THE NEWS BY THE AIREDALE.

Hawke's Bay Herald, Volume 4, Issue 162, 27 October 1860, Page 1

THE NEWS BY THE AIREDALE.

j^Erom the N.Z. Advertiser, Oct 13. J .^ The s.s. Airedale arrived last night from Mauukau via Taranaki and Nelson. The news received is of the~usual character. Relative to , that from Taranaki we. shall have something to say in our next, and, in the meantime, refer the reader to the. letter of our own correspondent, hy which it will be seen that 500 men under Col. Leslie, in obedience to orders, ran two miles over-an open country before some 80 maories. We learn from the New Zealander of the 3rd inst. that. H.M.S:S. Esk, Captain Sic Rober£ McClure, C.8., is under orders to proceed "from . the . East Indian and China station to this. The Esk is a screw corvette, 1100 tons, is 250 horse power, and 21 guns. The Niger returned from New Plymouth to Manukau on the Ist inst.,' bringing with her the officers, spamen, and marines of H.M.S. Iris for Auckland. The only source' of regret amongst the: men was that they were denied the opportunity of proving the sterling stuff they are made of. In the Legislative Council, on Monday the Ist. inst., on the motion of Mr. Crawford, it was-resohred to address the Governor to request the Home Government to send out, a sufficiency of guns for the protection of the ports and cities of New Zealand, notoriously at the mercy of the pettiest hostile cruiser. Mr.' Crawford's resolution, in the. present temper -of the English Govern-ment, will, have no effect. - When are . the ..fortifications on Ward's Island, comanding the entrance of our harbour, to be erected ? .In the House .of Representatives on Tuesday the 2nd inst., Mr.- Fox- moved a resolution to the effect, that the House had heard with deep regret ,of the Bill now before the Imperial Parliament relative to Native Affairs,, and that it desires to repudiate, in the strangest possible manner, the allegations which have- been made, that the Colonists entertain any but the most friendly feelings towards the Native race, that they are in any way indifferent to their welfare and conservation, or that they entertain any such sentiments on the subject of the acquisition of the Native Lands as have been attributed to them. AJarewell. dinner was given to Colonel Gold by the officers of the 65th regiment on. the Ist inst. The party was confined to officers of the regiment, the following gentlemen being present : — Major-General Gold, Capt. Paul (acting Major of Brigade), Capt. Strange, Dr. • White, Lieut. Bailie, Lieut. Urquhart, Lieut.- Whitbread, Lieut. Toker, Lieut. Wrixon, Dr. Neil, Lieut. Lewis,.Lieuti Pennefather, Lieut. Chevalier, Mr.. Withers, (:Quarter-M aster), Lieut.. White, Lieut. Talbot, Ensigns Pagan, Muttit* and. Butler. " Colonel Gold^s health havi.ng .been proposed,, in. -returning .thanks he. .observed than' "I -need scarcely now inform you that the reasons for my not' being allowed to attack Wm. King for a considerable period were political ones ; nor say, that I do not regret .having, foregone my own aggrandise--ment,and eclat as a- military officer in the eyes of the world.' rather . than risk some 2,000, women ariu.- children being barbarously murdered '< by, a, sudden nocturnal onslaught of the. ferooious and ibloocU thirsty savages, 5 concealed by the closely'approximating bush. Qonie what may I have the mens conscia recti, and can afford^ to ,pity the /anonymous scribblers who. pollute the pages^f KthevPress. «*M-y- regiment; tells a tale, that ought to make them blush, as the lpye ,and rjespect ©f-suich.' a b.o.dy cpuld mot lie lightly- eiar^ed ; .audits expression, sends me iorth; from amongst them, daubl.y;armed against' false aridicalumnious accusers and jslatiderers." \// ':', l .'; : ,"^y.'" '"■]:_'' '"'"[' ;',.; v The^teatMength^of *the^eport< *>£ * the public., meeting,, precludes us. from gi wing an y^more intelligence ixpni either, Auckland -ojcitlieiseatisofaw.ftr(?),,. .!:%'■_ .JV. ;■■>■'-_ • ■■■■■ .■>:'•■.

