THE NTATIVE WAR.

Otago Witness, Issue 481, 16 February 1861, Page 9

THE NTATIVE WAR.

ANOTHER BATTLE.

By the steamer Omeo, which arrived here on Sunday from Canterbury, we. have papers to the 9th inst. The " Lyttleton Times" of .that date contains news, received by the brig--antine " Pilot" from Wellington, of another engagement on the 23rd ult. at Taranaki between the British troops and the Maories, in which, the latter were repulsed with considerable loss. • The following is from the " Taranaki Herald," January 26 :— The heaviest blow of the war has been struck. During the week a storming party of 14X> of the gallanted men that Ngatiahaua, Ngutimaniapoto, Waikato, or Ngatiawa could produce, headed by Rewi, Epiha, Ilapnrona, and others, and supported by a reserved force of 300 more, a few hundred yards in their rear, has had the courage to attack a well entrenched redoubt full of 360 men of the 40th regt." At the grey of dawn on Wednesday the 23rd it was discovered by the sentry that this party had- crept into the ditch of' No. 3 redoubt, and was preparing, to assault. The fire of the reserve kept our men from the bank, and the happy expedient was adopted of throwing live shells among the heap of living beings in the trench. After their explosion, and hardly after it, onrgallant. fellows J rushed into the ditch upon their assailants, and after a deadly struggle of twenty minutes the enemy was routed, leaving 41 dead bodies and five wounded prisoners, four of whom - have since died. In the meantime, immediately on hearing the noise, Colonel Wyatt sent 250 men of the 65th and 12th from the garrison of the Kairau redoubt in all haste to the scene, who -passing part on one side and part on the other of the combatants fell in with the reserve, whom they attacked with the bayonet, and drove them before them into the bush. . Our gallant fellows lo*t 5 killed and 11 wounded, and of these 11 only a part it is to be feared will recover of their wounds. r , The moral effect of this affair will be imj mensely valuable. The extreme caution of the. responsible commanders has led to the mistaken impression among the natives that our .race, and especially our soldiers, are physi- . cally timid. They could hardly deny our superiority in the arts and .mechanism of war. Now they have felt the pluck and vigour of the hearts and arms of our soldiers ; and those who have not hitherto entangled themselves in this miserable struggle, will not, with' a few exceptions,' be likely to drop in now. The gallant 40th have abundantly retrieved Puke- . tafcauere, and recovered in the eye 3of the Maori a"ny prestige "they may have : lost. Cols. Wyatt and Leslie, the officers and men of the , 12th, -4.oth, and 6*ith, by their wise, prompt, and bold conduct on Wednesday last, have laid a lasting, debt. on New Zealand — they have changed the face of the war. The timely arrival of the first. instalment of the 57th Regiment, and the " intelligence brought by the November mail' of the deoarture of a battery of Armstrong guns and 250 men, with rumours of further aid, are further grounds for thankfulness.

