OBITUARY

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LIII, Issue 16375, 24 June 1927, Page 8

OBITUARY

A FOLLOWER OF TE KpOTI LIVED TO 101 YEARS An old follower of the notorious To Kooti, Mika Kawhena. of the Mahaki tribe, died at Whatatutu on Wednesday evening. Mika had belonged to the Whatatutu district in the early days, and joined up with the bauhau movement, lie was amongst those deported with To Kooti to the Chatham Islands in the sixties. Mika is reported to have actually assisted Te Kooti in overpowering the guard at the islands and in seizing the Rifleman, in which they made the return voyage to New Zealand, landing at Whareongaonga about three years after I heir deportation. He remained with Te Kooti .subsequently and was prominent in the East Coast campaign. During one of the latter skirmishes, Ngatapa. it is believed, Mika was wounded in the thigh. When hostilities concluded he. returned to Whatatutu and settled down there to a peaceful life. Although he was reputed l to have attained the great age of 101 years, Mika. always a powerful man, enjoyed good health until a, few weeks before his death, when he was attended by the native nurse. He was well-known throughout the flpotiki and East Coast districts, and' was widely respected. A tangi is now in progress at Whatatutu, and 1 the- funeral takes place at Te llau station to-morrow.