Taranaki.

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 5, Issue 221, 7 February 1861, Page 3

Taranaki.

- /'.■ ir. Vs ViC-i: MAORI ATTEMPT TBE No. 3 REDOUBT*' 0 [From the Herald's ‘ Journal of Events.’] 7 lVednesday, Jan. 23.

Before day light ’ this morning about 140 natives contrived under, cover of -.the darkness to creep into the ditch of No. 3 re’doubt unobserved by the sentries,-and had prepared to scale the embankment by scrapiqg. steps with tomahawks and: their fingers. At the grey of morning a sentry peiceived one roan—the last of the party —creeping .to;:; tbs brow of the ditch; he fired on him .and was immediately shot dead himself, Till'garrison consisting of the greater pait of the 40th, under command of Colonel Leslie, iriet the attack, with great promptitude, and a scene ensued which baffles description. OuV troops j• as fast as-they could load their rifles, firPd .’down over the parapet, and the •hrtilterymefi'r’' vntftlr-gr eat coolness, cut short the fuses of., the shells and lighting them pitched them over into the trench with frightful execution. ' .Lieutenant Jackson, 40th regt., while in the act of firing at a native, over a parapet, with his revolver, was shot through the head and-fell mortally wounded. Some natives succeede&dri getting so far up the parapet that, they were ’ bayonetted by the garrison., This .-sanguinary conflict was prolonged till daylight wlieri the support came np from Ivairau, a party of the 65th attacking the rebels on ' tlieif v ' : ’:right flank, while the 12th attacked the" left of the redoubt; here they met., the - -rebel reserve who rose out of. the fern,: it is stated, like a flock of birds. These were charged by'the 12th at the point of the. bayonet,, and and those of the natives who could, turned and fled leaving many all over before 6 a.iri,., .gnpu the trench of the redoubt and arotiiSlplay*" 49 bodies of rebels, 5 only of whom were.; alive. 41 were buried in a graye between. r Nq f 2 and. 3 redoubts, others were buried‘by-the friendly natives. 13 chief men w6re ist-ated to be amongst the slain, but. manjr of the bodies were beyond identification, ‘-The' wounded natives are all dangerously so; Our casualties are 5 killed and II wounded, vlzs—---V' KILLED- ** Royal Engineers —Sapper George Chubb 12th Regt ■—Private Edward [Archer 40th Regt —Lieut. Jackson • Private W. Gilbert, Private FdwardGforray. WOUNDED..

Royal Artillery—Daniel: Bushnell, slightly 1 2th Regt —Capt. T. E.; Private Patrick Cahill, severely, tomahawk, Private .Edmund,Power, slightly Aot% Regi— Private -Henry Wakefield, severely, Private John Officer, dangerously, Private John A/utUns; slightly. 65 Ui Regt —Aance Corporal JamesiHoward, dangerously, Private Z7dward tfmith, do, Private Joseph Robinson, do, Samuel Hamilton, severely. -'-yi : Thursday , Jan. 24—The.' Tasmanian Maid came up at 10 a.m., with the bodies of 2>ieut. Jackson, JEwd. y/rcher, of the ]2th, and two native chiefs names not known. A Waikato native, taken to ther.d^dl .house, could not identify either, They appear to be men of note, from'the tyir faces-T----no doubt Ngatihaua chiefs. A splendid green stone * mere was picked upjfiy a .saltier*, supposed to belong to Epiha. or Hapurona, who is said to be wounded intvyo places. In the gully near which the the native reserve, groaning is''beam "continually, but as the-gully4s commanded by l&ftg&jle pits it cannot; be;i-visrtißd' r ; and fshe brought away. It is said-thafr.lJie;rejiel| i Sp con-' fident of catching the gallon.napping, and of the redoubt being-weakly defended, that they took several days’ provision with them; but it happened; that No. 3 redoubt was. very strongly garrisoned; the 40th head-quarters having arrived only tile day before. The sapper was killed in his tent- whilst; lacing, his loots.

It is positively ,known;;th at - many natives-got away mortally wounded, anti that many Bodies are lying in the fern between the enemy’s position and the redoubt. IFe have received the following from the Camp:— - . “ Camp, Kairau, 23rd Jan. 1861.