The Herald 111 1 journal gives the following additional particulars : —

Before daylight, this morning, about 140 natives contrived, under cover of the darkness, to creep into the ditch of No. 3 redoubt, un- . observed by the sentries, and had prepared to tcale the embankment by scraping, steps with tomahawks and their fingers. At the grey of morning, a sentry perceived one man-— the last of the party — creeping ,to the brow, of the ditch : he fired on him, and was immediately shot dead himself. The garrison, consisting of' the greater part of the 40th, under command of Colonel Leslie, met the attack with great - .promptitude, and a scene ens.ued wh.iph baffles ■d<seriptton. Our troops, as fast as they could ' load their rifles, fired down over the parapet, and the artillerymen, with gceat coolness, cut short the fuses of the shells, and lighting them pitched them over into the trench with frightful execution. Lieutenant Jackson, 40th reg, while in the act of firing at a native over the parapet with his revolver, was shot through the head, and fell mortally wouuded. Some natives succeeded in getting so far up the parapet that they were bayonetted by the garrison. This sanguinary conflict. was prolonged till daylight, when the "support came . up from Kairau, a party of the 65th attacking the rebels on their right flank, while the 1 2th attacked them on the left of the redoubt ; here they met with the rebel reserve, who rose up out of the fern like a flock of birds. These were charged by the. 12th at the point of the bayonet, and those of the natives who could, j turned and fled, leaving many behind them. It was all over by 6 a.m., and in the trenches ,of the redoubt and round lay 49 bodies of rebels, 5 only of whom were alive. 41 were buried in a grave between No. 2 and 3 redoubts, others were buried bj' the friendly natives. 13 chief men are stated to be amongst the slain, but many of the bodies were beyond identification. The wounded natives are all dangerously so. Our casualties are . 5 killed Khdll woiKuded, vis:— -■ . KILLED. 1 ' ' . " - ' "• Boyal Engineers— Sapper George Chubb. 12th Regt.— Private Edward Archer. -40th Regt.—Lieutenant Jackson; Private '„ Gilbert, Private Edward Gorray. WOVNDED. 1 • Royal Artillery.— Daniel Bushnell, slightly. , 12th Regt. Captain T. E. Miller, slightly ; Private Patrick Cahill, severely, tomahawk ; Private Edmond Power, slightly. • 40th Regt.— Private Henry Wakefield, severely;' Private John Officer, dangerously: Private John Mulling slyhtly. . 65th Regt.— Lance Corporal James Howard, dangerously ; Private Edward Smith, ditto ; Private Joseph Robinson, ditto ; Private Samuel Hamilton, severely. (From a Correspondent.) Kairu Camp, Jan. 17, 1861. , Since I wrote last, we have not had such an engagement with the enemy as would enable us to achieve any brilliant or decisive victory -oVet-them,"«lth6ftgh"mari5 r events of interest .and importance baveoccurred in our relations with the r&eiy. Late ori Saturday evening, the 12th ihst., One of the bullock drivers, whilst attending to his' cattle close to the camp, discovered a Maori in the fern. Not 'knowing at the, moment that his supposed was a woman, he presented his piece, and was about to. fire ; but she, having called _to himjn Maori to spare, he did so, and immediately" led her a willing prisoner to the camp. Her approach excited the curiosity of ,the garrison, apd the men gathered in crowds eager, to see her. The appearance of the the poor creature so much that-, the trembled Hk<* a leaf^r'tHc tffeefev bn£ she restored to confidence by the kindne»t evinced towards her. by Colonel Wyatt, yrlss dispprsed the cnowd,with a mild rebuke, and; quietly walked the poor captive up and down the fort. • /There were marks of violence otfher face, and fJie had stolen away secretly td-*eek protection in puc camp. The Colonel »eht' her down to Waitara, where she 13 in custody^of the friendly natives, though it is beHcvefr iHey do no^ manifest muchifrieudship teberU r- •-■"-:' 1 . >O , Since- the cspt are of Mat trikoriko the rebels aavV^m^db^ih? Huirttngi bush at the head of ■ itfce Waitara plain.tueir chief rendezvous, and iir&casional shell has bfrin pent to them from onr camp every day.. Agreeably to ordera re- * eeiyed, oh, Monday, evening jhtjb were , under ' SS^L^W^y-foM ttoMMd.,,afc ./fcybreakion Monday, the 14th instant, Being joined by. a wrong' force; of the I4tb, ,40th, and Naval • iff ' ,

Brigade from Waitara, and a division of the ,12th, we marched towards the enemy; the 6.5 th extended in skirmishing order covering the advance, the other troops forming flanking guards and reserve. The enemy's position was the same as that taken upon the 11th September, but. rendered more formidable in the time that has elapsed. Ai we approached _the Hnirangi we could distinctly see the natives hurrying down from the bu«h in great numbers, and manning their rifle-pits. The-e were sunk in long lines along the front edge of the forest, and according as the natives took up their respective positions they commenced firing, though the range was yet too long. We were still eagerly advancing, and expected to have what soldiers term a " big day," when we were unexpectedly halted within a thousand yards of the enemy. Here Colonel Mould marked out the site for a new position. Gabions were laid, breastworks were thrown up, trenches dug, and the outlines of a atronn little fort soon appeared, six hundred yards in advance of that taken up on the 28th December, 1860. It was nearly 6, a.m., when the Maories commenced firing, and they seemed for a while to be very bold, occasionally walking about on the clear ground in front of their rifle' pits as if to defy us. For a while we took no notice of them, but their daring having increased, we at length levelled our rifles and sent them a few whizzing messengers that soon told them the necessity of getting into their earth holes. Three guns and a rocket tuhe were now brought into position, and the bush and rifle pits were scoured with shell.

