IMPORTANT FROM TARANAKI.

Wellington Independent, Volume XIV, Issue 1439, 17 July 1860, Page 3

IMPORTANT FROM TARANAKI.

[from our own correspondent.] 1 The following postcript was attached to th< letter which appeared in our last issue ; bu was omitted for want of space. POSTCRIPT. Monday, 2nd July, 1800 The Airedale is in sight. The troops havi vacated Tatairamaka. The natives bum 1 many of the houses prior to their leaving I and Greenwood's with the rest, this morning ' they are now building apa at Uxenham's farm L at the commencement of the block, and hay 1 4000 sheep, 150 cattle, besides horses in thei 3 1 hands. From 200 to 300 of the Lower Wai

11 katos joined W. King last night, and ear 's this m.iruing the natives were busily engage te in repairing and strengthening the pa attacke s, by M.ijor Nelson. Messengers have bee 's sent north and south with the news of the s victory. They state their loss to be only fiv n killed and twenty wounded, amongst th i- killed is \V. Kingi'i brother. You must not b - surprised if you hear shortly of the Hua an t Omata forts having bejn evacuited and blowi c up, their inmates retiring on the tow:). las a sure you it is no.v betsomin,' a very seriou r affair. The authorities hore — )r rather th< r head authority, Col Gild -is panic struck - The present indecision shows it. Instead oi 3 supporting Major Nelson with mire men, and 1 enabling his men to reg.iiu their lost laurels, r nothing is to be done until the arrival of larger i guns. If Nelson were well supported, we have , every confidence that he would soon finish up i the natives. His plan of operations was splen f did and well carried out ; but Gold affjrded , him no support to meet the reinforcements senl ! by VV. King to the help of them in the pa. A ■ feint made on the pa— a large skirmishing party to cope with theirs— an attack on theil rear, any or all of which a reserve could have accomplished would have given a complete finisher to the rebels engaged at the late fiirht H.

[FROM THE SAME COIiBESPONDENT.] New Plym uth, July 7, 1860. The Airedale came in again this morning-. She returned to Auckland last Monday, for two 68 lb. guns, instead of going south, the mail being sent on by the 'lasminian Maid. The 25 wounded man brought up by the Maid are doing well, and the medical officers are unremitting in their exertions. No movement of the troops has taken place since the Waitara affair. The natives dance their war dtnee daily, and Major Nelson favours them with a ball now and then. The last eight days have been splendid weather, frosty, nights with fine sunny days. Perhaps now these wonderful guns and 10 1 v.irjk and file are come, Colouel Gold may^be induced to take the field, at all events, Nelson won't be kept under much longer. Report says that the head-quarters of the 40th are on board the City of Hob art for New Plymouth, if so good bye to Gold's command. It is now proved beyond doubt that had the reserve under Colonel Gold gone on, many of those wounded and left for dead on the lield, would have been saved instead of being deliberately killed by the natives, in fact three poor fellows came into camp during the night. As lam now writing tha Brigade O/liue have warned all persons at Ora Ua against going out of gunshot at the stockade, as there are 700 to 800 natives collected this side of Tataraimaka, and intend fighting to-morrow or the next day. They h .ye driven off all the sheep, cattle, and horses in the neighbourhood. Mr. Clarke, of the Commissariat, with a settler (Mr. Tale), have gone to Nelson for the purpose, as report says, to bring provisions, cattle, &c. This looks very strange. Government refused to allow the settlers to ship produce or cattle at the commencement of the war, and would not buy them themselves. Instead of buying cattle they might as well receive ours, and at the same rim*; help themselves to the 400 or 500 head between here and the Waitara. I cmelude hastily as the Airedale is under steam, H.

[FROM ANOTHER OOKIiESP INDENT ] July 7, 1860. I sen 1 you Herald's and Ncius which will, in one shape or anothci, give you nearly all the information of any worth. I need only say, that all is at present quiet; we are besieged on bolh sides, and at last the authorities are thinking of fortifying the town. I only re'er to the fearful affair of the 27th, (when we lost Lieut. Brooke and twenty nine men of the 40oh in a few hours,) to tell you that it has since transpired that the greater portion of the men left on the field were only wounded, and that daring Thursday anil Friday after the fight, Wi Kingi s"bnt out his young men to search through the fern, and tomahawked them in cold blood ! This is the most horrible part of the aff.iir, an. l m ikes one's blood curdle to think of it. You will see in the papers that Colonel Gold during the en. gagement was within a mile or two of Major Nelson, and did not march to support him ! It was a second Waireka affair, only more horri. ble in detail, and had Colonel Gold done wh t any other man would have done, our wounded at least might have been recovered. As it was they were left in the hurry of the retreat to be tainahawked, eveu some of the men whose wjuuds wera dressed on the JieUL The natives all insist that they lost only five killed and twelve wjunded. S.irely this is false— if tvue, ours was a fearful defeat. S.