FICTION

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1679, 4 May 1904, Page 3

FICTION

A FIGHT TO A FINISH. ' - - •, .... t l- .._ y' ■ . ■ *— A STORY OF THE MAORI WAR.

BY OWEN HALL.

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. CHAPTER VIH. A WARM RECEPTION. Yos, I could hear it now. quite disti nobly, but yet I could see nobbing. I shaded iny eyes wrnn my hand, and it seemed to me that I could "see a iong way up that glassy looking plain of wrinkled water, but stiM I could see j nothing that could be responsible for that • strange, ghostly sound that came creeping down the river, growing, I fancied, just a little more distinct every moment. I turned once more towards the hut, and putting a hand to my mouth, I whistled a low whistle twice. An instant more, and the light that shone from the doorway of the hut was obscured, and Dick came hurrying across to where I was. “Have you seen anything, Jack ?” he asked, anxiously, in a low voice. _ “No, but. I can hear something up the river, it Bounds like so much its a lot of oars being dipped at! at once into the water—l tilnnk it must be them coining.” “Hew far do you think you can sec, lie asked. “Oh. I don’t know; this grey, glimmering light'on the water confuses me. It ’looks like miles, but I don’t suppose it’s that, you know; perhaps it may be less than ■ one mile.” “Does it sound as if there were many ?” “There might be hundreds from the sound. Yes. there must be a big fleet of them,” I added, thinking of the old pictured of Indian canoes I had seen. “Oh, I don’t know about that. I suppose you never saw a Maori war canoe, did you? They would easily hold fifty or sixty men a-piece, and leave them »!/! plenty of room to paddle, too; but anyhow. if your ears don’t deceive you, they’d be a good deaf too many for us to do much with.” Dick stopped for half “• minute, as if he were thinking; then he added: “Well, Jack, stay where you are tiillll you see them, anyhow. Give me a Jow whistle as soon as they come in sight.” He turned and went back quickly to the hut. I kept my eyes steadily on the river but I could hear Dick’s voice as he talked to our follows; and after a few minutes* I could hear footsteps as tine men came out and scattered along the bank to had cover in the scrub or behind he great clumps of native flax that grew every here. and there. Little by little t!he sound of paddling had. grown more distinct, but it must have been ten minutes at least before I cod'd see anything. At last I seemed to see a line of darker points that’ stretched a good long distance across the middle of the river. For the first minuite or two I ©ouf.-d hardly be sure they were real, and not merely things my fancy* had made up, because I had been expecting sometiliing so long, but as I watched them eager)!y I began to feel sure. They were like the ghosts of some kind of 'huge canoes, and though they grew clearer every minute, I couldn’t eco them move at a£l. Ait anyrat'O they were coming, whatever they were. I turned back and whistled. Dick heard me in a moment, for he came across to the foot of my tree. “You can see them now, Jack?” he asked. “How many of, them can you count?” “I think there must be cither eight or nine of them; but they look more like shadows than real canoes yet.” “Eight or nine,” he repeated.; “that’s serious. There must be between four and five hundred of them, 1 should say. Wefl, Jack, I daresay we can give them a bit of a start, but thiat’CJ be about all we can do; then we shall have to clear out. I wish we could find some way of. disposing of these three fellows in till,e-hut,- so that they would have no guides.” . “Well, they’d be pretty heavy to carry far, I should think, and we couldn’t kill them, I suppose,” • I said. “No, of course not. Well. I’ve scattered cur fellows along the bank-under cover, but I should think you’d be just ms well where you are. Here’s your rifle. If we can’t do them much harm, I daresay we shall scare them a bit by firing on them when they try to land. They anight sheer off, anid so miss these guides of theirs, and even if they do not we shall be able to make a better report when we have seen them at close quarters. When yoiu hear me whistle, Jack, you can fire away - . When I wUiistile twice, drop down and join me behind the-hut.” He passed me up any rifle, which I had left at 7 the foot of the tree when I dlimbed, : apd I made haste to settle myself in theibest place I could find that seemed well sheltered, and yet commanded a good view of the river in front. I saw Dick walk along the bank to a place near the hut, where a great bunch of flax made a fine cover, and

settle himself behind it; then 'wo waited.

