SCENES FROM THE LIFE OF TE RAUPARAHA.

Otago Witness, Issue 2513, 14 May 1902, Page 60

SCENES FROM THE LIFE OF TE RAUPARAHA.

By Jessie Mackat.

As we have seen, Te Rauparaha was now master of the Straits, and of the west coast of the North Island to Wanganui, and beyond it. Having firearms eneough, he now •turned his mind towards the second object that had tempted him to leave Kawhia — the South Island, with its greenstone. He had a treasured grievance to hand in the rash speech of a Kaikoura chief, Rere*rhaka, who had said some years previously ••'that if Te Rauparaha dared to land in the South Island he, Rerewhaka, would Wp up his body with a shark's tooth.' jThis was sufficient excuse for a punitive expedition; and- accordingly, in 1828, Te ■Eaupahara was_ ready to set out. In true •avage fashion, "he began by destroying an (unoffending section of the Rangitane tribe, then holding D'Urville Island. The simple Islanders fell before European muskets, and tTe Raupai-aha marched on to destroy the pa of the ill-fated boaster, Rerewhaka. •After that he subdued the peaceful and unBuspecting pa of Omihi, on the borders of Canterbury. But the powerful strongholds of Ngai Tahu, in Canterbury itself, were Siot" to be taken by surprise. Rauparaha lUmded at Kaiapohia (Kaiapoi) with all demonstrations of friendship ; and some time [was spent in the wonted ceremonial exthange of presents and compliments, ft gai feshu, iowevepj regarded their . distinguished visitor somewhat as a company jof mice might regard an apparently friendly cat ; nor were their suspicions allayed {when terrible rumours crept down from Dmihi. The plotting and counter-plotting jof the two parties was abruptly closed by Wn act of treachery on the part of Ngai Tahu. Chief among the friends who accompanied the Ariki south was his relative, Te Pehi. Te Pehi was a man of considerable force of character, who, fired witli emulation on hearing of Hongi's English reception, had gone Home as a stowaway, and had the good fortune to meet with Jnany friends over the sea. Like Hongi, he turned all gifts into money to buy firearms; and was now the most powerful of Rauparaha's men. He was on friendly terms with the Ngai Tahu leaders, and some connections by marriage among that tribe. Unfortunately, a chief £rom the Bay of Islands -was visitinc- -the .Canterbury pas at the time. Now Pehi (was renowned as a warrior throughout the North. Island, and not long before had plain a great chief of the Bay of Islands, the Auckland man persuaded Tamaharanui, fchief of Akaroa, to murder Te Pehi on this account. Accordingly, Te Pehi and W) of his men -were suddenly massacred. JRauparaha fled north, and for a year matured his plans of vengeance on Ngai Tahu. [Eauiaharanui, of Akaroa, was the first object of that vengeance ; and the method he employed was one of the darkest blots on Jus career. Rauparaha agreed with the Captain Stewart that for a large preward the latter should carry him and a pumber of his followers hidden in the brig (Elizabeth to the Peninsula, and decoy Tainaharanui and his family on hoard to trade Jwith the white men. This was done. SVhen the Akaroa chief went below he saw BRauparaha and the son of Te Pehi, and knew he was trapped. Being bound himself, he signed to his wife, whose hands "were free, to strangle their daughter, a beautiful young girl named Nga Roimata (Tear Drops). Without hesitation, the Another gave this terrible proof of love, knd saved the poor little maiden from the porrors of slavery. The unhappy father Bras carried to Kapiti, and cruelly pub to Heatih by PehTs widow. Stewart received 555 tons of flax, and went to Sydney. Lax though the morals of Sydney were then, the horror of his crime marked him as a Jeper ; he was tried, but acquitted on some Ifiaw of evidence ; and soon after he was lost TVH»n his ship and crew on the way to Valparaiso. Tho fate of Tamaharanui was but a detail in the Ariki's schemes, however. So ,n qe invested Kaiapohia, the strongest pa in Canterbury, built on the seashore some six miles from modern Kaiapoi. This was about the year 1830. T<he siege of Kaiapohia lasted three month"!, and was the greatest event in the history of southern warfare since the battles of Ngai Tahnand and Ngatimamoe about the sixteenth century. The ganison received reinforcements from Akaroa and from the great chief of Otakou. Taiaroa. After gallant service, however, Taiaroa's men abandoned the hopeless •truggle, making a daring retreat through the md* iff &c Kfe Mays Adventurous

