The Landing, and the Pursuit.

“The place selected by Te Kooti for our landing was Whare-ongaonga (‘House of the Nettles’), a small cove between Gisborne and the Mahia Peninsula. We unloaded the vessel there and boated some water off to her in the ships’ casks, which had been emptied on our voyage with so many people on board. The white men had their money restored to them. Then they set sail for Wellington, and Te Kooti and all of us marched inland. Te Kooti did not wish to fight, and had he been left in peace he would have remained quietly in the interior. But the Europeans of Poverty Bay endeavoured to intercept us. We fought an engagement with them at Paparatu and defeated them, killing two. The Europeans left their equipage and some arms on the field, and it was there that I obtained my first rifle. We fortified ourselves in a stronghold at Puketapu; and it was from this position in the ranges that we marched out on our expedition against the settlers and Government Maoris of Turanga-nui (Poverty Bay). It was at night (November 8th) that our war-party left Patutahi on the hills above Turanga-nui and attacked the settlements at Pipi-whakao, Makauri, and Matawhero.