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Les diagrammes suivants illustrent la mithode. 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 5 6 ."A m ' MAOKI AXD SETTLER: A STORY OF THE NEW ZEALAND WAR. *^f^^ i n MR. ATliERIoN KKIII.K 1 p MAORI AND SETTLER A SroKY OF Tin: \K\V ZEALAND WAR. BY G. A. JIENTY, Author of "By Pike ami Dyko, ' "une ,,f the 28Ui;" "Tl..> I, ion o/ (it Mnrkt" " UuDuie Prluce Charliu; ' " By Eaglaixl'a Ai>l;" Ac. WiTU EIQUT FULL-PAUS JLLUiirR.iTWMi Bl' ALFHED FEAlUiX. 4* «^ |<^' i 55" ninamuls "jji g* ' GLASGOW : BLACK IE i SON, Limited. TORONTO; WILLIAM BRIGGS, 29-33 Richmond St. West. The COPB, CLARK COMPANY, Limited, 9 Front St. West. ■A! 260914 4 ri!£FA(.'E >iie he In tilt' t'i)ll(»wiii^r story 1 Imvc inndo ho ntt»'ini»t t') M-ivc niiytliiii";' like a oi.nrral Iiistorv (»t' tlu? I<»tirav(' triKcs (»t' New Zealand and tli«' t'(»rccs <»t' Hnnlan . u AN UNDECIDED MAN. hol)by, he left to bis wife, who was, fortunately for him, a clear-heat led and sensible woman. Mr. llenshaw was, in fact, an eminently impractical man, weak and easy in disposition, averse to exertion of any kind, and without a shadow of the decision of character that distinguished his son. Except when away upon anti- quarian excursions he passed his time entirely in his own study, engaged upon a work which, he anticipated, would gain for him a very high position among the antiquarians of the country, the subject being the exact spot at which Julius Caisar landed in Britain. He made his appearance only at meal -times, and then paid but little attention to what was going on around him, although he was kind to his children in a gentle inditlerent sort of way. For many years he had been engaged in making up his mind as to the school to which Wilfrid should be sent; and the boy had at first only been sent to the grammar-school at the suggestion of his mother as a temporary measure until the important decision should be arrived at. This had been six years before, and Mr. Renshaw had post- poned his decision until it was too late for Wilfrid to enter at any of the great public schools. Knowing from long experience what would be the result were he consulted as to Marion's education, Mrs. Renshaw had, when the girl was nine years old, en- gaged a governess for her without any previous con- sultation with her husband, simply telling him of the arrangement after it was concluded, saying: "I know, Alfred, that you have not yet decided whether an education at home or at school is best for a girl, and I have consequently arranged wit,h a young lady tocoine SOMETHING TAKES PLACE. 15 the [rs. en- pn- Ithe )W, an Id I ine as governess until you can come to a conclusion upon the point." Wilfrid Renshaw was extremely fond of his mother. His father he regarded with a somewhat contemptuous kind of atiV'ction. Me «li' 1^ "I WOULD NKVEU AfiUEE TO THAT, NEVEH." 21 as a clerk at t]ie lowest salary; liis knowledcre of ai-cliroology would be absolutely useless to liiui, I'ov the books he had already published had not even paid the expenses of printiii'^''. Few wor.ls were spoken at breakfast, but when the nienl was finished Mrs. Renshaw liei-nn: "My dear Alfred, Wilfrid and I have been talkingover wliat we had l)ett.>r do under the circumstances. I have told him that the failure of the bank involves the loss of all our })ropeity, that the house will have to be sold, and that, in fact, thei-e remains nothing but the thousand pounds of my settlement. We have talked it over in every lioht, and have quite arrived at the conclusion as to what we think the best thinir to be done if you see matters in the same light and will consent to our phu.. I had at first thought of staiting a little school." 'I would never agree to that," Mr. Renshaw said; "never. I must do something, my dear, though I have not made up my mind in what direction. But what- ever it is, it is for me to work, nvj not for you." "Well, we have already given up the idea," Mrs Renshaw went on. " Wilfrid was sure tliat you would not like it, and, as he pointed out, the money mio-ht be spent before I could obtain sufficient pupils to 1)^ Besid.'s, he is anxious to be of use; but the difficulty struck us of obtaining any kind of remunerative work here." "That is what I have been thinking," Mr. Renshaw said. "I shall be willing to work at anythin- in my power, but I don't see what possible work I can esides, in some res[)ects tlie trouMe will be advantaijfoous, as we should probably be able to buy land cheaper than we otherwise should liave done, and the hint] will rapidly rise in value again when the dis- turbances are over. But, of course, we should not £jo to the disturbed districts. Those are round Auckland and New Plymouth, and the troubles are contined to the tribes there. Everything is perfectly peaceable along the other parts of the coast." It was not until two or tlu'ee days before the move was to be made from the house that JMrs. Kenshavv recurred to the subject. "You have not said yet, Alfred, what plans you have decided u| on. As we shall leave here in three days it is quite time that we made up our minds about it, as, of course, our movements must depend on your decision. If you have fixed upon any i)lace for us to settle down in, it would be cheaper for us to move there at once instead of wasting money by going up to London fir.st. Another reason I have for asking is, that Kobert and William Crimstone, the gardener's sons, who have got an idea from something Wilfrid said to them that we nnght be going abroad, have aslced him to ask you if you would takt; them with you. They have been working in the garden under their father for the last two or three years, and are strong active young fellows of nineteen and twenty. As their father has worked here ever since we came, and we have known the young fellows since they were children, such an arrangement would have been a very pleasant one had you liked my plan of emigrating, as it would have been much 26 DIUVKN INTO A CORNER. more aij^rocablu havin;' two youni; fellows we know with us instead ot' stranujers. Of course I toM Wilfrid to tell them that nothin;^ whatever was settled, and that our plans were not in any way formed, and that they had better, therefore, look out tor situations about here, and that I was sure 30U would give them good letters of recommendation." Mr. Kenshaw was silent. "I really do not sec that there is any occasion to come to a decision in a hurry," he said irritably. ">>'ot in a liurry, Alfred," Ids wife said quietly. "You see, we have had a month to think it over, and I do not see that we shall be more likely to settle upon an ailvantacreous scheme at the end of six months than we are now. From the day we leave here and hainl over everything to the receiver of the bank we shall be drawing on our little capital, and every pound is of importance. I think, therefore, Alfred, tliat you and I should make up our minds before we leave here as to wdiat course we are going to ado[)t. As 1 have said, I myself see no scheme by which we are likely to be able to maintain ourselves in England, even in a very humble way. A life in the colonies would, to me, be very much more pleasant than the struggle to make ends meet here. "Jt would afford an opening for Wilfrid, and be vastly more advantageous for him tlian anvtlunsf we slujuld hope to get for him here; and I think it will be far better for Marion too. Of course, if we decideil to emigrate, we could, should you prefer it, go to Canada, Australia, or the Uniteil States in preference to New Zealand. I only incline to 2sew Zealand be- "A GREAT CHANCE AND A GREAT TRIAL." 27 cause I have hoard that there is a lari;or proportion of olhcers and gejitlemon there tlian in otiier coh)iurs, and hecaiise I believe that tlie climate is a pai-ticulfirly pleasant one. But, ol' course, this is merely a su^';^'es- tion at present, and it is for you to decide." "If Ave are to emiL,a-ate at all," Mr. Renshaw replied, "I should certainly prefer New Zealand myself. 'J"he Maoris are a most interesting^ peophj. Their origin is a matter of doubt, their customs and reli'don are peculiar, and I have no doubt that I should, after studying them, be able to throw much new and vahi- ahle light upon the subjeot. Pei-soiially, I am sure that 1 am in no way fitted for the life of a settler. I know nothing of farnung, and could neither drive a plough nor wield an axe; but if I could make the native subject my own, I might probably be able to do my share towards our expt^nses by my books, while Wilfrid could look after the men. The oHer of these two young fellows to go with us has removed several of n)y objections to the plan, and I agree with you that it would be more advantageous for Wilfrid and Marion than to be living in wretched lodgings. Therefore, my dear, I have decided to fall in with your plan, and only hope that it will turn out as well as you seem to expect. It will be a great change and a great trial; but since you seem to have set your heart upon it, I am willing to adopt your plans instead of my own, and we will therefore consider it settled that we will go to New Zealand." Mrs. Renshaw was too wise a woman to point out that her husband had not, so far as she was aware, any plans whatever of his own, and she contented her- I p 28 ALL IS SI'TTLED. self liy saying quietly: "I am glad you have (Kciiled so, iny dear. I do think it is the best thinii; for us all, and I am quite sure it is the hest for Wilfrid and Marion. If it had not been for them I should liave said let us take a tiny cott.'ige near some town where I might add to our income by giving lessons in music or other things, and you might have the companioiishii) of people of your own tastes; but, being as it is, I think it far better to give them a start in a new country, although I know that such a life as we shall lead there must entail, at any rate at first, some hardships, and the loss of much to which we have been accustomed." Wilfrid and Marion were delighted when they heard from their mother that the matter was settled. Both had had great hopes that Wilfrid's scheme would be finally accepted, as there did not seem any other plan that was ])ossible. Still Wilfrid knew the ditliculty that his father would have in making up his mind, and feared there might be a long delay before he could bring himself to accept the plan proposed to him. Mrs. Renshaw, who was a good business woman, lost no time in arianmnof with Robert and William Grimstone as to their accom])anying them. Their passage-money was to be paid, and they were to bind themselves to remain for three years in Mr. Renshaw's service on wages similar to those they would have obtained at home; after that, tliey were to be paid whatever mijjht be the colonial rate of waires. The excitement that the prospect of emigration caused to the young people lessened their pain at leav- ing the house where they had been born and brought up, with all its pleasant associations and material com- $ IN LONDON. 29 forts. It was, liowever. very trying to them when they bade good-l.ye for tlie last time to their sur- roundings and shook hands with their old servants. "Jf ever we got rich in ^'ew Zealand, father," Wilfrid said, "we will come back and buy the house agani Air. Rensliaw shook his head. Just at present he was disposed to regard himself as a martyr, and con- sidered that he had made an unprecedented sacrifice of his own wishes and comforts lor the sake of his children, and that no good could be expected to arise from th.' plan to which he had consented. A good many friends liad gathered at the station to say good-bye, and it was some time after the train had started on its way to London before any of the party felt themselves in- clined to speak. On arriving in town they went at once to lodgings they had engaged in Easti.ourne Terrace, facing the station. Once settled there, no time was lost in making preparations for their voyage. The liles of the advei- tiseinents had already been searched and the names of the vessels sailing for New Zealand and tiie addresses of their owners noted, and after paying a visit to several shipping offices the choice of vessels remained at last between the Flying Scud and the Mayfloiuer. They were vessels of about the same size, both bore a good reputation as sailers, and they heard excellent accounts of the captains who conmianded them. The Mayjioiuer was to sail direct to Wellington round the Cape. The Flyhig Scud was taking in'' cargo for Kio and Buenos- Ayres, and would proceed thence via Cape Horn. Her rates of passage were somewhat lower 30 THH " FLYINCJ SCUD. than tliose of thu Mni/jloiver, as the route via the Cape of Good Hope was tliat more Lf«'nt'nilly used, and the number of jiassengLTs who had secured bcjrtlis by her were very much snudler than those wlio intended to travel by the Mnijjlowei'. It was this tliat principally decided them in choosino; the western route: Mr. Rensliavv was in a depressed and nervous state, and his wife considered that he would be far more comfor- table with a comparatively small number of fellow- passengers than in a crowded ship. Marion quite agreed with her mother; and Wilfrid was also in favour of the Flying Scud, as he thought it would be pleasant to break the passage by putting into the great South American ports and getting a glimpse of their inhabitants. Mr. Renshaw himself was quite satisfied to accept his wife's decision, what- ever it might be. The Flylnrf Scud was therefore selected, and passages for the party secured in her. i .' CHAPTER IL THE EMBARKATION. THE Flymq Scud was to sail in ten days; and this was ample time for their preparations, for Mrs. Renshaw wisely decided that it was better to buy all that was requisite for starting their new life, in New Zealand. "We have none of us the least idea what will be required," she said. "It will be far better to pay 'I DOWN TO TIIK DOCKS. 31 somowhat higher pricos for wliat ^ve rviiUy do want out there tliaii to cumber ourselv<'.s witli all sorts of ih'uv^H tliut may be useless to us. We l.ave alivady a considerable amount of ba.ri,^age. Tliere are our clothes, linen, ann stout; wliile tlio tliiu man sutlers iudijfrstion, dyspepsia, ami perhaps JMUiwlico. Vou see, my dear youni^ lady, that ahiiost all the advantaL;es ai'o on our side. Of course you will sjiy I could not flinil) a ladder, hut then I do not want tocliiMh a hulder. 1 coidd not make the ascent of Matterliorn; hut it is much more pleasant to sit at the hottoni and see fools do it. 1 could not very well ride a hoise unless it were a dray-horse; hut then I have no partiality for horse exercise. Alto^^ether I thinU I have every reason to be content. T can travel wherever I like, see whatever I want see, and enjoy most of the good thiuii^s of life." "And hould your own in a scrimnmue," Mr. Ryan put in laughing,'. " I can answer for that." "If 1 am pushed to it," Mr. Atherton said modestly, " of course I try to do my best." "Have you seen ^Ir. Atherton in a scrimmaged' Tom Allen asked the mate. "I have; and a sharp one it was while it lasted." "There is no occasion to say anything about it, Ryan," Mr. Atherton said hastily. " Kut no reason in life why I should not," the mate replied. " What do you say, ladies and gentleman?" There was a chorus of " Go on please, do let us hear about it," and he continued: " I don't give Mr. Atherton the credit of savinof our .ship in the s(|uall, but it would have gone badly with us if he hadn't taken part in the row we had. You see, we had a mixed crew on board, for the most part A Ml TINY. 47 Cl.infiinon and a few Lnsrnrs; for we wwvo (ImM. ycar.s in tl).; Cliina Seas, and Knirlisli snilors rannot \v<'ll stand the hoat out tliero, and iM-si-los don't like leuiainini,' in ships stoppinir there tradin^^ So when, after we ar" rivfd at Shanirhai, we ;^n,t cnlers to stop and trade out there, most of them took th.'ir dischan^'e, and we tilh'd „p witli natives. Con.ing down fmm .Japan tljat voyage there wa.s a row. I for^^et what their pretext was now, but 1 have no doul-t it was an arrannred thin.nr, and that they intench'd to take tlje slnp and run her ashore on som.' of the ish'ui'h('y felt so certain of overpowering us, for there were only the three ofheers, the boatswain, and two cabin passengers, that instead of rising by ni-ht, when they would no doubt have succeede.l,' they bmke into mutiny at dinner-time-came aft in a body, clamourin.r that their food was unfit to eat. Then sud.Iei.