PHOTOGRAPHY IN AUCKLAND.

New Zealander, Volume XVI, Issue 1490, 28 July 1860, Page 3

PHOTOGRAPHY IN AUCKLAND.

It would be idle to expatiate on the value of an art by whose means the passing scenes of the moment are illustrated and made permanent in a pleasing shape, and at a trilling cost. As an exponent of this art, Mr Crombic lias for several years been a popular favourite in our city. Few events of any interest has he failed to delineate, and, in almost every instance, his success lias been complete. We have now before us four of his latest productions, two of them martial, the oilier two pacific subjects. Taking them in the order in which (we believe) they appeared, the " Bombarding of the Warea Pa," is the first that attracts our notice. The sketch is a pleasing one : lI.M. ship Niger, steaming along the coast, and hurling her shells upon the distant pa, which is saucily returning its "ineffectual fire," is the prominent feature in the foreground, The ship, however, is incorrectly drawn, her funnel being placed abaft, instead of a considerable distance before the mainmast. This, of course, is the error of the sketch, not of the photographer. In the back ground, we have a very pictorial presentation of the Taranaki coast, of which the snow capped and gracefully towering Mount Bgmont constitutes the most striking figure. The next is the " Storming of the Waireka Pa," from a sketcli by Mr. Ileaphy, the incidents of which, wo are'informed, '"are authenticated by an eye-wit-ness." This is a chivalrous subject spiritedly treated, one which will bear to be looked at again and again, some new feature in that dashing fight revealing itself upon closer inspection. We congratulate both sketehcr and photographer upon the manner in which this bijou has been produced. It is a worthy memorial of one redeeming feature in our otherwise luckless and inglorious war. Kohimarama, the site of the Melanesian Missionary Establishment, and the spot whereat the Congress of Native Chiefs has bi*en in session during the last three weeks, is the next "presentment." It gives a faithful portraiture of a beautiful natural landscape, and is well worthy of being thus recorded as the scene of a great pacific gathering destined, we trust, to exercise a lasting and a beneficial influence upon the hiihcrto stormy impulses of the Native New Zcalander. " The Maori Home," is the fourth and last of the series : it is a graphic and pleasant view of the uplands of Kohimarama, in which earth, sky and water arc delightfully eo-minglcd—the sea reposing in lake-like calm, and the marked outline of the Tamaki Heads thrusting forward their bold prominences, as if in guardian protection of the slumbering bays. The picture is well worth the purchase money, were it only for the natural and admirable portraits of two of our well-known and respected Auckland citizens who occupy its foreground. Wc cannot close this notice of Mr. Crombic's performances, without adverting to a remarkably good general view of Auckland, embracing part of the harbour and " intake," which is published in the London Illustrated News of the 19th May. This is also one of Mr. Crombic's productions, forwarded by the Superintendent of Auckland to Messrs. for publication, but through some inadvertence on the part of the News, the name of the artist has been omitted.

