LATEST FROM TARANAKI.

Wellington Independent, Volume XVI, Issue 1453, 11 September 1860, Page 3

LATEST FROM TARANAKI.

By the White Swan, we hare received intelligence from Taranaki lip to the sth inst., being five days later than had previously come to hand.. The news is of an unimportant character. The Wkite Swan conveyed 1 17 refugees from Taranaki to Nelson. The woman had refused to embark on board the Airedale, and the General had referred the matter to the General Assembly for power to enforce his orders. Two Militia Officers, Capt. King and another, had been put under arrest for refusing to enforce the embarkation of the women and children. The boatmen had also refused to embark them, except with their own free consent. The scene is represented as truly affecting, many of the women expressing their' determination to die with their husbands, rather than leave them. We cannot hut admire their filial affection, and deeply regret that circumstances should require their deportation. We extract the following from the Nelson, Examiner of the Bth last. POSTSCRIPT. The White Swan steamer arrived last evening from Taranaki, with about 170 passengers on board, nearly all of whom are women and children ; and the return of the Airedale, with refugees, may be looked for on Sunday. The White Swan encountered heavy weather from the S.E. on night. There is a report that the brig Emma has been lost on Manukau bar. The followiug letter, which we have boon favoured with, gives the latest news from the scene of war : — [EXTRACT FBOM A PJttIVATE I/ETTEB.] New Plymouth, September 5. . No important news since the Airedale left. There has been two fruitless expeditions, one to burn a pah at Puketotara, erected by our late friendly native Waka, of the town pah. It was known that the natives had left it, and the party were sent out to destroy it. A secret expediton, the destination and object of which was known all the day, left town on Monday night, 800 strong, to attack some natives at lUtapihipihi, at the back of Honey Fields. I went to bed as usua.l at tsn o'clock, and for a couple of hours afterwards could hear the cracking of the carters' whips; when the party arrived at its destination the Maoris had decamped. This will always be the case until a different system is adopted ; the natives are far too cunniKg to be caught by our military commanders. The natives have most of them moved away from the neighbourhood, most likely to plant potatoes. A great number of the Waikatos have gone northward, taking with them a large number of horses, bullocks and carts, and other property belonging 1 to the settlers ; they boast they hare never been beaten by us, and unfortunately this is true, and augurs badly for the future. With plenty of plunder, good living, and very little fighting, there is is every.inducement for them to repeat the experiment, after their late successful raid. Two more trips of the Airedale will remove nil those families who are receiving rations, and then will come the tug of war, if the General persuit in the compulsory removal of the othersIf he were to give families the option of going to Nelson, giving them the same allowance as those now down there, I believe the inducement would cause a great many to leave ; but if it is atteraptei to force them, there will be passive, in some cases perhaps active, resistance, as many have determined not to go unless actual force is used. We do not see the necessity for this thorough clearing out of families, as with the present intrenchraents no number of natires would venture to attack the town ; and people who are living in their own houses, and at their own expense do not see why they should . be deported to another place. I suppose now we shall soon see the grand military operations that the presence of the women and children is said to have stood in the way of. I confess I have no faith in our military commanders. Unless they adopt a guerilla warfare, they will uever cope with the natives, who should be continually harrassed, and every plantation destroyed. If they were well followed up during the next three months, they would be so worn out, and stand so fair a chance of being starved, that ihey would be glad to submil; but this result will not be obtained by a battle every three months. This place is becoming nothing but a mili-