^y draw'^ ing weapons from beneath their clothes they rushed up the gangways on to the poop; and as none of us were armed, and had no idea of what was going to take place, they would have cut us down almost without resistance had it not been for our friend here. He was standing just at the top of the poop ladder when tliey came up, headed by their sei-aing. Mr. Atherton knocked the scoundi-el down with a blow of his tist, and then, catching him by the ankles, whirled Idni round his head like a club and knocked the fellows down like ninepins as they swarmed up the gan-way, armed witli knives and creases. I w i^i 'i n t r: 48 BELZONI S WEAPON. "The captcain, who was down below, had .slammey stand- ing on the table an'rejit t'un to try to wallv ,straiL;lit up and down the swayinj^ (h^ck, Presently, however, licr laugh be- came subdued and her cheeks lost their colour. "I am afraid I am going to be ill, \Vilfrid; but I shall stay on deck if 1 can. Jjoth the Mitfords are ill, I am sure, for neither of them got up, though they declaivd that they I'elt nothing the matter with them. I have made up my mind to stay on deck as long as I possibly can." " That is the best way," Mr. Atherton said as he joined them in their walk, and caught the last sentence. " There is nothing like keeping up as long as ])ossible; l)ecause if you do so it will sometimes pass otl' after a short time, whereas if you give up and take to your berth it is sure to run its course, which is lonLTt-'i' or shorter according to circumstances — sometimes two days and sometimes five; but 1 should say that people who are what you may call fair sailors generally get over it in two days, unless the weather is very bad. So tiii'lit aiiainst it as lonix as you can, and when you cannot bear it any longer 1 Mill wrap you up in rugs, and you shall have my great chair to curl up in close by the lee bulwark. But determiniition goes a long way, and you may get over it yet. You take my arm, you wont throw me off mv balance; while if the vessel gives a sliarper roll than usual, you and your brother may both lose your feet together." As soon as they started on their walk ^Ir. Atherton beiran an amusino: story of some adventure of his in the Western States of America, and Marion was so in- terested that she forirot all about her uncomfortable \ A CALM VOYAGE. f)3 sonsation, and was astonislied when on lieariiicj tlie luiich-buU ring .she discovered siie was getting' pfrlectl y well. "WImto is Wilfrid?" she asked. "Tlieie lie is, leaning over tlie lee l.ulwark; tlie fiend of sea -sickness has him in its grip." "()nly think of Wilfrid being unwell and me being all right! You liave quite driven it away, Mr. Athei-tori^ for 1 was feeling very poorly when I began to walk witli you." "I will go down and get you some luncheon and bring it up here to you. (\irl yourself up in my chair until 1 return, and do not think more about the luotioii than you can help. You had better n(;t go ti.;ar your brother— people who ai'e ill hate being piti.Ml." An hour later Wilfrid went below. In th.- (-vening, however, the wind dropped coirsiderably, and the ncx^fc mornhig the sea was s])arkling in th- sunlight, and the Flf/i,Hj Scud was making her way along with a sc • jely perceptible motion, 'ilienci-forth the\eatlier was delightful throughout the voyage to Hio. The passengers found upon closer ae.,uaiirfance that they all got on well together, and the .lays passed away pleasantly. Jn the evenings the j.iano was biought up from the cabin on to the deck an.l for two or'^three hours there was singing, varied by an (.cea.ional dance among the young people. From the day of their leaving Knghind Mr. Atherton had been the leading spirit on board tlie shij). Jf a misunderstanding arose he acted as mediator. Jle was ever ready to prr)pose pastimes and amu,sements to lighten the monotony of the voyage, took the leadincr ' ■ [ I 54 GOOD ADVICE. part in the concerts hold on deck wlicn the evenings were calm and clear, and was full of resource and in- vention. With the four or five children on hoard he was ])rinie favourite, and Mr. Ivenshaw often won- dered at the patience and good temper with which he submitted to all their whims, and was ready to give up whatever he was doing to submit himself to their orders. He had, before they had been ten days at sea, talked over with ]\lr. Ilenshaw the lattm-'s plans, and advised him upon no account to be in a hurry to snap up the first land oHered to him. "Half the people who come out to the colonies," he said, "get heavily bit at tirst by listening to the land- agents, and allowing themselves to be persuaded into buying property which, when they come to take pos- session of it, is in a majority of the cases almost worthless. I should advise 3'ou when you get there to hire a house in WellinLrton, where you can leave vour wife and daucrhter while you examine the various districts and see which oiler the greatest advantages. If you do not feel equal to it yourself, let your son go in your place. He is, I think, a sharp young fellow, and not likely to be easily taken in. At any rate, when he has made his report as to the places that seem most suitable, yon can go and see their relative advantages before purchasing. 'There is no greater mistake than buying Innd in a locality of which you know nothing. You may find that the roads are impracticable and tliat you have no moans of getting your produce to market, and after a while you will be glad to sell your place for a mere song and shift to another which vou miiiht at first have t MR. ATHERTON's plans. 65 he obtained at a price much lower than you oave for your worthless farm. I have knocked about Tn the States a good deal, and have known scores of men ruined by being too hasty in making a choice. You want to be in a colony six month- at least before investing your money in land, so as to know something of the capa- bilities and advantages of each district. To a young man I should say— travel about in the colony, working your way, and making a stay of a month here and a month there. Of course in your case this is out of the question; but a personal examination of the places otiered to you, which in nine cases out of ten men are ready to sell for less than they have cost them, will ensure you against absolute swindling." "What are you going to do yourself, Mr. Atherton?" "I have come out simply to study the botany of the island. I may stay in the colony for a month or for a year. At any rate, if you depute Wilfrid to travel about to examine the various districts where land can be bought, I shall be glad to accompany him, as I myself shall also be on the look-out." "You are not thinking of farming, Mr. Atherton?" "No. My own idea is to take a bit of land on one of the rivers, to get up a hut to serve as my head-quarters, and to spend much of my time in travelling about. I am very fortunately placed. I have ampTe funds to enable me to live in comfort, and I am free to indulge my fancy for wandei-ing as I please. I consider that I have been spoiled by being my own master too young. I think it is bad for a young man to start in li^e with a competence; but when it comes to one in mi.ldle age, when one has beamed to spend it ration- ! 1 I ■! i. i". i i. ! :i6 AlH. KKNSII.WV SlAIKS Ills VIHWH. ally, it is iiiidonbtcidly a veiy <^^reat comfort and udvunt.ai^o. 1 siii^pose, however, that tlie time will come wiien 1 sliali settle down. 1 am tliirtv-tive, and I ouglit to ' range myseltV as the French say." Mr. Atlierton liad not l)een loni; upon the vovaije when he discovered tliat the chances of success of the Rensliaw party as settlers would be small indeed if they depended upon the exertions of the head of the family. He had not l)een more than a day or two on board before ^Ir. iienshaw be_oan to discuss his favourite hobby with him, and confided to him that lie intended thoroULihlv to investigate the history, customs, and religion of the Mac)ris, and to produce an exhaustive work on the subject "An excellent idea, very," the stout man said encouragingly, " but one demanding great time and investigation; atul ])erliaps," lie added doul)tfully, "one more suited to a single man, who can go and live among the natives and speak tlieir language, than for a married man with a family to look after." Mr. Kenshaw waved the remai'k aside lightlv. "I shall, of course, set to work immediately 1 arrive to accjuire a thorough knowledge of the language, and indeed have already begun with a small dictionary and a New Testament in the Maori language, brought out by the Missionary Society. As to my family, my exertions in the farming way will be of no use what- ever to them. My wife and daughter will look after the house, and Wilfritl will undertake the matiagemeut of the men out of doors. The whole scheme is theirs, and I should be of no assistance to them whatever. My bent lies entirely in the direction of archa'ol(\gy, and there can be little doubt that inv tliorongh acouain- fl I ."Mi;, atmkuton's i'j;i\atk ui'lniux. 0/ tanc Wit), all ivlatin- to tlio habits, an.l. .so far as is known. (,t tlio hmgua-e of tliu ancient IJriton.s Saxons Uines, an.l the natives of the northern part of the island, will be of inestinuible a.lvanta^^e in enablin-r nie to cany out the subject I liave resolved to take' up. i here arc analogies ajid similarities between tlie liabits of all prniiitive peoples, and one accustomed to the study ot tlie early races of Europe can form a general opinion ot tl.e habits and mode of living of a tribe n,erely trom the inspection of an ancient weapon or two a bracelet, and a potsherd." Mr. Atherton looked down upon his companion with halt-closed eyes, and .seemed to be sunnuing liim up nientally; after a short conversation he turned away and as he filled Ids pipe mut A'red to him.self: "It i.s w«' 1 lor the fau.ily that the n.other seems a capable and sensible woman, and that the lad, unless I .im tui.s- tak.m, has ti dogged resolution about him as well as Npint and courage. The girl, too, is a bright .sensible iass, and they may get on in spite of this idiot of a tather. However, the man shows that he possesses a ccrtam amount of .sen.se by the confidence with which he throws the burden of the whole business of provid- ing a living for the family on their shoulders "Of course they would be much better without hi.n or can loresee he will give them an awful lot of trouble He will go mo.mingaway an,ong the natives and will be getting lost and not heard of for a tren..ndous time Still. I don't know that he will come to much harm. The Maoris have tine traits of character, anc though they have been fighting about what tlcy -all the king question, th.y have seldom f 58 ST. JAlJO. l)eon guilty oF any acts of hostility to isolated settlers, and !i siiiLi'le white in.in going among them has always been received hospitably; besides, they will jn'ohably think him mad, and savages have always a sort of respect for madmen. Still, he will bt? a terrible worry to his family. 1 have taken a fancy to the others, and if I can do them a good turn out there in any way 1 will," As the voyage went on Air. Atheiton's liking for Mrs. Ren.shaw, her son and daughter, increased greatly, while his contempt for Mr. Kensliaw became modified as he came to know him better. He found that he was really a capable man in his own particular hobby, and that although weak and indecisive he was very kind and atlectionate with his wife and children, and re- posed an almost childlike conti'lence in his wb j's good sense. ^b1deira had been sighted lying like a great cloud on the horizon, and indeed the young Kenshaws liad difficulty when they came up on deck in the morning in believing that it was really land they saw. No stay was made here, nor did they catch a glimp.se of the Canary Island.s, being too far to the west to see even the lofty peak of Teneritl'e. The first time tlie ship dropped anchor was at St. Jago, one of the Cape de Yerde Islands; here they took in a supply of fresh water, meat, and vegetables. Tlie passengers all landed, but were much disaj^pointed with the sandy and unin- teresting island, and it was no consolation for them to learn from the captain that parts of the island w^ere much more fertile, althouirh the vegetables and fruit came for the most part from the other islands. " Now," I I RIO. 59 he said, "if all goes well you will see no land ti^^'ain till you gvi to Rio. We shall keep to the east of St. Paul, and unless we rrut hlown out of our course we shall not go near Ascension." As the wind continued favodrabli' the ship kept her course, and at twelve o'clock one day the cajitain, after taking his observations, told them that he ex[)ected to he in Rio on the following evening. 'J'he next niornino when they came up on deck land wns in sight, and in the evening they dropped anchor in the harbour of Rio, one of the tinest ports in the vvoi-ld. "Yes, it is a splendid harbour," iMr. Atherton n'^reed as h(3 listened to the exclamations of delight of the Renshaws. "I do not know that it is the tinest, but it is certainly equal to any I have ever seen. As a harbour New York is better, because even more land- locked. San Francisco is, both in that respect and in point of scenery, superb. Bombay is a giand harbour, but exposed to certain winds. Taken altogether, I think I should give the palm to San Francisco." A few minutes after the anchor had dropped a number of shore-boats came alongside filled with luscious fruit, and rowed for the most part by negroes, who chatted and shouted and gesticulated, making such a din that it was impossible to distinguish a single word amid the uproar. Wilfrid, the Aliens, and others quickly ran down the ladders, and without troubling themselves to bargain returned with quantities of fruit. Several negresses soon followed them on to the deck, and going up to the ladies produced cards and letters testifying that they were good washer- women and their terms reasonable. 'J'he captain had 60 A LOVELY KVLNIN(i. tlic cvenini;; liol'on) toM them it would take liiin tliroe or i'oiir (lays to discliar^o liis cargo for Kio, niid tliut tht-'y had l»«'ttt'r taUi; ndvaiita_L;"e of tho opportuiiity it' they wanted any wasliing done. 'I'liey had, tliuret'oro, uot eve O tl iiiiLr m I'eadiiiess, an d in a few minutes numerous canvas liaj^s lilled with linen were de[)Osited in the hoats. In jiddition to the fruit several groat bouquets of goi-geous tlowers had been purchased, and the cabin tliat evening presented quite a festive ap[)earance. Alter it becamii dark and the liglits of Jlio sparkled out, all agreed that tlie scene was even more beautiful than by daylight. 'J"he air was deliciously balmy and soft, the sea as smooth as glass. The moon was nearly full, and the whole line of the sliore could be distinctly seeiL Eoats Hittecene, and such conversation as there was was carried on in low tones, as if they were under a spell which they feared to break. The next moi-niiig all went ashore soon after breakfast; but upon their assemblinlli<.-ent " Marion said, "for as a whole thry appearel to me to be a s(>rious race. Of course I saw many of them hiughuig and chattering, but most of them are very quiet in manner. The old people seem to be wrinkled n. a wonderful way. I never saw English i.eoi)le so wrinkled." "All southern races show age in that way" Mr Atherton said. "You see marvellous old men a.i.I women in Spain and Italy. People who, as far as looks go, might be a hundred and tiftv— little di-ied-up speci- mens of humanity, with faces mure like those of nion- ke^'s than men." "Are the negroes slaves, Mr. Atherton? Thev still have slavery in Brazil, do they not? Thev certainly are not at all according to my idea of slaves." "The estates are mostly worked by negro slaves" Mr. Atherton .said, "and no donbfc manv of those you saw to-day are also slaves. Household"" shuvry is sel- dom severe, an.l I believe the Brazilians are generallv knid uiasters. But probably the greater portion of tli'e negro.>s you saw are free. They may huve purchase »»<: borne down, but in tlicir case the robbers had not used their ivnives. Tliey were feeling in their pockets wlien the step of a man approaching at full speed was heard. One of the robbers was about to run oil", when am ther ex- claimed: " Vou coward! Jt is but one man, which means more bootv. Out with your knives and o-ive him a taste of them as he comes up!" A moment later the man ran up. The leader stepped forwartl to meet him, knife in hand; but as he struck his wrist was grasped, and a tremendous blow was delivered in liis face, hurl- in■» 1 III 68 VOU IIAVK HAD A NAIUIOW ESCArE. has been bleodin'^ vory freely, and he is faint from loss of blood; but I do not think it is serious at all." " No, it is a deep tlesh wound," the «loctor said, exaniininjr him; "but there is nothint; to be in the slightest degree uneasy about. I will get a bandage from my cabin, and some lint, and set it all light in live minutes." When the arm was bandaged, Mr. Atherton said' "Now 1 must get you to do a little plastering for me doctor." "What! are you wounded, Mr. Atherton?" the others cxclaiiuetl in surprise. ''Nothing to speak of, lads; but both those fellows made a slash at me as I closed with them. I harl but just finished their leader and could do no more than strike wildly as I turned upon them." As he sjjoke ho was taking oil' his waistcoat and shirt. " By Jove, you have had a narrow escape!" the doc- tor said; "and how you take it so.coolly I cainiot make out. Kxcept as to tlie bleeding, they are both far more serious than Allen's." One of the wounds was in the left side, about three inches below the arm. The man had evidently struck at the heart, but the quickness with which Mr. Ather- ton had closed with him had disconcerted his aim; the knife had struck rather far back, and ixlancinix behind the ribs had cut a deep gash under the shoulder- bhide. The other wound had been given by a down- right blow at the right side, and had laid open the tlesh from below the breast down to the hip. "It is only a case for plaster," I\Ir. Atherton said. " It is useful to have a casiuix of fat sometimes. It is I. sr:uious wounds. 