I had by far the best of it now, for I was the only one -of our party that could see them coming. They didn’t seem to hurry themselves a bit. Little by little the dark shadows stole nearer, like grey ghosts of dead canoes. They weren’t much like what I had fancied when I thought of canoes before. These were long—.perhaps 70ft long, and quite broad enough for two men to sit, or kneel, abreast and handle their paddles freely. They looked sharp 'at tho bows, winch rose in high prows, eight or nmo feet from the water, like- great figure, heads, and each oh 'them seemed to be finished off at the top with something that waved in the wind, like a great bunch of feathers. I sat and stared at them as they crept smoothly through the water, and I felt as if I had no power to look away. Now I could sec the rise and fall of the long black row's of paddies that moved ai’l together with nho regular motion of so much machinery, and even the dash and sparkle of the foam that broice away from the sharp bows of each canoe with ta rush as tihe pat'dies dipped in the water. They were coming. Besides the flash of tiro paddl.es 1 could see the long rows of swinging figures that .moved all together in den We rows in each boat; and besides the rush of iho water and the splash of the dipping paddles I could now hear the sound of a strange, wild chant, which rose from the stern of each canoe, where now I could make out the figure of a man almost naked who waved a warclub in the air, keeping time to the chant and the beat of the moving paddles. The moon was going down, and the clouds still covered its face, but there was enough grey light still tici see them pretty clearly as they came close, and I began to wonder when we should begin. This wasn’t my first skirmish now, -and I had got over tho wild throb of broud through eveiy one of the veins, that made it so iiard to take a good .aim, and yet this was new enough to make me feel excited and impatient to begin. I looked carefully to see that my rifle was all ready, and changed the cap, in case it might have got damp—it was before tho days of repeating rifles. I took a good look to make sure of the easiest way of slipping down from iny perch so as not to expose myself to any shots that might bo going—then I waited. They would soon bo abreast of us, and I could count them" easily—there were nine canoes altogether, and every one seemed to be full of men. The man who beat time and sang that wild low chant in each of them stood, I could see, on a little platform at the stern level with the gunwale, and just m front of the groat prow, which rose at the stern as well as the bow, with the same great plume of feathers at the top, which moved and nodded in the breeze like some ghostly head ot hair above the singer. The men looked bigger than ordinary men, they swung tho war-clubs slowly back and forward in time to the soing, and even the long black rows of figures that stooped and rose again with each stroke of the paddles looked stronger and fiercer than any men I had seen -before. I had wondered a little why it was that 'When Dtick left me last he had gone across to une hut, and pulled down the mat which till then had partly closed the doorway; now I saw why lie had done it—it was to make sure the warparty wouldn’t miss tihe place. The light from the fire shone out and made a broad bar of brightness along the bank that must bo seen from the river. It had answered Dick’s purpose, too. As the canoes came nearly opposite the place I could hear the chant grow slower and slower, till tho (long rows of paaoies though they still dipped and rose again, seemed hardly to move the vessels at all. Then I noticed that the ones farthest away were forging slowly ahead, till one by one they spread out like a lengthening horn, which bent round till! they faced the bank. It looked as if they were waiting for some signal, for they lay for a minute perfectly still, facing tihe bank, and then suddenly one v-ild, long call rang out from the canoe just opposite my tree. As it died away it was answered by Diok’s shrill, clear whistle, and next moment, from 20 spots along the bank there shot as many tongues of fire, followed by the sharp ring of as many ruiiies. I had taken a quick aim at the big, naked figure at the stern of the canoe opposite me, and before the smoke of my rifle came between I saw the man stagger backwards and cling to the high prow of the canoe, while lie dropped the club from his other hand. One deep exclamation that sounded almost like a gasp, burst from the crew, and then for a moment they waited motionless. It was only for a moment, for then a deep voice shouted an order in two words that rolled over the dark river ,and echoed back from the shore. Before it had well left the lips of the Chief it seemed to be obeyed. Every second pair of rowers dropped their paddles and picked up the guns that lay in the bottom of the canoes, and in a minute more they were ready. I hadn’t logit a moment in reloading, but I was hardily ready When the firing from the iqanpes began. It seamed to (leap from one to another in a long succession of quick flashes that glittered on the face,

of tho and shewed the canoes, and the wild faces and figures on board till -the smoko shut them out. They had hardly anything to aim 'for, of course, but I could hear the bullets striko the hut and the trees, and the leaves around me moved and rustled as more than one bullet whistled past.

There was nothing for it but to load and fire .as quickly as wo could, aiming for tho ashes that every instant flickered out of tho heavy smoke cloud that new hung over the river. I know I had no tune i.o think how long it went on, eleven. to guess what damage wo were doing to the enemy, but I think I managed to load faster than I had ever done before, and to fire a good many of my cartridges with as good an aim as I oouf.d. It must have gone on for sonic time, and as the canoes didn’t come any nearer the shore I had begun to wonder whether, after all, we mightn’t beat them off, as they could hardly judge whait our force might be, when suddenly there came a shout from the hut. The shout sounded almost like a mere yell, and yet it sounded like words of scuno kind, too. The cry was repeated three times, and then it stopped suddenly. Dick told me afterwards that they were real words, and that they meant —“Gome on ! come on! Very few the white men!” Our prisoners had evidently taken a band, and if they could do no more were at -least giving the enemy a broad hint. It was not thrown away either. The firing from the river ceased almost as 'Suddenly as it began, and in. another minute the same deep voice I had heard before shouted an order. Next moment I could hear the sudden splash of the paddles .as they struck the water. They were coming. A moment rnoro and Dick’s shrill whistle rang out clear—once, twice—and I knew it was time to be going. I gathered myself together, gripped my rifle by the barrel, and slid down the tree. As I reached the ground I saw the talil figure-head of a great canoe come rushing towards mo out of the bank of black smoke like something alive, its plume of feathers waving overhead’, and behind it long swaying lines of dusky figures that looked a good deal more like demons than men. I threw my rifle to any -shoulder, and the quick report rang out, by way of a last defiance to the advancing enemy. Then, stooping low, I ran as hard as I could towards the hut. A sort of yell had been the only reply to my last shot, where I had expected a volley, and in a moment or two I was among my comrades, who had cal looted already behind tihe hut.

