Extracts from "Adventure in New Zealand from 1839 to 1844" By Edward Jerningham Wakefield, Esq.

Page 35, Vol. 1. "At sunset we anchored off the village of Te-awaiti. * * * As soon as we arrived, Mr. Richard Barrett, who was at the head of one of the whaling parties came off in a boat to us. * * * Barrett had been in New Zealand for ten or twelve years, first as a flax trader, at the Sugarloaf Islands, near Taranaki. * * * He and his comrades accompanied Ngatiawa in their migration to the shores of Cook's Strait, which Rauparaha and Te Pehi had conquered, and depopulated, when those chiefs migrated from Kawia, about the year, 1825. This was about the year 1834. Some of the Ngatiawa had settled on the shores of Queen Charlotte's Sound, some in Blind Bay, others at Port Nicholson, and along the coast of the North Island, between that and Kapiti. Constant quarrels had occurred between the original conquerors who chiefly belong to the Ngatitoa tribe, and their more numerous successors. Rauparaha's party took up their residence chiefly at Kapiti, Admiralty Bay, Mana, or Table Island, and Cloudy Bay. They are often called the Kawia; and they had been assisted, we learned, in their attacks on the Ngatiawa, by a tribe of Natives called the Waikorapupu, or "boiling water," who live on the main land north of Kapiti.

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We also learnt from him in how unsettled a state was the proprietorship of [unclear: and] about Cook's Strait. The country had been conquered about fourteen years before by the Kawia tribe. They had almost exterminated the Muoupoko, Rangitane, and Ngatiapa, who were the original occupiers. And even the spots now occupied, were in dispute between the conquerors and the Ngatiawa, who followed nine years afterwards in their track. The very superior numbers of the Ngatiawa seemed to be their only right to supplant the conquerors. We earned that a war in consequence of some such dispute had been only recently [unclear: cluded] in the north end of Queen Charlotte's Sound.

Page 116.—The remains are still in existence on the south bank of the [unclear: river] near its mouth, of the extensive earthen fortifications erected by the Wanganui tribes, and taken by Rauparaha and Te Pehi, when they destroyed numbers of their enemies, that every family there at the present day, years the hope and desire of revenge. The Ngatiapa and Rangitane, who [unclear: welt] in the country watered by the Wangaehu, Turakina, and Rangitikei rivers, were next slaughtered, or put to flight; and the Muoupoko were compelled to yield before the victorious party, as it swept the country between Manawatu, and the island of Kapiti.

Page 117.—Rauparaha, now sought and obtained assistance from the Ngatiraukawa, or "boiling water," tribes who at that time inhabited the north-eastern shores of Lake Taupo. About sixty chosen warriors, under a thief named E Ahu Karamu forced their way through the hardships of the inland path, and the danger's and ambushes of the opposing tribes, and joined him near Kapiti. * * * E Ahu Karamu returned to Taupo, and related to the rest of his tribe how fine an opening had been made for them on the sea coast, dwelling on the advantages to be derived from fishing, and trading with the white men. He bore Te Rauparaha's invitation to the other chiefs to lead their men to Cook's Strait, where he would assign them a part of his conquest to enjoy and maintain, while they assisted him in crushing the remains of the [unclear: surgents] about Rangitikei, and Manawatu. The conflicting opinions as to the expediency of this course were peremptorily terminated by E Ahu, who ordered his young men to burn the houses at Taupo, and the Ngataraukawa migrated in successive bodies to the coast. Rauparaha then proceeded, with their assistance, to crush the remains of the aboriginal tribes; and only spared the lives of the few Muoupoko now existing in that neighbourhood at the urgent intreaty of Watanui, a great chief of the Ngatiraukawa, to leave them as slaves for him. Manawatu, Ohau, and Otaki, and the shores of the Horowhenua, and several adjacent lakes were occupied by these recent allies.