69 tlie same thing with a whale-you have ^ot to drive a harpoon in very deep to get at the vital.s. You see this wound in front has hied very little," " Vou have lost a good deal of* blood from the other cut. tlie surgeon said. "I will draw the edrres of the wounds together with a needle and thread, and will then put some bandages on. You will have to keep quiet for some days. Your wounds are much too serious to think of putting plaster on at present." "1 have had a good deal more serious wounds than these, Mr. Atherton said cheerfullv. "and have had to ride seventy or eighty miles on the following day However I will promise you not to go ashore to-mor- row; and as the captain says he expects to be off the next morning, I shall be able to submit myself to your orders without any great piivation." " Why diack, tor I felt the warmth of the blood down in my shoe; but there was nothing to prevent my carryincr young Allen, and one person can carry a wounded man with much more ease to him than two can do, unless ot course they have got a stretclier." The next morning there was quite a stir in the sliip when It was known that two of the passenoers were 70 A CUSTOM OF Tlir, COUNTIIY. N wounded, and Mr. Jtiid Mrs. Ut'iisliii \v were f^pf^atly alarmed wlicn tlicy licnrd of the risk Wilfrid Iwid rim, NeitlxT oi' the wouiidi'd men aiipeaicd at break last, as the surgeon insisted that b<»thshould lie (juiet for at least one day. Mr. Ilenshaw liad paid a visit to Mr. Atln-rton directly he had lieard fi'oin Wilfrid his story of the fray, and tliaidody had got into a boat. Nobody seems to make head nor tail of the business." " Well, we must keep this (piiet if we can," the cap- tain said, turning to Mr. Renshaw. " If it were known that any of our people were concerned in this afiair they Uiight kt>ep us here for three weeks or a month while it is being investigated, or insist upon Mr. Ather- ton and your son and the Aliens remaining behind as witnesses. Mr. Ryan," he called to the first- mate, "just come here a moment. This niatter is more serious tlian we thought. It seems that Mr. Atherton, who, as we have heard, dashed the heads of two of these fellows together, killed them on the spot." " Sure and I thouuht as much when younrr Allen was telling me about it," tlie mate .said. "I have .seen Mr. Atherton at work before this, and I thought to myst If that unless ihose fellows' skulls were made of « .1 I i II 72 I iicrr: ir wim, i-.k ai.i, .cicrii. iron, and tliick at that, they niu.st have gone in whon he brouu'lit tlicni toLTctlior." i< ' The vvoist of it is," tljt* captain wont on, " they have traced marks of blood down to the hiiidiniLj-stage, and of course have suspicion that someone concerned in tlie affair took a l)oat, and eitlier came otf to one of the ships or went away in one of the tisliing craft. Yci know wliat these fellows are; if they tind out th.\t anyone on bofird is mixed up in the matter, they will keep the ship here for a month." "That is true enough, sir. It is mighty lucky we would he if we got away in a month." "The first thing is to see about the boatnipn," the captain .said. "Of course if they tell the authorities they brought a wounded man on board here late last nijxht there is an end of it; but if thev hold their tongues, and we all keep our own council, the thing may not leak out to-day, and we will have our anchor up and get out this evening if we can. You had better tell all the crew that not a word is to be said about the matter, and I will impress the same on the passengers. When they know that a careless word may lead to a month's detention, you may be sure there will be no talking. But before you speak to them I will go down and see Mr. Atheiton, and hear what he says about the boatmen." He returned in two or three minutes. "I liope it will be all right," lie said. "Atherton gave them a pound a piece, and told them to hold their tongues. He thinks it is probable they will do so, for they would know well enough that they would, as likely as not, be clapped into prison and kept there while the investigation was going on. So there is a strong hope .f A CUllIUlS CASK. 73 we up ley as the )[)e ■4 1 '■'It tliat it limy not leak out tliroui;!! tliojii. You nmst .st()[» all leuvo iislioie, Mr. Kyuii. Tell the men whose turn it i.s to hd, tlu-y shall huve their spree at Dueiios Ayres. Jl" tliey were to get drunk it would bo uh liUely as not to slip out." " 1 will see to it, sir." Directly hrcaki'ast was over the captain took a hoat an^till, if they do find him, and he tells all he knows of the business, i I I! ij I' 74 PREPARATIONS FOR A VISIT. they will not be much nearer to tracing the actors in it to this ship. It is not probable that he recovered his senses until loni^ after they were on board tlie boat, and can only say that while engaged in attempting to rob some passers-by he was suddenly knocked down. But even this they are not likely to g<-t out of him first, for he will know that he used a knife, and is not likely to put himself in the way of punishment if ho can help it. I came olf at once, because I heard at the Consulate that the police are going to search every ship in the harbour to see if they can find some wounded man, or get some clue to the mystery, so I must ask the doctor if his two patients are fit to be dressed and go up on deck." The doctor on being consulted said that he should certainly have preferred that they should have re- mained quiet all day, but he did not know that it would do them any harm to get on deck for a bit. And accordingly in half an hour Mr. Atherton and James Allen came up. The doctor, who had assisted them to dress, accompanied them. " Now, Mr. Atherton, you had better seat yourself in that oreat deck-chair of yours with the leo-.rest. If you sit there quietly reading when they come on board they are not likely to suspect you of being a desperate character, or to appreciate your inches and width of shoulder. Allen had better sit quiet till they get alongside, and then slip that sling into his pocket and walk up and down talking to one of the ladies, with his thumb in his waistcoat so as to su])port his arm. He looks pale and shaky; but they are not accustomed to much colour here, and he will pass well enough." •'IT IS NOT A THINf; TO JOKE AtJOUT." 75 As soon as Mr. Atherton had taken liis seat Mrs. Renshaw and Marion came up to him. " How can we thank you enough, Mr. Atlierton, for tlie risks you have run to succour Wilfrid, and for your kind con- sideration in going on sliore to wait for him?" "It was nothing, Mrs. Renshaw. 1 own to enjoying a scrimmage when I can go into one with the feeling of being in the right. You know that I am a very lazy man, but it is just your lazy men who do enjoy exerting themselves occasional! v." "It was grand!" Marion broke in; "nniit of the slioulder-blade, and he walked stitHy to the deck-chair, \vl)ich had been piled with cushions in readiness. "I am glad to be out again, Mrs. llenshaw," Mr. Atherton said as she arranged the cushions to suit him. '* Your husband, with Wilfrid and the two Aliens, have kept me company, one or other of them, all the time, so I cannot say I hive been dull. But it was much hotter below^ than t is here. However, I know the doctor was rii^dit in keeping me below, for the si i Mi tost movement gave me a great deal of pain. However, the wounds are going on nicely, and I hope by the time we get to Buenos Ayres 1 shall be lit for a trip on shore again." "I hardly think so, Mr. Atherton; for if the weather continnes as it is now — it is a nice steady breeze, and we have been running ever since we left Rio — I think we shall be there long before you are tit to go ashore." "I do not particularly care about it," Mr. Atherton said. " Buenos Ayres is not like Rio, but is for the most part quite a modern town, and even in situation has little to recommend it. Besides, we shall be so far oft* that there will be no running backwards and for- wards between the ship and the shore as there was at Rio. C»f course it depends a good deal on the amount of the water cominfj down the river, but vessels some- times have to anchor twelve miles above the town." " I am sure I have no desire to go ashore," Mrs. Renshaw said, " and after the narrow escape Wilfrid 80 AT LUExNOS AYUEH. m had at Rio I should be jjlad if he did not set foot there auaiii until we arrive at the end of tlie voyajxe." " He is not likely to get into a .sera[)e again," IMr. Atherton said. "Of course it vvould have been wiser not to have stopped so late as they did in a town of whose ways they knew nothing; but you may be sure he will be careful another tiuie. Besides, T fancy fi'orn "'hat I have hfard things are better niunajed there, and the population are more peaceable and orderly tlian at Rio. But, indeed, such an adventure as that which befell them might very well have haj^pened to any stranger wandering late at night in the slums of any of our English seaports." Tliere was a general feeling of disappointment among the passengers when the Flijinut poor tisliermen. 1 lirndy helieve tliat if 1 were Ul their place I sliould lie a caunilial myself." M }:fi>w can you say s|^c)i tilings?" Marion asked iHflignanily. "I never loiow whether you are in eai'nest, Mr, Atherton. I am sure you would never be a C'Mn^iihal," " TJiefft irt tun saying what one might bo if one wore driven to it," he replied placidly. "Anyhow, I trust that 1 hj»;»jl never be driven to it. In my various journey i/ig8 and adve/itures I am ha})py to say that I have never bee/) forced to experience a prolonged fast, and it is one of the things I liave no inclination to try. This weather is perfection, is it not?" he went on, clianjitii; tlie subiect. " The Flni iki Saul is making capital way. I only hope it may last. It is .sad to think that we sliall soon exchanu^e these balmv bree/es for a biting wind. We are just saying, Wilfrid," he went on as the lad strolled up to them, "that you will soon have to lay aside your white llannels and put on a greatcoat and mutHer." "I shall not be sorry," Wilfrid replied. "After a month of hot weather one wants bracing up a bit, and 1 always enjoy cold." "Then vou should have szone out and settled in Ice- land instead of New Zealand." "I should not have minded that, Mr. Atherton. 84 SPLKNDII) WKATHIR. !»!> !- ^ There is sploriflid flsliincj, 1 bclievo, and soalinpf, and all that sort of tliinuf. Ihit I do not ,supj)()se the others would liave liked it. I am sure fatlier \V(jidd not. He cannot hear cold, and his study at home used always to be kept ii{) at ahnost the teuiperature of an oven all tlie wiiitiT. I sliould tl ink New Zealand vvouM exactly suit him." Bid'ore the sun s(;t they had the satisfaction of sail- in;^ out of tlie muddy water of the La Plata, and of being once more in the bright blue sea. For the next week the Fbjinrj iScitd sailed merrily southward with- out adventure. The air ijrew sensibly cooler each day, and the light garments of the tro2)ics were already exchanged for warmer cuverincf. "Do you always get this sort of weather down here, captain?" Mrs. Kenshaw asked. " jS'ot always, Mrs. llenshaw. I'he weather is Lcn- erally tine, I admit, but occasionally short b'.L very violent gales sweep down from ofi' the land. They are known as pamperos; because, I suppose, they come from the pampas. They are very dangerous from the extreme suddenness with which they sweep down. If they are seen condng, and the vessel can be stripped of her canvas in time, there is little danger to be appre- hended, for they are as short as they are violent." " We have been wonderfully fortunate altogether so far," Mrs. llenshaw said. " We have not had a single gale since we left England. I trust that our good luck will continue to the end." "I hope so too," the captain said. "I grant that a spell of such weather as we have been favoured with is apt to become a little monotonous, and I generally II A GALli IS A MOST ANXIOUS TIMK. 85 at h find my passen,L;'t>rs have a toinlciicy al't«'r a tiiiu' to l)t'Coine .sna|ipi^l» aii> w m '/ Photographic Sciaices Corporation 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. 14580 (716) 873-4503 86 THE CiLASS HAS FALLKN. I 1' »< fool pretty confident as to tho result; but tliat is a vtvy (iili'erent thing from wishing to liave one." ]jy the time they were a fortnight out from Biionos Ayres, Mr. Atherton and James Allen were both oti tlie sick-list; indeed the latter had been but a week in the doctor's iiands. 'J'he adventure had bound the little party more closely t(jgether than before. The Aliens had quite settled that when their friends once established themselves on a holding, they would, if possible, take out? up in the neighbourhood; and they and the voun'^ llensh.iws often reio\vn verv much colder of late, and the light clothes they had worn in the tiopics had already been diseanled, and in the evening all were glad to put on warui wraps when they came on deck. "I thiidv," the captain said as ^Ir. llonshaw came up for his customary walk before breakfast, " we are fjoiiiL!: to have a clian'-e. The "lass has fallen a good deal, and 1 did not like the look of the sun wluii it rose this morning." " It looks to nie very much as usual," Mr. Ronshaw replied, shading his eyes and looking at the sun, "except perhaps that it is not quite so bright." "Not so bright by a good deal," the captain said. "There is a change in the colour of the sky — it is not so blue. The wind has fallen too, and I fancy by twelve o'clock there will l»e a calm. Of course we cannot be surprised if we do have a change. \Ve have had a splerdid spell of weather, and we are getting into btormy latitudes now." « t i i STKiriMNG FOR A FIGHT. 87 When the passengers wont up after breakfast they found that the Ftijing Scud was sraveely moving through the water. The sails hung idly against the masts, and the yards creaked as the vesst>l rose and fell slightly on an almost invisible swell. "This would be a good opportunity," the captain said cheerfully, "to get down our light spars; the snusrirer we are the better for rounding the Horn. Mr. Ryan, send all hands aloft, and send down all spars over the topmast." The crew swarmed up the rigging, and in two hours tlie Flyivg Scud was stripped of the upper yards and lofty spars. "She looks very u-dv," Marion Renshaw said. "Do you not think so, MaryT' "Hideous," Mary Mitford agreed. " She is in fighting trim now," Mr. Atherton said. "Yes, but who are we going to fight?" Marion asked. " We are sroinf to have a skirmish with the weather, I fancy, Miss Renshaw. I don't say we are going to have a storm," he went on as the girls looked anxiously up at the sky, " but you can see for your- selves that there is a change since yesterday. Tiie wind has drojipcd and the sky is dull and hazy, the sea looks sullen, the briglit little waves we were accustomed to are all gone, and as you see by the motion of the vessel there is an underground swell, though we can scarcely notice it on the water." " Which way do you think the wind will come from, Mr, Atherton?" Jilary ^Mitford asked. "I fancy it will come from the west, or perhaps ■\ /■I t ; ji is 88 CLKAKINO THE DKCKS. nortli-west. Look at those light streaks of cloud hit;h up in tlie air; thoy are travelling to the south- east." " Look how fust they are going," Mary Mitford said as she looked up, " and we have not a breath of wind here." "We shall have it soon," Mr. Atherton said. "You see that dark line on the water coming up from the west. I am glad to see it. It is very much better to have the wind freshen up gradually to a gale than to lie becalmed until it strikes you suddenly." The girlo stood at the poop-rail watching the sailors engaged in putting lashings on to every movable object on deck. In ten minutes the dark line came up to them, and the Flying Scud began to move through the water. The courses were brailed up and stowed. The wind rapidly increased in strength, and the captain presently requested the passengers to go below, or at any rate to give up their seats. "There is nothinix like havinjx the deck cleared," he said. " If it comes on to blow a bit and there is any movement, the chairs would be charging about from side to side, and will not on)}' break themselves up, but perhaps break sonioone's leg." Four sailors Iblded up the chairs, piled them to- gether, and passing cords over them lashed them to two ring-bolts. " Now, Mr. Ryan, we will get the topsails reefed at once. There is ^.selves with biscuit, with an occasional cup of coffee or basin of soup tliat the cook managed to warm up for them. The ladles for the most part kept their cabins, as did many of the male passengers, and the absence of regular meals was the less felt as the majority were suffering from sea-sickness. Wilfrid was occasionally ill, but managed to keep up, and from time to time went on deck for a few minutes, while Marion spent most of her time on a seat at the top of the companion, looking out on the sea. It was a mao-nificent sight. Tremendous waves were following the ship, each as it approached lifting her stern high in the air and driving her along at a speed J : ! A GRAND SlfJIIT. 