874
THE NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE.

Mr. Armitage had for some time past been
engaged in the troublesome and hazardous
duty of superintending the transport of supplies
for the troops, by the friendly natives, up the
Waikato, and since the commencement of
hostilities had always acted with me in the
most cordial manner for the good of the public
service.
The loss of so zealous and useful a public
officer, is deeply to be regretted.

I have, &c,
D. A. CAMERON,
Lt. Gen.

His Excellency
Sir George Grey, K. C. B.,
&c., &c., &c.

Bluff Stockade,
Sept. 9th, 1863, (12 p.m.)

SIR,—I have the honor to report for the
information of the Lieutenant General com-
manding, that at about ten o'clock this evening
ten natives, of Wm. Te Wheoro's pa, accom-
panied by four others of Kukutai's tribe,
arrived at the Akaramea pa, overland from
Taupari, which latter place they left this
morning at daylight. These, you will under-
stand, are the natives who were of Mr. Armi-
tage's party on Monday last, and who have, up
to the present time, been missing. I regret to
say that they confirm the tidings of Mr.
Armitage's death, as also those of the two
Europeans, known as Robert and William.
The former of these was a blacksmith, who
acted as clerk to Mr. Armitage; the latter was
a carpenter, engaged in erecting a store at
Cameron Town.

The circumstances attending their deaths
are, as far as I can elicit from two of the most
intelligent of the "friendly natives" who
witnessed them, are these.
(The names of these two natives I here
mention in the margin.) ["Hawira" and
"Eru."]

Mr. Armitage started from the pa adjacent
to this post—in a canoe with three natives—
accompanied by two or three other canoes full
of Te Wheoro's tribe, at about six o'clock on
Monday morning last. On reaching Tuakau,
or thereabouts, there was some delay on the
part of these other canoes, so that Mr. Armi-
tage got on ahead of them, and reached Cameron
Town about half-an-hour before them, at about
half-past eight o'clock, a.m. On arrival, Mr.

Armitage got out of his canoe, and went over
to a house about two hundred yards from the
bank of the river, where were the two Euro-
peans I have before named. When he reached
the house, one of the three natives he left be-
hind with the canoe, "Eru," above mentioned
in the margin, went off in the direction
of the stockade erected at Cameron Town, and
occupied by friendly Natives under their Chief
Tokah. He was on his way thither, when
the enemy opened fire from the bush on the
road from, and near the river. Enclosed is a
rough sketch of the ground, drawn out by the
native "Hawira." Where the enemy fired
from I have marked X.

Mr. Armitage and the two Europeans, it
appears, had returned from the house (marked
A) and were on the river bank at this time.
The two latter were shot, and fell over the
canoe, upsetting it as they fell. Mr. Armitage
had got into the canoe, when he was shot,
falling into the water through the canoe's
overturning. The hostile Natives dragged his
body out of the water, took a portion of the
clothes from off it, together with his watch
and chain, and ring. The bodies of the two
other men did not rise to the surface of the
water, and have not been heard of since.

The Natives who witnessed this then ran
into the bush, but came out to meet those
Natives who were detained in their canoes, and
who had by this time arrived. The enemy
having re-taken to the bush, the friendly Na-
tives fired in the direction they were supposed
to have gone; but there does not seem to have
been any loss on either side with regard to
them. They report that all the stores, con-
sisting of maize, tarpaulings, &c., have been
burnt, or otherwise destroyed. The number
of hostile Maoris they believe to have been
about two hundred. I should have mentioned
that the enemy returned the fire of the friendly
Natives, who continued to fire till they had
exhausted all their ammunition, when they
retired upon Taupari, which place they reached
at about eight o'clock the same night. The
four Natives who reached Te Wheoro's pa on
Monday did not land at Cameron, but higher
up, and were not engaged in the affair.

I have, &c.,
H. BURTON,
Lieut. 40th Regt.,
Commanding Bluff Stockade.

The Deputy Qr. Master General,
&c., &c., &c.,
Head Quarters.