JOURANAL.

Wellington Independent, Volume II, Issue 87, 12 August 1846, Page 4

JOURANAL.

Kept b* two British Officers, on- their Overland Route • from Wijulington to Auckland.—lß46. .;

Wellington, March 16.—Owing to the state bi nffairs on the Hutt, there was considerable difficult} in getting natives to go up the coast; however,, by the influence of the Rev. Mr. G- , missionary, at-Waikanae, we succeeded in engaging four na; tives to.go as far as "Wanganui. 17th.—Started at half-past eight, a.m., in com..pany with the Rev. Mr. G—, on our road to Wanganui. At about eleven, arrived-at Johnson's clearing onthe Porirua road, where about forty of •the Volunteer Militia were stationed, -.under the command of Captain Clifford, and ;.were construct- •. ing a sto2k«le as a protection to the few settlers in the neighbourhood. The road thus far is good —-afterwards there is a mere bush path to Jackson's ' f-rry, fourteen miles from Wellington, at the extremity of the Porirua harbour. We got a boat, ..and procseded about four miles to the Whaling Station, where we halted for the night. There were several natives at this place, who said that they had been on the Hutt-while the soldiers were firing, and who seemed to think it rather a good joke. They described the way they avoided the balls,.and gave the soldiers credit for being/very bad shots. 18th.—After breakfast, went.to Rauparaha's pah at Parramata, about a mile further along the beach. Rangihaeata.was in the pah close at hand, but did -not make his appearance,.and .we had no wish to pay a visit to that amiable individual. We stopped at Rauparaha's place for about half an hour, and found him very civil, although his countenance is a true index of the treachery of his .character, foi which he has ever been distinguished among the natives. He had only a few men with him, and had rather a singular appearance, being clothed in a .dirty mat, and his grey hair adoined withtwo peacock's feathers. There was a human jaw-bone lying before him, which we were rather curious to • know the meaning of. He gave us a letter to Henheu, at Taupo, of which the following is a translation; :— " Friend Heuheu,—This letter is from yourfether. Listen to me. I have put away this disturbance that good may come among men. My •son, there is no one of authority, save you, myself, and Te Whero-Whero. Listen'to this letter. My son, these foreigners are going to see you. Let your love for them be great. These foreigners have come from England. They belong to me, to the Queen, nnd the Governor. This word is enough from me to you. "From Te Rauparaha," The disturbance he referred to, related to the af. fair at the Hutt. about which it is doubtful whether be is not playing a double game. He also ilictated a letter to his sou at the Bishop's College, *ud to the Bishop. On leaving Porirua, we proceeded seven miles through the wood, and then came out on a shingly beach, along which we went for about four miles, ; and then along a good beach for about ten miles to Waikanae. The native church is well worth seeing, as an example of maori ingenuity. It is 40 feet.long by 30 broad; the inside is neatly fitted up with reeds, and a kind of orabesgue painting on the wood work has a good effect, and is executed with some taste. 19th—The natives we hired at Wellington -to go to Wanganui, changed their minds, and refused to go on. Remained the whole day at Wakanae, being unable to get carriers, as the natives were giving a feast to 300 people who had come from the south side of Cook's Straits, about Queen Charlotte's Sound ; there were several pigs, and six canoes full of flour and sugar, besides potatoes and kumeras, laid out on the beach. However, about five o'clock, we succeeded in persuading four men to go on to Otaki, ten miles distant. At Waikanae, we saw a most extraordinary looking being, a white man with red hair; we were with difficulty convinced that he was not an European, but Mr. G—- said that he was a true maori. 20th—The men we got at Waikanae not being willing to go on, we engaged with some Taupo natives, who happened to be starting, to take our baggage on to Wanganui. they had brought pigs down for sale, intending to go to Wellington ; but owing to Rangihaeata having stopped the road at Porirua, they were obliged to sell them at Otaki for small prices. Rangihaeata had a notice stuck up on the lull above Porirun, prohibiting pigs and cattle going on to Wellington—as he said, war was going to commence, and the soldiers should not be fed. The country as far as Otaki seems to be thickly populated, as there are several large pahs; but they saythat a great part of the population of Wakanae is about to remore to Taranaki, from whence they formerly came. We only got on about ten miles this day, and halted at a place called Waiwetu where there were the remains of some deserted warres. 21.—The natives would not move on to day. An European employed on the Whale fishery said, if we came back to Otaki, he would get a crew and take us to Wanganui in a few hours. We went back with him but had our walk for nothing,-as he could not get a crew. 22nd.—Remained at Waiwetu. The natives began to get troublesome by continnally begging for t.bacco. The principal chief of the party Ehare took a piece of green stone out of our box, and was going quietly to appropriate it to his own privateuse, when one of us squeezed it amicably out of his band, which he took in very good part, asking us to give it to him when we got to Taupo, which we 23.—Started at half-past'seven along the beachon our way met an European servant of Mr R— g ' ™1 v L at Manawatu, going towards Wellington. While he was talking to us. the natives took the opportunity of picking his pocket of tobacco, & c It wis very amusing to see his face when he found it out, as he had just before been boasting of his Knowledge of the natives, and seemed to pity our helpless siuation among such a set of hearties, thieves and rogues, as the Taupo natives have the character of being. After a twelve miles walk we arrived at the Manawatu river. The man that ferried us over was named by the Bishop, " Wellington,'' as to had been a great wamor In his youth- His native name, however, ; was Kai Tangata.by which it would seem that h s prowess in man-eatiog was as great as in fighting.

