THE NEW ZEALAND WAR.
For a few days the greater part of the passengers who had arrived by the
_Flying Scud_ remained in Wellington. Mr. Atherton and the two Allens
had put up at the same hotel. The latter intended to go out as shepherds
or in any other capacity on a farm, for a few months at any rate, before
investing in land. They had two or three letters of introduction to
residents in Wellington, and ten days after the arrival of the ship they
called at the Renshaws' to say good-bye, as they had arranged to go for
some months with a settler up the country. They promised to write
regularly to Wilfrid and tell him all about the part to which they were
going.
"Mr. Atherton has promised to write to us," they said, "and tell us
about the districts he visits with you, and if you and he discover
anything particularly inviting we shall at any rate come and see you, if
you will give us an invitation when you are settled, and look round
there before buying land anywhere else. It would be very pleasant to be
somewhere near you and him."
"We shall be very glad, indeed, to see you," Mrs. Renshaw said; "still
more glad if you take up a piece of ground near us. Having friends near
is a very great point in such a life as this, and it would be most
agreeable having a sort of little colony of our own."
"We should have liked very much," James Allen said, "to say good-bye to
the Miss Mitfords, but as we do not know their father and mother it
might seem strange for us to call there."
"I do not think they are at all people to stand on ceremony," Mrs.
Renshaw said; "but I will put on my bonnet and go round with you at once
if you like."
This was accordingly done. Mr. Mitford had heard of the young men as
forming part of the little group of passengers on board the _Flying
Scud_, and gave them a hearty invitation to pay him a visit if they
happened to be in his neighbourhood, and the next day they started for
the farm on which they had engaged themselves. Two days later there was
a general break up of the party, for Mr. and Mrs. Mitford started with
their daughters in a steamer bound to Hawke Bay.
"Will you tell me, Mr. Jackson, what all the trouble in the north has
been about," Wilfrid asked that evening, "for I have not been able to
find out from the papers?"
"It is a complicated question, Wilfrid. When New Zealand was first
colonized the natives were very friendly. The early settlers confidently
pushed forward into the heart of native districts, bought tracts of land
from the chiefs, and settled there. Government purchased large blocks of
land, cut off by intervening native territory from the main settlements,
and sold this land to settlers without a suspicion that they were
thereby dooming them to ruin. The settlers were mostly small farmers,
living in rough wooden houses scattered about the country, and
surrounded by a few fields; the adjoining land is usually fern or forest
held by the natives. They fenced their fields, and turned their cattle,
horses, and sheep at large in the open country outside these fences,
paying rent to the natives for the privilege of doing so.
"This led to innumerable quarrels. The native plantations of wheat,
potatoes, or maize are seldom fenced in, and the cattle of the settlers
sometimes committed much devastation among them; for the Maori fields
were often situated at long distances from their villages, and the
cattle might, therefore, be days in their patches before they were found
out. On the other hand, the gaunt long-legged Maori pigs, which wander
over the country picking up their own living, were constantly getting
through the settlers' fences, rooting up their potatoes, and doing all
sorts of damage.
"In these cases the settlers always had the worst of the quarrel. They
either had no weapons, or, being isolated in the midst of the natives,
dared not use them; while the Maoris, well armed and numerous, would
come down waving their tomahawks and pointing their guns, and the
settlers, however much in the right, were forced to give way. The
natural result was that the colonists were continually smarting under a
sense of wrong, while the Maoris grew insolent and contemptuous, and
were filled with an overweening confidence in their own powers, the
result of the patience and enforced submission of the settlers. The
authority of the queen over the natives has always been a purely nominal
one. There was indeed a treaty signed acknowledging her government, but
as none of the chiefs put their name to this, and the men who signed
were persons of inferior rank with no authority whatever to speak for
the rest, the treaty was not worth the paper on which it was written.