91 i tliafc seemed terrific, then passing on and leaving her to sink down into tlie valley behind it. The air was thick with tlying spray torn from the crest of the waves. At first it seemed as if each sea that came up behind the vessel would break over her stern and diive her head -foremost down; but as wave passed after wave without damage the sense of anxiety passed oti', and Marion was able to enjoy the grandeur of the sea. Wilfrid, Mr. Atherton, and the Aliens often came in to sit with her, and to take shelter for a time from tlie fury of the wind. But talking was almost impossible; the roar of the wind in the ri<:8 and couifortable meals — to say notbing of being able to >valk or sit perpendicularly, and not being obliged con- stantly to bold on for bare life. This morning I feel tbat under happier circumstances I could enjoy a steak, an Irish stew, and a couple of eggs, but a biscuit and a cup of coffee are all I can hope for." " I believe you enjoy it as much as I do, Mr. Atber- ton," the girl said indignantly; "else why do you stay upon deck all the time in spite of the wind and spray?" " Well, you see, Mi?'^ Rensbaw, you ladies have an objection to my smoking my pipe below; and besides, what with the groans and moans from the cabins, and the clatter of the swinging trf.ys, and tlie noise of the waves, and one thing and another, there is little to tempt me to stay below. But really I shall be very glad when it is over. The ship has been doing splen- didly; and as the wind has blown from the same quarter the whole time, the sea though very high is regular, and everything is going on well. Still a gale is a gale, and you can never answer for the vagaries of the wind. If it were to veer round to another quarter, for in- stance, you would in a few hours get a broken sea here that would astonish you, and would try all the qualities of the Flying Scud. Then again we have been run- ning south with tremendous speed for the last three days, and if it were to go on for a few days longer we might find ourselves down among the ice. There- fore, I say, the sooner the gale is ovei the better I shall be pleased." « I A CHANGE OF COURSE. 93 i Towards evening there was a sensible abatement in the force of the wind, and the followinji morninjr the gale had so far abated that the captain prepared to haul his course for the west. " We have been running south at the rate of fully three hundred miles a day," he said, "and are now very far down. The moment this warm wind drops and we get it from the south you will find that you will need every wrap you have to keep you warm. If the gale had lasted I had made up my mind to try to get her head to it, and to lie to. We are a great deal too close to the region of ice to be pleasant." The change in the course of the vessel was by no means appreciated by the passengers, for the motion was very much rougher and more unpleasant than that to which they had now become accustomed. However, by the following morning the wind had died away to a moderate breeze, and the sea had very sensibly abated. The topsails were shaken out of tht.r reefs; and although the motion was still violent most of the passengers emerged from their cabins and came on deck to enjoy the sun, which was now streaming brightly through the broken clouds. The captain was in high glee; the ship had weathered the gale without the slightest damage. Not a rope had parted, not a sail been blown away, and the result fully justified the confidence he felt in his ship and her gear. " It is a comfort," he remarked, " to sail under liberal owners. Now, my people insist on having their ships as well found as possible, and if I condemn spars, sails, ropes, or stays, they are replaced without a question. And it is the cheapest policy in the long run. There 94 COLD WKATHER. is noihinpf so costl}' as stinginess on board a ship. Tlie giving way of a stay may mean tlie loss of tlie mast and all its gear, and that may mean the loss of a ship. The blowing awa}' of a sail at a critical moment may mean certain disaster; and yet there are many owners who grudge a fathom of new rope or a bolt of canvas, anle to get some tish from the natives, which will be a change for the passengers." Tho ves.sel's head was turned towards the shore, and now that the light air was v«ell on the beam it sutHced to enaV)le the vessel to steal through the water at tho rate of about a knot an hour. At about four o'clock the anchor was dropped in a bay at a distance of half a ndle from land, the sails were furled, and the passen- gers watched the shores in hopes that some native craft might make its appearance; but there was no sign of lifa " Either the natives have no fish to sell, or rather exchange," the captain said, " for, of course, money is of no use to them, or they are afraid of us. ^laybe they have been mas.sacring some shipwrecked crew, and believe we are a ship-of-war come down to punish them. At any rate, they seem determined not to show." The next morning the sea was as smooth as glass, and there was not a breath of air "Would you let us have a boat, captain?" Mr. Atherton asked. "It will make a pleasant change, and perhaps some of the natives might come ofi' and sell ua ( 60,5 ) O I 98 A BOAT TARTV. fish, as they wouhl not be afraid of us as they miglit be of the ship." " Yes, if you like to make up a party, Mr. Atherton, yon can have a boat; but you must not land. The natives are very treacherous, and it would not be safe to set foot on shore. Mr. Ryan, will you get the cutter into the water after breakfast? You had better take with you two or three muskets. I do not think there is any fear of an attack, and besides you could out-row the native craft, still it is always as well to be pre- pared." Mr. Atherton soon made up his party. Wilfrid and the two Aliens were delighted at the offer, and Marion and the Miss Mitfords also petitioned to be allovTed to go, although Mr. Atherton had not intended to take ladies with him. Two other young men named Hardy and Wilson were also invited to join, and this made up the complement that the cutter could carry in comfort. The crew consisted of six sailors at the oars, and Mr. Ryan himself took the helm. " You had better wrap up well," Mr. Atherton said to the girls, " for you will find it cold sitting in a boat. The thermometer must be down near freezing-point." Mr. Atherton was the last to take his seat, and he brought with him his rifle. " Why, what are you going to shoot, Mr. Atherton?" Marion asked. " I do not know that I am going to shoot anything," he replied; " but it is always well to be prepared. You see I have made preparations in other ways," he added as the steward handed him down a large basket, which he placed in the stern-sheets. T I AWAY FROM THE SHIP. 99 t *„ ?',\,-T/*-''^ ""^ S°'"S ''<"• "" 'lO'"' Of t«'o, Mr. Ather- ton, V\ ilfrm remarked. " We cannot want anythin.. .» eat when we have only just finished breakfast" ° I do not think it at all likely we shall want to open the hamper, Wilfrid; but you see it is always best to be prepared. The weather looks perfectly settled, but. like the natives of these parts, it is treacherous. As I proposed this expedition 1 feel a sort of responsibility and have therefore, you see, taken precautions acrainst every contingency." o 'o •■I do not think there is any chance of a change," Mr. Ryan said "It looks as if the calm might last for a week, fetill, one can never be wrong in preparin.. for the worst. Besides, this cold weather gives one a wonderfu appetite, and a drop of the cratur never comes amiss. .n^^.t^'^ ",'"* "'1''°^* ''■"' ^^'''y *""'y f™" tiie ship, and the sailors, who like the passengers regarded the expedition as a plea.sant change, stretched out to their oars. The mate steered for the headland to the west, and after passing ,t kept the bout at a distance of a few hundred yards from the shore. "Is there any current here. Mr. Ryan?" Wilfri.l ttel "^ " "'"='"'' **•« ^°<='^« ""'» ^"^ «t"nted " Very little," the mate replied. " Sometimes it runs ouarL :» ^ '°r' "''"'' '* ^'^ ™^"-S '"0- than a tZX T\" T ''°" P"'' "'« »''■?■ •'"t °o doubt there is a good deal more farther out " no sll'r f ^PP°'"""^'»' of "'ose on board there were no signs of natives. I 100 FAR ENOUGH. " It will be very tiresome if they do not come out," Marion said. "I want to see a real cannibal." " I do not so much caie about the cannibals, Miss Ronshaw, but I want to see their fish. I have not tasted a really decent tish since I left Enohind; but in these cold waters they oui,dit to be as good as they are at home. I believe the natives catch them by spearing them by torch-light, and in that case they ought to be oood-sized fellows." The men after the first start had dro})ped into a long, steady stroke, and as the boat glided along past bay and headland no one paid any attention to time, until the mate, looking at his watch, said: "Faith, we have been gone an hour and a half; I clean forgot all about time. I think we had better be turning. It will be dinner-time before we reach the ship as it is." The boat's head was turned. " I think," the mate went on, " we may as well steer from headland to headland, instead of keeping round the bays. It will save a good bit of distance, and the natives evidently do not mean to show them- selves." "They are very provoking," Miss Mitford said. "I can see smoke auiong the trees over there, and I have no doubt that they are watching us although we can- not see them." "You ougb.t to have waved your handkerchief as we came along, Miss Mitford," James Allen remarked; "or to have stood vp and shown yourselves. They would no doubt havi come off then and oli'ered presents in token of adiuiration." The girls lauglied. " I do not suppose they would ,: A SEA FOG. 101 appreciate our (.liarnis," Miss Mitl'ord said "They are not iii their line, you see." "That they certainly are not, Miss Mitf.n-.l" the nmte ]au,,hed. "I saw son.e of then, the last time 1 can.e through here, and Indeous-lookinj,. creatures tliey ai-e, and wear no clothes to speak of" So lauoldng and clmtting with their eyes fixed on the shore the party never looked seawar.l, until a sudden exclauiation from the n.ate called their atten- tion to that direction. "Be Jabers!" he exclaimed, "here is a sea-fog rolling down on us fi-oni the south."' " They looked and saw what soonied like a wall of whi e smoke rolling along the water towards them At tins n,on)ent the boat was about half-wav between two hea»^» ^-^i^ i\fk-- -ni'^ -n- ii minutes later cried, " Easy all ! Hold her up ! " Quickly as the order was obeyed the boat's stem grated on the shore before her way was lost. "Back her oft", lads'" the mate cried. As the boat glided oft* into deep water again there was a yell from the shore, and a dozen spears struck the water round her. Fortunately none of them struck her, for she was invisible to the natives, who had been guided to the spot by the sound of the oars. " Not an encouraging reception," Mr. Atherton re- marked quietly. " Well, ladies, you have not seen the cannibals as yet, but you have heard them. I think the best plan, Mr. Ryan, will be to tear up one of these rugs and muftle the oars." " T think we may as well do so," the mate replied " However, their sharp ears are sure to hear us if we are close inshore, and we dare not go far out or we mifjht lose our bearings altogether." " I do not think we can do that. In the first place, you see, there is the breeze that brought down the fog to guide us, and in the second the guns of the ship. We cannot go far wrong with them; and I should say that when we once get out as far as we believe the headland to lie, tlie best thing will be to steer direct for the ship. The danger in that way would certainly be far less than it is from rocks and savages if we keep near the shore." " I think you are right. We will row straight out against the wind for a quarter of an hour, that will take us clear of the headland, and we will then shape our course direct for the guns." 104 KKEPING TIME. CHAPTER VI. PUTTING IN THE REFIT. ! \ ? f i I rpHE boat rowed steadily in the course that was JL believed would take them straijjht out to sea, the mate listening attentively for the sound of the distant guns. The reports caaie up every two or three minutes, their sound rnufiled by the fog. " Sure it's mighty difficult to tell where the sound comes from, but I think it is well over there on our beam. Do not you think so?" the mate asked Mr. Athorton. "I think so; yes, I feel sure that we are rowing nearly due south. Even without the sound of the guns I should feel sure that we cannot at present be far out of that course. I noticed that as we ca*ne along you hardly had to use any helm, and that the strength on both sides was very evenly balanced. So that starting out as we did from the shore, we must be travelling pretty straight. Of course in the long run we should be sure to swee]) round one way or the other and lose our beariniijs altogether wore it not for the ouns. Wil- frid, we will appoint you time-keeper." "What am 1 to keep time of, Mr. Atherton?" " You are to keep time of the guns. I think they are tiring about every three minutes, but you had better time the first two or three. If you find them three minutes ajmrt, it will be your duty a quarter of a minute before the gun is due to say in a loud voice ' Stop/ then all conversation is to cease till we hear the leport. Unless we are all silent and listening, it is A MI.SCALCULAIIUN. 105 very difTicult to judge the exact direction from wliich the sound comes, and it is important to keup as stiai-dit a hne as we can. 'J'hore is the jjun now, begin to count." "I think we can turn our head in tliat direction now," tlie mate said. " It is Just twenty minutes since we left the shore, and we r ighi to be fully a mile out beyond the headland." " I qnite agree with you. We have certainly a clear course now to the ship if we do not make any blunder in keeping it." 'J1ie mate put the tiller a-starboard. "I wonder how lotig I am to keep it over?" he said. "It is a queer sensation steering without having an idea wliich way you ar<3 goiiu^-." "The next gun will tell us whether we have o-one too far round or not far enough," Mr. Atherton'' ob- served. "Well, we will try that," the mate said after a short pause. "I should think we ought to have made half a turn now." "Stop!" Wilfrid exclaimed a minute later. "Easy rowing, lads, and listen for the gun." The mate ordered silence in the boat. Half a minute later the report of the gun was again heard. There was a general exclamation of surprise, for instead of comin lads; a long steady stroke and we shall be in before dinner is cold yet." The conversation now recommenced. "Is it any use my stopping here any longer?" Jim Allen cried from the bow; "because if not I will come aft to you. It is a good deal warmer sitting together than it is out here by myself." "Yes, you may as well come aft," the mate replied. "As long as we keep the guns ahead we know tlmt we are clear of rocks. It certainly has come on bitterly cold." There was a general chorus of rssent. "I should think it would be a good thing, Ryan, to get the sail aft and unlash it from the gaff and put it over our legs, it will make a lot of diti'erence in the warmth." i A STRONG CURRRNT. 