The Waikatos, labouring under the delusion that they could easily conquer and capture the advanced redoubt occupied by the headquarters 40th, at. 3 a.m. this morning madly attempted to rush it. The 40th were getting under arms at that hour, and gave them a warm reception. A body of some 60 or 80’men had ensconced themselves in the ditch, and kept up a rapid fire on the. defenders, whose heads they could see in bold relief against the clear morning sky. Colonel Leslie directed the . regimental call of the-65th and “advance’* to be sounded, and Colonel Wyatt having, on the first shot being fired, got his then under 'arms,-forthwith, despatched two. companies, under the command of Captain McGregor, to their assistance, and directed the detachment 12th regt., under the command of Captain Miller, to proceed ‘ in support.’ As this force passed No. 2 redoubt they were cheered by the 40tb, and advancing at the double Capt. McGregor directed Lieut. Urquhart to take the. light company 65th round the front base of No. 3 redoubt and clear the ditch, while, he took the rear base. The bayonets were speedily fixed 'and did their work well! In the meantime Col. Wyatt directed Capt; Miller to advance and close upon the enemy, which he did, though wounded, and the gallant. 12th; soon sheathed their bayonets in the bodies of their enemies. Capt. McGregor’s and Lieut. Urquhart’s men now opened a cross fire on the/Waikatos from the ditch, and the 40th firing over- k them from the parapet, soon put them to flight. 41 bodies were picked up and Ikid :in a row until they could be identified;" and: 5 more, mortally wounded, are left in a shady corner to depart in peace, Many more have been seen in the fern, and will eventually be picked up. The enemy tried to cover thendefeat by a brisk fire from the rifle pits, but * shelling ’ being too much for their feelings, they desisted by 7 a.m., and no vestiges of defenders to their rifle pits have been seen since then.”

Friday, Jan. 25.—The Rev. Mr Wilson returned by the steamer this morning. He states that the storming party numbered 140 men, volunteers from Ngatimaniapoto, Ngatibaua, Waikato proper, and Ngatiawa; “ rangatira kau,” (all chiefs) is the expression of the wounded prisoners. ; Rewi, Epiha, Hapurona, and a brother of Wetini Taiporutu (killed) -were among them, and the prisoner thinks Epiha was killed. They buried two of Kingi’s men (Hori. humpback, one of the na-. tives who- >shot - Mr. R. Brown) and Hemi Kuka. The impression produced by this hand to hand conflict will, Mr. IFilson thinks, fai exceed anything that could be pro duced at the long bowls with artillery or the rifle. 2’iie natives can no longer doubt of the nerve and courage of the British troops. Four of the wounded natives have died, the

survivor fMarakai) has undergone amputation of his leg, which was shattered by a shell. It was taken off this morning by Dr. Mouat. While it was being removed he behaved with the greatest coolness and even good humour. He is cheerful, as if nothing had happened; and very communicative; gave the names of all the chiefs engaged which included the whole: of the influential, men, many of whom have fallen. He considers that the rifle pits will be abandoned. Lieut. Jackson lived about half an hour, and nodded and smiled to those who supported him, at the, moment when die expired., , The sentry who 'd iscovered the' storming party’ was shot dead himself. The number of firearms taken from the natives amounts to 37 stand, consisting of doublebarrelled guns, flint muskets, also some meres and tomahawks were recovered, and in the pouches a good deal of Enfield ammunition. Four of the wounded prisoners died between 8 p.m. of /Wednesday and 6 a.m. on Thursday.

/ntelligence has reached us from the Thames that about a week ago a deputation of f/pper Waikatos visited the natives in that district for the purpose of inducing them to go to the fungi to be raised in Waikato for Wetini, one of the native chiefs who fell at Mahoetahi. What their ulterior objects may have been it is easy to conjecture. The Thames natives, however, refused to accede to their request, and remarkably enough, at the instance of Taniwha, one of the nearest relations of Wetini himself. Whatever the intentions of the Thames natives may be, so far they have not given any outward and visible signs of a spirit of disaffection. On the contrary they have, amongst other things, steadily refused to supply the .Waikatos with any powder, although they themselves are abundantly supplied, and perfectly'fabulous prices have been offered. This looks well, but one is a little startled afterwards to hear that they explained their refusal by suggestively asking a settler, who was curious as to their motives, what they should do themselves if they were to sell it. A rms and ammunition seem to be a necessary of life with the native of 1860— S. Cross..