“Is thav, you, Jack?” was my welcome from Dick. “All right, I hope?” “AH right!” I yelled, os I followed the example of one or two of the others by reloading my rifle. “That’s right. Then, we’re all here. Now then. men. Run those two fellows along with you, and follow -me in double file, as before.” “Can’t we have another shot at these beggars first sir?” several voices asked together. “Not a bit of it” Dick answered, with a laiugh. “We’ve been in luck so far; don’t let ns spoil it now. Gome along now at the double. The.less these- fellows know of our whereabouts the hotter for us. Now march.” When Dick spoke like that every man knew that there was no further room for discussion, so wo filed off into the darker shadows under tho peach grove, and in a couple of minutes we ha*d regained the track we had made through the tea-tree scrub as we came. We had barely gained the closer cover when a wild yell rose behind u-s as if from the throats of a legion of demons—then tfiero was another, not quite so loud, there was a pause, and after about a minute there was another, not quite so (loud, but even wilder than the first one. Dick had motioned mo to join him when we started, so I was at his side now. When the first yell came I made a half motion to halt, «s I think most of us did, but Dick only called out: “All right, men; they have landed. Steady, and push on.” When the second yell followed I started, and exclaimed, ‘What’s that for?”

“They’ve found the man in the hut, I suppose, that Fraser knocked over,” he said. “It was a pity he hit him so hard

but he could scarcely stop to consideffl just then, I suppose.” “Did he kill him, Dick?” I asked, understanding, as if by a flash that it was the man who had given the alarm that told the enemy to land that was meant. Fraser had .no doubt been left on guard and had stopped him, as I had heard, at the tune, by a sudden blow. “No, but he gave him a facer on the jaw that knocked him senseil-ests, so we had to leave him there when we brought away the other two. He won’t be fit to travel far, I fancy for a good many hours.”

We kept on our steady swinging, half trot for several minutes more, and then we came out on he bank of the creek wo had followed as we came from the* forest. Then Dick pulled up. .“Can you hear anything, Jack, that sounds as if they were following us?” he said. I ildstened for half a minute.

“No.” I said: “I don’t believe they have left the lints. I can hear the sound of their voices, but I .don’t believe they are moving this wa.y. “Most likely you are right. Until they can get the man we left behind us in the hut they can only guess at the strength of our force. If they knew that they .might come after us, but as it is they won’t risk it.” We stood where we were listening, fof a few minutes, and then Dick t-umedl away.

“Alii right,” lie said. “They’re not going to try it; • but the sooner we can get back to camp again the better. We shall want a few hours’ rest, but we must get out of this fust. Tie the prisoners together by their arms and let them inaroh in tho middle Fraser. We can’t afford to lose sight of them now.

In -another minute wo had fallen and -were on the march for the forest ridge along which we had come. We found our way back by keeping to the creek till we got to the sharp forestcovered slope, and alter a hard of fully an hour we reached the top tho range once more.

“There, men, I think that’ll do,” Dick said at Last, “If you’re as tired as I ana you’ll bo ready for a rest. That breeze feels a bit cold up here; I don’t think it would do any harm if some of you fellows could find something to make a fire.” When the fire blazed up oheeniu<y a few minutes later I saw Dick look at me as I was sitting on a great root at till© foot of a tree with my rifle across mgg knees. “Hallo, Jack,” he said, “that was S 3 pretty close shave.” “Why, what do'you mean?” I asked, wondering at the almost startled look he had given me. “What, don’t you know?” he said. “Give your right cheek a rub with your hand.” I put up my hand, and, to my surprise. I felt a little cake of dried blood where a bullet had grazed my cheek. It must have been done when I was in tihe tree, and in my exoitement I had never noticed it. Some of us ate some supper, and others preferred to wrap themselves in their blankets and lie down at once. I was one of those that lay down. I had had a heavy day, and was pretty well worn out. I am not quite sure that the discovery how near I had been to a longer sleep had not something to do with it, too. At any rate, I didn’t seem to care for supper. It was some time before I fell asleep after af.ll, for now that I knew of it the place on my cheek seemed to throb. I heard the sentinels placed, and the prisonens set with their backs against the tree near tihe fire. I wondered drowsily whether I should have a scar to show Bessie —and then X fell ari cep. CHAPTER IX. MAORI AND SETTLER. It was Dick’s hand, laid on my shoulder, that woke me. For the first moment I thought it was still dark, but as I looked upward; i-through the widespreading branches overhead I could see that tihe sky waM white with the first flush of the dawns . “Look alive, Jack,” Dick said, u w& haven’t a minute to lose if we- mean to be beforehand with those feOlowis we «aiw last, ni.or.lvt”