107 .1) "I think that that is a very pood idoa," tlio mate assented. "I.ay in your oar for a minute, Johnson, and jrrt that sail aft." The sail was passed aft, unlnshed from the yard, and spread out, adding consideral>ly to the comfort of all those sitting astern; and now tiiat the ship's guns were booming ahead, and they liad b'conie accustomed to the thick curtain of cloud hanging round tliem, the feeling of uneasiness that the girls had felt was entirely dissipated, and Mr. Atherton had no longer any ccca- sion to use his best efforts to keep up their^spirits. All laughed and chatted over their adventure, which, as they said, far exceeded in interest anytliing they luid been promised when they started from the 'ship. The only drawback, as they all agreed, was the cold, which was indeed really severe. "We do not seem t. come up to the guns as we ought to," Mr. Atherton said to the mate afttr the boat had been rowing for some tin^e. "That is just what I was thinking," Mr. Ryan replied. "I fancy we must have got a strong current out here against us." ••I expect we have. Ryan, I tell you what. The men have been rowing for some hours now since they left the ship, I think it would be a good thing if our youngsters were to relieve some of them for°a spell- What do you say, lads?" Wilfrid, the Aliens, Hardy, and Wilson all exclaimed that they should be delighted to take a turn as it would warm their blood. "We shall be able to give them all a spell," Mr. Atherton said, "for there are just six of us." 1U8 A C»AN(JE OF H«»WKKS. I i [ "I am cortuinly not ^oini,' to let you j)ull, ajul you scMicc'ly out of tilt; doctor s hand," the mat*' said bluntly. " ^^ I'yi y^^u must Imj mad to tldnk of such a thin<;I llcrti, do you take the tiller and I will row tho stroUf- oar. Kasy all, lads; put on your jackots. Four of you come aft, and the other two ^^o into the bows." "I wish we could row," Marion said rcf^rctl'ully, as the new crew bent to their oars. "1 have done a lot of rowiuf,' at home, Mr. Atherton, and they sav 1 row very fairly." "1 am afraid you woidd not bo of much assistance here, younj:]f lady," Mr. Atherton said. "Jt's one thinLj to work a li<:;ht well-balanced oar such as you use in a gig up the river, V)ut it is a very ditleront one to tug away at one of these heavy oars in a sca-n'oing boat like this with ten sitters in her. We shall want all our strength to get back, you may be sure. There must be a strong current against us, and there is little chance of our being back, as we hoped, by dinner- time." After the men had had half an hour's rest Mr. Kyan told them to take their seats and double bank the oars. " We shall travel all the faster," he said to Mr. Atherton, " and now^ that they have got their wind again it is far better that they should be rowing than sitting still. The jjfuns are a good deal nearer now. I do not think that the ship can be more than a mile or a mile and a half away." I do not suppose she is," Mr. Atherton replied. " I think I will tire otl' my ritle two or three times. They ought to be able to hear it now, and it will relieve their minds." m H()M> HEIl UP MAKI). 10!) He .lisclmrLrod l,i, rifle four or five times, and they fancin.I that thuy licanl sliots in return. "Hullo;" iMr. Athcrton oxchiiiiKMl Huddctilv. "Easy all! Hold her up hard all!" Althou-h the or.h-r was entirely unexpected it was (riven so slmrply that It was instantly obeyed, aney look friendly, motli.T," Marion said after "■;":-: *'""' """"'^'' '-''« Sl^-*-^- •■ Wo,, t it be nice n ( w:, ) l! [15 114 A IHKACHEROUS RACE. to land anping." "It is horrid," Kate Mitford said, as she with her sister, Marion, and several of the younger passengers stood togi'ther that evening on the poop looking towards the sliore. The young moon was sinking in the west, the stars shone with ureat brill iancv, and the water was as smooth as glas.s. The outline of the palms could be made out against the sky, and in several places the light of tires could be perceived, and the still- ness of the evenin'-' was broken bv the hum of distant voices. " It is really a shame that we cainiot go ashore. I am sure the savages looked civil and friendly, and it would be delJLrhtful to wander about in such a wood as that." Two or three voices were raised in assent. "Have yon heard the little story of the spider and the fly, ]\Iiss Kate?" ^Ir. Atherton said, moving across from the other side of the deck, wdiere he was smoking a cigar. " In that case, you know, it was the prettiest little bower that ever you did espy, and perhaps the fly admired it just as much as you admire that grove THE Sl'IUER AND THE il.Y. 117 ashore. Tlic result of ;i visit would l.e i.Iontical in i'oth cases. Those ou hoard other sliips have been taken iu hy the |Hacel'nI appeaiauee of the natives and the loveHness of tlie ishinds. and the result was fatal to them. Personally, 1 should feel nnich more comfortal)le if I saw those savages putting out in a body in their canoes to attack tlie ship than I do now while tliey are keeping up this pretence of friendliness. An open danger one can meet, but when you know that tiva<-hery is intended, but have no idea what form it will take or when the mask of iriendship will be thrown otl', it is trying to the nerves. Fortunately we know their character, and may hope to be ready when the danger conies. Still the waiting is trying." •And you really feel that,"iMr" Atherton?" Marion Renshaw asked. "I do indeed, xMiss Renshaw. We may get away without trouble; but if so, it will be solely because the natives see that we are prepared for them and are not to be taken by surprise. Seeing our crippled state, my own o])inion is, that the natives will not let ua go^ off without making at least one attempt to sur- prise us." Mr. Atherton spoke strongly, for he thought that it was possible that some of the youngsters might, unless thoroughly roused to a sense of danger, do soniethin- ioohsh and rash. His words had the ellect desirecl His share in the afl'air at Rio had caused him to be regarded with respect and admiration by the younc^ men on board, and they felt that if in his opinion the danger was grave it was not for them to doubt its reuiity. A vigilant watch was kept all night, and "•1 118 A VIGILANT WATCH. a loaded muskets were served out to the watch on deck. The guns luid been loaded before they anchored, and the spare muskets were i)laced so as to be handy for the watch bilow should they be suddenly called up. Alter the moon went down a li«:ht mist rose on the surface of the sea. Seveial times durinc; the uvA\t faint sounds were heard near the ship, but imme- diately the oflicer of the watch challenged, silence reigned for a considerable time. "How has the night passed, Ryan?" Mr. Atherton asked the first officer f.,s soon as he came on deck, just as daylight was breaking. " There have been some of them near us all night," Mr. Ryan replied. " I do not think they were in forcv^, but they wanted to see whether we kept a sharp watch; and I think we have satisfied them as to that, for every- time the slightest noise was heard we hailed at once. I should like to have sent a musket-ball in the direc- tion of the sound, but as we must get a spar, if pos- sible, and shall be all the better for a score or two casks of fresh water, it won't do to begin to quarrel with them. Once we get what we want on board the beggars may attack us as soon as they like. It would do them a world of good to get handsomely thrashed, and to be taught that vessels are not to be plundered with impunity." " As you say, it might do them good, but I hope there will be no trouble. I have no doubt whatever that we should beat them o^] but we might lose some lives in doing it; besides, we have ladies on board." " I hope so too; and, prejjarefl as we are, 1 should feel quite safe if it was not for that mast being gone. AN AMATEUR WATCH. 119 They know tliat we are comparative cripples, and no doubt looked upon us as lawful booty when they saw us making in; ancidedly. "1 will speak to Mr. Kyan and ask liim to tell the steward that two of us will re(juire somethinfr put on the table for them after the others have domZ 1 do not think that he himself is likely to leave the deck wlien the captain is below, and the two of us who happen to be on duty can have our meals when he does. Of course whenever those on duty come j M\. . . 1, * ■■-; • ' r ■'1 ! I ■ i rl 122 ARK YOU IN EAKNF,ST? appointed to his watch, the other men to that of the Aliens. At seven bells most of the passeni;ers came on deck to enjoy the fresh morning air for an hour before breakfast. " You are not going to enjoy the pleasure of Wil- frid's or my comj)any at breakfast, Mrs. Ilensliavv," Mr. Atherton said, smilinn', to that lady as she stood with the three girls round her on the poop. " Why not, Mr. Atherton?" she asked in surprise. " He and the Aliens and myself are going to do amateur sentry work as long as we lie hei-e, Mrs. Renshaw. The crew will be all busy refitting the ship, and so I have volunteeied to undertake, with their assistance, the duty of keeping a sluiri) eye on those tricky gentlemen a.shore." "Are you in earnest, Mr. Atherton?" "Quite in earnest that we are going to do so, Mrs. Renshaw. There may be no absolute occasion for it, but there is nothing like keeping on the safe side; and as we cannot go ashore, and one cannot talk continu- ously for fifteen or sixteen hours, we may just as well pass a })ortion of our timo in playing at sentinels." "But when will 3'ou get breakfast?" Marion asked. "Shall I bring it up to you, Mr. Atherton?" " No, thank you. Miss Renshaw. We have arranged to have it with Mr. byan afterwards. I am much obliged to you for 3"our oH'er just the .same. It is a very kind one, especially since you will, for once, par- ticularly enjoy your breakfast, as you wdll have room for your elbows." " You are laughing at me again, Mr. Atherton. One MARION PROTESTS. l'J3 le would rcilly think that you take nie to be about ten years old." "1 tliink a little teasing does rou ,i:food, Miss Renshaw. It is one of the privileges of us old rellows to try to do good to our young friends; and girls of your nge lord it so over their brothers and their brothers' friends, that it is good for them to be teased a little by their elders." "Would not you think, mother," Marion a[)pealed, "that Mr. Atherton by his talk was somewhere about eighty and that I was quite a child T' "I agree with him that it is ratlier a irood thin'T for girls of your age, Marion, to be snubbtM] a little (Kca- sionally; esi)ecially on a voyage like this, when there are several young fellows on board wdio have nothing better to do than to wait upon you and humour your whims." There was a general laugh. Before a fresh subject was started the breakfast bell rang and the passengers went below. Mr. Atherton fetched his riHe fron^his cabin, and Wilfrid Mas going to unpack his double- barrelled gun when his friend said: "I should not bother about that now, Wilfrid; take one of the ship's muskets. It will make just as much noise if you have to fire it, and you will not be alarming the passengers by bringing your gun backwards and forwards from your cabin. I am going to hang up my rille when I come off guard in Ryan's cabin on deck, where it will be handy. You take the fo'castle, your two men can be in the waist, one on each side, and I will take the poop. Just at pre.sent our duty will be a nominal one, as the canoes have not put out, but I expect they will be here before long." i 124 A STATE VISIT. Before breakfast w/is over, indeeil, a lari^e canoe was brought down from tlie woods and placed in the water, and a number of natives appea»'ed on the shore. The first ollicer at once summoned the captain on deck. "Tell all the men to have their arms handy, Mr. Ryan," the captain said as he looked at the gathering on shore. "I do not suppose they mean to attack us in this open way, still we may as well be upon our guard. Order the men not to show their arms, but to go about their M'ork as usual. We do not wish to appear afraid of them, or to take up a position of hostility. 1 hope the chiefs are coming oHi* for a friiMidly palaver." In a few minutes the canoes put oti* from the shore. First came the great canoe, which was paddh'd by thirty men. In the bow and stern were hideous images. Four natives, evidently of superior rank, were seated near the stern, and in the bow stood a man beating his hands in time to the stroke of the paddles and singing a song, which was responded to by a deep exclamation from the rowers at eveiy stroke. Another man stood by the side of the singer waving a green bough. Behind this great canoe followed a score of smaller ones. " We will receive them in state, Mr. Ryan. Evidently they intend to keep up an appearance of friendliness at present. We will meet them in the sauie spirit. Fasten the signal Hags on to the halvavds and run them up to the masthead, let half a dozen men with cutlasses take their place at the gangway as a sort of guard of honour, let the rest go on with their work but keep their arms handy for action." When tlie great canoe apjiroachcd the vessel the % 4 FR n:\DLY OVERTURES. 125 lie men stopped paddling, and one of the chiefs standing up made an address to the captain, who was standin° at the top of the gangway. Not a word tliat lie said was understood, but the address seemed to be of a friendly nature, and the chief held up some cocoa-inits and yams as if to show his desire to ti-ade. When he had finished the captain took oW his hat and also spoke, and by gestures invited the chiefs to come on board.' By this time all the passengers had come on deck, and were watching the proceedings with great interest. "Do you think it safe to let them on board?" the first oflicer asked ^Ir. Atherton, who was intently watching the natives in the smaller canoes. "(,,)ulte safe," he replied. "So long as only a few of their followers come with them there is no fear of their attempting anytldng. While the chiefs are in our luuhis they act, as it were, as hostages for the good C(;uduct of their people. 80 far their intention.'Taie clearly peaceful. Whether that will last wid depend upon whether they think there is a chance of success or not. At present all we have to do is to take advan- tage of it, and to get what we want on board." By this time the canoe was approaeliing the side of the ship. The four chiefs ascended the ladder follow. ■(! by four or live of lower rank who had been seat.Ml near them. As they reached tlie deck the principal chief tui-ned round and shouted an order in a loud voice. ]ts etl'ect was inunediate. The canoe in which they had arrived at once paddled away to a short distance, while the smaller ci{d>, m l,ich had before been drifting slowly towards the vessel, also retired and lay huddled behind the large cauuc. m I ■ r 1 ' I % 1 1 ■5 ! 1.. i: I 126 !f ^ THE CHIEFS. CHAPTER VII. A SAVAGE SURPRISE. THE captain led the way on to the poop, the chiefs and the natives with them folio win ir, while the ■an rangec first officer with the six sailors with sa their rear. Once on the quarter-deck Mr. three of the men by the bulwark on either side, tellini:; them to sheath their cutlasses, but to be prepared for instant action in case of treachery. The chiefs pre- served a stolid demeanour, scarce glancing at the passengers, who were gathered on the poop. At the captain's orders the steward brought up a number of cushions and pljc^hiliem on the deck in a circle. The captain seated himself on one and motioned to the chiefs to follow his example, which they did without hesitation. Mr. Ryan now brought up a number of things as presents for the chiefs, and each was pie- sented with a hand mirror, a roll of scarlet cloth, and some trinkets, as a small supply of these had been brought on board for trade with the natives in case of the necessity arising. The hea I chief was in addition presented with an axe, and rolls of coloured cotton strin^js of ohiss beads and some brass rinos were jjiven to the inferior chiefs. The natives appeared pleased with their pre- sents. The captain then addressed them, and endea- voured to explain that he wanted a supply of water. An empty barrel was brouglit up and some water poured into this, and the captain then pointed to the shore, FRIENDLY NEGOTIATIONS. 1J7 and by gestures intimated that lie wisl.cd the barrels p to be taken ashore and filled. The chiefs evidently understood the explanation, and nodded their assent. The captain then led them to the stump of the main- mast, pointed to the shore, and taking an axe iniitated the action of chopping, and showed that he wanted them to fell a tree and bring it off* to the vessel. The chief pointed to tlie boats hanging on the davits, placed the axe in the hands of one of the men, and clearly signitied that the crew could go ashore and cut down a tree if they chose. The captain shook his head and placed the axe in the hands of one of the chiefs. Their leader, however, went up to the foremast, and by spreading out his arms signified that it was a great size, and then held out the small axe the captain had presented to him with an action of disdain. "The beggar means that with one axe they would never cut down a tree of that size," the first oHicer said. "That is all liumbug, Ryan; they can bring down the biggest trees for the construction of their canoes. I believe they bring them down by fire. However, it is a.