One of the eight-inch guns from the Kairau fort was also brought to bear, and the Maories were astonished to find that shell could be thrown over our heads upon them. The gun and rocket practice was equal to any I have ever seen -at Portsmouth or Chatham, at known distances, and was certainly the best seen in New Zealand since the war commenced. The natives gave but very little reply — they reserved their fire evidently expecting us to advance upon them every moment. But they were mistaken, for this was not the General's plan. About ten of the enemy hoisted the King's flag, as if in defiance. The rocket tube and gun 3 were instantly brought to play on the rebel standard, and shell after shell was seen bursting at the base of the staff, and over the flag so close as to call forth acclamations of praise-from every one. The greatest emulation was evinced among the gunners as to who would have the honour of taking it down ; but they were all spared the trouble, for the Maories either to save the flag or something more valuable that might be near it, lowered it themselves. At the very instant that it was descending a shell from the 8-inch gun burst on the very top of the staff; placing the Maori who was at the halyards in such jeopardy that if he was not killed, he must have been •well frightened. The firing was again directed on the rifle-pits and other places of cover known to be occupied by the rebels. They replied occasionally, but very few of their bullets reached us, and none of them did us the slightest harm. At noon, Major Nelson, with a few of the 40th, hastened to the bush on our right flank to reconnoitre it. Some shots were exchanged, but the party was speedily recalled. Business went on in this way all day with no other change than relieving the working parties, that each corps might have a turn of the field and entrenching duties. The fort was completed about 5 p.m., and we were called in from the field. A company of the 40th made up to 100 by the 65th was left to occupy the advanced post for the night. It is still garrisoned by the 4oth, and a few of the Royal Artillery, who send the Maories a shell whenever they see a good opportunity. The natives still seem very bold, and are often seen in groups about their rifle-pits.

I must now pass over minor occurrences, .and tell you of a most distressing event that happened yesterday, the 16th instant. Two men, James M'Kendrj', of .No. 5 of .the 65th, and M'Cauley, "of the Engineers, were cooks for their respective tents. Firewood being scarce about the camp, both men went in com pany to get some from an old fence about 200 yards from the camp. They never thought of danger, for every man in the camp when cook, was in the habit of going to the same place for wood. The natives, however, had a strong ambuscade within a few yards waiting an opportunity to attack a more considerable party who were foraging for potatoes several j hundred yards distant. But the savages were so sanguine they could not resist the opportunity of attacking two unarmed men, and they fired a volley on them from a distance of a few yards. * The moment the firing was heard Colonel Wyatt shouted " To arms men," and in an instant a hundred of us, under command cf Captain Strange, were in quick pursuit of the enemy. We met M'Cauley coming home, his arm wag broken, and bleeding profusely. As we thought he was the only person who had suffered we did not delay to a»»k questions but eagerly followed the pursuit. We were soon encountered by a party of the rebels who opened fire upon us from a scrub that.lined the banks of a gulley, and from behind sonic small mounds. We commenced a heavy fire 6n them, and they were soon obliged tony before us, — we were still in pursuit when the retire sounded from the camp. On our return we discovered a long train of blood upon a road that led from the gully across the Kairau plain. We traced it as far as the fence before mentioned, where we found the road marked as if a man had been dragged along it. Not knowing that one of our men was missing, we concluded that the blood we saw was that of some Maori that was struck by our bullets. We were confirmed in this opinion by having found near the spot a large weapon made of hard white whale-bone, in the shape of a karaka leaf, with a band for the wrist attached to the small end. Under this impression we returned to camp. M'Kendry, however, was missed, in our absence. The companies were fell in and rolls called, but poor Mac was nowhere to be found. His belts were in his tint, and the awful truth became instantly obvious that our poor comrade was killed and carried off by the natives ! In a second we were again off thiough the country under Capt. Strange, determined to find the man at any cost, or to avenge hia death. Our search was fruitless. We skirmished through fern and thistles higher than ourjshouldera till we came to a tributary stream of the Waiongana river, a mile and ahalf distant from our camp, where stood a good de^lofbush. The right sub-division under Lieutenants Urquhart and Pennefatlier, were left to guard the right flank and secure our retreat, whilst the sub-division led on by Cap- ) tain Strange crossed the river to reconnoitre the south side. ' It is hard to say how far the Captain would have followed the pursuit had notthe Adjutant-General rode up to us and orderedan instant retreat. ' The jstep was necessary, but Under the circumstances we could riot help feeling a.reluctance in returning without our lost comrade. We regret M-Kendry rvery much — he was a good soldier, always ready for the field, and full of wit and- pleasantry. After spending over fifteen years in the service it wai a sad' fate to be kidnapped l»y a horde of merciless savages. We hope soon to avenge him, and' the remembrance of his fate will leave but little room lor mercy in the breasts of his comrades. O. P. • Kairau Camp, Jnnuary 18. Shortly after I sent my letter of yesterday for postage, the two companies of the 65th so long- ekpec(ed from Napier, arrived at our camp preparatory to their "taking a part in this day's" operations. The men were so black with dust that we could only recognize our acquaintances by the tone of theTr voices. IThere -was something inexpressibly affecting ;in the,- warm ' enthusiastic greeting* of com•rade* who had not seen each other. for several years, and who now met for the glorious ob-