lii ten minutes wo had eaten, a mouthfitj of bread and meat, and were ready tar another tramp .through the forest. By that time it was light enough to make travelling easy. The white morning light stole through the heavy foliage of the giant puirir-i trees, that stood like solid pillars of brown stone ten or ,twelv-a feet thick on every side; it glittered on the paler leaves of the natus that pyramids of lighter green a hundred and fifty feet into the clear sky overhead; it rested on the droopimg leaves of the graceful nanus, tell the ghostly shadows crept away, and the dim recesses of the forest grew clear, Showing long vistas of light and shade. We tramped steadily through the forest, and it was still early in the day when we reached our camp, and reported to the captain what we had done, handing over at the same time our two prisoners to the proper authorities. I was ‘enjoying a rest in the tent, which I Shared when in camp with three comrades, all of whom were away on duty that morning, when Dick came in. “Tired, Jack,” he asked, looking at mo as I lay on my bed. “That all depends, Dick,” I replied. “What’s up now? I don’t know that I care for another bush tramp.”

“Nor I, either. No; but how would a. ride suit you?” I was on my feet in a moment. “Oh, first-rate, Dick. I’ve almost forgotten the feel of a saddle between my knees.. What is it—a ride into town, 1 bop©, for a change?” <*‘No such luck.- The captain wants you and me to ride along and warn the settlers at Mauku and Waiuku to look out for the war party, and there’s no time to lose.”

I didn’t keep him waiting long, and a very few minutes more found us mounted and on our way- It was a. pleasant change .to get on horseback again, after two months and mere of pretty constant tramping in the forest, and there was some excitement too, in the particular job we had on hand. -Our road Say at first across open land on which there was scarcely any settlement. A long succession or low ridges, covered with a growth of ferns and ti-tree scrub, thin enough in the higher kinds to show the stiff white c’.ay between, and too poor and cold to tempt anyone to (settle on it, with hollows every now and then through which little streams ran gargling, to empty themselves at last into the great harbour of Manukau. The road itself was nothing more than a rough cart-track that wound in and out of the little gullies and over the bare ridges, shining white in the sunshine. The higher land over which we had tramped in the morning lay several males away on our left, with its dark covering of forest, and there wasn’t a bouse of any kind in sight. “Hi ©re’s not much to tempt those fellows here, Dick,” I remarked, when we bad ridden several miles.'

“No. Depend on it, they won’t make (that blunder if our friend in the /hut has re-covered enough to show them the way across. He’ll take them farther down the river before he crosses. ” , “Fraser must have hit pretty hard,” I said, “to knock him sensdless like that. He’s a strong fellow, but 1 didn’t think he was able to fell a man like that.” “I don’t suppose he could another time; but when the fellow took to giving us -away like that he just went for him. I don’t Marne him much, either.” “Well I only hope he laid him up for a bit, so that we may give tlie settlers notice in time. Are there many of them, Dick?”

“Oh. I hear there are a good many about the settlements at Waiuku and -Mauku. though, of course, they’ve sent the women and children awqy. They say the volunteer corps at each place is somewhere near a hundred strong.” “But if there are four or five hundred in the Maori war-party that won’t be enough, will it?” “They’ll have to make the beet fight of it they can. I suppose the Genera! wilfi send reinforcements, but I don’t believe they could get up before tomorrow afternoon at the soonest. The Maoris won’t wait for that.” It was afternoon before we had fairly crossed the open land and had turned our horses’ heads towards the forest land on the left-. Little as I knew about land, I noticed the change before we. had gone a hundred yards—it Hooked like another country. The ferns and ti-kree scrub had grown thick and tall, and tall green grass bordered tkie track on which we were riding that reminded me of Ebgland. In two or three minutes we came in sight of fences, inside of which there was more grass, and young crops, and cattle, with here and there a cottage among fruit trees, with its barn and farm buildings beyond. A minute or two more and we had overtaken a man driving a light cart.. Dick hailed him, and he stopped. “Whereas the headquarters of the vajlunteer force hereabouts ?” Dick asked, as we came up. “I suppose it’s at the church now, sir; aryhow. it’s there we’re to gather if there’s any alarm. I,,hear.” “Well, you had; .better gather there as soon as you man, for you may have a war party down on you any time now. Where’s .the officer in command?” .-dn'-h

.“TJp at bis own farm, most likely; he’s got something better to do. th an hanging about waiting for news of war parties that never show up.” < T’m w inaid you’ll find that this one

will show up right -enough, and if it docs you’ll need all your force to'face it.” The man looked at us with more interest, noting, I suppose, Dick’s quiet uniform.

‘This ain’t another of them, yarns we’ve had once a week for the last two months, is it?” -f

...... “Not a bit of it, my man. I’m an officer of the Forest Bangers, and I wias sent along to give you warning. You’re a volunteer, I suppose,” “We’re all volunteers up this way—every man Jack of us,” lie replied. “Very well, then, that’ll save us coming more out of our way now. Let the officer in command here know at once that four or five hundred armed Maoris landed -on this side the Waikato last night; it is reported they mean to raid the set-tilements down this way. If that’s the case you may expect them to-night or to-morrow.” “How do ye know it’s a fact? Our captain will want to know. He’s not one of the sort-that likes to be fooled.” “Ho. won’t be fooled this time, unless you foioll him. A party of us saw and fired on them as they landed last night. You give the alarm at once, I 'tell you, ais you value your own life and your neighbours’. I must ride cn to Waiuku now, but you can tell ' your captain that I’lil bo bade before dark, I suppose I shall find him at the church when I get back. Where is it?”

