FIGHTING ON FERN ROOT.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXVI, Issue 9325, 30 March 1889, Page 1 (Supplement)

FIGHTING ON FERN ROOT.

[By Major Gasgoynk, Sheriff of Auckland.]

On November 27th, 18G8, I was sent in nominal command of a large body of friendly natives, who started in pursuit of Te Kooti when he retired from Poverty Bay after the terrible massacre he porpotr&ted there. 1 say "in nominal command," bocause I was powerless to enforce obedience on the part of the natives, and depended entirely on my powers of persuasion to make my dusky army do their duty should they be called on to face any unusual danger or privation, I knew, moreover, that three-fourths of them would rather run than fight any day, and that only two of the many chiefs really wanted to fight at all; so I had to keep ray eyes open to avoid mischance, and to keep my men up to the mark by talking " big" of their courage and superiority over the enemy. On our first-day's march we surprised a party of Hauhau foragers, and [shot two of them, but being mounted the rest made good their escape. This affair put my army in very great spirits, and noxfc day they went on with great determination, but did not see any more of the enemy. In the evening the chiefs wanted to return, as they thought they had done enough for glory, and found marching rather fatiguing work, but I persuaded them to go on for one more day, on the condition that if wo could nob find tho enemy next day I would consent to return.

About two o'clock next afternoon I had almost given up my hopes of overtaking the Hauhaus, and sitting down to rest a bit by the side of the track, I allowed some forty or fifty of the men to pass mo. Wo were marching as usual in Indian file, and, as we did not keep very close order, our column of march was over a mile long. Where I stopped to rest, thq track. led up

the side of a hill that crossed the valley from right to left. Our leading men had just reached the top of the hill, and I was Watching the long zigzag lino creep up th® valley through the high fern, when a yell and a half-a-dozen rifle shots from the top of the spur told me wo had at last stumbled unawares .on the enemy. "Down*with your swags" was the cry, and " Kokiri! kokiri! kia kaha ! kia kaha' I shouted us I flung aside my swag and tore up tho hill at the top of my speed. A glance back showed me the swags flying off to the right and left of tho track as far as I could see. This meant support from the rear; so urging on thoso that were near mo, in a fe\y seconds we reached the top, just in time to prevent our leading men from being doubled up by the flaubau picket, who were postod just over the top of the spur, and had already shot three of our men and were driving back the others. A volley from twenty fresh rifles, however, drove the Hauhaus back, leaving two of their number dead on the track. I could see from tho ridge that the main body of tho enemy wero camped and entrenched on the bank of a stream at the foot of tho slopo, and that their camp was commanded (at long rifle range) by our ridge. The firing had brought out a large number of the onerny, who were hastening up to the support of their picket, and evidently intended to dislodge us if they could from the top of the hill. As our men earno up I made them extend to the right and left, breaking down a track through tho high fern along the top of tho riclgo, and keeping up a heavy lire on tho advancing enemy. The fern on the ridge was unfortunately both high and dry, and the wind was blowing in our faces, i.e., from our front. To our horror wo saw tho enemy had fired tho fern with tho intention of burning us off tho hill. A few of our men fired through the smoke at tho enemy, while I made the rest clear a track some twenty feet wide along our side of the ridgo, by pulling up tho fern with their hands. This didn't take long to do, with 300 men working for their lives, for, if wo had retreated before the fire, wo would have given the enemy a foarful advantage over us. Had my men once commenced to retrofit, nothing would liavo induced them to make a stand, and tho Hauhaus would have slated us for twenty miles back on the track Ave had advanced by. I noticed that tho fire would roach the left of our lino first, so wo drew off to the right, and as the flames came roaring up, in spite of the dense, suffocating smoke, we kept up a heavy tiro to our left front, to prevent tho Hauhaus from following up in tho wake of tho firo, and then, when the flames on reaching our cleared lino began to die out, we rapidly took ground to our left-, and grubbing in tho hot ashes with bits of stick, fingers, ramrods and our few bayonets (for the natives had been too lazy to carry a single spado or shovel among them), we soon had little shelter trenches dug all along tho ridgo, from which we mannered to hold tho enemy in check very well. It was now getting dark, and tho enemy drew off to their entrenchments, only sending us a few bullets every now and then during the night, to prevent us from going to sleep, while our sido kept up a dropping lire in reply, to show we wero wide awake. \Y had a dozen men wounded, besides four or live killed, by this time. Wo sent tho wounded down to tho foot of tho hill in our rear, where Dr. Gibbs was hard at work plugging shot holes, and I sent a mounted scout off to hurry up a supply of ammunition that I know "Was on the way from Poverty Bay, also to report our having come up with tho enemy to the officer commanding in the Bay, and to request a supply of grub, as I know we had only one day's rations left. Meanwhile we worked hard at our shelter trench, and by morning had more than a quarter of a mile of our ridge very fairly entrenched, considering wo hadn't spades or shovels for the work. Tho top of the ridgo formed a semicircle, with the convex side facing the enemy's position. Neither had the enemy been idle during the night, for ho had rifle-pitted the tops of two hills which slightly commanded our ridgo, one on our right and the other on our left, and opened lire on us as soon as it was light from these points, bub they wero too far to do us any harm with smooth-bores.

