Hawke's Day Herald FRIDAY, MARCH 18, 1870. NATIVE INTELLIGENCE.

Hawke's Bay Herald, Volume 14, Issue 1136, 18 March 1870, Page 2

Hawke' s Day Herald FRIDAY, MARCH 18, 1870. NATIVE INTELLIGENCE.

Information was received, first by way of Taupo, on Wednesday morning, subsequently overland from Opotiki, and again yesterday morning by the s.s. Star of the South, of Te Kooti's having appeared at a place chlled Opepe, about eight; miles from Opotiki. The geheral tenor of the news by way of Taupo was correct, but more detailed and authentic information was received by the Star of the South. The following are the particulars : — On, so far as we can gather, the 7th inst., Te Kooti suddenly appeared at Opape, a large settlement of natives of the Whakatohea. tribe ; nearly the whole of the men from this place were absent with Kemp and the Wanganuis, and the place was taken at once. A large nnmber of women and children were captured, and two or three men, one of whom was tbe only son of William Marsh, one of the principal Arawa chiefs, and he was immediately killed, From some women who have since escaped from Te Kooti, information has been received that he also killed the other men, and between twenty and thirty women and children, reserving only the young women, whom he carried off with him. Having committed this destruction, he retired again into the ranges, and was last heard of on the 10th, when his force was seen in the ranges, opposite where Fort Alfred was. The Arawas at once got together a force, and, on reaching his late camp, found tracks of a large body of men, also an empty powder cask, which had apparently been lately unburied and emptied. The trail of the enemy led off in the direction of Te Whaiti, i.e., further inland, from which position he could move into the Uriwera country, towards Patatere, or to Taupo. The opinion of the natives in the Bay of Plenty is, that he has gone back into the Uriwera couutry. Kemp and the Wanganuis, who had been joined by the Whakatokeas (whose women and children have just been butchered by Te Kooti), heard, when near Maungapowhatu, that Kooti was gone to Opotiki, and at once returned. Kemp's force got back to near Opotiki on the 12tb, and started in pursuit of Te Kooti. The Arawas are wild at the loss of William Marsh's son, and will keep good watch on their frontier. Probably, Te Kooti is more likely to make for Taupo than anywhere else. All the posts are on the alert, and every precaution has been taken at Poverty Bay and the other settlements along the coast, to provide against surprise. The Sturt left yesterday morning, to visit the different coast settlements. Mr. Locke proceeded by her.