WAITARA.

Wellington Independent, Volume XVI, Issue 1501, 1 March 1861, Page 3

WAITARA.

The following concise description of the posi* tion at present occupied by the force at Waitara will be read with interest. Up to this date nothing of importance had taken place :— Huirangi, 19th February, 1861. The front belt at the Huirangi bush, now occupied by the : troops, faces the sea, and bounds the Waitara and .Kairau plains on the South or inland side. The river Waitara, which runs to the left of all our positions, bounds the plain on the northeast side, and a dense bush that stretches from the Huirangi towards Bell Block, stands on the southwest of the plain. In military phraseology then, (standing at No. 6 redoubt) we have the Huirangi bush close in front, another belt of forest at some distance to the right, the Waitara river and valley on our left, and the Kairau plains and the sea in rear. Upon a bold spur of land that runs from the Kairau plains into the Waitara valley, stands Matirikoriko—this position overlooks the whole country as far as Bell Block, and commands both sides of the river up and down for a considerable distance. There is a straight road leading from the plains through the centre of the Huirangi bush — where this road passes through the forest it is called the " avenue." The bush to the loft of the avenue though it was very close did not run far back, and, with the exception of a fow large trees

it has been all cut down. As you pass from No. 6 redoubt to No. 7, the. Huirangi bush continues on the right, and is nearly parallel with the road for some 300 yards. 1 1 then takes a circuitous course still more to the right, leaving a considerable portion of open ground between its edges and the Pukerangiora and Te Arei hills. The ground rises giadually from the Huirangi to the base of the hills where it is broken by low gullies, but to the left it becomes low in the vicinity of the river. The hills occupied by the enemy are facing the sea, and extend from the left bank of the Waitara about four miles in a south-westerly direction ; their distance from the coast is about seven miles. These hills are so intersected by gullies and deep ravines that may be considered a range of large mounds thrown closely together in an irregular line. This renders them more formidable to an attacking party, for the natives have not confined their defences to one hill or one gully — they have invisible riflo pits all over them, and plenty of cover and numerous passes to favour their retreat whenever retreat becomes necessary. No. 7 redoubt then, stands upon rising fern ground betwen the Huirangi and the Pukerangiora hills; it was HapuYona's pah 500 yards in front, an open country for several hundred yards all round, and the Waitara river on the left. It is supported by No. 6 redoubt in rear, and commands an excellent view of Matirikoriko and No. 1 redoubt — the fort established on the 29th December.

Beyond this there is little that is interesting. A single sap has commenced at No. 7 redoubt on Saturday, and will be carried zig-gag to Hapurona's pah. Strong working parties from the several regiments are employed at it every day, and it will soon be completed. The rnaories fire upon the coverers, and on No. 7 camp every day, but they very seldom show themselves out of their pits. A great quantity of shell is thrown from No. 7 redoubt and the niaories reply by firing and shouting contemptuously. An 8-inch shell from No. 7 redoubt is thrown into the pah at uncertain hours every night.