We suffered a good deal from thirst during the night, as the nearest water was a swamp in the valley to our rear, where the wounded were, and whenco the water had to be carried in pannikins to tho trenches on tho top of tho hill. This was our first day of starvation, as all tho rations had been lost or eaten during tho night. And, worst of all, our ammunition began to fail. In spite of all I could do our natives wasted a fearful amount, for whenever tho enemy fired at us during the night thirty or forty of our men would reply with a volley. So about nine a.m., tho firing 011 both sides having nearly ceased, I took a strong party and went to meet and escort the pack-horses bringing up ammunition from the Bay. To my great delight I met them only a few miles down tho track, and learned that tho orderly I had sent for provisions had passed them safely early in the morning on his way to headquarters. I pushed on tho pack-horses with all speed for camp, but on our way back wo met with an ugly obstacle. The firo that the Hauhaus had lit 011 tho provious evening had burnt its way round to tho rear of our position, and was now burning furiously for a hundred yards along tho track between us and camp. It was impossible to drive tho pack-horses at a gallop up this fiery lano, yet going fast was tho only chance of getting safely through, so wo unloaded tho horses, amd {Kitting a man on each horse (including the horses of" tho driver) with a Reg of ammunition in. a sack, in front of him, and his coat or 'shawl tied over his head, wo started in close single lilo and galloped safely through the flames. I led the rest on a fine old pack-horse, who feared spurs much more than he did firo.

When I gob back to our ridge it was decided that we could do nothing bub hold our position till a supply of grub should roach us, which wo expected to arrive noxt day, and meanwhile all the men who could lcavo tho trenches set to work to dig fern root and gather sow thistle for supper. I found I could not swallow the fern-root, but I chewed a good deal of it and swallowed tho juice. The sow thistle was very good, but it wanted salt badly. However, that and a coupio of biscuits that Dr. Gibbs shared with me, was the only food I had for four days and a-half. A couplo of pack horses left in camp would have givon us a good meal, but tho native • owners would not allow them to be killed. The reason we were so long without food was that tho enemy sent round a strong party, who intercepted and seized the supply of provisions on its way to us, about ten miles to our rear. They also, at tho samo time, unfortunately got possession of twelve thousand rounds of ammunition. Of this we afterwards recovered eight thousand rounds. Meanwhile wo sent a hundred men back to re-open tho road for a frosh supply. All this time wo exchanged shots with tho Hauhaus pretty consistently day and night, and on the third day of the fighting thoy attacked our trenches in force, but wo bent them back at all points, not, howover, without considerable loss. Old llenata Kawepo charged a strong body of the enemy that had advanced up tho gully on our right, bub his men fell back before the heavy fire they roceived, and Ronata was nearly surrounded by tho Hauhaus, when Karauria from the right and myself from our centre rushed forward with a few men each, and drove them back from within a few yards of the plucky old fellow, who had been too proud to retreat with his men. Poor Karauria was severely wounded however, and I had my forage cap split across tho crown by a bullet. Karauria being a chief of some noto his tribo insisted on carrrying him down to Poverty Bay two days after he was hit, though tho doctor told them ho could not survive the journey, which killed him. My servant, a powerful young native, called Eruera, was shot through the body. I would nob allow him to bo moved for a week, and though his kidneys had been injured, and his lower limbs were paralysed, yet, to the astonishment of tho doctor, ho eventually recovered.

When the rations arrived I heard that a strong party of the Ngatiporou, under Ropata, would reinforce us in a couple of days, and as the Ngatikahungunn (Ronata's and Tareha's people) were disheartened by their losses, we determined to await their arrival before wo attacked the Hauhau position. Meanwhile both sides kept up their rifle practice. I had a careful shot at a fellow in a black frock coat whom we supposed to bo Te Kooti. When I fired he jumped out of sight, as if he was frightened or hurt, and as Te Kooti was wounded in the foot about that time I think mine may have beea the lucky shot.

On the afternoon of the 23rd December Ropata and his meh arrived. Wo had arranged that he should come up on our right, and as soon as' his men were in lino our wholo force advanced to tho attack. It was a beautiful sight. A line of firo and smoke half a mile long, with both flanks thrown forward, rapidly descended the hill, our men closing to the centre as they approached the Hauhau entrenchment. Our concentrated fire must have been terrible— hail storm of bullets—but the Hauhaus fought till we were within fifty yards of them, when our advance became a rush; nevertheless, when we sprang into their trenches there were none but dead and dying men to be seen. A stream of water ran ab the back of the position, and a dense bush covered the opposite bank, into this the enemy had retreated, and the sun having set, darkness pub an end to our pursuit. However, they left ovor sixty dead.