"The Maoris from the first exhibited a great desire for education. They
established numerous schools in their own districts and villages; in
most cases accepted nominally if not really the Christian religion, and
studied history with a good deal of intelligence. Some of them read that
the Romans conquered England by making roads everywhere through the
island, and the natives therefore determined that no roads should be
constructed through their lands, and every attempt on the part of
government to carry roads beyond the lands it had bought from them was
resisted so firmly and angrily that the attempt had to be abandoned. The
natives were well enough aware that behind the despised settlers was the
power of England, and that if necessary a numerous army could be sent
over, but they relied absolutely upon their almost impassable swamps,
their rivers, forests, and mountains.
"Here they thought they could maintain themselves against any force that
might be sent against them, and relying upon this they became more and
more insolent and overbearing, and for some time before the outbreak in
1860 every one saw that sooner or later the storm would burst, and the
matter have to be fought out until either we were driven from the island
or the natives became thoroughly convinced of their inability to oppose
us.
"At first the natives had sold their land willingly, but as the number
of the European settlers increased they became jealous of them, and
every obstacle was thrown in the way of land sales by the chiefs.
Disputes were constantly arising owing to the fact that the absolute
ownership of land was very ill defined, and perhaps a dozen or more
persons professed to have claims of some sort or other on each piece of
land, and had to be individually settled with before the sale could be
effected. When as it seemed all was satisfactorily concluded, fresh
claimants would arise, and disputes were therefore of constant
occurrence, for there were no authorities outside the principal
settlements to enforce obedience to the law.
"Even in Auckland itself the state of things was almost unbearable.
Drunken Maoris would indulge in insolent and riotous behaviour in the
street; for no native could be imprisoned without the risk of war, and
with the colonists scattered about all over the country the risk was too
great to be run. In addition to the want of any rule or authority to
regulate the dealings of the natives with the English, there were
constant troubles between the native tribes.
"Then began what is called the king movement. One of the tribes invited
others to join in establishing a central authority, who would at once
put a stop to these tribal feuds and enforce something like law and
order, and they thought that having a king of their own would improve
their condition--would prevent land from being sold to the whites and be
a protection to the people at large, and enable them to hold their own
against the settlers. Several of the tribes joined in this movement.
Meetings were held in various parts in imitation of the colonial
assemblies. The fruit of much deliberation was that a chief named
Potatau, who was held in the highest esteem, not only by the tribes of
Waikato, but throughout the whole island, as one of the greatest of
their warriors and wisest of their chiefs, was chosen as king.
"The movement excited much apprehension in Auckland and the other
settlements, for it was plain that if the Maoris were governed by one
man and laid aside their mutual enmities they would become extremely
formidable. At the great meeting that was held, the Bishop of New
Zealand, the head of the Wesleyan body, and several other missionaries
were present, and warned the Maoris of the dangers that would arise from
the course they were taking.
"The warning was in vain, and Potatau was chosen king. Mr. Fenton, a
government official, went on a tour among the natives. He found that
there was still what was called a queen's party, but the king's party
was very much the strongest. For two years, however, things went on
somewhat as before, and it was not until 1860, when a quarrel arose over
some land in the province of Taranaki, that troubles fairly began. In
this district a chief named Wiremu-Kingi had established a sort of land
league, and given notice to the governor that he would not permit any
more land to be sold in the district. A native named Teira, who owned
some land at Waiteira, offered it for sale to the government. After
examining his title, and finding that it was a valid one, the land was
purchased.
"In the spring of 1860 the governor tried to take possession.
Wiremu-Kingi forcibly resisted, the troops were called out, and war
began. Wiremu-Kingi had unquestionably certain rights on Teira's land,
for he and his tribe were amicably settled upon it, had built houses,
and were making plantations; but of these facts the government were
ignorant when they bought the land. Wiremu-Kingi at once joined the king
movement, from which he had previously stood aloof. A meeting was held
at the Waikato. Chief Wiremu-Kingi and Mr. M'Lean, the native secretary,
both addressed the meeting, and Potatau and many of the chiefs were of
opinion that the English had acted fairly in the case. Many of the
younger chiefs, however, took the part of the Taranaki natives, and
marched away and joined them.
