THE UPPER THAMES.

Hawke's Bay Times, Volume 14, Issue 708, 12 August 1869, Page 3

THE UPPER THAMES.

tfg extract as follows from the Thames advertiser, 4th August :

As may be imagined, considerable sentjon w flS created in Shortland yesterday ? the arrival of intelligence that the noted nd bloodthirsty Te Kooti, or at least a 8 nß iderable number of his band, was at Obincmuri. The fact that Te Kooti should isit the Upper Thames was not to be won[lured at, and might be expected after the ertd we published a few days ago, to the pjfrct that he was moving towards Ohine fl)11 . Tiie news was brought to town by ij r Cishell, who left Ohinemuri yesterday morning. On Sunday evening, while Mr Cashel was sitting at his own hous*, a native arrived in a state of great alarm with jj, 9 news that Te Kooti's band was enamped ab ut two miles above the settle.n , en t. Mr Cashell and Mr Thorpe were, J course, very much startled, but also lOinevvhat incredulous, and the latter went jp to the settlement to make certain of the ie port. He found that it was a fact, and t !, a t the native residents of Ohinemuri ffer e in a state of t» re at alarm, for it must te remembered that Te Kooti ha? several times dealt with natives who refused to join him as savagely as with Europeans. When night came the fires of the party ffcr e seen at the place where they had {topped. Next day, Tukukiuo, a wellfcnown Hauhau chi-f, but who is rather frightened at the notion of an incursion by Xb Kooti on the Upper Thames, wei t up towards the band with the view of ham jng its numbers, and if the formidable leader himself were present. Tukukino wis unable to ascertain either of these particulars. So far as the Europeans at Ohinemuri can ascertain, there lias beei. but little communication between .Te Eooti's men and tho residents, although it is probable that more has taken place than they are aware of. Tukukiuo stated that when he asked where To Kooti was ; information was positively refu-ed. As we have said before, considerable alarm was created in town yesterday by the news. There is no telling what a man jike Te Kooti will do, but we may say that we do not think it likely he will attempt any outrag > in the Thames district. So far as we have been able to learn, Te Hira has had no communication with the mis cn-atits, and we have no doubt that he will keep aloof from them as lawhiao did. Ike most exposed place in this district — indeed, we think the only place where we think the slightest alarm need be felt—is Puiiri. It "ill be seen from the news given elsewhere from Waikato, that Te Koo'.i is building a pa near lokangamutu, ami has been joined by Kewi and others. If this be tiu.?, it would seem to show that Te Kooti wishes to precipitate a war with the King party, and in pursuance of this he may ha\e sent some of his tiand to beat up recruits. I hey will probably cro sovei toKatikati, and open up communications' with the disaffected natives in the ranges at the back of Tauratiga. Mr Casneh brought a letter from Mr Thorpe to Msijoi Cooper, who is in charge of tliis district but what measures it is proposed to take He are not aware.