“Oh, you can’t miss the church. It’s about three-quarters of a mile up the cleared land, near the middle of the valley; you’ll see the spire if you go on another hundred yards.” “Very well, you can tell him I’ll be with him on the way back front"Waiuku. Don’t lose a minute in letting him and everybody else know what I have told yeu. These Maoris mean business, and I daresay they’ll burn every house in the district. if you don’t stop them.” The man gave his horse a' sharp stroke with his whip, which roused him to a quick trot, but before he had gone far be turned and looked back.

“By the way,” he shouted, “you’ll see a farmhouse on the rising ground on the other side of the creek. You might oa'l.l there as you come back; it’s not far from the bridge. That’s where we’ve been gathering up till now, so you might find the captain there as ye come back. It ain’t far out of the road, anyhow.” He drove on hastily, and we turned back and soon gained the main road, off Which we had turned a quarter of an hour before. The rest of our journey was not by any means so dreary as the first part had been, though there were still large patches of unoccupied land. The road ran through strips of forest-, and there were farms here and there, where we called to give warning. Some of the houses were empty, but, in most of them we found somebody with whom we could leave the warning that they had better lose no time in arming and making for the headquarters of their local defence force. In some places it was hard to make the men believe there was any danger, for like the. man we had spoken to first, they had heard so many alarms that they were ready to lock on any warning with something more than suspicion. It wasted a lot of time, for Dick couldn’t bring himself to leave them and ride on, letting them take their chance, as I think I should havo done, but tried to explain what the danger really was. It took us a great deal longer than the first part oi our journey had done, and though we didn’t stop anywhere-, even to eat, -it was nearly sunset before we were able to turn back finally. We had the satisfaction of knowing that our warning had roused the settlers, for we met men, and even lads, armed with rifles making their way to- the headquarters at Waiuku as we rode back again. Both we and our horses had had a long day’s work, and I think we should have been quite as ready as they were to take the return journey easy if it had not been for the feeling both Dick and I had that something might have happened at the pretty little settlement we had passed a few hours before. We said little to -one another about it, but 1 noticed that each bend in the road as we came to it was watched eagerly, as if wo expected to see or hear something new when we reached the coimcr.

Nothing happened, however. The ten miles’ ride was remarkable for nothing hut the increasing difficulty of making sure that we -were keeping the track as the daylight slowly died awtay. It was nearly dark when we reached the bridge crossing the Mauku Creek, near which we had been told we might find tine officer in command. A® we puilled up our horses we f ound ourselves suddenly challenged by, a voice from the other side of the bridge, -and it took only a minute or two to find out that a sentry had been placed there to warn us to turn aside to the -farm-house on the hill, and to show us the way. It appeared that though every preparation had been made in consequence of the warning Dick had left, nothing whatever ha-cl been seen or heard of the war party, and the- officer in command was particularly anxious to hear what we coutld tell him.

We got a hearty welcome from the little party of officers assembled at the farm, wihere we found that the larger half of the volunteers of the district had a,lsoi been collected, only About twenty-five being stationed at the church, round which, it appeared, a stockade had been erected some time before. Both Dick and I were glad to get

supper and a rest, while the news we had to tell was discussed m the big kitchen of the farmhouse. The general opinion seemed to be that the maoris wouild cross lower down the river than Mauku, and a goon many even aouboed whether they would leave the Waikato Valley at all. At last- 1 wrapped myself in my blanket and lay uowju ,n a a.. near the fireplace, and with my coat rolled up for a pillow I very soon fell asleep.

When I woke I think what surprised me most was to find that nothing had happened. It seemed to me that all night long I had been engaged in bush fighting of one sort and another with the Maori warriors I had seen on, the river., and it took me some time to- grow accustomed to the idea that I was stall in one corner of the kitchen,, and that the place was filled with the shield, not of gunpowder, but of a cooking breakfast. There were more than lorry of us at the farm, and as soon as I had eaten some breakfast, and had a wash in the creek, I wandered off to a little knoll of higher ground behind the farm-house, where the forest had been cleared, to get a better idea -of the place than 1 could from the*house itself. The spot had been. only lately cleared of forest, and though the grass was long, and the red and white clover grew as high as my ankles, the stumps of the trees were s'tilil standing m every direction. I had taken a seat on one of them, and lighted tho pipe, which I -had learned to smoke since I joined tihe Rangers, when Dick came out of the house, and after looking about him till he caught sight- of me, shouted, “Hullo, Jack! I think we may as well be making a start. These fellows must have gone some other way.” “All right-,” I replied, getting up, and stretching myself. I was in the very act of turning away to walk down the hill when, almost without thinking, I let my eyes wander for the last time over the upper end of the valley. The open land was Closed in on every side- by forest-covered" slopes, and these were a good deal higher at the end farthest from nfe and nearest to the Waikato Valley; indeed, there the ridge looked almost like a hill], cm which the bright morning sun was shining with almost dazzling brightness. As I looked I thought I saw two or three little puffs of smokestart up suddenly In the open land near the'brow of the hill, and involuntarily I paused to listen for a report. I couldn’t be certain, but something like a faint noise seemed to -reach me. Then, half a minute later more little jets of smok’ 1 seemed, to start up * along the edge or the busilrland on both sides. ' I bent my head and put my hand to my ear, and this time I made sure 1/ heard the wellknown. sound of distant firing. “What’s that you’re staring at, Jack ?” Dick shouted from heilow.