ject of fighting successfully in their Country's cause, against a brave though savage enemy. Half an hour after sunrise this morning- we were joined by the 40th and two companies of the 14th from Waitara. A few moments sufficed for preliminaries, and -the whole focce was quickly in position on the field. The 12th, 14th, and 40th formed one grand line of skirmishers, extending from the brow of the Waitara valley right across the broad plain in front of the Iluirangi bush. Flanking parties were thrown out to command the valley on the left, and the long tract' of bush land on the right of the plain. The 65th was this time the reserve and engineering divisions. The skirmishers advanced within five hundred yaids of the enemy before a shot was exchanged, and their further advance was cheeked by that little word "halt," always hateful to a soldier when his enemy is near. Colonel Mo. ild selected the position for another redoubt, and the engineering party went to work under cover of the skirmishers. The Maories now slowly opened fire from their rifle pits, and in a few minutes the thunder of our field pieces was poured upon them with admirable precision and accuracy oi" range. The fiie of one 9-pounder, one 12pouuder, three 24-pounders, two 8-inch guns, •and a 24-pound rocket tube, was opened upon them nearly at the same moment, so that "the Maories never before had such a terrible discharge of* artillery concentrated on one point against them. The rapidity and constancy with which shell was showered upon them left them no time to devise new stratagems* They several times endeavoured to cause jLdiversion by sending parties arouiul to dis charge random volleys on our flunks, but we were only amused to see them blazing away their ammunition so harmlessly. Our fire told well upon them, for the General placed the skirmishers so skilfully that no matter where a Maori popped up his head, the quick e}'e and read}' rifle of our troops had them under cover, whilst the big guns were so quickly directed to every point where Maori smoke could be seen, that it was impossible for them to avail themselves of their plan of getting under their burrows when they see the flash. On one occasion two Maories were seen perched on the branches of a withered tree, from which they were firing. A gun was pointed for it and the next instant the tree and its occupants were levelled to the earth with a thundering crash. The natives, did not once dare to assault us on level ground during the whole day : they got sick of that on .the 29th of December.

The most advanced redoubt was completed early this evening (for work is done rapidly in the field), and two bastions are to be added to it to-morrow. It stands ooliquely to ; the left of the other forts, between nv-e and i six' hundred yards off the enemy's rifle pits,, so that the natives will now have hut little chance of showing themselves without being picked off, for the range is excellent ipr .our rifles. I hope that in my next I_ will" have the pleasure of telling you that the Iluirangi rifle pits are ours, for the enemy will not be long suffered to occupy them, even if their rout costs a charge. Though so close to the Maories, we had but one casualty to-day — a man of the artillery wounded. Dr. Grayling, the correspondent of the '• Herald," Avas struck in the breast by a spent ball. I suppose we will never learn the loss the enemy has sustained, and it is equally hard to conjecture what course they will pursue when beaten off the Iluirangi.