FEARFUL MASSACRES AT POVERTY BAY.

Colonist, Issue 1165, 4 December 1868, Page 6

FEARFUL MASSACRES AT POVERTY BAY.

THIRTY-ONE EUROPEANS, AND MO.KR TITAN rIFTTY NATIVES EO.HitLi3'.A" MVRUEUKD BY A BAND OF HAUHAU3, LED BY TE KOOTI.

FRIGHTFUL ATROCITIES COMMITTED BY

THE HAUHAUS,

THRILLING* ADVENTURES OF A LADY

AND HER LITTLE SON.

ENGAGEMENT BETWEEN THE LOYAL

NATIVES AND THE ENEMY.

PREPARATIONS FOR STRIKING THE ENEMY A CRUSHING BLOW.

(From Hie New Zealand Herald, Nov. 14)

Never has it fallen to our lot to chronicle a more painful, a more disastrous event than happened on Tuesday morning last at Matawhero, near Turanganui, in Poverty Bay. Tales of bloodshed, rapine> v.n'\ violence have latterly become so rife that it is no common event which could produce the startling cfleets which the news received yesterday by the s.s. lord AVnley has done; but an attack of such an unprovoked nature upon a peaceful settlement, the wholesale night massacre of men, women, and children, surprised in their sleep, and butchered in cold blood, with such horrible accompaniments of cruelty n:ul treachery, lias perhaps not been equalled since siy.no of the worst episodes in the Sepoy mutiny in Bengal curdled the blood of Europe with their unheard-of atrocities. Every week seems to add to fhe catalogue of crimes with which the name of ITauhauism is associated, and their last deed seems to exceed in horror anything they have hitherto done. Gaining in confidence by their successes in various quarters, they seem fairly to have commenced their plan of attempted extermination, and a few more nights' work like that of Tuesday last will place the E:wt Coast at their entire disposal. From the lips of a lady who providentially escaped from the midst of fire and sword, and arrived in Auckland by the Lord Ashley yesterday morning, we have hoard the h-ir-rowing particulars of this blood-stained story —a red day for ever in (he annuls of the Colony. The settlement attacked 13 called Miilawlmro, and is situated about six miles above Turanganui, the port ibr the settlers of the district, and the spot where Captain Cook first landed in New Zealand.

Although no immediate danger was apprehended, a v.arty of scouts had boon for some time patrolling iivonr.d the outskirts of the settlement, all picked wen, iiii'l under the command of Mr. Gascoigne. Around and beyond the settlement were several shoe}} ;:ta; ion?, ns fur as Wlmrangahika, upon which were livii'g those in charge of tliem, with stockkecpers,

&c. CV.pUiin Bloomfield's house and that of ?>tnjor '£':2%* were a few minutes' walk apart,, and wore sitsuted at Mntawhero. Captain Bloomfield but klelv died, and his widow was residing in the house, luil- 'lately built ai a cost of £1000, with her four children, a sister, and Mis 3 Parker, who, with a little brother, was on a visit, and a boy servant. About three o'clock on Tuesday morning a boy named Charlie J-nnes, a servant at Major Biggs' house, came to Mrs. Bloonifiold's house breathless, and woke up the boy, telling him that the Ilauliaus were attacking Major Biug's house and murdering the family, and that Major Biggs was killed. The whole household was at once aroused, and the three ladies, not having time to dress, wrapped a few shawls and cloaks aro'ind themselves and the children, and leaving the house, fled for their lives across the Hats in the direction of Turanganui, accompanied by the two boys. On looking back after leaving their home the house of Mr. Wilson, distant five minutes' walk, was observe-.! to be on lire. After more than an hour of exposure and great exertion, the party arrived at the redoubt at Turanganui about five a.m., and were the first to convey the dreadful news to the people there, who h:rl only heard some firing, and did not know

a *-.;.• ]i:iri ieutari of what was going on. Upon their fiiviv.il tb'.'y found the schooner Tawera had just left t'io \).>vt, but Captain Bead at once manned a boat niirl pa!!-cl oil' to her, and she at once returned to port. Tlio schooner Success also put back, and the Iceieh Eagle came in during that afternoon, and at once communicated with the shore.

Shortly after the arrival of Mr 3. Bloomfield and party at the Redoubt, parties of refugees began to drop in, each of them having escaped by a marvel, and all with some talc of horror to relate.

The boy Charlie James thus relates the attack upon the house of Major Biggs. He says that about tlnvo o'clock on Tuesday morning the Major was awakened by a noise outside the hotiso, and imagining it to be caused by the return of some of the scouts, went outside, and asked who was there; the reply was a volley from tho wretched savages, by whicli, however, the Major was only wounded. He immediately cried out to awaken his family, and told them to run for their lives, as the house was attacked by the Hauhaus. The boy Charlio at ouco ran to the front of the house but found natives there, he then tried the back and found that blockaded also, and finally he managed to elude the vigilance of the natives by crawling underneath the verandah boards, and concealing himself in some flax in the immediate neighborhood of the house, whence ho had a view of the entire proceedings of all parties. On looking brick he saw that the Hauhaus had got into the kitchen, and were lighting the fire, and eating some food they had discovered; poor Major Biggs was laid xipon the ground outside, and one of the fiends was beating out his brains with the butt end of a musketMrs. Biggs was held in the arms of others of these brutes, screaming to be allowed to go to her husband, and struggling to escape, and Jane Farrell, the nurse, "whose husband was wounded in a former engagement at Is apier, and whose parents reside in this city, was holding the baby, an infant of seven months old, and was heard lo say that she would stay with Mrs. Biggs, and would live or die with her. Tho whole family were afterwards seen killer, and lying on the ground outside. The boy, Charlie James, after witne«ing this frightful scene, fled towards Mr. Bloomfield's house, and in passing that of Mr. Wilson heard the doors being battered in, and volleys fired, and shortly afterwards saw flames breaking out of the windows. He states that the yard round Mr. Bigg's residence was full of Maoris, and that they seemed to bo very-numerous in the immediate'neighborhood. Mr. and Mrs. Wilson and their four children were afterwards seen dead.