feats were performed by individual braves, and Kaiapohia did not fall till the elements themselves fought against her in the shape of the wild Canterbury nor'-wester. A pile of brushwood was lighted near, and the flames were carried to the walls. A very fow escaped to the Peninsula ; many had ] already fallen ; a great number were murdered at once to furnish a cannibal feast, and all who remained were carried away j as slaves to Kapiti. Rauparaha was not j satisfied even yet, however, and returned to destroy the (powerful pa of Onawe, at , the head of Akaroa Harbour (then called Wangaloa, afterwards contracted to Akaloa, J tlien to Akaroa}. The beautiful bays of j thy Peninsula resounded with the dying I groans of Ngai Tahu and the furious yells of the cannibal victors. Te Rauparaha then ravaged the Maori settlements on the ' Rakaia; but did not think fit to go to Otakou and try conclusions with the powerful Taiaroa. He was satisfied to be mas- , ter of the South Island as far as Waitaki, and withdrew, after a narrow escape from falling into the hands of Tuhawaiki, well known in the Maori annals of Otago and , Canterbury as Bloody Jack. Tuhawaiki was a southern chic . .who came up to head the remnants of Xgai Tahu still left about the ruined pas ; almost every chief of note between the straits and Waitaki j having fallen in the Avars of Te Rauparaha. ! Tuhawaiki, despite his English name^ — a ' name he owed to the rough friendliness of ' the whalers frequenting the coast — was a comparatively peaceful and "well-disposed ; chief, who used his influence to protect white men, and became a notable figure; in • the transition period of the South Island. For the genuine Maori period of the South Island ended with the victories of Rauparaha at the beginning of the thirties : the day of the whaler set in. soon followed by the day of the regular colonist, who peacefully enlarged his bounds, unchecked by such devastating wars as wasted the North Island for fully 40 years after the fall of Kaiapohia. Rauparaha had now attained the objects of his early ambition. No Maori leader dared attack the powerful chief of Kapiti. Naturally, he was not loved by the tribes his mana overawed ; they vented their feelings in poetry, sine© fighting was denied, and sang songs of his deceitfulness. He was ever the generous friend and protector of the white traders, now numerous about the Straits. The settlers of the newly-founded province of Wellington, in after days, looked on him as all that was bad. Yet, reading closely the few records of these days, it does not seem proved that Rauparaha was ever an enemy to the white men. He maintained himself that lie was not ; his noble son, Tamihana, declared the same. But there I is no doubt that one of his house was the j bitter enemy of Wellington and the pa- j keha ; and to bis alliance with >his person i there is no doubt that Rauparaha owed I much of the odium that remains upon his ; name. I speak of Rangihaeata, the nephew of Rauparaha, though apparently very little younger than tlie Ariki. This man, a fierce, bloodthirsty savage, wanting in the better Maori qualities, was closely ajjied j with Rauparaha at the time of his greatest I victories ; he never seems to have bad -much ' part in the southern campaigns of his uncle ; but remained about the Straits, winning the ill-will of the settlers, and fanning embers of strife that else might have died harmlessly. ] For the days of the Maori Terror were ' drawing to a close. In that 20 years 60,000 Maories had fallen in tribal warfare, i The land was sick of bloodshed. Dim gleams of a higher light, once possessed by the ancient Polynesian, troubled ths minds of the nobler young men. Help within i themselves and" their tribal system there was none, nor any in the godless traders and whalers of the coast. But tales reached t the Straits of a wonderful new faith in the far north that had broken the war god's | power among the fierce Ngapuhi there. The missionary station established by Marsden still worked at the Bay of Islands. Little seemed to have been done for many years. The first convert, was not baptised till 11 years after the landing of Marsden. Now the work went on apace ; arts, learning, agriculture followed in the wake of peace. Many of Rauparaha's young men heard 1 these things and pondered over them. Most of all did they touch the hearts of Tamibana, the Ariki's son, and Matene te Whiwhi, his nephew. Against the wishes of their elder?, these noble young chiefs persevered till they were allowed to set ont for the Bay of Islands to ask for a Christian teacher. In 1839 they reached their destination, *-hich was indeed the stronghold of their ancient enemy Ngapuhi. After much trouble, the mission was able to spare them the Rsv. Octavius Hadfield. who went back with them to Kapiti, and began his life-long labours in the Straits, helped by Tamihana and Matene, who, to learn more fully themselves, went for a time to Bishop Sehvyn's school for chiefs' sons, at Auckland (To be continued.) — To increase their powers of endurance 2oz of sugar ?re now included in the daily food of army horses in Argentina. — Hor«e chestnuts contain about 27 per cont. albumen, this remarkable proportion being greater than is fov.nd in any cultivated plats, but their bitter taste, due to the presence of about 10 per cent, of a bitter resin, has condemned them as n^i for food. By extracting the bitter principle, R. Flugsce. of Hanover, claims to have made useful another waste material. After partial roasting- to loosen the shell?, the kernels arc removed and pulverised, and the powder is placed in a tight percolator with alcohol for about a wrek. To extract the- bitter component ccmplctelv. ifc may be necessary to replace the fuid with fresh solvent. The alcohol dif3olve? out the resin, leaving a pleasant and uuiritioiis meal, which contains all the albumen sud starch of the cVspptnuts, and is a valuable food. T !»p " Microbe." bringing cough and cold, Has nov. r a i bu#v season. And bound to get a lasting hold Unless we list to reason Nfjjlect may I>rinsr u= to the grave, That's po c itive and snre. But fvn.v danzcr we ear braye 1 SVitii y-iQQUii' GiiiiO; £&UMUUU3£ vSfiS,