“It looks like firing, close to the bush at. the top of the valley,” I answered. “I* think I can 'hear it too, Dick, though it’s a good way off.” I was still watching for more, shading my eyes with my bands, when Dick camo up at a run.

“Where is it?” he asked breathlessly. I pointed to the spot, and in a few seconds more we couikl both see where more puffs of smoke rose from the open hill-l-side, and as I listened there- came in a moment or two -more the faint sound of reports.

“I can hear it distinctly now,” I exclaimed. “there’s fighting going on up there.” “I wonder who it can be?” Dick said thoughtfully. They say every man in the valley was accounted for last night-, either here or at the church stockade-.

“Somebody’s fighting there, Dick, I’ll take my oath. Look at that !” I added, as twenty or more littCe jets of smoke started all along the edges of the forest, and were followed a minute later by more puffs of smoke in the open. Dick turned and bounded down the slope again towards the house at full speed. He was back again in two or three minutes accompanied- by the officers and at least a dozen of the men. The captain- who, looked-, I thought, stem and anxious' had; brought his field class with which he examined the place for a minute or two without speaking, while- the rest of- the party waited. “Yes,” he said, at lost, as ’he- tinned away abruptly, 4 W haven't, minute to lose. These are our men in the open.

They must have gone up the vahey this morning, ancl if they are anything like the wiiolo four -hundred Maoris there, nor a man of them will get back again unless we can reach them. Now men, let me see what you can do. Be ready to march in five minutes.”

Ho had no need to say more. Before he had finished speaking the men had started ior the -house where they had leu-t tiiieir rifles. Nearly a-lli of them were young ad-lows, and you might have tiiought a was a race for fun, • instead o-i a sudden call to a service of unknown danger. In less than the live* minutes tlio captain had given the-m the men were ready to march. No questions had been asked off either Dick or mysc-llf- but it had evidently been taken for granted that we woimi join them. I fell in as naturally as if it had been my own corps, Dick took his place alongside the captain at tno neu-u oa the little column, and we waited ror the word to go. The captain cast his eye down the column, and then he held up his hand. “Now men,” lio said quietly, “we’ve got to rescue our comrades, and let these Maoris understand what it means to attaoiv our people. They’iM most likely be four or five to one; but one Englishman should be enough for four Maoris any day. Only keep cool and obey orders, and you’ll be alu right. Now men, follow me, march!” He wheeled as lie spoke, and started at a slow trot which was quickly imitated by the men. and the little column swung along the track at a good five miles an hour. There was no cheering or demonstration of any kind, but as I glanced at the faces near me I knew that tneso 'non understood something of the risk they were going to nut, -and had made up their minus to face it. A soldier would, no doubt, have thought them a curious looking, party. They were not much like soldiers, it- is true. Three months before I suppose I should have thought as the soldiers did, hut my experience in the Rangers had made me think a good deal less of clothes, and vciff hacks when it came to fighting. No two of these forty odd men were cheesed alike, and nobody who had ever seen a regiment co-ulcl have mistaken o-ne of them for a soldier; but the way in which every man gripped his rifle' and the way each man planted his feet as ho followed his leader told me that- they would give a good account of themselves when the pinch came. Our leader never slacked his pace for a moment till wo reached the little church surrounded by its . stockade. There he hashed and went inside the enclosure. When he came out- he was foil owed "by three men with rifles, who fell in with the others without a word, and we started -again. We oou!cl hear the firing distinctly now, and. I could easily distinguish the sharp ring of -the rifles dropping one after another, from the loud reports made by the gun® —• for the most; pars double-barrelled shot <rn,ns— of tho natives, which generally and we started again. We could hear s-umetning of it toe. The upper part of the valley was a good deal higher land, and the distance between the edges of the forest on each side was not- half as great as it was lower down. It was almost like looking through a telescope, for the wooded ridges drew closer together till the top of the valley was m a narrow focus '.vhere we could sec. things plainly. As we came nearer we could see o-ur own men clearly. They looked .only a handful as they crouched behind logs and stumps of trees that were dotted over the side of the hSU, but the quick flashes of the rifles, and the sharp reports that followed in rapid succession showed that they were holding their own. At last they saw us, or at. least we believed so, for'it was evident that a new order had been given, and was being obeyed. The men in cover fired, and as they fired they leaped from behind their shelter and darted a few yards down the hill till they readied another, where they crouched, and fired again. And all this time we had seen no enemy. Every few minutes there was a crash, as twenty or thirty guns were- fired almost together, now' on one side and n-ow on the other, and we could see the heavy smoke that rose along the ; edge of the f orest, but not a man was to he seen, nor, except the reports of the guns was there a sound to show that a