tary camp, and consequently a most disagreeable J place to live in ; it will be far worse I suppose in a month or two, when I fully believe we shall have large reinforcements from home. .-. [From the Tumnaki News, August 30.] The natives have, for the present, left the entrenchments' they had formed before the camp at Wiiii'ets»,v,f»»d thsy have becn-destroyed and filled iiii -IHiGy'ft've known to have suffered loss from the five- o'f'the RVlillery from the camp, and proi)filV'.y 7 ft*(Wi'j[ th"e<plaoe getting to hot for.them. A portion «ptV» force is mosingyjt'ovvarrts Wair tara, and the remainder hare taken to the bash t at the hack o( the Omula district, and are busy j forming 1 a pah on C.iptaiu Burton's land, a very elevated position, from which the whole of the surrounding country cm be seen. Nearly the ! whole of the houses in the Omata district were destroyed before they decamped, the Omata Inn the extensive stores of Mr. Newsham, and the houses adjoining the extensive stables lately erected by the Rev. C. Bayley, and several other buildings belonging to that gentleman. It is a singular coincidence that about the same time, the pah at the Waitava was also evacuated. It had been" suspected for several days that the enemy had left, and on Wednesday it was taken possession bf and destroyed. The main body of the natives are said to be now on the other side of the river Waitara, where they hare lately constructed several strong pubs ; while on the other hand it is said that the mailman reports that he met" the VVaikatos returning bora?. What this new move' may portend is as yet an enigma. .The la^tintelligenoe was brought into town by .Captain "Richards yesterday afternoon, who did the distance in an hour and fifteen minutes. The demolition of the pah was sesn from the Bell Block, and during the afternoon a party from the block-house had the satisfaction of collecting and driving in from sixty to seventy head of cattle. During the week several strong parties "have been marched to the Waiwakaiho, sometimes to convoy produce, at others in the hope of surprising some of the natives who have for soma time past been engaged in plundering and destroying the houses in the neighbourhood of Paketotara. Yesterday they were seen swarming about the houses of Mr. A King and Dr. Nield. and about 250 men were collected, and, after an hour's delay, marched to the spct but the birds had flown. While the men remained under arms before starting, a number of natives, with friendly smock on, ,vere hanging about the town ; and we have heard it asserted by several peisons, upon whose veracity we can rely, that one mounted man especially, who had wailed upwards of an hour about the square, was observed to follow the troops as they went out, and about half a mile from town turn his horse to the sandhills, leading to the mouth of the Ilenui, and riding at racin y speed along the beach towards the Waiwakaiho. We are in possession of the man's name, and the pah to which be belongs. While we look npon the all but general disaffection of thenatives, and the weekly instances of falling away that we have to record, we think the community has a right, when called upon to obey such a proclamation as the following [the proclamation of 20tb August, see Journal of Erents], to feel assured that the authorities take proper measures to protect ourjjexpeditioris from the possible treachery ol meu of doubtful character. [From the Taranaki Herald, August 25.] No incident of the war has occasioned more comment, and perhaps more teuiied to shake confidence iv native professions, than the defection of the chief YVaka. He resided iv the town, in our very centre, for eighteen years ; and possessing an influence over his countrymen which is often denied to meu of hig&er rank thau himself, he ever employed it on the side of law and order, and for the mutual good of both races. Just eighteen years since Te Waka came down from Kapiti to succeed his near relation Eruini Waiti, who had just died, and whose uniform good will towards the fust settlers had earned for him the designation of the " frieaJ of the pakeha." And no unworthy successor to the deceased chief did Te \\ aka prove himself to be. The pakeha were from that time the object of his solicitude, and the Government could always rely upon his goo.i offices iv adjusting Ihe^nisunderslindings and disputes that cropped up between the races. In the tedious and delicate negotiations for the purchase of land, Te Waka was invaluable to the Government, always enforcing his advice to the natives to pait with their surplus land by his owu example. When Sir George Grey attempted to come to terms with a factitious minority who opposed the sale of land, To Waka urged the Governor to introduce soldiers a, suggestion which, but for the presence of a body of Mokaus, would probably have cost the speaker his life on the spot. These instances, amongst others, which could be brought forward prove how much Te Waka. was our fiieud ; and we now proceed to show how the Government, or more correotly speaking, the Native Department, requited him. In the years 1850 arid 1852, Governor Sir George Grey appointed uative assessors for the distiict, and amongst the fust was Te Waka. TLe Resident Magistiates' Courts Ordinance, under which the appointments were made, provides that the persons to be selected to act as assessors " shall be men of the greatest authority and best repute in their respective tribes," and, assuredly, no native better merited the description. Unhappily, the measure was marred by the introduction of a graduated rate of salary ; the natives whom it was deemed desirable to secure or propitiate, mostly receiving the higher rates. Any difference in remuneration was especially objectionable, and it was made, uninteutienally we feel persuaded, particularly invidious to Te Waka. His services belonged to the past ; and the native department, reckoning on their man for the future, gave him office without' emolument, whilst it j lavished its favours on men who had, with some txceptions, jet to prove themselves. The error great as it was, was attempted to be repaired by contributions towards the construction of a timber built bouse iv the Kawau pah, and by latterly granting a salary ; but, in striking inconsistency to this evident intention to repair the previous slight, the minimum rate was adopted and to the last, Te Waka, tested by his salary, was of less account to the Government than other assessors. His pride was wounded. He was made to appear to his countrymen and to himself in less estimation than the other assessors. With him it was a question of personal worth not of money value : and can we wonder that the fancied slight weaned him from us ? Should we ourselves have been proof against such influences? Are friendships amongst us so based that nothing shall shake them ?

The Government were blind to the consequences of their act to the last. When military occupation of Teira's land was taken, his Excellency Governor Browne (who could have no personal knowledge of the natives), in addressing a meeting of them, said he had " perfect confideuce in our native friends, more especially in Te Waka and Poharama, and should be glad of an opportunity to prove it." Hearty

and encouraging words, which came too late, hmvevcr, to save Waka's failing loyalty. At all the previous meetings held* by" the District Commissioner for the purchase of this land, Te Waka openly avowed a sympathy for Wi Kingi. He erected a fortified stockade at Puketotara for the rebel Vgalirnanui, but, when questioned upon the subject, alleged that it was for our protection. From tins stockade Wi Kingi bus received detailed information of all that has been girfnir on in th« town din-in* the war, Uironoh Waku> friendly espionage. Most of To NVaka's Pakuba ndi-rhhnurs and friends were by this" time Cully impressed with his guilt of irtfysjnUhui thvf native department, with a blind credulity 'in his professions and explanations, placed . us under his dangerous guardianship;. .the colonial hospital, in the town belt, having been assigned to him and his followers in order that he wight bs near at bund to aid us against the enemy. In offering the above observations, we bave no thought of excusing Te Wuka's perfidy. He has, with the fullest knowledge of the justice of our quarrel, cast his lot on the sidß of the rebels, after they had aggravated the original offence by every excess, and ha must abide the consequences which sooner or later will, by the help of God and our endeavours, overtake them for their crimes. . Our object is simply to render justice to the lov;il natives by placing before the reader all we know of Te Waka, and we believe will agree ■ with us that there is nothing in the present case which should shake our confidence/in their li.lolity. Events have left us com'paiatively few friends amougst the natives, but.for this reason the alliance in the face of wide spiead disaffection is a bright spectacle in this dreary war, Let us value the alliance aright, entertaining a thorough appreciation of the native on the one hand, and withholding our confidence in him wheu it ceases to be deserved.