Wellington Independent "NOTHING EXTENUATE; NOR SET DOWN AUGHT IN MALICE." SATURDAY, JANUARY 16, 1869. GENERAL SUMMARY.

Wellington Independent, Volume XXIV, Issue 2785, 16 January 1869, Page 4

Wellington Independent "NOTHING EXTENUATE; NOR SET DOWN AUGHT IN MALICE." SATURDAY, JANUARY 16, 1869. GENERAL SUMMARY.

Notwithstanding the proverbial rapidity with which ill news spreads, and the apparent interest which is excited in its transmission and communication, we are persuaded that good news is the cause of infinitely more gratification, and is received with much more real interest by the community at large. If this were not the case society would quickly, from the absence of any adhesive properties, tumble to pieces. If crime and offences, oppression and outrage, were ordinary instead of being extraordinary occurrences — if they were the rule instead of being the exceptions, their details would cease to constitute the most attractive features of the sensation novel or the popular newspaper. As in the physical, and the commercial, so in the moral world, it is that which is comparatively rare which attracts most attention, and which stamps it, while that continues, with a fictitious value. Probably what we have here pointed out is no new discovery, but it may be well at this time to press the fact upon public attention. It may not, considered alone, account for the little comparative interest which has been felt in tli© news of the fall of Ngatapa, when contrasted with that which detailed the particulars of the massacre at Povsrty Bay, as the one was and the other was not expected ; but that the former has excited no interest and caused no gratification we cannot believe. It would have been more satisfactory if Mr instead of Mrs Te Kooti had been captured; but, notwithstanding this, it affords us the most unfeigned pleasure to send to our distant readers by the present mail the intelligence of our successes on the East Coast, and of the fall of the strongest fortress which has ever been held by the rebels in New Zealand. Our last monthly summary by the Panama mail contained the horrible and sickening details of the Poverty Bay Massacre, of the natural and general alarm which had seized the outJying settlers in the Province of Hawke's Bay, of the withdrawal of the outposta at Fatea, and of the atrauge panic which prevailed at Wanganui in consequence. On the whole, it was a painful history of defeats and disasters, relieved only here and there with brief notices of some unimportant successes which had been achieved on our stfe. We announced at the same time that Colouel Whitmore had left Wangauui for tke East Coast with 350 men, and that it was feared that the Government by imprudently denuding Wanganui of its defence force would give a temptation to Titoko Waru to push on operations with greater activity on the West Coast. It has since been proved that these fears were to some extentgroundless, as there was a force amply sufficient at Wanganui to defend that settlement, and to prevent any further aggressive measures being prosecuted by the rebels in that quarter. Now all this is altered. Colonel Whitmore, ably supported by the officers and men, native and European, under his command, having completely routed the rebels under Te Kooti at Poverty Bay, is returning to the West Coast in order to deal with the rebels there, under Titoko Waru their cannibal leader, after a similar fashion. As it has been our misfortune to havo had scarcelj r anything but bad news to communicate to our distant friends on the departure of each mail for Europe, so it is now our good fortune to have scarcely anything but good news to record, and this fact alone, without reference to the increased energy displayed by the Government to suppress the existing rebellion, will account for and justify the altered tone in which our present summary is written All accounts, native and European, concur in stating that Ngatapa is the strongest position in New Zealand known to the Maories, and that in the hands of determined men well supplied with ammunition and provisions, it could not have been taken. A good description of this stronghold will be found in Colonel Whitmore's despatch under date Dec. 30. The following account of the place and of thefinal operations has been supplied by a gentleman who has carefully examined the ground since the capture: — ' Ngatapa is a wedge-shaped hill. The eastern side is moderately fLat and comparatively easy of ascent. It rises in two spurs divided by a ravine of moderate depth, which at about half the height of the eminence fades out in the flat back of the hill. Continuing the ascent this flat back is found gradually to narrow, ending in a point, from which the mountain descends in a razor-edged rocky precipitous ridge towards the west. The edges of the mountain on the eastern side fall in low irregular cliffs to north and south. So that the position on which the Hauhau miscreants had fortified themselves was a triangular slope with natural defences on two sidos. Across the third they had constructed three deep ditches and high and thick earth walls, one behind another, capped with kits of earth so as to leave embrasures between them. Within thefirst work was a large whare used as a church. The dwellings were above the third bank and sunk three feet iv tho ground. Some distance in front of the main works was a line of rille pits, The mountain was originally forest covered from base to summit. It is in fact one of the skirting hills of a broad belt of forest reaching down the eastern promontory of the North Island as far as the Bay of Plenty. The Hauhaus had cleared the main approach in front of their works, felling and burning the manuka trees which clothed the top for a distance of eight or ten chains below their foremost wall. The stumps and unburned remains of this light timber formed a sort oiabbattis