lie.had < now adopted the more civilised occupation of keeping -a ferry, and extort* ing a price for crossing his river, 1 that would shame even a Gravesend waterman. We were hospitally received here by Mr. R———, a retired officer of the Indian navy, who recovered in! the climate of New Zealand the health he had lost by a long residence in He told us,' that three years before, he had gone overland to Auckland, by way of Taupo; in company with Mr. Harrison, a suiveyor of the New Zealand Company, and that at a place named Rotorua, they had been robbed of everything by a chief named Te •Wetu arid three others. They were in considerable danger of their lives but were protected by the chief Heuhue, at Taupo, ■who kept them for a week, in order to try and get back their clothes, in •.which he was not successful. They afterwards got to Kawhai, on the west coast, in a miserable plight, and were two months getting to Auckland from. Taupo. 24th.—Very rainy day. Remained at Mr. <R—'s 25th.—Still raining. A chief we named the " Ogre," fromhis size and ugliness, came this day to try and get a native slave boy, who was dying of consumption at Dr. B,——'s house, about half a mile from Mr. R—«'s in order to take him to Taupo .with -him. The poor boy had heard.him and refused to go, as he said that they had taken, a sink boy with them before and left him to die on the road. Dr. JB—, with great humanity, had kept the boy for seme time 'without the knowledge of the natives, or they would assuredly have taken him bfiforce. 26th.—The natives suddenly came to the-deter-mination of starting at twelve o'clock, when we went about six miles only, and halted among the sand hills. 27th.—Went six miles to Rangitiki River, where there were remains of a pah.; some good pasture <laud .near it. Mr. R——'s cattle- run extends to the river, and he has sixty head on it, he pays rent for it tothe natives. At about nine milestfurther on we stopped for the night on the beach. 28th.—Moved off at daylight six miles to the Turekini river, which is dangerous, on account of .quicksands. Mr. Mason, a Missionary at Wanganui, was drowned here about three years ago, while trying ».to cross it on horseback. 'Three miles further on we forded the Wangaehu, which was nearly five feet deep, and after a walk of nine miles arrived at Wanganui, one hundred -and ten miles distant -from. Wellington. Near Wangatwi some men passed us, carrying- the remains of a man who had been drowned crossing the bar, a few days before, nothing remained but the head and hands, the rest having been destroyed by fish. We-slept at the Rev. Mr. T 's house, who was kind enough to -accommodate us. 29th. & 30th.—Rainy weuther, unable to move out. May Ist.—Went across to the so called town of Wanganui, which consists at present of, some ten or twelve small houses, and a rather pretty little •wooden church. It seems placed in a good situation, although from their being a dangerous bar, there is little chance of vessels of any size getting up to it. The inhabitants, however, already talk of cutting a canal, the chances of which, in the present state of affairs, seem very remote. .2nd.—Went over to see Mr. B—, a settler, who has got a good deal of land in cultivation. He. lives about two -miles up.the river.; and by his energy and perseverance, has succeeded in over, coming considerable opposition.both from the natives and from the nature of the ground he has to cultivate, and has now his farm in a flourishing state, with very little assistance except from his own .strong arm. Mr. T spoke to a Chief, one of the principal men at Taupo, named Herekeikei who was going to start next day, and we made a bargain with him to give us-four men to carry our baggage to Rotorua, for £& ss. He told us that he was one of the most deceitful natives he knew but that ho would treat us well. He added, also, that-he had been informed that he himself was only goingfa few miles up the river, and that he would strike off to the left, by a path which leads to a pah called Waitotara, on the coast, intending to surprise it. The natives at Waitotaru had been informed of his intention, and were fully prepared for him, and would most likely annihilate bim and his people, as they had done his father and fifty of his men some yearß before. 3rd.—Poled up the river about eight miles, the banks on either side level, for a mile or so inland all the way, and seemed very fertile— covered mostly with fern and shrubs, and some few trees. 4th.—Heavy rain, the river much flooded. sth.—Continued rain and flood.6th.—The rain having cleared off, but still flood in the river, we started ; the river shut in by ranges of high bare hills on either bank; passed two large pairs; we landed at Kanihini. about nine miles where there was a large pah and. considerable num.' aer of natives -, the pah is built" on a very strong position on the top of a 1 hill. 7th,—Flood to heavy to move on. Bth.—Still heavy flood: the natives had a secret consultation,. which we suspected related to what Mr. T—'told u« at Wanganui. 9th.—Some of the natives asked us this morning for powder and caps, on which we told them that if they went to Waitotara they would most likely come badly off, as they were prepared for them. They seemed greatly surprised, and were very curi. ous to know our informant. After a little talk, they said they would move on, and that by and by tneywoald come down to Waitotara. They* said they would have eaten them, if they had gotten the better of them, and offered us some of the flesh, which we fancied was an idle boast. They had only four or five guns, but 1 believe they would have got others at the pah ; and we were informed, that they had forty baskets dried kumeries, (a favorite food on a war expedition.) We then embarked, and proceeded o« our voyage up the river, still among high hills, which now became wooded, and the scenery very fine. There were were several rapids, which required a good deal of labour to get up. At nightfall.we landed at the foot of Taupiri, a mountain, visible eighty or ninty miles off. There was a small pah there ; the old chief of which lamented the bad situation of his village between the hills, as he saw so little of the sun, and said he would prefer living on the coast.' ■ 10 —Went.about twomiles further up, when we halted at a large pah. it being Good Friday. 1 lth.—The river at this place was running like a