"Unfortunately, in the first fight that took place, our troops were
driven back in an attack upon a pah, and the news of this success so
fired the minds of all the fighting men of the Waikato, and neighbouring
tribes, that they flocked down to Taranaki and joined in plundering the
deserted homes of the settlers, and in the attacks upon the troops.
Potatau and his council did all they could to stop their men from going,
but the desire to distinguish themselves and to take part in the
victories over the Pakehas, which is what the natives call the whites,
were too strong for them. In the midst of all this turmoil Potatau died,
and his son Matu-Taera was made king.
"In the fighting that went on in Taranaki discipline and training soon
began to make themselves felt. The troops in the colony were largely
reinforced, and pah after pah were captured. The war went on. But though
English regiments with a strong force of artillery were engaged in it,
it cannot be said that the natives have been conquered, and General
Cameron, who came out and assumed the command, found the task before
him a very difficult one.
"There was for a time a pause in hostilities when Sir George Grey came
out as governor in the place of Governor Brown, but the natives
recommenced hostilities by a treacherous massacre near New Plymouth, and
fighting began again at once.
"The native pah near the Katikara river was attacked by a column of
infantry with artillery, and shelled by the guns of a ship of war, and
the Maoris were driven out of a position that they believed impregnable.
The Waikatos now rose and murdered and plundered many of the settlers,
and a force marched for the first time into their country, carried a
formidable pah at Koheroa, and, although unprovided with artillery,
defeated the Maoris in a fight in the thick bush. The very formidable
position at Merimeri, which lay surrounded by swamps near the Waikato
river, was next captured, although held by eleven hundred Maoris, led by
their great chief Wiremu-Tamehana, called by the missionaries William
Thompson.
"The next attack was upon a strongly-fortified position at Rangiriri,
lying between the Waikato river and Waikare lake. This was successful,
and the nation were next thrashed at Rangiawhia, at Kaitake, on the 25th
of last March. Thus, you see, in almost all of these fights we succeeded
in capturing the enemy's pah or in defeating them if they fought in the
open. Unfortunately, although these engagements showed the natives that
in fair fighting they were no match for our troops, they have done
little more. When their pahs were captured they almost invariably
managed to make their way through the dense bush, and it can scarcely be
said that we do more than hold the ground occupied by our soldiers. And
so matters still go on. The fighting has been confined to the Taranaki
and Auckland provinces, and we may hope that it will go no further."
"Well, it is quite evident," Mr. Renshaw said, "that neither the Waikato
country nor Taranaki are fit places for quiet people to settle at the
present time, and I suppose the northern part of Wellington is not much
better?"
"No, I cannot say it is," Mr. Jackson said. "The Wanganui tribe on the
river of that name are in alliance with the Taranaki people, and have
joined them in fighting against us, and I believe that General Cameron
will shortly undertake a campaign against them. I should strongly advise
you to turn your attention to the eastern side of this province, or to
the province of Hawke Bay, higher up, where they have had no trouble
whatever, and where, as you know, our friends the Mitfords are settled."
"What is this that I have heard about a new religion that has been
started among the Maoris?"
"There is but little known about it, and if it were not that should this
religion spread it will add to our difficulties, no one would think
anything about it one way or the other. There was a fellow named Te Ua,
who had always been looked upon as a harmless lunatic. No doubt he is a
lunatic still, though whether he will be harmless remains to be seen.
However, he some little time ago gave out that the archangel Michael,
the angel Gabriel, and hosts of minor spirits visited him and gave him
permission to preach a new religion, and bestowed on him great power.
"The religion was to be called Pai Marire, which interpreted literally
means good and peaceful; and it is also called Hau-Hau, the meaning of
which is obscure, but it is a special word of power that Te Ua professes
to have specially received from the angel Gabriel. As far as we have
been able to learn the Hau-Haus have no special belief or creed, except
that their leader has a divine mission, and that all he says is to be
implicitly obeyed. Certainly the religion has spread quickly among the
tribes, and has latterly taken the form of hostility to us. Still, we
may hope that it will soon die out. It is said that Te Ua has told his
followers that they are invulnerable, but if they try conclusions with
us they will very speedily find that he has deceived them, and are not
likely to continue their belief in him."