which rendered assault from the front almost impracticable. Springs of water exist near the top. The colonial forces approached by an irregular sap, and were making rapid progress, when the enemy finding himself cub off from his water, commenced attempts to break through our lines in every direction. The force was not large enough to invest the place completely, and Colonel Whitmore availed himself of his proximity to the enemy's lines to reconnoitre the cliffs on their flanks. The result was that both extremities of the outer wall were seized, and the enemy enfiladed from both sides retired to his second defence. Preparations were made for breaching this and the third line by mine ; but before this could be done information was received that the Hauhaus were escaping in the gray of the morning. The inner lines were immediately assaulted, and although the last of the garrison were passing down the cliffs as our men entered, the Hauhaus were so weak with constant watching and hard, scanty fare, that a large part of them were easily overtaken and killed. Few prisoners were taken except women and children. Indeed, quarter was neither expected nor offered. By the end of the day, near half the garrison had fallen, and above 120 prisoners in all have been taken, of whom about 25 are men for the most part only half-will-ing participators in Kooti's fortunes. It is yet uncertain whether Kooti himself is among the dead. He was a man of no rank, and not known personally outside his own tribe and gang. The pursuers might easily have shot him down without recognising him. Or being wmnded his weary bearers would be acting according to Maori custom in killing and hiding away their defeated leader." It was on the night of Jan. 6, that Col. Whitmore had the satisfaction to telegraph to the G-overnnientat Wellington, that the fortress of Ngatapa had fallen into our hands. The troops and natives, the overnight, were in full possession of the outer wall and works, which were taken by assault in the afternoon, and during the dark the advance was pushed on by riflepit and sap, so that when daylight came, the storm could not be resisted. Seeing this, Te Kooti abandoned the place, which was taken possession of by our forces, and proved to be a more formidable place than a mere outside view of it would lead an outside observer to suppose. In attempting their escape, Te Kooti and his followers divided themselves into small parties, many of whom were overtaken, shot, or taken prisoners, but Te Kooti himself succeeded in getting away. Mr Richmond, who was on the spot, offered £500 reward for his capture. That he did escape from Ngatapa, there appears to be no doubt ; but whether he is now alive does not seem to be quite so certain. Many rebels were shot down by the friendly natives who went in j pursuit, and to none of whom w?s Te Kooti personally known. If he succeeded in getting out of the way of their bullets, which is not yet positively known, it is very possible he would not so readily escape from those of his own followers, who would be tempted to kill him to save their own lives, seeing that he was wound- 1 ed, and would therefore greatly retard their retreat. This conjecture moreover is not beyond the bounds of possibility, and is besides supported by native custom. It would also account for their success in eluding the capture of their pursuers, who were not only flushed with victory, but stimulated with the hope of securing the handsome reward which Mr Biehmond, who was on the spot, had bo opportunely offered. The same natural difficulties which beset the pursuers, would also obstruct the progress of the others. Whether, however, Te Kooti be dead or a fugitive only, there can, we think, be no doubt that the fall of Ngatapa has broken, on the East Coast, the backbone of the rebellion, which will enable Colonel Whitmore to bring all the forces under his command against Titoko Waru, and in a very short time conquer a peace which there is every reason to believe may prove lasting. It is worthy of remark that when the news reached Napier, the enthusiasm was not at all commensurate with the occasion. There were some persons, who remembering the enthusiastic rejoicing with which the news of a success on the part of our native allies was received on a prior occasion — when the Government buildings and principal tradesmen's houses were decorated with gala flags — and seeing the flagstaff at the Government buildings bare on this occasion, could hardly help concluding that the news was exaggerated. The contrast between the two occasions, Avas, to the Hawke's Bay Times, striking and unaccountable, but the good effects of the victory are indicated by the fact recorded in that journal that " the guards which, for the last two months, have been kept by the militia and volunteers, have been abolished — to the] great surprise of some, and the equally great delight of others." We may mention that the existence of two factions in Hawke's Bay, may afford an explanation of the circumstance to which our Napier contemporary refers, while it accounts for the ardent personal and political bias shown by the Poverty Bay correspondent of the Hawke's Bay Herald, in favor of Mr McLean, and in opposition to Colonel Whitmore, which renders it necessary for the reader to be on his guard when perusing the otherwise interesting letters of the correspondent in question, copious extracts from which will be found elsewhere. Speaking of Ngatapa, that correspondent says : — " I have in my time seen and examined some of the strongest fortresses in the world, and although Ngatapa is quite unlike Gibraltar, Malta, or the celebrated forts defending the entrance to Bio Janiero, which all, more or less, have been largely indebted to art for the strength they possess, it'cannot be denied that in some respects Ngatepa is superior to -them all. It is truly a formidable position, not surpassed, I believe by any

of the numerous mountain fastnesses of. New Zealand. Most difficult of access, it stands alone, surrounded on all sides by all but impassable ravines, and clothed with forest almost to its summit, except in places where its sides are protected by perpendicular cliffs. Its height from the level of the sea cannot, I think, be less than 4000 feet. The pah is built upoa the top of Ngatapa, but rather sloping towards the crow's nest. It is surrounded by palisades and high embankments, protected from assault by lines of trenches descending in tiers down the face of the hill ; and, running from right to left in the lowest of the trenches, a large church, or " whare karakia," has been built," A sense of justice also constrains him to say : — " Of Colonel Whitmore I am bound to say that I believe he has done his best, since the last murders forced him to attempt the capture of Te Kooti. He certainly has worked hard lately to ensure a successful issue ; but the same must be said of everyone, and Majors "Westrupp, St. John, Fraser, and each officer at the front, have not spared themselves." There has been a dearth of political news during the. past month, -which may in part be accounted for by the Christmas and New Tear Holidays, the particulars of which are fully set forth in other columns, which will give readers in the Northern Hemisphere some idea of how Christmas is spent at the Antipodes. At the close of the year a public meeting was held at Napier, for the purpose of petitioning the Queen to suspend the Constitution Act, but the meeting would not listen to such a proposition, and eventually the following memorial was agreed to : — To Her Most Gracious Majesty, — Your memoraiists view with serious alarm the present state of this country, particularly that of the East and West Coasts of the Northern Island. In consequence of the wide-spread disaffection of a large proportion of the aboriginal inhabitants, who have resolved upon the extermination of all Europeans and friendly natives, life and property are no longer secure in a considerable portion of the Northern Island. Extensive districts, which have been successfully and peaceably occupied, . are now all but abandoned. Homesteads established for years bare been destroyed, and their owners barbarously murdered. Even in localities not actually disturbed, the feeHng of insecurity is so great as to lead to a very serious suspension of all industrial pursuita. These evils have been on the increase for a long period, no satisfactory effects have resulted from the efforts made to suppress them. It is evident that unless vigorous measures are at once adopted, tho wreck of the settled districts will be complete, and the prospect of the enterprising colonists irretrievably ruined. Your memoraiists had entertained the reasonable hope of being able to maintain law and order without requiring aid from the mother country ; but after a lengthened trial they find themselves unable to master difficulties of an unprecedented character, and repress the native insurrection, which is daily acquiring more formidable dimensions. Your memorialists feel assured tliat without your Majesty's gracious intervention and powerful and ready aid, the industries of the colony will be ruined, and the lives of the colonists sacrificed. They, therefore, humbly and respectfully pray that your Majesty will be pleased to direct that such measures be taken as in your Majesty's wisdom and goodness shall seem fit, by adopting such measures as will restore peace and seourity to this part of your Majesty's dominions. And your memorialists, as in duty bound, "will