(From ow own Correspondent.) Taranaki, October 7, 1860. ■My dear Sir,— The Airedale has just arrived from Manukau, end, I hear, sails .again to-night for thel?outhern Settlements. I therefore hasten to scribble you afeW lines, I have little or nothing to add in the shape of newß to what you will see published in yesterday's Herald. The expedition to attack the rebel pahs at Kaihihi leaves tomorrow, and it is to be hoped will not return as they did before. But we may expect anything" now-a-days, after -what transpired on Saturday week at Waitara, when 500 soldiers were pursued for two miles over open* country by about eighty of William King's natives, wounding five. {Vide Taranaki Herald's Waitara correspondent's letter.) Colonel Leslie, the commander, must have been out of his senses ! What excuse can he have ? I am told by men who were in the affair that the natives were at times within fifty yards of the retreating column, keeping up a constant fire, while our troops were retreating before them with two howitzers loaded with grape, and Colonel Leslie would not allow them to fire, and it was when five men were wounded that the rear guard (against orders) turned round and fired two or three volleys, which stopped their pursuit ! And when the soldiers reached the camp the grape was fired into the river! Not one of the eueiny should have been allowed to escape alive. They were in open country, with little or no cover, and our force was more than 6to 1. Indeed, our men thought that the retreat was a ruse to draw the enemy out into the open country, and imagine the vexation of the men when the enemy was in their power to find that it was no stratagem, and that they- were ordered not to fire a shot ! Proceedings of this nature will dispirit the men, and give tlie enemy confidence, and induce tribes at present .wavering to join the victorious insurgents. Well can they say they can drive us before them. Leslie' 3 conduct is inexcusable, and we are at a loss to conceive what he meant by his disgraceful retreat ; surely there can be no instructions now not to engage the enemy, else why go and destroy their pahs and burn their fortifications ? From first to last this war has been a disgrace to our arms, and there i 9 no prospect of improvement. How different a.tale would have been told had Major Nelson been-in command instead of Col Leslie — fancy Nelson retreating, and pursued by Maories ! He would die first ! ! A rumour was current in town yesterday that Major Nelson (he has only 230 men with him at Waitara) had attacked or fallen in with some rebels, and engaged them, killing a chief. I have not heard particulars yet. The Tasmanian Maid was aground on the north bank of the Waitara, thrown up by a freshet in the river, and was oaly got off yesterday ; therefore we have not had our usual regular communication with Waitara. Although the enemy are.milea away we (militia and volunteers) still have our outlying picket duty. I fancy our military authorities are anxious we should earn our. pay — as if the unfortunate people had not lost enough. The troops are kept inside the trenches, while weare sent out to outlying pickets a- quarter and half a mile from. town. A house belonging, to a gentleman, Hammerton by name, near tne Henui river, has been entrenched, and a. picket. of 21 men and an officer is sent out every night. What.use.it is no one can tell, for when an expedition leaves town, .and the garrison is weakened, 9 men and a sergeant are cent there ; a quarter- of a mile nearer town is Fort Stapp, where another picket of 9 men and a corporal are stationed every night. These pickets are a great faree — it is playing at soldiers. A patrol of a corporal and .three men are supposed to go out every two hours, from Fort Hammerton, and march.over the adjacent country, look into gullies, examine furze hedges, &c. Now what a piece of humbug this is. I should .like to know bow four men aye to discover a wily foe like a Maori, should he take.it into his head to. lurk about the hedges, &c. Our ,nien march along talking, sometimes smoking, and only anxious to get back again, while we are fully exposed, to their view, who wait till we, .unsuspecting i anything, get>up. within a few ; feet' of them ;■ they ■ deliver; their .fire, knock one.ior. all of us .over, and. then decamp. An alarm is givenj brigade-major*, orderlies,, aide-de-camps run about in town, two or three hundred" men- march out, and find some poor fellows butchered, and the enemy—where ? . This is what our patrols would £omeupto if the Maori hadeool^ courage, and was not afraidto risk.his life. .Fortunately for .us he has .not. Then another piece j ofnoiisense is fallingvin and manning the trenches twice, a- week, Sundays ..and .Thursdays. , Thfs afternoon I had to. waste my^ time: (nearly 2 feours) standing. in a trench whilerthe commanding officer goes round, and uinspeetß.the-r-r-rl .don't -.Jjnow what, men,or>trencheß. C. We ehould.nofcieompiain if there waß necessity for: all this. <,: Would- it not be übetter.L.toigoi.quLand.meeti) .the enemy,,iand bringt.the. <wan \ .to., a /close i <S thrash t-they. natures, bring them, intQisubjectioni/andmaka'theui-.usefdl jnerubersiof aaciety ?■'■■. Thesooner the. better rr-and banish .their .black cloth jfriendsjiperbaps twouldjbe aß<.well. ~ . • . ■„;.■■ • ■•:'■■ .:.' .'.].. ' The barque" Balmoral, fr/oni" Sydney," for Squth. Aineripa^iO.days.oufc, wasrboarded' yesterday; in ■the offing. "She was 'unable to gel; through the Strait withJthe^wind. in..the present quarter,. S,Ef N-Q-eneraiiiGold iisi abtJUtittox-leav-eiforj .^uoklandi" ' Colonel i Mould;? is; inucomuaandi ofi.fehe>iregittjent. 1 CoionuksWyatfe is daily^lookedsfor. \ . A iii/.