AN INTERESTING HISTORICAL RELIC.
IE B re "° °^ B rea * h* Btor ' ca l import^ has jußt been presented to the Atfokli Museum. It is aa old Tower fa#t\ and the following note is attsoh^d to stock: — 'This musket >Sa 8 given itin. Hongi Hika,, afterwards known as ' 1 ex- Maneater '• by George IV. of Engla lish jn the year 1880. It was uaed by h !ty* m the battles of Ikarangsnui, Moko aan and MataWtaki, and many other less mb' engagements. It was named by Hoe ■an 'P»tu Iwi' or 'Slay t&.e peopled ai the was his favourite tteapobi After Hong: 10 le death it passed into the hands of tl tie. Hikatu tribe qt Hokiauga, and feeii on, ™ry tapu, .if/as preserved when othi lay lilatorioal Vreapoftg hive long since di i.r- JPpaarerJ, to the Auoklai ad Museum by S Percy Smith, F.R.G.S rce Snrvp. y or General.' Hongl went ( ms En 'iiand in 1820, and was received wit m> P'^eat honour by George IV. The Ne< en Zealand chief had seen the effect c 8 d firearms, and he knew that if he oonl ,at arm a body of his Warriors with guns ira h 0 might match as a conqueror from om :6 . end of New Zealand to the other. Hi da S9 'd there ftas only one kins in England llr and one ting in New Zealand. Hi k^ used all his means to obtain firearms to and King George presented him witt ,ff a number of muskets, amongst then t. this one 'Patuiwl.' When he reached id Now Zealand flongi at once set to work i. to train his men, and for atmoßt.a gene. j r ration he devastated New Zealand. s , Ikaranganui, where one of his battles j j took place, is in the Katpara district, B . and there Hongi came in contaot with Q the tribes inhabiting the Auckland 0 isthmus and their allies. The fight of j_ Mokoia was on the well-known Island in e Lake Rotoraa, where the Ngapuhi under I, Hongl slaughtered the Arawas. Hongi •' had brought his canoea up to Rotoiti, g and thus was enabled to croas to Mokoia. a Matakitafii was the famous battle near i. where Alexandra now stands, and where the Waikatos were routed with terrible B slaughter. The musket ib in an exceedj iDgly good state of preservation, and . the lock aots as' well as well as ever- it j did. The weapon has evidently been j well taken care of in every respeot. . There is no question aa to its having , been the very weapon handled 6y the , formidable Hongi. i
AN INTERESTING HISTORICAL RELIC.
Hawke's Bay Herald, Volume XXXI, Issue 10465, 21 November 1896, Page 5
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