RUAKAKA.
The _wharangi_ plant--Enormous ravines--Ruakaka--Reception by the
Hauhaus--The chief Pareoterangi--The parley--Hinepareoterangi--A
repast--Rapid fall of country--The Manganui-a-te-Ao--Shooting the
rapids--The natives--Religion--Hauhauism--Te Kooti's lament--A
Hauhau hymn.
We struck camp at Dismal Swamp at daybreak, and travelled on for many
miles through the same character of country we had been traversing
for the past five days. Before leaving us, at the entrance to the
forest, Te Wheu had warned us not to allow our horses to eat a certain
shrub, called by the natives "_wharangi_," which we found growing for
many miles along our course, with broad, oval-shaped, light-green
leaves. This plant, when eaten by horses or cattle, is said to produce
stupefaction, followed by convulsions and death, the only known cure
being instant bleeding from the ears. Our own animals were now ready
to eat anything, and made desperate efforts to devour the foliage of
the trees, and, as we went along, we had great difficulty in keeping
them away from this poisonous shrub, which they would devour greedily.
During this journey the boggy creeks and fallen trees became more
troublesome than before, and the hills steeper and more difficult to
climb. We passed along one ridge, with enormous ravines below, some
of which were of circular shape, and in appearance not unlike extinct
craters, while deep down in their depths, all around their sides, and
up to their very topmost ridges, nothing was to be seen but a luxuriant
growth of the most varied and beautiful vegetation. Here, too, the
geological character of the country changed, the trachytic rocks giving
place to a sandstone formation, covered with a stratum of thick, marly
earth, which was so slippery in places that we could hardly manage to
get along.
During the greater part of the morning the rain had been pouring down
in torrents, and what with the swollen condition of the creeks, the
slippery nature of the soil, and the starved condition of our horses,
our prospects of ever reaching Ruakaka seemed to be hopeless. At
last, about two o'clock in the afternoon, we hailed with delight a
break in the forest, and we came suddenly into a hilly region, where
the tall fern grew higher than our horses' heads. After travelling a
considerable distance through this country, we mounted to the top of a
high hill, when we beheld, 200 feet beneath us, a fine, open valley,
sunk like a pit, as it were, in the heart of a mountainous region,
where enormous forests stretched away as far as the eye could reach on
every side. Right down the centre of the valley, as far as we could
see, we could trace the winding course of the Manganui-a-te-Ao, marked
by precipitous cliffs of grey rock, which rose perpendicularly from the
waters of the river to a height of 300 feet, while above these, again,
on the further side of the stream, were terraces of rounded hills,
backed by conical mountains, which mounted, one above the other, to a
height of 3000 or 4000 feet, covered from base to summits with a thick
mantle of luxuriant vegetation. On the side where we had emerged from
the forest the valley was bounded by round-topped, fern-clad hills and
flat, terrace-like formations that descended, in the form of gigantic
steps, into the plain below, where the _whares_ and cultivations of the
natives, stretching for miles along the course of the stream, appeared
dotted about in the most picturesque way. Taken altogether, the whole
place had a singularly wild appearance as we gazed upon it, and now
that we could see everything from our point of vantage without being
seen, we wondered what kind of a welcome we should meet with from the
natives.
We led our horses down the steep, slippery track into the valley, and
as we were now seen by some of the Maoris, there were loud shouts that
_pakehas_ had arrived, and the natives came out of the _whares_ and
awaited our approach in front of the _wharepuni_. We could see at a
glance that the words of Te Wheu were correct, and that the natives, so
far as we could discern by outward signs, were veritable Hauhaus, alike
in dress and bearing, while both men and women had a singularly wild
and even savage appearance when compared with all other tribes I had
seen in different parts of the country. It was likewise clear that they
did not welcome us at first with any demonstrations of cordiality, and
upon Turner inquiring for the chief, they replied that he was away at
a wild-pig hunt, and that we must wait till he came. The natives then
squatted around us, and scanned us narrowly, while we looked on with
an air of apparent indifference.
