THE WRAITH OF DESTINY IN MAORILAND.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume LIII, Issue LIII, 9 January 1908, Page 2

THE WRAITH OF DESTINY IN MAORILAND.

A truly remarkable yet absolutely true incident that happened at the second Battle of Okofcuku (Motoiioa), or Papatiakiaki, fought on the 7th day of October, 186«. Written expressly for the Haweea Star.

By JOHN P. WARD (Late of Yon Tempsky's Forest Bangers and No. 6 Division A.C.)

To us colonials, born beneath the beauto-us Southern Cross, the dread of ghosts, fairies, kelpies, or ithers "0 that ilk," is a thing unknown. Thi3 class of gentry, who have caused our fctout fathers and fair mothers, when in the dear old land so far away, many v thrill of anxiety and fear, never c alters into our calculations the smallest particle, no matter whether we are hailed as being "cornstalks I ,'' "gumsuckers," "Oananalandersi," or "flaacsticks" If the idea of there being really a supernatural is alluded to at all, 1 it is only as a subject of mirth or scorn. I know it was so with, myself, and until the events I am about to relate crossed my life's path, there was not, I suppose, in the whole of Maoriland, one who treated with more scepticism than myself the possibility o? there being the most remote chance of ' &ny communications from those who ;' had "gune before" with us of thos* ! left behind. j It was a pleasant, breezy afternoon in the early days of October, 1868, — a , sad, sad year; full of blood and tears ! to fair Maoriland — that the division of Armed Constabulary to, which I then belonged (No 6) was marching ' along the Maori u*ack, which in the days I write of was the only highway frtm Wereroa or Waitotara to Wairoa, the latter being now better known as tLe pretty little town, of Wavc-rley. This Division (N0.6) had just been raised in Auckland, and quite threefourtihs of cur rank and file had seeu service, and had burnt powder against "the dagos" (asi the rebel Maoris were called) in Waikato, Taranaki, and elsewhere. Our captain was, James McIntosh Koberts, the future hero ofPapotialuaki's reai"-g\iard fight, as he was already of the rear-guard action at "the ceak of the bird" (Te ngutu o te manu). Most of us had been' miners at the Thames, myself- and my gallant chum Rab Me r amongst the rest. fiab — gallant genial Rab — had been my comrade for "long and aye," and we had been together ia, most of the "mushes," from Chute's West Coast campaign down to the beginning of 1868. Owing, however, to the parsimonious 1 , not to say tyrannical, manner in which the colonial Government of the latter end of 18H7 and beginning of 1868 had treated Tom ' McDonnell's Taranaki field force, we, along with several score of our chums, quitted the service in disgust. Both lin\, and myself made a "bee line" for iLe Thames, and as things went had a fair show on that gold field. Notwithstanding this, when, the sad and to u& terrible news reached the northern gold Held of the death, of our old leader, gallant Yon Tempsky, und so many others 1 of our old comrades at the disastrous slaughter of "the beak cf the bird," we at once "jacked up" cur claims and took 'the shilling" again. • ° So here we both, were, with some 97 ether strapping, good soldiers; Ml blown Armed Constabulary men ! Not Forest Rangers or Bush Rangers, but, I actual armed constables- 1 what is ii: a name? We might be able to march as well and fight as well, being armed constables, as ever we did in the old days of Forest Rangers, etc. No. 6 had made a forced marclx from near Whanganui that day, a di*- : tance of some 30 odd miles. Thisi long trampi coupled with ill-fitting boots and new chum bundles in the way of swags, made us all tired and leg1 weary. Consequently the march, was a bit straggling; each .man in a way ignored his immediate fellow, and was fully occupied in that inward cony munication with himself and v his pet ideas or fads, which is so refreshing at times, most certainly self-absorbing. Some of the boys were even marching bare-footed, as thedr "dawbenny" boots were either foo small or ill-fitting. Amongst those whose boots were too small, and consequently marching barefooted, was genial daredevil Frank CC — — y. Now, there is a bit of historyr— colonial military history — in connection with Frank's non-size of boots, which, I think, has not yet been duly recorded by the colonial Napier s who have written up th© wars of Maoriland, which, te my mind., should be made public, and embalmed in the columns of the Star. I hasten to do so. The facts are as fallows :— The late lamented Captain Tisdall (I believe he departed this life as * Maj.r, but at the time of which I write of he was only a captain), was clothing us fellows in Auckland, and amongst other difficulties pertaining to his office of quarter-master was that he found it utterly impossible tosquare, or I should say insert, Frank C y?s small (?) foot into the largest pair of dawbeoys in store. The captain, needlpsfi to say, was in despair. "What!" said he, to his quartermaster - sergeant, "dem — ahem !—! — absurdity. Haven't gob any boot* to fit the man? Nonsense! Why, I'll (Continued on page 3.) j