"Then the colonists themselves, Mr. Jackson, have taken but little share
in the fighting so far?"
"Oh, yes, they have. There have been several corps of Rangers which have
done capital service. The corps led by Majors Atkinson, Von Tempsky, and
M'Donnell have done great service, and are far more dreaded by the
natives than are the slow-moving regular troops. They fight the natives
in their own manner--make raids into their country and attack their
positions at night, and so much are they dreaded that the natives in
villages in their vicinity are in the habit of leaving their huts at
night and sleeping in the bush lest they should be surprised by their
active enemy. The general opinion among us colonists is that ten
companies like Von Tempsky's would do a great deal more than ten British
regiments towards bringing the matter to a conclusion.
"In the first place, the officers and troops of the regular army cannot
bring themselves to regard the natives with the respect they deserve as
foes. Their movements are hampered by the necessity of a complicated
system of transport. Their operations, accompanied as they are by
artillery and a waggon train, are slow in the extreme, and do what they
will the natives always slip through their hands. The irregular corps,
on the other hand, thoroughly appreciate the activity and bravery of the
Maoris. They have lived among them, and know their customs and ways.
They have suffered from the arrogance and insolence of the natives
before the outbreak of the war, and most of them have been ruined by the
destruction of their farms and the loss of years of patient labour. Thus
they fight with a personal feeling of enmity against their foes, and
neither fatigue nor danger is considered by them if there is a chance of
inflicting a blow upon their enemy. I am convinced that at last the
imperial government will be so disgusted at the failure of the troops to
bring the war to a conclusion, and at the great expense and loss of life
entailed by the operations, that they will recall the regulars and leave
the colonists to manage the affair themselves, in which case I have no
fear whatever as to their bringing it to a prompt conclusion. Looking at
the matter from a business point of view, there is no doubt, Mr.
Renshaw, that those who, like yourself, come out at the present time
will benefit considerably. You will get land at a quarter the price you
would have had to pay for it had it not been for these troubles, and as
soon as the war is over the tide of emigration will set in again more
strongly than before, and land will go to prices far exceeding those
that ruled before the outbreak began."
Upon the following morning Mr. Atherton and Wilfrid embarked in the
schooner. They had been furnished by Mr. Jackson with a number of
letters of introduction to settlers in every district they were to
visit. "These will really only be of use to you in the small towns," he
said, "for in the country districts every house is open, and you have
generally only to ride up to a door, put up your horses, and walk in,
and you are almost sure to meet with a hearty welcome. Still, as you are
new-comers, and have not rubbed off your old country ideas, it will be
more pleasant for you to take letters. At the ports, such as they are,
you may really find them useful, for you will not find any inns. You can
strike out anywhere into the back country without the least fear of
being inconvenienced by natives."
The two friends spent a pleasant fortnight touching at the settlements,
situated for the most part at the mouths of the rivers, and spending the
time the vessel remained there in short excursions into the interior.
They were most pleased with the Wairarapa Valley, running up from
Palliser Bay; but this being near Wellington the land was all taken up,
and there were many flourishing villages and small towns.
"This is very nice," Wilfrid said, "but the price of land is far too
high for us, and we might almost as well have taken to farming in
England."
The eastern coast of the province was dotted by little settlements,
lying for the most part at the mouths of small rivers, and several of
these offered favourable facilities for settlement. Passing on, they
found that the coast was bolder along the province of Hawke Bay. They
stopped at Clive, at the mouth of the bay, for a day or two, and went up
the Tukataki river in a canoe to the town of Waipawa. But here they
found the farms thick and land comparatively expensive. They left the
schooner at Napier, the chief town of the province, and after making
several excursions here went up in a coasting craft to the mouth of the
river Mohaka, which runs into the sea a short distance to the south of
the boundary line between Hawke Bay and the province of Auckland. A few
miles up this river was the farm of Mr. Mitford. Hiring a boat they
proceeded up the river, and landed in front of the comfortable-looking
farmhouse of the settler.