living creature was there. I thought of the ilong rows of edlient demon-lake figures in the canoes, and I seemed, able to picture to myself the bands of crouching savages who must be lurking along the edge of the forest, ready to rush out on the little handful of men, now firing and retreating step by step. Wo w 7 ere mounting the slope at last, and every step was-bringing us.nearer our comrades. They seemed to know that heilp was at hand, for it Hooked as if they fired more rapidly, and ran faster from one cover to another between the shots. I couldn’t help wondering whether the Maoris saw us too. If they did surely they would rufii out of cover and at least try to out off the little band of vd’imteens before we could join them. I think it was' this that was in m’y mind at every step as I climbed the slope. Either they didn’t see us, or they had some other plan, for though I sometimes fancied they were firing more quickly than when I heard them first, there was no sign of -their coming into . the open land. We had reached the cleared Hand now, and the little body of our people were not quarter of a mile away, as they darted from one shelter to another, trying to get protection from the. shots that seemed to keep pace with them, step hv step as they retreated, running like a little fringe of smoko along the edge cf thb bush. At last we halted, and two or three eiders were enough to divide us into two parties of rather more than.twenty men each, who faced the ' forest on both sides. Another order, and we scattered among the logs and stumps, and began to fire. We had ben told not . to waste ammunition on random shots, •but to fire only at -points where we saw by the smoke that some of the enemy had concealed themselves. I crept from stump to stump till I reached a spot f rom which I commanded a good view 7 of the edge of the forest for some distance both above and below 7 me. The firing all came from above, and I felt sure there was very little hope of hitting anything under cover at that distance. I fired a shot or two, and waited to see what would happen. If they hadn't known we were coming our fire must, I thought be a eurpnse to them. If they showed no signs of being surprised, then I felt sure they had seen us coming long before. In either case I wondered what they would do. It took only a minute cr two to -decide. They had known we were coming. The firing went on as before, only it crept along the edge of the forest nearer to us, and it didn’t slacken higher up. What did that mean? The answer came into my mind along with the question : it meant that they hoped to surround us, and so kill us all. It wasn’t possible that they could have come so far through the cover of jun-gle-that fringed the forest in the time, so they must have been there before. And if they had -got tin far, why should they not have gone farther ?. They had seen us coming and now they hoped to surround us. If I was right the captain ought to be warned. I rose from the spot where I had crouched and leaned over the top of the big stump behind which I 'had taken cover, letting any eyes wander along the fringe of tall scrub, tree-ferns, and shrubs that edged the forest, not more than a hundred yards away. As I looked it seemed to me that I saw the bushes move and swav, as if something were passing through them. I ’ aid'lmv rifle on the stump for a rest and watched. Yes, it moved again; something was passing through the jungle. J took a steady aim and fired. I had not been mistaken. There was a sudden movement among trie (leaves; for an instant I saw something like the barrel of a gun stand up above the bushes —then it disappeared I had hit ham. There was no time for thinking; it might he a matter of life or death for us all that -they should know that the Maoris were creeping through the hush to cut us off. I turned and ran quickly to the place, sixty or seventy yards away where..l had seen Dick and the captain standing a minute or two before. •'What do you want, my man,” the . captain shouted as I came up. “'Why don’t you keep under* cover?” •Tfc doesn’t matter about cover, captain. I came to tell you _ they’re only / firing to keep us -here while the rest of them creep past and cut us off.” - -.Haw do yon know. Jack?” It was Dick that asked the question now, for the contain had turned hie glass on the edge of the forest farther down the hi'll. •T saw the hushes move, and TV© just shot one of them —I saw his gun as* be fell.” , . ‘ , “Whereabouts?” the captain asked, shortly. I-point ed to the spot. “There,” I said, “but they’re farther down than that ; I saw the leaves of the fern trees moving, as if men ■ were rpushing their way through.” '“Yes,” ihe said, after looking for Ur minute.” “Yes, I believe you are right.” He turned and looked up the slope #her© the men we had come to rescue '•were falling back; they might -have been two hundred and fifty yards away steEL. ' -uet me ‘harry a message, sir," said. ‘Til fetch them in no time. It can’t be anybody of our people up 'there to fight. ‘‘Very-good,” he said, “you can go. Ifell the officer in command to make his tnen close up-alt-one© ; never to mind returning their fire.” I ran up thejhill at the tqp of ray speed., A few bullets

whistled paist . me. but none of them cam© very near, and in two minutes or so I was near enough to bail the lieutenant, and give him the message. He looked behind him, and seemed to understand, for he repeated the order at once in a voice that was heard by everyone ai this -men.’ They darted from their covers, and ran down the hill, the officer ana myiseltf bringing up the rear; the whole movement had . net takeai much more than five minutes, and so much of our work was done.

