o* an enemy. ATTACK FAILED. Messengers were quietly despatched to all the neighbouring and a considerable force collected. Some joined the garrison of Ohae ■ind others lav in ambush outside, so that when the Ngati-Awa attache.■ the pa in three columns they were attacked in front and rear. Ngati\wa retreated, but rallied, re.united their forces and attacked again wen- beaten off with the loss of several chiefs. T!i : s fight increased the hiito' ness between the cor.st and th inland people.

Among the allies of the Nga'tfaAwa in this fight were a people riant ed Ngai-Takiri, a sub.clan Rak a and the people they attacked - Aver e chiefly Ngati-Rongo. About, this time another incident occurred." which made Raka and Rongo more • at loggerheads for a Ngati-Rongo-woman married to a NgatiJßaka man was negligent in her household duties and paid a severe penalty.j She had roasted some fern root for her husband, but had omitted tcj scrape oft the charred outer portion, nor had she troubled to pound it. When she husband grumbled she told him to pound some for himself. He remarked that he would pound her unless she was careful, and the shrewish lady inferred that there were members of her tribe whom NgatiRaka men could amuse themselves with pounding If they felt that way This, of course, was a reference to Ngati-Raka's defeat at Ohae. Her husband became so enraged at t&e that, according to one - of the story, he struck and kiuecT her. MORE FIGHTING. When the news reached the dead woman's tribe they marched to the Opouriao where NgatLßaka lived, and here skirmishes took place.. Ngati-Rongo retired to their forts, and Ngati-Raka returned home, collecting their fighting men at O.te--Nuku pa near the Whakatane river which fort they proceeded to put in a thorough state of defence, including the relashing of the whole of the for they expected squalls in the near future. AID FROM MA UNG A-POH ATU. Ngati-Rongo applied for help to the ManngaJPohatu people, as they usually did when they were ill trouble and a contingent of those fierce bushmen marched to their help. Ngatl-Raka were defeated in battle, the Maunga-Pohatu people returned home, for they were having their own troubles with the Arawa. Ngati-Rongo still worried about their wrongs, after the Maori manner, and they wished tc inflict a more decisive defeat on tlieir relatives. It is quite possible that they cast covet_ oils eyes on the lands occupied by. Ngati-Raka the fertile flat which is now known a & Opouriao South, but in those days was called O-tutawirj. Ngati-Rongo evidently mistrusted' their own power to evict their ene_ mies, hence they cast about for allies. AN OMEN. Eventually a strong force from Waimana and Opotiki took the field, marching to Ruatoki from these dis--tricts. At Ra-roa at Waimana rain commenced to fall and it was proposed that the force should return, ihe weather being so bod, but one of' the chiefs said. ''This rain is but art armv-sprinkling shower. Do you not know that when it rains at night oeis are taker in the morning?'' So the force decided to go on an.d' catch their eel or t in other words to take O-'e-nuku pa, which they assaulted without waiting for any help from Ngati.Rongo. Under cov* er of the fog they succeeded in forcing an entrance on the eastern side of the fort. O-te-nuku was a d-ouble pa and, as c.in be seen u this day, a deep ditchri'vided 'Ji ? or stern and western por„. ton. When the attacks poured" into the eastern end they found the garrison had retreated to the other portion and that a high, solid earth < work wall, palisading and the ditch defended the other redoubt. Thediteh was on the eastern side of the central line of defence, and hence had to be crossed by the assaulting. party. BRIDGE OF SPEARS. A number of long spears were laid' across the ditch, one end resting on the outer side and the other on, topof the earthwork. Up this singular - ladder a chief named Tohi-a-manu tried to climb, but it is said Hine-Auahi another of the attackors, also wante/l to be first over tlv» Aval! so he nulled the spenrs apart and Tohi fell into the ditch. Hine then plaecd the spears'close together again and succeeded in passing over them and gaining the top of the Avail. He Avas soon jo'ned by many others, and the party forced their Avay ito the Avestern redoubt which ■ they took with considerable slaughter. They fired the huts, and when • Ngati-Rongo saw the smoke they realised that their allies had struck a shrewd blow and hastened to join them. Then the dead of Avere In'd out in two long rows by the A'ictors who handed them OA"cr to Ngati-Rongo as an equiA'alent fo»* the death of their chiefs. The NgaciRongo clan seized the lands of th-3 defeated pen; d > of avlvmia went to Ohiwa and Opotiki, wh'le others made p°a?e Avith Tuhoe remain--d in the district.