mill race, arid with great difficulty we go up the rapid ; however, we got seven or eight miles up by meanß of pulling ourselves along by thtf branches on the banks, and poling, and landed at -a potato field where the whole tribe set to»work digging potatoes and building warres, which'they did in short time. In the night it came on a gale, and blew down most of the warres—ours among the, number. 12th.—Haavy thunder-storm during-the night' The old priest praying to the'lightning the greater part of the night. 13th.—Received a letter from Mr. T——, who had gone up the river before us, recommending us to return to Wanganui, and go up the coast, as the rivers in the interior were very much flodded. vi 4. The rain having fallen about tenfeet during the night, we went on; at two miles distance 1 passed Operiki, a large fortified pah, from which'there is a path to Taupo. The river is still picturesque and wooded, but the sameness of the scenery becomes tiresome, as thehillsseem never ending. 'Proceeded five miles further to Ikurangi, which appears.to have been a large pah; there is a path to Taupo'from the opposite side of the river. 15th.—Difficult rapid near this place;* the banks now becomes a good deal cultivated, aud so on till we reach Pukeika, a large settlement, on the spur of a hHI over the river, with a good deal of cultivation all about it, and would make a fine spot for an European village. We did not stop there, as the inhabitants were not "very friendly to the Taupo people, but went across to Peteareho, another large settlement on the opposite side. 16th.—Went over to Pakeika and saw the native ■ church now building of totara wood ; it will be 64 feet by-34 feet. They are building a much larger one at Pikirike, of brick, which is a novelty in New Zealand architecture. There are about 8(T0 natives at these two settlements, and.about 4000 along the course of the Wanganui river—most of 1 ' them are missionary natives. 17th.—Halted. The natives along the banks seem to have abundance of provisions, judging from the quantities they supplied to the Taupo people all the way, for at every halt, they had as many pumpkins, kumeras, vegetable marrow, and potatoes, as they could eat, which, considering that they are not on friendly terms with the Wanganui natives in general, is very praiseworthy; but they say themselves, that they are told in Scripture to feed their enemies. 18th.—The people of the pah gave a feast to our natives, who consisted of about one hundred men, women, and children, and after gorging themselves with pork, they left the pah, and went about two miles, and then halted on a hill over Po-te-areko, on the way to Taupo, where we bivouacked for the night. 19 th.—Moved on about a mile, when a report reached us that a war party had arrived from the Waikato country, to 'join Rangihaeata, when our natives halted to hear the news. They told us that two hundred men had come down to the river to drive all ihe pakehas from Wellington ; to which, of course, we gave tthe credit that maori stories generally deserve. We then went about a mile fur. ther intothe wood and halted. 20th.