^ well to humour them. Tell the carpenter to bring half a dozen axes." This was done, and the axes laid down on the deck. There was now a consultation between the natives. After a while they nodded, and then inad(i signs that someone must go ashore with them to choose the tree. "What do you say, Ryan?" the captain asked. "It is of importance tliat we should get a stick that will suit us. The question is whether it will be safe to ti-ust a man on shore with these scoundrels?" ^ I 3f an 1 i{ pit; kill 1:1 l-i 128 MR. RYAN VOLUNTEKKS. "I will go ashore if you like, captain," Mr. Ryan replied. "J do not like it, Ryan," the captain .s;aid. "You see, thev would make mincemeat of an armed crew in no time. "I should not propose to take a crew, sir; they could afl'ord no protection against a number ol' natives. I do lot think the beggars would assault a single man. You see, there would be nothing to gain by it; and if they did it would put the ship on its guard, and their game at present is evidently to be friendl}'. I do not think there is any danger in the aflair. If I did not go they niight send oii' some stick that would be of no use at all to us, and as we came in on purpose to get a mast it is worth while riskino- somethinir," "Well, Ryan," the captain said after a moment's deliberation, "I think perhaps you are right, and that one man would be safe with them. It is certainly of great importance for us to get the sort of stick we want, so as you are ready to volunteer I do not think myself justilied in refusing your offer." The eaptain then put his hand on the chief othcer's shoulder and intimated to the natives that he would accompany them on shore. The party then returned to the poop, and tlie steward brought up some tumblers and two or three bottles of rum. The cliiefs' eyes glistened as the li(iuor was poured out, and each swalloweil a half tumbler of the spirit with an air of the deej^est satis- faction. "That is the present they like best," the captain said; "and I suppose I had better give them some for con- sumption on shore. At any rate it will keep them in in THADINU. 121) a good temper until Ryan is back again." Accordingly two bottles of rum were presented to the leading chief, a bottle to the three next in rank, and two or three bottles amon<^ the others. The <;reat canoe was hailed, the natives again took tlieir places in it, accompanied by the first otticer, and the boat then started for the shore. Some of the smaller craft now came alonirside, and the ])rocess of barter was again commenced. Yams, bread-fruit, and other products of the island were obtained for the use of the ship in exchange for beads, empty bottles, and small mirrors, while the passengers succeeded in obtaining many curiously carved weapons, calabasht'S, woven cloths, and other mementoes of their visit. Ordy two or three of the canoes were allowed alongside at a time, and a vigilant look-out was main- tained to see that the others did not approach the ship. The captain walked restlessly up and down the poop, constantly turning his glass upon the shore. An hour after the great canoe had reached it he exclaimed in a tone of intense satisfaction, "There is Ryan coming down to the beach. Thank heaven he is safe!" The first- mate was seen to take his ])lace in a small canoe, which at once rowed off to the sldp. The captain shook him heartily by the hand as he stepped on deck. "Thank heaven yon lia\e got back safely, Ryan! it has been a hazardous business, and I shall take care to let the owners know how you have risked your life by going ashore in their service. Weil, how have you succeeded?" "I found a grand pine growing within thirty or forty yards of the water, about a quarter of a mile l^yond that point to the left. As I expected, the natives haat interest. (^)uite a crowd of cajioes feathered round the ship, and were fjreatly surprised at seeing the heavy spur rais(Ml by the sheers and dropped into its place; and tliey replied to the hearty cheers that rose from the crew and i)assen<,'ers when this was accomplished l»y wild yells and cries and the sounding of their horns. " I ho the ladder on the port side. Several shots were tired, but the passengers were too startled for their aim to be true. " Give me your musket, Renshaw!" Mr. Atherton ex- claimed, snatchingthe piece the it>,tterhad justdischarged from his hands, " my riHe is too good for this work." He then clubbed the weai)on, (ind whirling it round his head as if it had been a straw fell upon the natives, who weie just pouring up on to the poop, shouting to the passengers. " Fire on the mass below! I will keep these fellows at bay!" Every blow that fell stretched a man lifeless on deck, until those who had gained the poop, unable to retreat ov;ing to the pressure of those behind them, and terrified by the destruction wrought by this giant, sprang over the bulwark into the sea. Just as they did so the little party of sailors and steerage pas- sengers, finding themselves unable to resist the pres- sure, made their way up to the poop by the starboard ladder, hotly pressed by the natives. By this time several of the male passengers who had rushed below for their weapons ran up, and Wilfred and the Aliens having reloaded, such a dis- charge was poured into the natives on the port ladder that the survivors leapt down on to the deck below, and the attack for a moment ceased. The whole of the \ MR. ATHEnTOX IN COMMAND. 143 forwar<] portion of tl.e slu'i) was by tin's time in the lian.ls of tlie natives. Tlnv^c sailors who were at wo.-k tnere had been at once murdered, only one of the j.arty liavinnr time to make his escape up the fore rjo-o-inc- Sponrs now began to fly fast over the poop, '"' ° " We must fall back a bit, Mr. IJaulins. or we .shall be riddlorl," Mr. Atherton saiadino"out on to the waist is securely barricaded, and place^two or three men there? Mr. IJcnshaw, will you and some ot the other passengers carry down those ladies who have tainted, and assure them all that the darioer is really over." ° Mr. Atherton had so naturally taken the command that the second mate at once obeyed his instructions Most of the ladies had rushed below directly the fray began, but two or three had failed, and these were soon earned below. The male passengers, eighteen in all were now on deck. Several )f them looked very pale arui scared, but even the mo.^t timid felt that his life depended on ^is making a fight for it. A perfect shower of spears were no^v flying over the poop from the natives in the canoes alongside, and from the ship forward. ^ ; We had best lie down, gentlemen," IVfr. Atherton said. " If the natives make a rush up the ladders we must be careful not to Mre all at once or we should be at their mercy. Let those by the bulwarks fire first and the others take it up gradupMy ,vhile the first reload. Of course if they make a really deternuned n 144 A VERY GOOD IDI3A. M I rush thorc will Ite notlii'nir to do but to meet them and drive thom back ai^airi." Unfortunately the four cannon of the Flyinrf Send were all amidships, and were therefore not available for the defence. "If we could make a breastwork, Mr. Atherton, so that we could stand up behind it and tire down into the waist we niight drive these fellows out," the second oflicer suggested. "A very good idea. Wilfrid, will you run down and ask the ladies to get up to the top of the com- panion all the mattrasses, trunks, and other things that would do to form a barricade? It will be a fnjod thincf for them to have somethincf to do. Mr. Kawlins, will you send down the stewards to help ? thev mioht oet some cases and barrels up. As fast as they bring them up we will push them along the deck and form a breastwork." CHAPTER VIII. THE END OF THE VOYAGE. i '>: i -1 WHEN Wilfred went below to get materials for a bairicade, he found the ladies kneeling or sitting calm and quiet, although very pale and white, round the table, while Mrs. Kenshaw was pra}?^- ing aloud. She concluded her prayer just as he came down. There was a general chorus of questions. "Everything is going on well," Wilfrid said clieer- MAKING A BAKUICA ^-. n") ieling and Ipray- came }heer- I fully; "but we want to make a breastwork, for tlio spears are Hyiii^^ about so, one cannot stand up to tire at thcni. I liavc come to ask you all to carry up mattrasses and pillow s and cusliions and portmanteaus, and anvthini; else that will make a barricade. Tb^ steward will open the lazaret and send up barrels an VICTOKY I u: the I'or The their and Ihem Mr. ? i' Atherton, who, as Wilfrid, who was sinndinsf next to him oli.serv'd, never once failed to brin^^ down the man he aimed at. "I think we might go at them, sir, now," the second officer said to Mr. Atherton; "the tight is all out of them." "I tldnk so too, Kawlins. Now, gintlemen, give them one last voile}' and then pidl down the barri- cade across the ends of the ladders and charge them." The volley was given, and then with a ringing cheer the barricade was thrust aside, and, led on one side by Mr. Atherton and on the other by the second officer, the defenders of the poop sprang down the ladders and rushed forward. The natives did not stop to await them, but sprung overboard with the greatest j.x-ecipitation, and the Flyivg Scad was once again in the hands of its lawful owners. " Now, Kawlins, do you and the sailors work the guns, we will pepper them with our riHes," Mr. Atherton said. "Mr. Ilenshaw, will you go aft and tell the ladies that all is over/" But this they had already learned. Marion, after the things had been passed up, had taken her place at the top of the companion, occasionally peering out to see what was gonig on, and running down with the news to them below, and as the loud cheer which pre- ceded the charge had broken from those on deck, she had called out to the ladies below that the natives were beaten. The shower of spears from the boats had ceased as soon as the natives saw theii" friends leaping overboard, and as Mr. Renshaw ascended the poop to deliver the messaire the ladies were tlocking out on 118 THE CANOES IN FLIf. J! I ill ! I Ml )': ill III >;i ! I'M ' (l<'ck, •'ucli anxious to asccitaiTi ulu'tlier tlidsc most dear to tli<'in liad sutliMud in tlie t'ray. Marion run forward ami tlm-w liui'.sult' into lu.s urujs "Not liurt, i'iitlicr^" "No, my dear, tliank Cod. Sonui of us have ^ot spoar Avonn struck down at tho bcifinnini:^." As ho spoki! the four cannon boomed out one after anothe all that Mr. ]\van has said; we owe it to you, Atherton, that by God's mercy we and those dear to us have escaped from death at the hands of these savages. It was you who put some of us on our guard ; it was your marvellous shooting with the revolver that first cleared the pooj); and your extraordinary strength, that enabled you single- lianded to check the onslaught of the natives and oive us time to rally from our tirst surprise, and saved the ship and us." "Do not let us say anything more about it," Mr. Atherton said; 'we have all done our duty to the best 8 ' lit il I,: II 1- ' ' I $ iifi 152 CLKARlN'fi THE SHIP. of our power, and have reason to l)c lioartily thankful to God tluxt we have i;ot out of tliis scrape without heavier kws tlian lias befallen us. Now, Mr. Kyan, please give youi- orders." " 'J'he ilrst thing, undoubtedly, is to clear the deck of these bodies," Mr. Rvan said. "What about the wounded."" Mr. Renshaw asked, *' no doubt some of the poor wretches are still alive." "They do not deserve any l)etter fate than to be tossed overboard with the others; still, as tliat would go against the grain, we will see what we can do." He looked over the side. "There is a good-sized canoe floating there fifty yards away. I sup])Ose the fellows thought it would be safer to jump overboard and s\vim ashore. Four of you men iret out the jiiu: and tow the canoe alongside. We will put any wounded we tind into it and send it adrift; they will come out and pick it up after we are fairly off." The bodies of sixty natives who had been kiUetl outright were thrown overboard, and eighteen who were found to be still alive were lowered into tht> canoe. "I do not think we nvo really of them will live. You see, all who were able to drag th uiselves to the side jumped overboard, and were either drownt d or hauled into the canoe.s." As soon as the operation was over the casks of water were got on board and the boats hoisted to the davits. The anchor was then hove up and souie of the sails ■ AT SEA ACAIN. 153 r shaken out, and witli a uentle breeze tlie vessel boiran to aravv ott' the land. As soon as this was done all hands set to work washing down tlie decks; and in two or three hours, except for the bullet murks on the deck and bulwarks, there were no signs left of the desperate contliet that had raged on board the Flying Hcud. At sunset all hands gathei'ed on the poop, and th-' b(»di ^ of the captain and two passengers, and of tlie sailu s who had fallen, were reverently delivered to the deep, Mr. Ryan reading the funeral service. The ladies had retired below after the boats had come alongside, and did not cotne U{) until all was rt'ady for the funeral. Mrs. lienshaw and three or four of the others had been ein))loved in dressin;i>s- sengers, and had done everything in his power to make the voyage a plea.sant one. ( )ne of the pa.sseiigers who was killed was a young man with none on board to mourn him, but the other had 1< ft a widow and two 1 154 A CHANCJED MAN. !' ! ■ I I I . IN child I'en, whose presence in their midst was a constant reminder of their nairow escape from destruction. The voyage had produced a very marked change in Mr. Rensliaw. It had brouo-ht him in far closer con- nection witli his children than he had ever been before, with results advantageous to each. Hitherto they had scarcely ever seen him except at meals, and even at these times his thoughts were so wholly taken up with the writings on which he was engaged that he had taken but little part in the general conversation be^'on*! giving a willing assent to any request they made, and evincing no interest whatever in their plans and amusements. iSOw, although for four or five hours a day he worked diligently at his study of the Maori language, he was at other times ready to join in what was going on. He often walked the deck by the hour with Wilfrid and Marion and in that time learned far more of their past life, of their acquaintances and amuse- ments at their old home, than he had ever known before. He was genial and chatty witli all the other jiassengers, and the a'^Conisbment of his children w^as unbounded when he began to take a lively part in the various anuisements by which the passengers whiled away th(^ long hours, and played at deck quoits and bull. 'I'he latter ganm consists ui a board divided into twelve scjuares, nuiidiered one to ten, with two having bulls' heads upon them, leaden discs co\ered with caiivas are thiown on to this board, counting accordinir to the number on which they fall, ten being lost for each quoit lodged on a s(juar«' marked by a bull's head. On the evening of the day before the shores uf New : •'I HAVE BLUNDERED MISERABLY." 155 I Zealand came in siolit Mr. Tieiisliax/ was sittinii liv his wife. "The voyai^^e is just tinislied, ?Ielen," he said. "It has been a pleasant time. I am sorry it is over." "A very pleasant time, Alfred," she replied, "one of the most pleasant I have ever spent." " I see now," he went on, " that I have made a mis- take of my life, and instead of making? an amuse- ment of my hobby for archnnology have thrown away everything for it. I have been worse than selHsh. I have utterly neglected you and the children. Why, I seem only to have made an acquaintanee with tliem since we came on board a ship. I see now, dear, that I have broken my marriage vows to yon. I have always loved you and always honoured you, but I have altogether failed to cherisli you." "You have always been good and kind, Alfred," she said softlv. ft/ "A man may be good and kind to a dog, Helen; but that is not all that a wife has a right to expect. I see now that I have blundered miserably. I cannot change mv nature altoLrethei-, dear; that is too late. I cannot develop a fund of energy by merely wishing for it; but I can make the ha])piness of my wife and children my first thought and object, and my own pursuits the second. I thought the loss of our money was a terrible misfortune. 1 do not think so now. I feel that I have got my wife again and have gained two children, and whatever comes of our venture here I shall feel that the failure of the bank has bn^ught undeserved happiness to me." "And to me also." ^Irs. Renshaw said softly as she pressed her husband's hand. "I feel sure that we .shall \ I I I J'; iil ! I s 1" ; : t Mi; l.-iG •'NOT HALF A BAD FELLOW." all be liappicr than we have ever been boforo. Not that we have been unhappy, dear, very tar from it; stil y on have n ot I )een ince our life and centre, and it ha:- been so difierent since the voyage began." " He is not half a bad fellow, after all," Mr. Atherton said, as leaning against the bulwark smoking his cigar he had glanced across at the husband and wife seated next to each other talking in low tones, and evidently seeing nothing of what was passing around them. "He has brightened up wonderfully since we started. Of course he will never be a strong man, and is no more tit for a settler's life than he is for a habitation in the moon. {Still, he is getting more like other people. His thoughts are no longer two or three tliou- sand years back. He has become a sociable and plea- sant fellow, and I am sure he is verv fond of his wife and children. It is a ]>ity he has not more backbone. Still, I tliink the general outlook is better than I expected. Taking it altogether it has been as pleasant a voyage as 1 have ever made. There is the satisfaction too that one may see something of one's fellow-passengers after we land. This northern island is not, after all, such a very big place. Tliat is the worst of homeward voyages. People who get to know and like each other when tliey arrive in port scatter like a bomb-shell in every direction, and the chances are again-^t your ever running up against any of them afterwards." Somewhat similar ideas occupied the mind of most of the passengers that evening. The voyage had been a ]>leasant one, and they were almost sorry that it was over; but there was a pleasurable excitement at i: ■ I jiMi ! ; X ! ' FRIENDS. 