In the meanwhile a messenger had been despatched for the chief,
whose name, we now learned, was Te Pareoterangi, and after a short
delay he appeared before us, with half a dozen wild-looking natives,
carrying a double-barrelled gun over his shoulder. He was a man below
medium height, but of singularly massive build, broad-chested and
broad-shouldered, with a well-formed head, and singularly well-moulded
features. Indeed, his heavily-knit frame, intelligent air, and almost
oriental cast of countenance made him stand out in marked contrast to
the other natives, who were, for the most part, unlike the generality
of their race, remarkable for their diminutive stature and ungainly
appearance.
When Te Pareoterangi came up, he squatted down with a sullen air,
without going through any form of salutation, and then, after a pause,
asked us what we had come for, and upon Turner telling him that he had
brought the _pakeha_, who was travelling for pleasure, a titter ran
round the circle, for, if we did not look it, we felt half-starved,
we were drenched to the skin, and covered from head to foot with mud,
and the chief, evidently realizing all the unpleasant features of our
position, naively remarked, "How can the _pakeha_ travel for pleasure
through such a forest as you have come?" At which an old tattooed
savage observed, "Their horses are only rats; how did they get here?
These _pakehas_ have singular ways." This was said with a sinister
smile from the old man, and in anything but a complimentary tone. Many
other questions were put to us, and the parleying kept on, by fits and
starts, for a good half-hour, during which time the natives displayed
no token of friendship, the only manifestations we received in this
respect being from the dogs and pigs, the latter even going so far as
to scratch their backs against our legs.
[Illustration: RUAKAKA.
_Page 272._]
At last an old woman, who had been watching the proceedings keenly,
and whose appearance reminded me of one of the witches in "Macbeth,"
suddenly rose, and stepping with an excited air into the middle of the
circle, waved her bare right arm round her head, and shouted at the top
of her voice, "_Haeremai! Haeremai! Haeremai!_"[53] And then turning to
the natives, in an equally excited way, said, "The _pakehas_ have been
following up the rivers of great names, and have come to our homes;
they are hungry, and we must give them food." The words of this weird
dame, whom we afterwards found was the chieftainess Hinepareoterangi,
and mother of the chief of the _hapu_, acted like magic upon the
natives, who at once took charge of our horses, while the women
hastened to prepare a meal, old Hinepareoterangi opening the feast by
presenting us with some of the finest apples I had ever tasted.[54] In
a short time we were invited into the _wharepuni_, and a big tin dish
of potatoes and pork was set before us, the old chieftainess remarking,
"You are now in a 'Tongariro country,' and must not look for such
delicacies as bread." As we had only had two meals for the past two
days, and those of the most visionary description, we found this repast
most acceptable. The pork, which had been preserved by being rendered
down in its own fat, was delicious, while the potatoes were of the
finest kind.
Owing to the heavy rain and the flooded state of the Manganui-a-te-Ao,
we were compelled to wait at Ruakaka for two days, during which time
we visited many parts of the district. I found that the altitude of
Ruakaka was 800 feet above the level of the sea, and it is worthy of
remark, as showing the rapid fall of the country in this direction,
that, in order to reach this place from the great central table-land
where we had at first entered the forest, we had descended by the
circuitous way we had come no less than 1600 feet in about forty miles.
These figures will give some idea of the swift current of the
Manganui-a-te-Ao, which, taking its rise near the north-western
side of Ruapehu, cuts its way through a mountainous country in a
deep, rock-bound channel, and receives the waters of innumerable
tributaries along its entire course. The volume of water poured
down by this impetuous stream, especially in the rainy season, and
during the melting of the snows of Ruapehu, is something prodigious,
while I believe the rapidity of its current is unequalled by any
other river in New Zealand. Along its entire length its rocky bed
is strewn with large boulders and masses of rock of colossal size,
while its precipitous cliffs, crowned with towering, forest-clad
mountains, impart to it a singularly grand and wild appearance. Besides
its rapid course, it is remarkable for its windings and dangerous
rapids. We found that the river was known by three native names--viz.
Manganui-a-te-Ao, or "great river of light;" Te Waitahupara, and Te
Wairoahakamanamana-a-Rongowaitahanui, or "the river of ever-dancing
waters and steep, echoing cliffs"--while the Whanganui, into which
it fell, was not only known by the latter name, but likewise as Te
Wainui-a-Tarawera, or the "great waters of Tarawera."
The two rivers form the principal means of communication for the
natives of Ruakaka with the outer world. From the Manganui-a-te-Ao they
travel in canoes to the Whanganui, and thence southward to the coast.