—Had an early start and got fairly into the dreary wood, leading to Toupo. The path was hardly visible, and we w e re compelled to resort to; creeping, rather than walking, as the wood was full of vine or supple jack, which obliged us to look .out for both head and feet; besides, tremendous hills were to be ascended, and ravines descended, so with difficulty we got about eight miles. 21st.—Heavy rain all day and night. Had to send back some men to get more provisions, as there was a likelihood of us being stopped at a river on account of a flood. Our gun was a good friend to us, and pigeons were both fat and plentiful. 22nd.—Men not returned with provisions on account of the heavy rain. A pipe that was Ht at a fire kindled by the old chief, became immediately "tapu,'' and no one would smoke out of it. A boy, in scraping up the ground, found a large earth worm, about eight inches long, which he was proceeding to cook, when it was snatched from him by an old woman, who immediately put it on the fire and when well frizled, doubled it up in four pieces! and ate it with great relish, saying it was excellent food, which all the others agreed to. The large white grubs in rotten wood they also eat wherever they came across them. 23rd.—Heard this day that our friends that came from Otaki had robbed us of sixty sticks of tobacco. One of them, a chief who we had named " red blankat," came into our warre, when we taxed him with it before a number of natives and told him his behaviour was anything but chieftain-like; He seemed very much ashamed and slunk off. The men came back in the afternoon, with provisions, when we ascended a high range to the north-east, the path still of the same rugged nature. From the top of one of the hills, we had a view of Tongariro, capped with snow, at seven miles distance. Halted at the bottom of a deep ravine, the ground was very damn from the continued dripping of the trees. 24th.—Crossed a deep and rapid stream, six yards wide, by means of a large tree laid across, and then ascended a precipice,, and got to the top of a range which leads towards the north. Three miles further on, arrived at the edge of a deep with a small rivulet at the bottom, where the path joins from Ikurangi, and becomes rather better for four miles on the Manguiwero which is thirty yards wide, full of large stone, and which very littie flood would make impassable. Passed through some small patches of fern and grass and halted in the wood. . 25th.—Heavy rain: The maories went out a pie hunting, but only killed a small onej some of them got lost in the wood, on which there was firing of guns kept up all day: they returned in the ing26th—Our march this day was very disagreeable on account of the wetness of the wood and the sliupery path. We walked ahead of our people, and got on too far, as they did not come up at dusk however three other maories came up, beloneine to the party.that came from Otaki with us, who built a warre, lit a fire, cooked potatoes and two Kaka'g we had shot, and also lent lis Blankets, so we were not so badly off,' although wet to the skidi We marched about sixteen miles this day,

(To be continued- in our next.J

It would often be better not to attempt to reward a brave action, than to reward it ill. A soldier had his two arms carried off at the wrists by a shot; His colonel offered him a crown. "It wbb not my gloves, but my hands that I lost, colonel,'' said the - poor soldier reproachfully.