Page 377. The next day we reached Rangitikei (from Manawatu), about page xvi thirteen miles further along the same desolate looking coast. * * * Just before dusk observed the bushy heads of two natives stealing a look at our proceedings from behind a low fern-covered ridge on the opposite bank. They disappeared immediately on my shouting to them; but when I called out that it was "Teraweke," and his white people hungry and tired, a small canoe glided out of the rushes a little higher up, and they were soon sitting by our fire smoking a welcome pipe. They were of the Ngatiapa tribe, and had seen me on my former visit here. Our guns had attracted their notice; but they had feared to cross over, thinking that we were a party of the Ngatiraukawa, I to whom this pa belonged, and some of whom they described to be little scrupulous in plundering or tyrannizing over the remnants of the aboriginal tribe under very slight pretext.

Vol. II.—Page 23. A trading boat from Cloudy Bay to Wanganui had been wrecked near Rangitikei, and the crew had been drowned, including a Ngatiraukawa chief named Koraria, who was a passenger. In consequence of some outrages committed on the body by the Ngatiapa natives, a party of the Ngatiraukawa had made an excursion across that river, had killed 100 pigs, and had taken the wife of Hakeke, the Ngatiapa chief, as a slave. But they had, moreover, tapued the beach between Otaki and Rangitikei, thus preventing the passage of native or white man in either direction for a considerable space of time. It was this which had delayed the surveyors in their journey to Wanganui.

Many other parties, bound thither or to Taranaki had been grievously detained, to their serious inconvenience in many ways by this stringent application of one of the old Maori customs. Koraria had been a brother of Watanui, and the observance of the tapu was, therefore, most rigidly enforced.

Page 226. We crossed a pretty lake close to the north of E Ahu's settlement, called Papaitonga or "Beautiful South," and walked over about four miles of rich level forest country, to the shore of another lake called Horowhenua or "Landslip." After I had fired one or two shots, a canoe came to us from a village at the further end, and bore us to the residence of Watanui, on the stream which drains the waters of the lake to the coast.

I slept there one night, and then proceeded, much impressed with the very chieftainlike bearing of Watanui. While he is known as a renowned leader in war, he has also the reputation of great mildness and justice.

Page 235. At the edge of the wood we found a family which was catching eels in a creek close by. They were one of the aboriginal tribes a remnant of the few natives left in tributary freedom after Rauparaha's invasion.

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Page 240. When we got to Horowhenua village I was much struck by the honorable greeting which Watanui gave to his former enemy. He expressed his gratitude to me for having persuaded E Koru to trust to the honor and good faith of Ngatiraukawa. * * * He had adopted the Christian faith very warmly, but without in the least injuring his authority, for either he himself his second son always read the prayers and enforced the performance of the Christian observances. * * * In short, whenever I spent an hour at this little village, I felt that it was the residence of a gentleman. There was a quiet obtrusive dignity in the well regulated arrangements of the whole establishment. The slaves did their work without orders and without squabbling; a harsh word was hardly ever heard. Every one vied in a tacit wish that the gentleman should be comfortable, and it was pleasing to see him, sitting in his house almost always surrounded by some of his family. * * * I remember how proud he was when he could write his name, and with what genuine kindness he pointed out his son, Tommy's, wife as having succeeded in teaching

Page 369. We slept one night at Manawatu, and the next afternoon we reached Watanui's settlement at Horowhenua lake. The patriarch showed me the most delicate kindness. He spoke repeatedly of the care which I had taken of his grandchild, and said he would never doubt my protection again. "His heart had been sore ever since my departure in anger." He then spoke of the Wairau affair, and said Rauparaha and Rangihaeta had acted very badly. "But" continued he, "we have a Queen; for she is my Queen as well as yours. And when her soldiers come to take the bad men, I shall sit still and let them go by. I will not rise up, for the two treacherous chiefs were in the wrong. Go keep your soreness and your anger in your heart till you have reached Poneke."

Page 376.—(Mr. Wakefield here relates what passed between Ahu, a Ngatiraukawa chief, and Rauparaha about sending cows to Ohau for a Mr. White, whom the former had invited to settle there). And then he (E. Ahu) [unclear: ose] to endeavour to persuade Rauparaha to change his determination. He reminded him of "the war parties which he had brought him on his back to assist him against his enemies, through dangers and troubles more than he could count." He related how "he had burned the villages of the tribe at Toupo to make them come with him to be by the side of Rauparaha on the sea coast." He counted "how many times they had adhered to him in his feuds with the Ngatiawa," and described how much blood of the Ngatiraukawa had been spilt for his name. E Ahu had now warmed with his subject, and was running up and down, bounding and yelling at each turn, and beginning to foam at the mouth, as the natives do when they mean to speak impressively "Let the cows go!" he cried, "let them go to my place!"

