Puke-Rua.

So they passed on till they came to Pae-kakariki, where the railway line leaves the coast and turns inland to Porirua. Here the taua found their way obstructed by a fortified pa named Puke-rua, situated a little to the west of the Railway Station, also called Puke-rua, twenty-two miles from Wellington. Mr. Elsdon Best, who gathered a large number of notes about To Rau-paraha's doings, says that "the name of the Mua-upoko pa at Puke-rua was Wai-mapihi, so named after a little stream there coming down from the hills. After the massacre, those who survived fled up this stream to the forest ranges, pursued by Ngati-Toa, who overtook and killed many of them. The remains of the ramparts at Wai-mapihi are still to be seen, as also a few heavy stumps of the totara palisading, some native ovens, kitchen-middens, etc. The stream runs down past Whare roa Railway Station, and the pa was near the mouth of the stream. Tungia and Takarae were two of the Ngati-Toa chiefs engaged in the capture of the pa. The name of the old Maori track from Taupo (Plimmerton) across the ranges and to the beach at Wai-mapihi was called Taua-tapu. This pa was held by the Ngati-Rangi hapu of the Mua-upoko tribe, and probably some members of the Ngati-Ira tribe of Porirua and Port Nicholson. The inmates offered so good a defence that the taua was repulsed, though, of course, the local people had nothing but their native arms as against the invaders' muskets. Watene says that Tu-whare and Te Rau-paraha now held council as to how this pa was to be taken, and it was finally settled, on the latter's suggestion, that peace should be offered to the local people with the intention of deceiving them. So a message was sent to the pa, "He maunga-rongo ta maua ki teni pa" —("We desire to make peace with the pa.") The chiefs of the pa were thus deceived and agreed to make peace, thinking it was a bona fide one. When the taua had been allowed to enter the pa, they suddenly fell on the unsuspicious inmates and massacred nearly the whole of them. The Nga-Puhi account of this and other treacherous doings of the taua says that they were all instigated by To Rau-paraha. page 304From what is known of his character, it is not difficult to believe it; but at the same time his allies would be quite ready to fall in with his views.