157 the thought that they should next fleiy see the land that was to bo their home, and the knowledge that they should all be staying for a few days at Wellington seemed to posti)one the break-up of their party for some little time. No sooner was the anchor dropped than a number of shore boats came off to the ship. Those who ha anytl.in.nr wliatovor about hiin,an.l no one thinks any tl nnvt ot* troubl Jn tli.'it case," Mr. Rriisl avail law said .sniilini,^ "we will oiirsolves of tlic oH'er. We sliouM all 1 lave onL'er g^a'Jly ....„..„. .„ been contented if the voya-ehadTastLMl^imota^ but being here, we all, I suppose, want to get asl?ore as soon as possible. Tlierefore we shall j.roi.ably call at your address in the course of an I you get there." Wilfrid and M lour or so after anon ^^'cre indeed in such a hurry to get ashore that a very few minutes after the Mitfords left the side of the ship, the Renshaws took a boat and started for the shore. Most of the other passen-ers also landed. ° We^shall go in alongside the quays in an hour's 'so you must look ■seeing. We aggage up at once for the benefit time," the captain said as they left for us there when you have done sin-ht shall begin to o-et the b of tl lose who are in a hurry to get away to the hotel but I shall be glad for you all to make tl home until to-morrow," e si lip your aws wandered For an hour after landing the Rensl , ,.....,.....^ about Wellington, which they f(,und to be a pretty and well-built town with wide streets. Wl ly, it is quite a large place!" Wilfrid exclaimed in surprise. " Dilferent, of course, from t owns at home, 1 Tiiore open spaces. I expected it would be much witl rougher tlian it IS. It is the second town of the island Ren.shaw said; "and am glad we did not cuml you see," Mr. IS an important place. Well. I 'er ourselves Ijy brin'^nnfr everything out from England, for there will he no ditl" I!, ICO A NKW AC'QUAINTANCK. ;m i 'li, ;»; , .= culty in providing ourselves with everytliing we re- quire liere." After wunderin'' ahout for an liour thcv proceeded to tlie ay tlio widow of tli»^ owner and c;ij)tain of a small tradiuij ship tliat liad l>een lost a year previously. The ship had fortunately been in- sured, and the widow was able to keep on the liou> • in which she lived, addinj; to her income l>v h^ttiiiL' a jiortion of it to new arrivals v\ o, like the Jlenshaws, intended to make a stay of some little timt; in \\'el- lington before taking any .steps to establish theujselves as settlers. " I think," Mr. Jackson said when this was settled, "you are doin^ wisely by lettin;^ your son here take a run throuj^di the colony, 1'here is no <,n-eater nnstake than lor new-comers to be in a hurry. Sett)** in haste and repent .at leisure is the rule. Mr. Mitford was sayinc,' that he lioped that you mii^dit setth; down sonie- where in Ids loc.dity; but at any ratt; it will be best to look round first. There is plenty of land at present to be obtained anywhere, anii)lo said, 'If tliiiu' cnciiiy luuiij^iir feed liiin.' Still, in spite of instancrs of this kind, I should ccrtaudy say ilo not lto noar tho disturliod districts, for one cannot assert that if liostili- ties continue they will always be cairied on in that s])irit. However, tlurv^s are at present i)ei feetly peace- able tln'oui,diout the provinces of \\'ellinij;ton and Havvke Bay, and it may be lioped it may continue so. I have maps and plans of all tho various districts, and before your son starts will ;;ive him all the information I posses.s as to the advantages and disadvantaL;es of each locality, the nature of the .soil, the price at which land can bo purchased, and tho reputation of the natives in tho neijjlibourhooil." The next day the lienshaws landed after bi'eakfast and took up their abode in the new lod^iu'^s. These were })laiidy but comfortably furni.sh(>il, and after one of the trunks cont.iininir nick-nacks of all descriptions had been opened, a!id some of the contents distributed, the room assumed a comfortable home-like aj)pearance. A lodging had been obtained close by for the two Grimstones. 'J'he young- fellows were heartily glad to be on shore again, for life among the st(.'erage passen- L'ers during a long vo\age is dull and monotonous. ]\lr. Renshaw had l(;oked after them during the voyages and had supplied them from his own stores with many little comforts in tlie way of food, and with books to assist them to pass their time; still they were veiy glad the voyage was over. i' I '■ ^;' 1 •*:m If 'If illl ■I.: i m 1 ; H i 1G4 THE GRIMSTONES CO TO WORK. When he now told tliom it was prohable that a month or even more might pass ai'ter their arrival in the colony before he could settle on a piece of land, and that during that time they would remain at Welling- ton, they at once askod him to get them work of some kind if he could. "We should he learning some- thing about the place, sir; and should probably get our food for our work, and should be costing you nothing, and we would inuch rather do that than loiter abcnit town doing nothing." Mr. Reiishaw approved of their |)1an, and mentioned it to Mr. Jackson, who, on the very day after their landing, spoke to a settler who had come in fiom a farm some twenty miles in the interior. " They are active and willing young fellows and don't want pay, only to be put up and fed until the man who has brought them out here with him gets hold of a farm." " I shall be extremolv alad to have them," the settler said. "This is a very busy time with us, and a cou})le of extra ha!ids will be very useful. They will learn a good deal as to our ways here in the course of a month, ami, as yon say, it would be far better for ihem to be at work than to be loafing about the place doing nothing." Accordingly, the next morning the two Grimstones went up country and set to work. AT WELLINGTON. 1G5 CHAPTER IX. TIIK NEW ZEALAND WAI^ FOR a fe\. (lays tlie orenter part of tlie passoncrora wlio had ariived hy the Fhj'wfj »SV//J remahicd in Wellino-ton. Mr. Atlicrtoii mid tlie two Aliens liad l»ut np at the same hotel. ^J'lie hitter intended to (ro out as sheplierds or in any other cnincity on a t'ai-ni, for a few months at any rate, before in\ estin-- in land. Tliey ha(J two or tliree h,'tters f)f iiitro(hietion to resi- dents in Wellin-tou, and ten (Uiys after tlie arrival of the ship they called at the Renshaws' to say good- bye, as tlie'y liad arranged to go for some niontiis with a settler up tlie country. Tliey jjromised to write regularly to Wilfrid and tell him all about the part to which tliey were foinf. "Mr. Atherton has promised to write to us," they -aid, "and tell us about the districts he visits with vou, and if you and he discover anything pai-ticularly iiiviting we shall at any rate come and see you, if yon will giv"e us an invitation wlien you are settled, and ](;ok''ronnd there before buying land anywhere else. It would be very pleasant to be somewhere near you and liim." "We shall be very glad, indeed, to see you," Mrs. Renshaw said; "still more glad if you take\ip k j.hx'e of ground near us. Having friends near ls a \ery gretH point in such a life as this, and it would be most agreeable having a sort of little colony of our own." 'AVe should have liked very much," James Allen said, "to say good-bye to the Miss Mitfor.ls, but as !i| ) f i:i i IGG Tin-: TAinV liUEAKS UP. we do not know tlicir ffitlxT and niotlicr it nii^lit seem stran-'o for us to (^all there." "I do not tliink tliey are at all people to stand on ceremony," JMrs. Kenshaw said; "but I will })ut on ni}' Ijonnet and go round with you at once if you like." This was accordingly done. Mr. IMitford had heard of the young men as forming part of the litth^ group of passengers on hoard the Flijiv;/ Snu/, and ga\e them a hearty invitation to pay liim a visit if they happened to he in his neighhourlujod, and the next day they started for the farm on which they had engaged themselves. Two days later there was a gem.M*al break up of the party, for Mi-, and Mrs. Mitford started with their daughters in a steamer bound to ilawk(^ I'ti^V- " Will you tell me, Mr. Jackson, what all the trouble in the north has been al'out," Wilfrid asked that even- innr " for I have not been able to tind out from the pajiers?" "It is a complicated question, Wilfrid. When New Zealand was first coloni/ed the natives wei'e very fj'iendly. 'I'he early settlers confidently pushed for- ward into the heart of native districts, bouLfht tracts of land from the chiefs, and settled there. (Jovernment purchased large blocks of land, cut oti' by intervening native teri'itory from the main settK'nients, and sold this land lo settlers without a suspicion that they wei'e thereby dooriiing them to luin. Th(! settlers wen3 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 field THE Brr.iNNTxn of TROUr.LES. 1G7 311- le 31" ■ts nt ''-;■ by the nativo.s. '^Dioy fenced their ticlds, and turned their cattle, horses, and shi'ep at larpe in the open country outside tliese fences, I'aj'ing rent to tlie natives for the privileg-e of doino- so. "This led to innumerable quarrels. The natiw plan- tations of wheat, potatoes, or maize are seldom fenced in, and the cattle of the settlers sometimes committed much devastation amoni; them; for the Maori fields were often situated at loni,^ distances from their villages, and the cattle miLrht, therefore, be davs in their imtches 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 tlu^ settlers always had the worst of the qiuirrel. They either h;ul no weapons, or, being isolated in the midst of the natives, dared not use them; while the Maoris, well armed and numerous, wouM come down waving their tomahawks and point- ing their gu!is, and the settlers, however much in the right, were forced to give wny. 'J'he natural result was that the colonists were continually smarting under a sense of w^rong, while the Maoris grew insolent and contemptuous, and were tilled with an overweening confidence in their own powers, the result of the patience and enforced submission of the settlers. The autliority of the queen over the natives has always been a iiurely Tiominal one. There was indeed a treatv si('n(Ml acknowledfifin*^ her nfovernment, but as none ( f the chiefs put tlu'ir name to this, and tlio men who signed were p(U's(,n> nf ini'e)ior rank with no authority 108 COXriDKNTE OF THE NATIVES. t. I ^ 1! I , 1 fi wliatevor to speak for the rest, the treaty was not worth the paj)er on which it was written. "The Maoris from the first exhihited a great desire for edueation. They estahhshed ninneroiis schools in their own districts and villages; in most cases accepted nominally if not really the Christian religion, and studied iiistoi'v w'ith a irood di al of int(d licence. Some of them read that the Romans coiKpiered England liy making roads eveiywliere through the island, and the natives therefore deterndned that no roads should he constructed through their lands, and every atti'm[)t on the part of government to carry I'oads beyond the lands it had hought from them was resisted so firmly and angiily that the attempt had to he ahandoned. The nati\es were well enouixh aware that behind the despised settleis 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 tliey could maintain themselves aijainst any force that miuht be sent against them, and relying upon this they became more and more insolent and overbearing, and for some time before the out- break m liSGO every one saw that sooner or later the storm wouhl burst, and the matter have to be fouGfht 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 willinulv, Imt as the number of the Euro[)ean settlers increased they became jealous of them, and ever3'()bstacle was thrown in the wa}' of land sales by the oi-it i.>. ...u. TIIK LAND Ql'KSTION. 1G9 Disputes wei'c constaiitiv arisijiir owiuix to tlie fact that tlio ahsolnto owiici-ship of laud was very ill (ietined, and ])erlia}>s a tlo/.en or more persons professed to liave 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 st'rmed all was satisfactorily concluded, fresh claimants would arise, and disputes were therefore of constant occur- rence, for there were no authorities outside the prin- cipal settlements to enforce ohedimce to the IcW. "Even in Auckland itself the state of tl snip's was almost unbearable. Druniven Maoris \V(juld iudulijje in insolent and riotous behaviour in the street; for no nati\e could Ik; im[)risone(l without the risk of war, an V ? '/ Photographic Sciences Corporation 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. 14580 (716) 872-4503 4F iS^' i\ V \ ^^^:!^^ '^^ 176 LOOKING FOR LAND. no doubt, Mr. Kensh.aw, that those who, like yoiirsolf, come out at the present time will henetit considei- ably. You will get land at a quarter the ))rice you would have had to pay for it had it not been tor 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 ^o to piicos far exceeding those that ruled before the outbreak began." , Upon the following morning Mr. Atherton and Wil- frid embarked in the schooner. They had been fur- nished by Mr. Jackson with a number of Utters of introduction to settlers in every distiict 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 ^"till, as you are n«!W-comers, and have not rubbed off your old country ideas, it will be more pleasant for yon 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 tlie back countiy without the least fear of being inconveni- enced by natives." The two friends spent a pleasant fortnight touching at the settlements, situated for the most part at Vc mouths of the riveis, 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 Wellin;,-ton the lan The only possihle ohjection 1 have is loneliness; hut that will improve in time; the natives here are j)ei-fectly j'oaceful, and we have never had the slightest trouhle with them." " We are a oood Inrofe nartv to heirin with, vou see," Wilfrid said. "Jlavin<_r the two men with us will take away the feeling of loneliness, esjtccially if Mr. Atherton decides upon taking the ])iece of land next to us. Then there are the two Aliens who came out with us. I promised to write and tell them if I found any nice place; and they said particulaiiy that they wanted ground on a river if '.hey couhl get it, as they are fond of hoating and fishing, and fancied that if there were other farms round that they could, until their own ])lace paid, help to keep themselves hy taking their neighbours' crops down to Uiarket." "Yes, it might pay if they got a huge ilat-hoat ca- pahle of carrying cargo; but as far as light goods, letters, and groceri«'S from town are concerned, the Indians could do it cheaper in tlieir canoes. However, at present there is no market for them to come down to. I keep what I call a grocery store for the henetit 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 Hour, some barrels of molasses, a few chests of tea, and an assortment of odds and ends, 182 MUTIAL CONVKNir.NCR. such as pickles, Szc, with a certain ajiiount of nun and whisky, and sell thcni at the price they stand nie in at. I do not know what th«!y would do without it here. 1 only open the store on the first Mondjiy of each month, and they then lay in what stores tliey leijuire, so it gives me very little trouble. I tinguished by its hanging leaves and branches, the tanekaha by its j)arsl('y-s!iaped loaves. Among them towereil up the poplar-shaped rewarewa an a homestead. Besides, as I told you, there are already several other natural clearings upon "1 CALL THAT TOO UAD." 191 I ill it ion is ler lin )e »f a e '> in the ground, enough to afford grass for quite as many animals as you will probably start with." After an hour's ride over the holding nnd the lands adjoining it, which Mr. Mitford advised sliould be also taken up, they returned to the hut. A shout greeted them as they arrived, and they saw Mr. Atherton walking up from the river towards the hut. " A charming site for a mansion," he said as they rode up. "Mr. Mitford, I think I shall make you a bid for this on my own account, and so cut out my young friend Wilfrid." "I am afraid you are too late," Mr. Mitford laughed. "I have already agreed to give him the option of it, keeping it open until we can receive a reply from his father." "I call that too bad," Mr. Atherton grumbled. "How- ever, I suppose I nmst move on farther. But really this seems a charming place, and I am sure Mrs. Renshaw will be delighted with it. Why, there must be thirty acres of natural clearing here?" "About that," Mr. Mitford replied; "and there are two or three other patches which amount to about as much more. The other hundred and forty are bush and foroLt. The next lot has also some patches of open land, so that altogether out of the four hundred acres there must be about a hundred clear of bush." "And how about the next lot, Mr. Mitford?" " I fancy that there is about the same proportion of open land. I have only once been up the river higher than this, but if I remember right there is a sort of low blutf rising forty or fifty feet above the river which would form a capital site for a hut." ^*-^„.