The distance is accomplished in a few days, owing to the rapid current,
but the journey up stream often takes over a month. The natives are
experienced "canoemen," as they must be in order to navigate their
frail canoes over the many rapids and winding turns that mark the
whole course of the river, as well as that of the Whanganui. At most
of the rapids the water shoots over enormous boulders and between
narrow channels, and the canoes, guided by poles, are carried over the
treacherous places with wonderful dexterity. As may well be imagined,
the frail craft often gets upset, but the natives, who are expert
swimmers, right them again with little difficulty.
During our stay at Ruakaka we were guests of Pareoterangi and his
family, which consisted of the old chieftainess, Hinepareoterangi, or
the "woman of the heavenly crest," as her name implied; Ani, wife of
Pareoterangi, a tall, gaunt woman with blunt features, and who wore her
hair in short, thick ringlets about her head; Te Ahi, her daughter; and
Toma, the tattooed savage who had called our horses "rats." We took up
our quarters in the _wharepuni_ with these people, but the dismal, and,
I may say, dirty, tenement was constantly filled with the natives, who
kept continually dropping in to chat or to have a look at us. In this
way we had a good opportunity of studying the manners and customs of
the Hauhaus of Ruakaka, and, all things considered, they seemed to be
following about the same mode of life as they must have done before the
arrival of Cook, their manners still presenting that mixture of rude
freedom and simplicity suggestive of the infancy of society, before
art had taught men to restrain the sentiments of their nature, or to
disguise the original features of their character. Shut up in the midst
of their forest wilderness, and having little or no connection with the
outer world, they seemed to know nothing or to care for nothing beyond
their own day-to-day existence. We learned that since time immemorial
this wild and secluded valley had been a place of settlement for
different _hapus_ of the tribes inhabiting the region of the Whanganui
River, and that those at present dwelling there were the Ngatihau,
Ngatiapa, Ngatimaringi, Ngatitamakana, Ngatiatamira, Ngatiruakopiri,
Ngatiikewaia, and Ngatitara. We were informed that their common
ancestor was Uenuku, and that their forefathers came from Hawaiki in
the _Tainui_, _Arawa_, and _Aotea_ canoes. In former times the whole
valley of the Manganui-a-te-Ao was fortified with formidable _pas_, so
that it was impossible for an enemy to get up the river. During the
troubled times of the great war with the Europeans Ruakaka was always
considered as a safe meeting-place for the Hauhau tribes of this part
of the country, since the _pakehas_ did not know of its existence; and
even if they had, as the natives reasonably remarked, they would never
have attempted to penetrate into its fastnesses with any prospect of
returning alive.
I was anxious to test the religious principles of our Hauhau friends,
just to see whether a ray of Christianity was to be found in this
wild valley, and during an evening sitting, when the _wharepuni_
was heated like a furnace, and all the motley crowd were assembled
together, I got Turner to sound the old tattooed man, who had been a
noted fighting-chief during the war, upon the present and upon the
hereafter. This grim, antiquated warrior would sit and listen for hours
to everything that was said, but he would never venture a remark. Now
and again a diabolically sinister smile would pass over his blue-lined
countenance, and he would mutter a word with a puff of smoke, but
beyond this he was silent. When, however, the question as to his
religious scruples was put straight to him, he spoke out frankly, and
said, with an air of singular _naïveté,_ "At one time I thought there
were two saints in the island--Tawhiao and Te Whiti--and I waited a
long time to see if they would be taken up to heaven in a chariot of
fire, but I have waited so long that I am tired, and now I think that
there are no saints in heaven or on earth." Old Hinepareoterangi,
who was always a good talker, and displayed at all times a facetious
spirit, laughed heartily at the admission of the old man, and then,
looking us full in the face, she exclaimed in her wild, weird way,
"We believe in nothing here, and get fat on pork and potatoes." This
brought down roars of laughter from the assembled Hauhaus, and we
dropped the religious question.
It was, in fact, very clear that these natives were as deeply wrapped
in the darkness of heathenism as were their forefathers centuries ago,
and beyond a superstitious species of Hauhauism, no germ of religious
teaching appeared to have found its way into their breasts. They were,
however, always ready to sing Hauhau chants to the glorification of
Te Whiti and Te Kooti, who appeared to be the presiding deities of
these wild tribes. At night, when the wind and rain raged without,
and the river rushed through its rock-bound channel with a noise like
thunder, both men and women would chant these wild refrains in droning,
melancholy notes, but in perfect harmony, the airs in most cases being
exceedingly pretty and touching.
