Rīpenetā o Te Houkamau[268]
No tēnei wā (1850) ka noho a Te Kihirini
[269] ki te
Kawakawa
[270], he kāinga kei te hauroro o Waiapu. Kāhore ia i roa ki
reira ka pāngia e te mate; ka mutu tana mahi, ka hoki ki ākarana noho ai. Ko
tētahi take i uaua ai tana mahi, he kino no Te Houkamau ki a ia. Ko te rangatira
tēnei o Wharekahika
[271], he kaumātua whakatumatuma.
I te tau 1853 ka rere mai mātou i ākarana i runga i te kaipuke
kuune
[272], ko te Dolphin te ingoa, e 40 nga tana. I pai to mātau rerenga
mai ki Ihi Keepa i nga rā e ono, engari hei konei ka tūtaki mātou ki te tonga
taupuru
[273], ka hoki ki te Kawakawa. I noho mātou ki te kāinga o Rev.
Rota Waitoa[274] te minita tuatahi o te Iwi Maori. He maha nga rā i
manaakitia ai mātou e Rota i a mātou e tatari ana ki te rā hei haerenga mo mātou
ma uta. E 20 maere anō te mamao ki Waiapu, engari i te kino o nga huarahi, i to
mātou kore i rato i te hoiho, ā, rua rawa nga rā i haere ai mātou.
I pau katoa te ngākau o
Rota Waitoa ki taua wāhi, ā, na nga tau
maha i whakaatu nga hua pai. I to mātou ūnga atu e hanga ana ia i tētahi whare
karakia
[275] ātaahua, ā, i te mea kāhore i roa rawa te peitatanga tino
mārama atu ki te mātakitaki mai i te moana. I te tīmatanga anō o tana mahi ka
tīmata te whakararuraru a Te Houkamau. Ki ta Te Houkamau whakaaro hoki, kaati
anō te kino ko te tū ki te mihinare Pākehā, tēnā ko te haere mai o tētahi Maori
anō no tētahi wāhi noa atu, no te iwi kē, notemea i runga i te tikanga Maori, he
hoa riri kino rawa no tōna iwi. E ai ki ta Te Houkamau, he takahi tēnei i tōna
mana, ā, e kore rawa e taea te whakakiriuka
[276].
Tēnā koa rā i runga i te ata whakaaro i te manawanui, whiwhi
ana ko Rota Waitoa. I tuku a Te Houkamau i a ia ki a Rota, ā, tōna whakarongo
anō ko to te tamaiti nohinohi. Kihai i takitaro ka uru ia
page 182
ki te rōpū mo te iriiri, ā, hei tino tohu mo tōna ripenetā ka
inoi ia ki a Rota kia whakaritea ko ia hei kaitahi, hei kaipatu pere mo te whare
o te Ariki
Hōhepa Peka
Rangitukia
He whakamārama: Na Hōhepa Peka, he tamaiti na tētahi
mihinare i noho ki Rangitukia ēnei kōrero mo Te Houkamau. Kei Te Toa Takitini
nama 60, Akuhata 1926. Whārangi 437.—Nga Etita
[268]Houkamau: He rangatira no Ngāti Porou
[269]Kihirini: Rev G. A. Kissling.
[270]Kawakawa: Ko Te Araroa ināianei.
[271]Wharekahika: Hicks Bay. Ko te ingoa tēnei o te āpiha (First
Lieutenant) tuatahi a Kāpene Kuki.
[273]I te waiata a Rangiuia i puta i a ia te tonga 'hawi,'
'huruhuru,' 'taupuru.' Ko te tonga hawi, he tonga ngāwari, ko te tonga huruhuru
o te kanohi, ko te tonga taupuru, he tonga marangai.
[274]Rota Waitoa: E kiia ana no Ngāti-Raukawa engari e kii ana a
Rota he mokopuna no Hauraki kē tōna tipuna.
[275]Ko Tipene: No te tau 1861 i oti ai.
[276]Whakakiriuka: Manawa nui.