AN EARLY VISITOR.

Otago Witness, Issue 2818, 18 March 1908, Page 47

AN EARLY VISITOR.

OTAGO HARBOUR VISITED IN 1817

AN UNFRIENDLY RECEPTION.

The cordial treatment accorded to the prospective purchasers in 1844 was very different to that given a sealing vessel, the Sophia, from Tasmania, in 1817. The 6tory s told in the Hon. Mr M'Nab'6 " Murihiku." The Sophia was a brig, and belonged to the Derwent, and her owner was Mr T. W. Birch, of Hobart Town. Her commander was Mr James Kelly, who is alleged to have made himself famous in 1815 by a voyage around Tasmania in an open boat. The brig sailed from the Derwent on November 12, 1817, and on December 11 anchored in Port Daniel (now Otago Harbour). The same day the skipper went ashore with a boat' 6 crew and found the Natives friendly. On the 12th a visit was made to a place called Small Bay (now believed to be Murdering Beach, between the Heads and

Purakanui Bay), where there was a village. Here they were kindly received, Out after a great number of Natives had collected together, an unexpected and

murderous attack was made upon the party. Kelly and three men escaped to the boat, and three others were killed — John Griffiths, Veto Violi, and William

i Tucker. Reaching the vessel the sur- ! vivors found over 150 Natives on board, | and apparently no hope of getting the ! vessel clear of them. So closely packed

were the sealers that they could not use their arms, but drawing their sealing knives at close quarters they fell upon the brown mass of humanity on the

decks, and by simplj- carving a way out were able to account for 50 Maoris by the time the vessel was clear. Subsequently another attempt was made to capture the

vessel, but it was unsuccessful. Then : Kelly landed a party on December 24 and i cut their fleet of boats into firewood, I Having thus destroyed their navy, on the

26th their town of 600 huts was burnt, and on the 27th the Sophia sailed for Chatham Islands. In those days there was no parleying as to who was in the right or the wrong. To be decisive, action had to be both prompt and successful. The Mr Tucker referred to in this narrative as having been killed at Small Bay, or Murdering Beach, was credited with being a Maori head-hunter. Preserved Maori heads were in some considerable demand about that time, and in 1820 it had assumed such dimensions that the public conscience in Sydney was aroused and the traffic discountenanced.