throw up ray commission, dem me, if I don't fit him or any man in the colony in boots ! Where the blankyblank is the fellow, anyhcwi How deui — ahem — ridiculous to tell me y a. havn't a pair of boots for any pair ct feet in Her Majesty's Dominions I" However, after a personal inspection by the gallant quarter-maateir of oi.r Frank's "hoof," and beinj? moreover quietly told by one or two of vs in the know that nothing under a sus IZ sad a bit over would "look near Frank's pedal extremities, he was forced to scratch Ids head a trifle, and go away to reconsider his resolve as to throwing up his commission under certain eventualities. And as a. consequodaee cf ' second thought" — always so wise .in their verdict — the gallant captain devoted the remainder of his days to the service of bleeding Maoriland, although he had not satisfactorily fitted Frank. So marching as we were*, weary anJ f"vtsore, thinking' maay of us of buxom Biddy Cochrane, mine hostess of the Greyhound Hotel, in Queen street, and heir attendant nymphs and the other girls we had left behind usi, jirhen all at onoe— —

Bang ! Bang ! Whiz ! Phit ! Phit ! What, fch? Yes, it is! A volley of musketry! And right into us, too! But from where? Who is firing at \is? Yes, it is. No, it isn't. Yes; so it is. From yonder group c-f Maoris on the fern ridga There's another volley. Jumping gee-willikins ! The "dagos" mean it. Whiz! Phit! Phit! Listen to the bullets.? And sec how they are cutting up the fern and flax as they "phit phit" tn'ound us ! This, is just a bit hot, and we must take a. hand in. the game. "Where's Wairca?" "Anyone hitr is rapidly asked. No need for Captain Boberts' order, "Close up, men; close up " Every mau of us dees so instinctively; ill-fitting new boots, no boots at all, heavy swags, physical weariness^ — axe all forgotten in the now tigerish and dominant desire to kill and destroy our fellow man

We are constantly ordered to "right turn" and advance through the fern, flax, and tupakahi (tutu) up to the low hill where the Maoris are, who keep banging away at us as we rapidly push on towards them.

''Sight for 500 yards, men, and givo it 'em ; but mind and aim low." This is the next order, fjid we join in the fun pouring in a heavy and concentrated fire on yonder fern hillock. As we all were armed with the then celebrated Teiy breech-loading carbine and knew hew to use it, the natives after our first couple of volleys did net wait for us to close up with them, but cleared for the main bush immediately behind them. First, however, setting fire, "Parthian like," to the fern, so that the smoke would cover their retreat. We were then halted and files counted, when our casualties were found to be nil. And so ended this for us bloodless battle. We heard afterwards the Maoris lost two killed. '•Left turn" was now the order, and off we started for the main track again. On reaching this, the "hang-dog pace" that had hitherto beecn maintained throughout the day gave way to a four-mile-Jin-hour "pad."

Of course, the old "gunnel's" (Titokowaru's) challenge, for his firing on us as he had was nothing but a "taki whakahihi'' to us Whitmore's new soldiers, was the absorbing topic. Certainly to those amongst us who knew the Maori character, it was very plain that Tito, was well served so far as his being able to obtain information as to the movements of us Europeans went Ajid it also meant that Titokowai'u and his braves were ready for us and didn't care, as "Shanagoolin"' remarked, "a thruses thraneen, and that's a small joint ay mate, God knows, for the whole bilin' ay us."

My chum, Rab. waa a few files away from me, so I could not get his opiniou of things, but I formed my own, and I could not help contrasting the present defiant attitude of these natives with that of the very same people a short three years ago, when Kab and 1 belonged to General Chute's column and we whipped them everywhere. — Okotuku, Te Pataki, Kakaramea, Otapawa, and Waikato. Apparently, however, these salutary lessons had beeai forgotten. Why?

We had not. beem long on the main track again when we met a. large body of men coming towards us at the double from Wairoa. They had heard the firing and at once realised that Captain Robert'? column was attacked. In a few moments some 150 of the boys under Captains Newland and Northcraft had rapidly pushed out to render what aid they could. Many of our boys and " the relief column knew each other, had broken biscuit in the same camp or burnt powder together in the same "mubh," hence there was a general handshaking, and "How do you doi, old sporb? Have you made your pile, old'un?" and such like amongst eld chum& of Nos. 3 , 2, and 3 Divisions of AC. Whilst carrying on this wise, we fellows of No. 6 could not help noticing a smallsized chiselled-faced looking chap, why kept eyeing us new men in a most critical manner as he stood a short distance away talking to our Captain. At last I asked Jim Lane, of No. 3 A.C. (madcap Jim Lane), who the little chap waa' "Hush, Johnny; hould your tongue. That fe Colonel Whitmore."

"Who; that" Colonel "Whitmore. G'long,.Jim;;.you; l are l pullihgmyleg." ' (To Ye continued.)