Mr. Mitford, seeing strangers approaching, at once came down to meet
them, and received them with the greatest cordiality as soon as he saw
who they were.
"I am heartily glad to see you!" he exclaimed, "and the girls will be
delighted. They have been wondering ever since we got here when you
would arrive. You have not, I hope, fixed upon any land yet, for they
have set their heart upon your settling down as our neighbours. This is
as pretty a valley as there is in the island, and you will have no
difficulty in getting land at the lowest government price. There being
no settlement of any size at the mouth of the river has deterred
emigrants from coming here to search for land. But we can talk about
that afterwards. Come straight up to the house. I will send down one of
my native boys to bring up your baggage."
They spent a very pleasant evening at the farmhouse. Mr. Mitford owned a
considerable extent of land, and was doing very well. He reared cattle
and horses, which he sent down for sale to Wellington. The house was
large and comfortable, and bore signs of the prosperity of its owner.
The girls were delighted at the place. They had been left in care of
relatives at home when their father and mother came out six years before
to settle in New Zealand, and everything was as new to them as to
Wilfrid. They had taken to riding as soon as they arrived, and had
already made excursions far up the valley with their father.
"We were at a place yesterday, Wilfrid," the eldest girl said, "that we
agreed would suit your father admirably. It is about ten miles up the
river. It was taken up only last year, father says, by a young
Englishman, who was going to make a home for someone he was engaged to
in England. A few days since he was killed by a tree he was cutting down
falling upon him. He lived twenty-four hours after the accident, and
father rode out to him when he heard of it. He directed him to sell the
land for whatever it would fetch, and to send the money over to England.
There are two hundred acres on the river and a comfortable log hut,
which could of course be enlarged. He had about fifteen acres cleared
and cultivated. The scenery is beautiful, much prettier than it is here,
with lots of lovely tree-ferns; and there are many open patches, so
that more land can be cleared for cultivation easily. Mabel and I agreed
when we rode over there two days ago that it would be just the place for
you."
"It sounds first-rate," Wilfrid said; "just the sort of place that will
suit us."
"But how about me, Miss Mitford?" Mr. Atherton asked. "Have you had my
interest at heart as well as those of Wilfrid and his people?"
"You can take up the next bit of land above it," Mr. Mitford said.
"Langston's was the last settlement on the river, so you can take up any
piece of land beyond it at the government upset price, and do as much
fishing and shooting as you like, for I hear from my daughters that you
are not thinking of permanently settling here, but are only a bird of
passage. Anyhow, it would not be a bad investment for you to buy a
considerable acreage, for as soon as the troubles are over there is sure
to be a rush of emigration; and there are very few places now where land
is to be had on a navigable river, so that when you are tired of the
life you will be able to sell out at considerable profit."
"It sounds tempting, Mr. Mitford, and I will certainly have a look at
the ground. How much would this piece of land be of Mr. Langston's?"
"The poor fellow told me to take anything that I could get. He said he
knew that at present it was very difficult to sell land, as no new
settlers were coming out, and that he should be very glad if I get what
he gave for it, which was ten shillings an acre, and to throw in the
improvements he had made; so that a hundred pounds would buy it all. I
really don't think that Mr. Renshaw could do better if he looked all
through the island. With a cow or two, a pen of pigs, and a score or two
of fowls, he would practically be able to live on his land from the hour
he settled there."
Wilfrid was greatly pleased at the idea. He knew that his father and
mother had still eight hundred pounds untouched; two hundred pounds,
together with the proceeds of his mother's trinkets and jewels, and the
sale of the ponies and pony carriage, which had been her own property,
having sufficed to pay for the passage of themselves and their two
labourers, and for all expenses up to the time of their arrival at
Wellington. "If we could get another piece of two hundred acres
adjoining it at the same price, I think my father would like to take
it," he said; "it would give more room for horses and cattle to graze.
Of course we should not want it at first; but if as we got on we wanted
more land, and had neighbours all round us and could not get it, it
would be a nuisance."