TaKanaki.—The following extracts from a private letter have been forwarded to us for publication ; Taranaki, July 18th, 1860. You wish me to give you twenty minutes' scribble about the war—Good! Your Auckland New-Zeatander finds sad fault about the last engagement, but the Editor docs not know everything. We know there can be no war without loss, en both sides; and though we know to our sorrow that upwards of thirty of our brave soldiers fell, yet we don't know how many of the natives were killed, and perhaps we never shall know. We ,know they told lies about the number of our dead, which they said they buried, and if they tell lies on one side we of course expect they will on the other. But the Editor seems to think Colonel Cold failed to perforin his part of the plan of operations, and seems to think he knows what that plan was. Now I think he is mistaken; many others arc mistaken. How could any one know what the plan was? 1 think the Colonel had a far more comprehensive plan than some folks seem to suppose, and I think that plan comprehended the safety of the town—the safety of the '2 i 0 troops at Tataraimaka, ; l2 miles away south, the safety of the out settlements, north and south, as well as the taking of that pa at Waitara. For it was threatened that there would be a simultaneous attack on Tataraimuka. on Omata, on Maugaorci, on the Bell Block, and on the town; and as the pa at Waitara was on Maori land it was expected that as soon as ever the first olotv was struck on tamt belonging to tlic Maories, that they would at once divide,—leave the empty pa to engage the guns and attention ot the troops,—and then stealing away through the bush, make a rush upon some o? the "points I have mentioned. But they did not do that, and why did they not ? Why, perhaps they saw that all our forces were not sent to Waitara; their scouts perhaps saw that Colonel Gold and his forco were looking out for them on the way to town; that he was prepared to give them battle on the road, if they ventured to approach the town; and so they united all their forces to fifdit the troops at Wuitara. Col. Gold went as far as it was prudent for him to go to look out for the force of natives who might be on th'-ir way to attack the town: he saw there was no lighting going on at Waitara, for it was all over then. —the natives might at that moment be stealing through the bush for a night attack on tbe town, and it was his duly to hasten his return for til* town's protection Aga'in 1 say we cannot know everything. Perhaps the natives knew by their scouts what were the Colonel's movements, and were thus prevented from attempting what all would have regarded as a far worse calamity than our failing to take an empty pa. People stem to think that the quarrel is a very local one, an a very litdeone, like lleke's, and thai the soldiers have only to make a bit of a dash at \V King and it will be all over. No, 1 think il our troops don't move cautiously and iti a great measure on the defensive until they know the extent ot the work they have to do, and obtain a sufficient force to do it at once, they may get us into a mess that we little expect.' The extent of country and the protection ol the town involve a responsibility which I think is sufficientlv heavy upon our Colonel's mind, and which ought' not to* be increased by the censures ot those who only partially understand the difficulties of our caße, the magnitude of our troubles, and the character of the natives in arms ugainst us. Depend upon it, the Maories are not going to be beaten by us, either in fighting t < scheming, OT determination, SO soon as some people thought. And 1 believe if Major Nelson had to take that pa again with the same number of troops he would do it—only he would do it because he would profit by experience and knowledge which he could n»t have ha<e had be'ore. That our officers were mistaken as to the number of natives that W. King had about him is doubtless a fact; but how could they have known until they shewed themselves? They are away in the bush in five or six ditlercntpas, which they allow no one to enter, not even the Missionaries. And another mistake perhaps was that our officers expected thev would stay inside the pa as they did before; but instead of that, those iu the pa all turned out; those in the other pas all mustered and spread themselves in the high fern, creeping and crawling about out ol sight, and from the cover of the fern shooting down our soldiers as they had a chance; and, when the retreat was sounded, "our soldiers, not kuowing the ground, some of them got entangled in deep and flooded swamps, for the weather had been fearfully wet, the rivers flooded, and the swamps impassable. These perhaps fell helplessly by the tomahawk, but the natives would not allow Mr. Govctt and mc io go and bury them, lest, perhaps, we should see more than they wished us to know. However they arranged with us that the Major should put up a white flag at the camp to assure them they would not be tired upon, and then they went and buried the killed themselves. I went to visit them yesterday. I was ih re on Sunday, and on the Friday before iu company with Mr. (Juvett. 1 had some faint hopes of the Waikatos and Kawhians going home, but they seem to ihink if they go now they will be followed there in the way of retaliation. 1 found them yesterday all out ol their pa in the fern, for the camp has now a very large gun in position by which they can send sli .t and shell right into the pa, and they have another of thesame size which they are getting ready Two shots had been sent into it the night beioro, mid so the natives had taken themselves out of it, and were all outside in the fern behind some high ground which hid them from view of the camp Of course when those two guns begin to play upon those pas in real earnest, lite natives will lind them too hot for them to stay in them, and will then have to consider what they will do next; and they seem to me to bo mad enough, and reckless enough, to attempt anything; Hiid the cuution aud prudence of our Colonel will be all required to euiiUo Ul to hold our own till tha

winter is past, till the roads are passable, till reinforcements arrive, so that the whole country can be commanded. May God shew the Natives their lolly, and come to our help and salvation