“Wed done, men —well done!” the captain shouted. “Now men. form in open order, and retreat at the double.” Another minute and the men bad fallen into their places, and the retreat had begun. It had been done so quickly and with so little disorder that it had taken the Maoris by surprise; The firing from the forest had gone on for some minutes after our men bad been withdrawn; then it stopped suddenly. What was going to happen next? T looked over my shoulder to see. Yv e were not kept long In doubt. A long, wild yell arose from the forest behind us on the right; '.a moment more ana it was answered by one, if possible wilder stiDT, from the left. The echo of the second yell was still ringing in our ears when a third, stronger, fiercer, and even more wild than the others, burst from the edge of the wood three or four hundred yards in front of its. In another moment the advance guard of the war party dashed out of the brushwood that fringed the forest, led by a tail, powerful looking savage, who waved a war club over his head, while he chant-* e>d a war-song which every minute or two ended in a yell like the one we had just heard. - In a minute more the song seemed to he taken up behind us, and from the forest on each side two other parties rushed, led like the one in front by a chief, who waved a taiaha and led the yelling. i looked to see what our commanding officer would do. with a feeling that I wished it were Hick who was the leader. A glance was enough to restore any confidence. The Captain didn’t slack his pace, but he looked steadily first at the band of warriors in front, then for a moment at these who now were rushing down the slope behind. It was evident that we must be caught between them, iand each of them seemed to be more than twice as numerous as ourselves. What would the captain do ? _ I saw him speak a few words to Dick and liis own lieutenant, who was near him; then he closed his glass and put it in the case; then he gave the ■word to halt, and turned to face us. The lieutenant moved to the rear of the lino and Dick to the middle, and almost as quickly as I can tell it, they had wheeled the men, half facing one way and half the other, spread them in open order, half of us facing up the bill and the other half of the party coming up the slope. We Knew what was coming. Bach man dropped on one knee and waited for the word, determined to do what he could either to win or sail our lives clear. They came on like, an avalanche —an avalanche of rushing, howling, leaping madmen in two lines, the first armed with guns, which they brandished wildly in the air; the second, perhaps ten yards behind, with long-handled tomahawks. Which they waved above their heads. They seemed to be almost naked —a few feathers - stuck in their hair, a cartridge box slung by a strap over each 'shoulder. and a small mat or shawl fastened round the waist; nothing besides, hut the wild tattoed faces and the great muscular limbs, that leaped and sprang with the energy of tigers. “Now men, steady; don’t waste a shot. You’ll have time for three; then close up and follow me. If they rush you, d’.ub your rifles and hit hard. • Nov 7 fire I” The order found us ready, and every man did his best.. Few of usi had loaded rifl sso quickly before—l know I never had. Three times I fired, talking as much of an aim as the smoke wouild allow; then I loaded again. I had barely finished when the sharp order oame—“Now men, now! close up and follow.” We sprang to our feet and obeyed. Then I caught a gfimpse of the enemy through the smoke. Our fire had staggered them, or they would have been upon us before. Now, as they saw us close ranks and start at a trot towards the forest on the left, perhaps two hundred yards away, they seemed to recover themselves and close their shattered lines once more. A few shots, fired for the most part over our heads came after us. There was a yell—« louder, more fierce and wild than anything I had heard before; then the war parties on both sides hurled themselves after us. I should like to describe it, but it "seems impassible now. Fortunately we w;er© clear of the smoke from our own rifles, and could see where we were going as well as the crowd of demon-like figures that rushed at ns from both sides, leaping, yell!mg, striking at us with tomahawks or gurus, or sometimes with naked fists in their excitement. We were half way to the forest before they were actually upon us, and then it became something ‘like the wildest of nightmares. Flashing eyes, waving black hair, that tossed and floated in ‘the wind, arms that rose and fell, tomahawks that flashed in the sunshine as they were brandished in the air, or

crashed against the stocks or barrels of rifles. I could only pretend to see what was close to me, and generally my eyes were too much dazzled to see that clearly. I had warded off several blows generally I think by thrusting my rifle barrel like a spear at the faces opposed to me, When I saw a big Maori spring forward with a huge tomahawk that had a handle of whalebone three feet long ait least. A quick glance showed me that he was trying to reach Dick from behind., and in a moment more I thought he must do it. I was too far away to interfere, but at the moment I remembered that I had loaded my rifle since I fired last. In an instant it went to my ishoullder and I fired. The huge native gave a yell and leaped three feet into the ah*; next instant I stepped over him and passed onWe reached the forest at last, and •While some of us turned and beat them back the rest loaded their rifles and

began to fire from the cover. But tb@ Maoris had had enough of us. Slowly, and reluctantly they fed back and let us go—those of us that were left. Tlh® captain was there and Dick was theret, but many were missing—left lying somewhere among the stumps and logs on that blood-stained hill side. We found them there nest day. The natives had gathered up their own killed and won need and gone back. Many a bloody spot on the line of their inarch told the story of the fiercest fight the tribe had fought for thirty years, but the spot where we entered the forest was the farthest point they got to in their attempt co invade the .settled country. That night, as we heard later the fleet of canoes paddled slowly up the Waikato, and instead of the song I had heard the chief chanting at the stern as they came they sang a low wail for their dead. (To be Continued.) / ______