ever pray, &o. A Committee, consisting of Messrs Tiffen, Kinross, and A. St. Hill, was then formed to obtain signatures, and after a vote of thanks to the chairman, the meeting separated, about 11. The question whether we should ask for military assistance from England, which was agitating the public mind afc the date of our la«t Bummary, appears now to have vanished out of sight. It is the general opinion that the Imperial Government ought to afford us assistance of some kiud or other, but opinion is divided as to the shape such assistance should take. We believe that the General Government is of opinion that it will not gefc any assistance whatever, financial or military, from the Home Government without the colony is at the same time compelled to submit to that Imperial interference in the internal affairs of the colony, the existence of which in times past has, more thau anything else, been the cause of its present troubles. There are others whose opinion is entitled to some weight, who think that military assistance only requires to be asked for to be afforded, and who think it would bebetterforthe colony to submit to any conditions that may bo imposed rather than decline such assistance. But the progress of events, our successes on the East Coast, and the knowledge that the most influential chiefs and tribes are directly interested in the maintenance of the authority of the Crown, have, together, tended to allay that alarm which prevailed so generally only a few weeks ago, and at the same time to produce the conviction that we are able to put down the present rebellion without any aid from without. There is now no longer any doubt that the Panama Service will be discontinued. Three of the Company's boafs have already been sold to M'Meckan, Blackwood & Co., of Melbourne, and we understand that the s.s. Phoebe on her return from Auckland will be seized here at the suit of Messrs Bethune & Hunter. The s.s. Mataura will proceed from Sydney to England almost immediately via this port and the Straits of Magellan, and she will be followed by the Rakaia, Kaikoura, and Euahine at monthly intervals. The discontinuance of this service is generally lamented, and will prove a serious loss to a very large number of persons here and elsewhere. In our last summary we took occasion to speak in the highest terms of praise of Captain Benson both as Manager of the Panama Company and as a citizen of Wellington, and his loss and that of Mrs Benson we feel quite sure will be most sincerely felt after their departure. During his management he succeeded in reducing the expenditure of the Company, while the efficiency of the service was not in any way impaired. As a citizen he was one of the foremost in every good work, and we fear it will be a long time before we shall look upon his like again. la whatever part of the

world Captain Benson, his wife, and family may take up their future residence, the best wishes of the people of Wellington for their future prosperity and happiness will accompany them. During the past month there have been two meetings held of the shareholders of the New Zealand Steam Navigation Com- j pany, one convened by those who were in favor of the Company being wound up voluntarily, and the other by the Directors for the purpose of getting a resolution passed in favor of a reduction in the capital of the company. At the first meeting the resolution to wind up was rejected, and the second meeting had to be dissolved because it had not been formally convened. "While there is an influential party in favor of breaking up the company, a large majority of the shareholders are in favor of its continuance, and there appears every probability that their efforts in this direction will be crowned with success. His Excellency the Governor left Wellington on Saturday last in EM. s.s. Challenger, Commodore Lambert, for Canterbury, where he was well received. On the same day Lady Bowen and suite left Wellington for Auckland, where she will remain for sometime. The news of the expected arrival of his Koyal Highness the Duke of Edinburgh at Wellington in March next was received here with mingled feelings of surprise and gratification, and we have no doubt that in every part of the colony he may visit he will receive a moat enthusiastic welcome. In Otago, on the West Coast, and at the Thames, the gold fields and quartz reefs continue to yield an abundance of the precious metal. It was only in our last issue we had the satisfaction to quote the following gratifying information from the New Zealand Herald of the 9th instant : — " The Banks in Auckland are shipping for England by theSiaia to-day, between 23,000 and 24,000 ounces of Thames gold, as follows : — Union Bank of Australia,, 11,518 ounces ; Bank of Australasia, 10,484 ounces, and Bank of New South Wales, 1009 ounces, making a total of 23,011 ounces. We understand that the next shipments of gold will be made in the fine ship Countess of Kintore, which leaves here for London during next month. The Siam leaves the harbor on Monday next, and in addition to her gold, has a cargo of New Zealand produce, valued at about £35,000."