"I agree with you," Mr. Mitford said. "Two hundred acres is more than
you want if you are going to put it under the plough; it is not enough
if you are going to raise cattle and horses. I should certainly
recommend you to take up another two hundred. The next land on this side
is still vacant. Poor Langston chose the spot because it happened to be
particularly pretty, with an open glade down to the river, but the land
for fully two miles on this side is unoccupied. You can get it at ten
shillings an acre at present. I will see about it for you if you make up
your mind after seeing Langston's place, to take it."
"Of course I cannot settle it by myself, sir, not absolutely. I can only
recommend it to my father as the best place that I have seen. If it is
as you describe it they will be delighted."
"Well, we will ride over to-morrow and have a look at it. The only
possible objection I have is loneliness; but that will improve in time;
the natives here are perfectly peaceful, and we have never had the
slightest trouble with them."
"We are a good large party to begin with, you see," Wilfrid said.
"Having the two men with us will take away the feeling of loneliness,
especially if Mr. Atherton decides upon taking the piece of land next to
us. Then there are the two Allens who came out with us. I promised to
write and tell them if I found any nice place; and they said
particularly that they wanted ground on a river if they could get it, as
they are fond of boating and fishing, and fancied that if there were
other farms round that they could, until their own place paid, help to
keep themselves by taking their neighbours' crops down to market."
"Yes, it might pay if they got a large flat-boat capable of carrying
cargo; but as far as light goods, letters, and groceries from town are
concerned, the Indians could do it cheaper in their canoes. However, at
present there is no market for them to come down to. I keep what I call
a grocery store for the benefit of the two or three score of settlers
there are on the river. I do not make any profit out of the matter, but
each season get a hogshead or two of sugar, a couple of tons of flour,
some barrels of molasses, a few chests of tea, and an assortment of odds
and ends, such as pickles, &c., with a certain amount of rum and
whisky, and sell them at the price they stand me in at. I do not know
what they would do without it here. I only open the store on the first
Monday of each month, and they then lay in what stores they require, so
it gives me very little trouble. I generally take produce in return. My
bills run on until they get up to the value of something a customer
wants to sell--a horse, or two or three dozen sheep. That suits me just
as well as money, as I send a cargo off to Wellington every two or three
months.
"In time no doubt a settlement will spring up somewhere near the mouth
of the river, and we shall have a trader or two establishing themselves
there; but at present I am the purveyor of the district, and manage most
of the business of the settlers in the way of buying and selling at
Wellington. So, you see, if you establish yourself here you will have no
choice but to appoint me your grocer."
Wilfrid laughed. "It will be a great advantage to us to be able to get
our things so close at hand. I was wondering how people did in the back
settlements."
"They generally send their drays every two or three months down to the
nearest store, which may, of course, be fifty miles off, or even more.
Here, fortunately, you will not be obliged at first to have a dray, but
can send any produce you have to sell down by water, which is a far
cheaper and more convenient mode of carriage. You will not have much to
send for some time, so that will not trouble you at present."
"Oh, no. We shall be quite content if we can live on the produce of our
farm for the next year or two," Wilfrid laughed.
"It is," Mr. Mitford said, "an immense advantage to settlers when they
have sufficient funds to carry them on for the first two or three years,
because in that case they gain the natural increase of their animals
instead of having to sell them off to pay their way. It is wonderful how
a flock of sheep or a herd of cattle will increase if there is no
selling. You may take it that under favourable circumstances a herd of
cattle will nearly double itself every two years, allowing, of course, a
large proportion of the bull calves to be sold off as soon as they
arrive at maturity. Sheep will increase even faster. If you can do
without selling, you will be surprised, if you start with say fifty
sheep or ten cows, in how short a time you will have as many animals as
your land will carry."
"But what are we to do then, sir?"
"Well, you will then, providing the country has not in the meantime
become too thickly settled, pay some small sum to the natives for the
right of grazing your cattle on their unoccupied ground. They cultivate
a mere fraction of the land. In this way you can keep vastly larger
herds than your own ground could carry. However, it is time to be
turning in for the night. To-morrow we will start the first thing after
breakfast to inspect Langston's land."