62

THE NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE.

of our most valuable allies, Ihaka Whaanga, was
wounded in two places, and his men, being in front,
suffered the most, and indeed were on the point of
retreating, had it not been for Ihaka's bravery; he
placed himself, in the path, and would not allow one
of them to leave! The fern was now fired by the
Ngatiporou under Te Roperta, and very soon the
whole of the enemy's position was clearly seen; they
consisted of earthworks without palisading, rifle
pitted, and extending in three different directions,
so as to form a semicircle. Profiting by his expe-
rience at Pukemaire, the Chief Te Roperta deter-
mined with about fifty of his own men and some
Tauranga Natives under Parua Parau, to turn the
enemy's flank by scaling the hill on which the earth-
works were placed, there being, as I have always
hitherto found, one particular position which the
enemy has neglected to defend. Te Roperta's plan
succeeded beyond our hopes, and a simultaneous
attack being made by Kopu on some smaller rifle pits
on the left flank, the enemy were completely routed
and driven headlong from their rifle pits, running as
hard as they could towards Onepoto, closely followed
by our men, a running fight being kept up the whole
way. As only about twenty of the friendly Natives
were in the van, (and they were pursuing ten times
their number at least,) it will serve to show the
Government how signally the rebels were on this
occasion defeated. By the time the friendly Natives
reached Onepoto, which was nearly four miles from
the scene of the engagement, it was getting dark, so
the Hau Haus-except a few who went away in a
canoe, and fourteen who were taken prisoners-
managed to escape to the woods for the night. Our
force was divided during the night, part staying at
Onepoto and part with the wounded near the place
of our first attack. The following morning at day-
light the Chiefs, having re-united, held a Runanga on
the prisoners taken, and shot four of them imme-
diately,-they having in the cases of three of them
come from other places to fight against the Govern-
ment, and in the instance of the fourth he had pre-
viously fought against the Government at Tauranga.
After this had been done, Te Roperta with some of
his own men started to see if the enemy were still in
the neighbourhood, found some of them in the woods,
attacked them, killing three of their number, and
drove the remainder to the edge of the lake, where
they managed to escape in two large canoes which
we had not previously seen.
The next day (the 14th) we returned to camp. On
arrival near it, I received a severe fall from my horse
putting his foot in a hole; and I have had therefore
to request Lieut. St. George to write the greater
part of this Despatch, as I am so indisposed as to be
quite unequal to the task.

I beg to append a statement† of our killed and
wounded, as also that of the enemy so far as
ascertained.

I beg to bring under the notice of the Government
the very valuable assistance rendered to me on this
occasion by the friendly allies; and I am certain that
there is nothing I can say in commendation of their
zeal and courage which the Government will not
themselves be the first to acknowledge. I would
wish, however, particularly to call attention to the
bravery displayed by Ihaka Whaanga, and to the
skill with which Kopu and Te Roperta outflanked,
routed, and followed up the enemy.

I have, &c.,
JAMES FRASER, Bt.-Major,
Commanding East Coast Expeditionary Force,
Wairoa and Poverty Bay.
To the Under Secretary for Colonial Defence,
Wellington.

Secretary for Crown Lands Office,
Wellington, 30th January, 1866.

IN conformity with the 29th clause of "The Gold
Fields Acts Amendment Act, 1865," it is hereby
notified that it is intended to grant Leases for Gold
Mining Purposes of the Crown Lands to the appli-
cants specified in the following Schedule.

ALFRED DOMETT,
Secretary for Crown Lands.

Applicants-Andrew Southberg and Company.
Locality-Situate to the west of and adjoining
"Jones" or the "Prospecting claim," on the line
of the Scandinavian Reef, Skipper's Creek.
Area-4 acres.

Applicants-James Tyree and party.
Locality-Scandinavian Reef east to Watt and Co.,
Skipper's.
Area-8 acres 3 roods and 1 perch.

Applicant-John Quinn.
Locality-Between New Chum Gully and the Arrow
River.
Area-3 acres.

Applicants-Callaghan and party.
Locality-Immediately to the west of Southberg and
Co.'s claim on a tributary of the Skipper's
Creek, Upper Shotover, Otago, and on the same
line of reef.
Area-15 acres 3 roods and 9 perches.

† Friendlies-Killed, 12; wounded, 17.
Hau Haus-Killed, 25; wounded, unknown.

Printed under the authority of the New Zealand Government, by GEORGE DIDSBURY, Government Printer, Wellington.