The two following chants were sung to us by Te Pareoterangi and other
natives in chorus, and were taken down in Maori verbatim by Turner. I
am indebted for their spirited translation to the able pen of Mr. C.O.
Davis.
TE KOOTI'S LAMENT.
I stood alone awhile, then moving round
I heard of Taranaki's doings. The rumours
Reached me here, and then I raised
My hand to Tamarura,[55] that deity
Above. Ah me! 'twas on the third
Of March that suffering came,
For then, alas! Waerangahika[56] fell;
And I was shipped on board a vessel,
And borne along upon the ocean.
We steer for Waikawa,[57] and then we bear
Away to Ahuriri,[58] to thee, McLean.[59]
Ah, now I'm seated on _St. Kilda's_[60] deck,
And looking back to gaze upon the scene
My tears like water freely flow; now
Whanganui's[61] shore is seen, now Whangaroa,[62]
Where mountain waves are raising up their crests
Near Wharekauri.[63] O, my people,
Rest ye at home; arise and look around,
And northward look. The lightsome clouds
Are lingering in the sky, and wafted hither
Day by day, yes, from my distant home,
Turanga, from which I now am separated,
Separated now from those I love.
O, my people! respect the queen's authority,
That we may prosper even to the end.
Suffice the former things thrown in our path
As obstacles. Uphold the governor's laws
To mitigate the deeds of Rura, who brought
Upon us all our troubles.
HAUHAU HYMN.
Let us arise, O people!--the whole of us arise.
Lo, Tohu and Te Whiti now have reached
The pits of darkness--the house of Tangaroa,[64]
And gateway of the spirit-world of Miru,[65]
Where men are bound all seasons of the year.
The offspring, too, of David they would bind.
The bright and morning star, Peace, at the end
Will come, and in the times of David
Feelings of vindictiveness will cease.
'Tis not from thee; it is from Moses
And the Prophets--from Jesus Christ
And His Apostles, that lines of demarcation
Were set up to shield thee from man's wrath.
The termination comes by thee, O Tohu!
And while it wears a pleasing aspect,
I am lighted into day.
FOOTNOTES:
[Footnote 53: _Haeremai_ is the usual cry of welcome with the Maoris.]
[Footnote 54: When afterwards we asked the natives how it was they
appeared to be mistrustful of us when we first arrived, they replied
that they had always been suspicious of half-castes and _pakehas_,
especially since the capture of Winiata by Barlow. That Te Takaru, the
murderer of Moffat, came there sometimes, and they thought we were
after him. They then related to us the circumstances of Moffat's death.
It would appear that the murdered man, on his last journey, came to
Ruakaka, and induced several of the natives to accompany him to the
Tuhua country. Moffat, who had been driven from that district by the
natives, had been warned not to enter it again; but, notwithstanding
this caution, he determined to revisit it, in order to prospect for
gold. The party left by one of the bush tracks, and when it had nearly
reached its destination, Moffat was fired upon by a native from behind
a tree, and mortally wounded in the back. At the same moment he fell
from his horse, when another native jumped forward, and split his skull
open with a tomahawk.]
[Footnote 55: Tamarura--probably a supposed angel recognized by the
Hauhau parties.]
[Footnote 56: Waerangahika--one of the _pas_ at Poverty Bay, which was
taken by our forces.]
[Footnote 57: Waikawa--now known as Open Bay.]
[Footnote 58: Ahuriri--the great Maori name of Hawke's Bay.]
[Footnote 59: The late Sir Donald McLean, the Superintendent of the
province of Hawke's Bay (Napier).]
[Footnote 60: _St. Kilda_ was the name of the vessel in which Te Kooti
was transported to the Chatham Islands.]
[Footnote 61: Whanganui--name of a places on the Chatham Islands.]
[Footnote 62: Whangaroa--name of a place on the Chatham Islands.]
[Footnote 63: Wharekauri is the native name of the Chatham Islands.]
[Footnote 64: The god of the sea, and guardian of fishes.]
[Footnote 65: Supposed being armed with authority in Hades.]