A little boy, a brother of-Mrs. M'Culloch, aged eleven years, arrived at Turang.inui on the afternoon of Tuesday, accompanied by Mrs. James and her sis children, who had made their escape from Mr. Goldsmith's through the scrub, The little boy says thai whilst Mr. M'Culloch was getting in the cows "to mill, in the early morning, he was surprised and chased b} the Haulmus. Ho fled- towards his house, and hi? family hearing the alarm, rushed out and endoavorer to escape. Mrs. M'Culloch's little brother ran a-hoarl of the others, and relates that on looking back he saw his sister following him, and that he beckoned her to hurry on. Shots were then being firod in rapid sue cession, aud in reply to his signals she shook her head and fell. Mr. aud Mrs. M'Culloch and their child, and a niece aged seven year 3, were all victims to the attack.

working at sheep shearing at the station of Messrs. Pepperd and Dodd, who were partners in a sheep run at Matawhero, and on Tuesday morning he went to the station to work as usual, quite unaware that anything had happened, and proceeded to the shed to sharpen his shoai'3 ; hearing no one about he then went up to the house, and found Messrs. Pepperd and Dodd lying shot, on the ground, outside the door, with no other covering than their shirts. He at once ran oil'find wanted Air. \l. Aikin and his wife, who immediately came down from Wairangi, and on their way down saw the Wilson family lying murdered outside their house.

Goldsmith, a stockman on Captain -Bead's station, lteard firing at an early hour on Tuesday morning in the direction of Mr. 'Mann's "house, and saddling a horse, at once galloped oil' to the spot. Coming suddenly upon the house he beheld a most dreadful spectacle. The Ilauhau demons wero dragging -Mrs. Mann out of the door by the hair of the head, and striking her, arid upon getting her outside they were proceeding to set fire to her clothes, when some of the/n, catching sight of Goldsmith, made a spring at the bridle of his horse. Goldsmith, however, being an excellent rider, put spurs to his horse and rode right over ?ome of the wretches; he was hotly pursued by a number of thorn, but fortunately their firearms were not loaded, and he effected his escape into the redoubt. Mr. and Mra. Mann and their child were all killed.

Aboufc fire o'clock on the fatal morning a manservant in the employ of Sirs. Bloomfield awoke, and on going out of his hut, whioh was some little distance from any house, saw some natives retreating from Mr. Walsh's house. Thinking all was not right, lie went to Mrs. Bloomdeld't? house and found the family gone ; he went to Walsh's house and there he found Mrs. Walsh's lying dead outside ; beside her lay her infant child, two months old ; the poor little creature was shot through tbe head, but life was not extinct and it was then moaning. After leaving Walsh's) hous. 1, tha witness to these awful ntrjcitiss went to Mikaraka, and having packed up a few vikiabhs, went down to the redoubt at Tuiwiganui. Mrs. James, whose arrival at the reloult we jirevi u?'-y mentioned, states that on the way down she saw a married woman, named M.nia Go!dsmi;h, a halfeusto, who lived mar Mr, Wilson's place, lying on the ground with her little brother—both shot. A friendly, named IVropi, hU wife, and three sons were killed dose to Mrs. Bloom field's residence, and two native men and two children at Makiraka, met with the same fate. A military settl'T, named Pedbury, who lived with Mr. Wuish, was murdered with the family, and Mr. Cadle, a storekeeper and military settler, was seen lying outside his house, 9hot through the head. Up to the time that Mrs. Bloomfiold and her party wore embarked on board the Tawera, no ■word had been received of any of the scouts under Mr. G-ascoigne, nor had the Hauhaus approached the redoubt, but they sw three houses in flames, one of which was Mrs. Bloomfield's, together with a new store, only just completed and full of goods. A large number of settlers have, it is believed, escaped in the direction of the Wniroa. Mr. Wylie's house was burnt, but ho and hi 3 wife and six children, lJr. .Smith, Mr. and Mrs. Benson and child, Mr. and Mrs. Stevenson and child, and Mr. and Mrs. Firman

and three children, nnd several others are reported to lvive got away to Wairoa —about, two day's journey. C.tp'uim YWsU'upp and his family took refuge in the pa of the friendly uhief Tamilian"., but it seems that some nvitter of dm^refiment aros3, and Captain Wcstrupp set out for Wairoa. Mr. Poynton, who wits on his sheep station, Mr. Arthur Kempthorne (son of Mr. S. Kemp!borne, Parni-11), who was managing of Mr. K>3knige, and Messrs. King and James, who were also on outlying stations, had not been heard of up to Tuesd^ij' evening. The direction whence the ILuih:uis came is quito unknown, and it is a matter of great doubt, as to what route they took after their work of destruction was completed. On Tuesday night however, the whole of the settlement of Matawhero was seen to be in flames. It is therefore probable that they were still in the neighborhood. The redoubt at Tiir.uiganr.i contained some friendly natives and a few military settlers, all armed.

The losses sustained by station holders and settlers by this bloody foray will probably be most, extensive.

There can be no doubt that to the alarm raised by the boy Charles Jsime?, iv number of tho sufferers, including the whole of Mrs. Bloomheld's household oive their lives.