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Rauparaha seemed to consider that E Ahu's eloquence was becoming too powerful, and he jumped up too. They both continued to run up and down in short parallel lines yelling at each other, grimacing and foaming, and quivering their hands and smacking them on their thighs, with staring eyes and excited features. * * * "No," cried Rauparaha. "No cows, I will not have them." "Let them go!" yelled E Ahu! "Yield me my cows, the cows will not kill you." "No cows, no white men! I am the King, never mind your war parties! No cows!" answered Rauparaha. "The cows cannot I take you," persisted E Ahu; "when the soldiers come we will fight for you. But let my cows go!" "No! no! No, indeed!" firmly replied the chief, and he sat down.

E Ahu remained standing. He took breath for a minute; then he drew himself up to his full height, and addressed his own people in a solemn kind of of recitative. "Ngatiraukawa," he sang, "Arise! arise! my sons and daughters, my elder brothers and my younger brothers, my sisters, my grand-children, arise! Stand up the families of the Ngatiraukawa! to Taupe! to Taupo! To Maungatautari! To our old homes which we had burned down and deserted; arise, and let us go! Carry the little children on your backs as I carried you when I came to fight for this old man, who has called us to fight for him, and given us land to sit on, but grudges us white people to be our friends and to give us trade." * * * As he sat down a mournful silence prevailed. An important migration had been proposed by the Chief which, no doubt, would be agreed to by the greater part of the Otaki, Ohao, and Manawatu natives, on whom was Rauparaha's chief dependence for hit defence.

I noticed that he winced when he first heard the purport of E Ahu's song but while E. Ahu continued, his countenance gradually resumed its confidence. Much as I abhored his character, I could not but yield my unbounded admiration to the imperious manner in which he overthrew the whole effect of E Ahu's beautiful summons to the tribe.

Instead of his usual doubting and suspicious manner, his every gesture be came that of a noble chief. He rose with all the majesty of a Monarch, and he spoke in the clearest and firmest tones, so that the change from his customary shuffling, cautious and snarling diction was of itself sufficient to command the earnest attention of his audience."

"Go!" said he, "go, all of you! go; Ngatiraukawa to Maungatautari!! Take your children on your backs and go, and leave my land without men. When you are gone I will stay and fight the soldiers with my own hands. I do not beg you to stop; Rauparaha is not afraid! I began to fight when I was as high as my hip, my days have been spent in fighting and by fighting I have got my name. Since I seized by war all page xix this land from Taranaki to Port Nicholson, and from Blind Bay to Cloudy Bay beyond the water, I have been spoken of as a king. I am the king of all this land I have lived a king, and I will die a king with my mere in my hand. Go! I am no beggar! Rauparaha will fight the soldiers of the Queen when they come, with his own hands and his own name. Go to Maungatautari Then, suddenly changing his strain, he looked on the assemblage of chiefs, bending down towards them with a paternal smile, and softening his voice kindness and emotion. "But what do I say!" said he "what is my talk about? You are children. It is not for you to talk. You talk of going here, and doing this and doing that. Can one of you talk when I am here? and I shall rise and speak for you all, and you shall sit dumb, for you are all my children and Rauparaha is your head chief and Patriarch." He completely won his point by this fearless rejection of their assistance, ending an an arrogant assumption of absolute authority over their movements. One of the highest chiefs said to me "It is true, Teraweke! he is our father and our Ariki, (superior chief). Rauparaha is the king of the Maori like your Queen over the white people;" and the others bowed a silent assent and each seemed to swell with conscious dignity as the follower of such a leader. The cattle were not allowed to pass; but Rauparaha agreed quietly to the request of the chiefs, in the course of the day, that the white people already established here should not be sent away.