*^b«,4^„^^,.,,^ .^^,_^_^ , _ i I I i f! 1 1 ! ' s ■ ■ 192 IN THE DIM FUTURE, "I will set about tlie work of exploration tliis afternoon," Mr. Atherton said, "and if i\w next lot is anything like this I shall be very well contented to settle down upon it for a bit. I have always had a fancy for a ftort of Robinson Crusoe lifi;, and 1 tliink I can get it here, tempered by tlie chan^^'e of an occa- sional visit to our friends when I get tired of my own company." The men had by this time brought up the basket of provisions, and the two girls were spreading a cloth on the grass in the shade of a tree at a short distance from tlie hut, for all agreed that they would rather take their lunch there than in the abode so lately tenanted by young Langston. After the meal was over the party mounted their horses and rode back. One of the natives who had come up from the boat remained with Mr. Atherton, the others started back in the boat, as Mr. Atherton declared himself to be perfectly capable of making the journey on foot when he had finished his explorations. He returned two days later, and said he was quite satisfied with the pro- posed site for his hut and with the ground and forest. " I regard myself as only a temporary inhabitant," he said, "and shall be well content if, when I am nady for another move, I can get as much for the ground as I gave for it. In that way I shall have lived rent free and shall have had my enjoyment for nothing, and, I have no doubt, a pleasant time to look back upon." "Do you never mean to settle down, Mr. Atherton?" Mrs. Mitford asked. " In the dim future I may do so," he replied. " I have been wandering ever since I left college, some AN KXCIJSK Foil LAZINKSS. 193 [on ? "I Isoine fifteen years a ., I return to London perioilically, spend a tew weeks and occasionally a few months tliere, enjoy the comforts of good living and cliih-life for a bit; then the wandering tit seizes me anu are, iMr. Atherton. Of course you are stout, but not altogether out of proportion to j'our height and width of shoulders, I think you put it on a g(jod deal as an excuse for laziness." Mr. Atherton laughed. "Perhaps vou are rio-ht, ^Irs. Mitfoid, though my weight is really a great diawback to my carrying out my views in regard to travel. You see, I am practically debarred from travelling in countries where the only means of loco- motion is riding on hor.ses. I could not find animals in any foreign country that would carry me for any distances. I might in England, I grant, find a weight- carrying cob capable of conveying twenty stone along a good road, but I might search all Asia in vain for such a horse, while as for Africa, it would take a dozen natives to carry me in a hammock. No, I suppo.se I shall go on wandering ])retty nearly to the end of the chapter, and shall then settle down in quiet lodgings somewhere in the region of Pall Mall." (U05) N 194 THE I'UnCHASE COMl'LETKD. Upon the «lay after his return from the inspection of the fill m Wilfrid wrote lionie to liis father de.scriV)inrr the location, and saying that he thought it was tlie very thing to suit them. It would be a fortnight before an answer coukl be received, and duriiiir tliat time he set to work at Mr. Mitford's place to acquire as n»ucli knowledge as possible of tlie metliods of farm- ing in tlie colony. Tlie ansM'or arrived in due course, and with it came the two (Jrimstones. Wilfrid ha* I sugjxested in his letter that if his father decided to take tiie farm the two men should be sent up at once to assist in adding to the hut and in preparing for their coming, and that they should follow a fortnight later. Mrs. Mitford also wrote, otl'ering them a warm invita- tion to stay for a time v/ith her until their own place should be ready for their occupatif^n. Mr. Mitford had an inventory of the furniture of the hut, and this was also sent, in ordei- that such further furniture as was needed might be purchased at Welling- ton. As soon as the letter was received, inclosing, as it did, a cheque for a, hundred pounds, Wilfrid went over with the two Grimstones and took possession. Mr. Mitford, who was the magistrate and land commis- sioner for the district, drew up the papers of applica- tion for the ))lot of two hundred acres adjoining the farm, and sent it to Welliniiton for Mr. Renshaw's sifjna- ture, and said that in the meantime Wilfrid could con- Rider the land as belonnini; to them, as it would be theirs as soon as the necessary formalities were com- pleted and the money paid. W^hen W^ilfrid started, two natives, whom Mr, Mit- ford had hired for him, accompanied him, and he also L IN rOXRF.SSION. 19.- lent him the services of one of his own nion, who was a handy carpenter. The Grinistones were delighted with the site of their new home. " Why, it is like a bit of En^ijland, Master Wilfrid ! That might very well be the Thames there, and this some gentleman's place near Reading; only the trees are difierent. When we gut up a nice house here, with a garden round it, it will be like home again." During the voyage the Renshaws had amused them- selves by drawing a plan of their proposed house, and although this had to be somewhat modified by the existence of the hut, W^ilfrid determined to a Ihere to it as much as possible. The present kitchen should be the kitchen of the new house, and the room lead- ing from it should be allotted to the Grinistones. Ad- joining the kitchen he marked out the plan of the house. It was to consist of a sitting-room twenty feet s(juare; beyond this was Mr. and Mrs. Renshaw's bed-room; while behind it were two rooms, each ten feet sijuare, for himself and JMarion. The roof was to project four feet in front of the sitting-room, so as to form a ve- randah there. A boat load of supplies was sent up from Mr. Mit- ford's stores. These consisted of Hour, sugar, tea, mo- lasses, and bacon, together with half a sheep. It was arranged that while the building was jroinjj on W^ilfrid and the two Grinistones should occupy tlie bed room, and that the natives should sleep in the kitchen. The Grinistones had brought with them the beddintr arid blankets with which they had provided themselves on board ship, while Wilfiid took possession of the bed formerly occupied by the young settler. Mr. Mitford ! . L 196 BUILDING THE HOUSE. himself came over next morninir and jcfave general in- structions as to the best way of setting ahout tlie buihl- ing of the house. He had already advisL'd that it should be of the class known as log-huts. "They are much cooler," he said, "in the heat of summer than frame-huts, and have the advantage that i.i the very improbable event of troubles with tlie natives they are much more defensible. If you like, afterwards, you can easily face them outside and in with match-board and make them as snug as you like; but, to begin with, I should certainly say build with logs. My boy will tell you which trees you had better cut down for the work. It will take you a week to fell, lop, and roughly square them, and this day week I will send over a team of bullocks with a native to drag theui up to the s})ot." The work was begun at once. Half a dozen axes, some adzes, and other tools had been brought up with the supplies from the stores, and the work of felling commenced. Wilfrid would not have any trees touched near the hut. "There are just enough trees about here," he said, "and it would be an awful pity to cut them down merely to save a little labour in hauling. It will not make any great diti'erence whether we have the team for a week or a fortnight." Wilfrid and the two young Englishmen found chop- ping very hard work at first, and were perfectly as- tounded at the rapidity with which the Maoris l)rought the trees down, each of them felling some eight or ten before the new hands had managed to bring one to the ground. i ling i wii.i KID AM) iiii, i;uims1()M;s riNi) it hard work. FKLMNO TIIKKH. 107 '^^M -' ■*! ' "I would not liave Itoliovod it if I had not seen it," l)olt, tliu t'lder of tlie two brothers, excljiiiiUMl a.s lie stood hrcjitldt'ss with tlie pHspiration stivainin;^ from liis fon'lioad, " tliat these Mack cliaps could have l)eaton Knulishnien like that! Half a dozen strokes and down topples the tree, while I j^oes chop, chop, chop, and don't seem to i^et any nearer to it." "It will come in time," Wilfrid said. "I suj)poso there is a knack in it, like everythiiiLj else. It looks easy enou«,di, hut it is not easy if you don't know how- to do it. Jt is like rowing; it looks the easiest thinr; in the world until you try, and then you lind that it is not easy at all." When work was done for the day Wilfrid and the (brimstones could scarcely walk hack to the hut. Their hacks felt as if they were broken, tlieir arms and shoulders ached i»^tolerabIy, their liands snuirted as if on lire; while the Maoris, who had each achieved ten times the result, were as brisk iind fresh as they were at starting. One of them had left work an hour before the others, and by the time they reached the hut the flat cakes of Hour and water known as dam})ers had been cooked, and a large ])iece of mutton was frizzling over the tire. Wilfrid and his companions were almost too tired to eat, but they enjoyed the tea, although they missed the ndlk to which they were accustomed. They were astonished at the Maoris' appe- tite, the three natives devouring an amount of meat which would have lasted the others for a week. " No wonder they work well when they can put away such a lot of food as that," Bob (Irimstone said, after watchinor them for some time in silent astonish- It 'I ^11 198 iiKAin'Y Fi;ri)r.us. merit. " V>\U and inc whs nlwa; .s coiisidciod as licini* pretty j^ood feiHlur.s, l)ut otw of thtjso clmps would rut twice as Tiiucli as the two of uh. I sliotde (h'ar to havo them without pay if you had to feed them!" " Mnttoti is cheaj) out here," Wilfiid said. " You can j]jet five or six jtounds for the price which one would cost you at liouie; hut still, I do not supjjose they j,dve them as much meat as tlicy can eat every day. I must ask Mr. Mitford ahout it." ]Ie alterwards learned that the natives received rations of flour and m<»lasses and tobacco, and that only occasionally salt pork or fresh meat were issued to them. J5ut Mr. Mitford advised that Wilfrid sliould, as loni^^ as they were at this work, let them feed with the men. "You will «jfet a good (h>al more out of them if tliey are well fed and in i^ood humour. When 3'our people arrive the natives will of course have a shanty of their ow!J at some distance from your house, and then you will put tliiniL^s on regular footing and serve out their rations to them weekly. I will give you the scale usu- ally adopted in the colony." The second day W^ilfrid and the (Irimstones were so stiff th.at they could at first scarcely raise their axes. This ui-adually wore off, and at tlie end of three or four days they found that they could get through a far greater amount than at tii'st with much less fatigue to them-selves; hut even on the l.ast day of the week they Could do little more than a third of the amount per- H THE WALLS UP. 199 lar to fonnorl by tlio naMvps. By tliis time an ample supply of trees lma.s been telling me how energetically you have been worknig, and I see that the house lias n.ade wonderful progi-es.s." Marion had, after the first gro.tincr, leapt liolitly tro.n the boat and run up to the house, towards which the others i)ro.eeded at a^niore leisurely pace, stopping o ten and looking round at the pleasant prospect Marion was full of questions to Wilfrid when they arrived. \\ hy were the walls made .so thick ? How were they going to stop up the crevices between the logs? AM.ere were the windows and doors con.ine ,oof with g enery, anc n.ight .-ell have been n.istaken fa wa intu V T.^''""'^''' ''^'°° l^'t^'I'^-.^arJen v\a.sm tun beannof. It was mirrrmnri^.i i • 1 , , *= -i»> ucL-s surrounded bv wire ricf- work to keep ont the cl,iekens, dncks. an,] geese wMeh wandered about and pieked up a living as they ds •eturnn,g at night to the long low sl.ed erecl! To,: t >en. a so.ne distance frou, the house, re.-eiv^ ,. a pienffu meal on their arrival to prevent the n .^n' laj«.ng mto an altogetlier wild condition lorty acres of land had been replonghed and sown and the crops had already made considerable progress' In the more d.stant clearings a do.en l,orses t,;;.nty or th rty cows, and a sn,all Hock of a hundr d sh.en grazed, win e son.e distance up the glade in whicl 1 e house stood was the pig. sty. who^e occupan ve'c fed wUh refuse tron, the gar.len. picking np, however the^ larger portion of their iivini, by root'ingT thl' Long before Mr. and Ifrs Renshaw mo^■ed into the bouse ^dfrKl, wl,ose labours were now less seve ' had paid h,s Hrst ^■isit to .Mr. Atherton's hut He\ as J 20G A SNUG DEN. 1 i ri i' i ! I at once astonislied and delighted witli it. It contained indeed but tlie one room, sixteen feet square, but tliat room luid bren made one of the most comfortable dens j)Ossible. lliere was no flooring, but the ground had been beaten until it was as liard as baked clay, and was almost covered with rugs and sheej)-skins; a sort of divan ran round throe sides of it, and this was also cushioned with skins. The log walls were covered with cow-hides cured with the hair on, and from hooks and brackets hung rities, fishing-rods, and other articles, while horns and other trophies of the chase were fixed to the walls. While the Ren>haws had contented themselves with stoves, Mr. Atherton had gone to the expense and trouble of having a great ojjen fireplace, with a brick chimney outside the wall. Here, even on the hottest day, two or three logs burnt upon old-fashioned iron dogs. On the wall above was a sort of trophy of oriental weapons. Two very large and comfortable easy chairs stood by the side of the hearth, and in the centre of the room stood an old oak table, richly carved and black with age. A book-case of similar a^e and make, with its shelves well filled with standard woiks, stood against the one wall unoccupied by the divan. Wilfrid stood still with astonishment as he looked in at the door, which Mr. Atherton had himself opened in response to his knock. " Come in, Wilfrid. As I told you yesterday even- ing I have just got things a little straight and comfort- able." "I should think you had got them comfortable," "Wilfrid said. " I should not have thought that a lo llog COMFORT. 20; cabin could liuve licen ina<]e as pretty .is this. Wliy, where e naim- was Whakapanakai, hut a.s this name was voted altogether ti»o loni^^ for conver- sational jtiirpo-ses hu was re-christene(l .lack. Wetini spoke hut a few worda of Knulish, hut Jack, who had heen educated at one of the nnssion schools, spoke it thiently. They, with Wetini's wife, inhahitcd a small hut situate(l at the ed,L;t; of the W(;()d, at a dis- tance of ahout two hundred yards from thc^ house. It was Mr. IJenshaw's cintoui to sti-oll over there of an evenin<,^ and seatini;- himself hy the lire, which how- <'ver hot the weathei- the natives always kept hurnin«^ 111 • 1 ra' he would converse with Wetini upon the manners and custom.s, the religious beliefs and ceremonies, of his people. In th(!>e conversations Jack at first acted as inter- preter, hut it was not niany weeks hefoi-<' Mr. iJenshaw eained such ]iroticiency in the tongue that such assist- ance was no longer needed. But the ])erio a baie i.ossiCility of such a thinf^, we have taken some pains in learning to shoot straight. In the same way it would ho just as well to have strong sluitters put up. We don't at all suppose we are going to l)e attacked, but if we ai-e the shutters would be invaluable, and would etl'ectually prevent anything like a night surprise. The expense wouldn't be gi-eat, and in the unlikely event of the natives being troubh^some in this part of this island we should all sleep much more soundly and comi'ortably if we knew that there w as no fear of our being tak(Mi by surprise. Mr. Atherton is sending for a couple of dogs too. I have always thought that it would be Jolly to have a dog or two here, and if we do not want them as guards they would be pleasant as companions when one is going about the place." A few days after tlie arrival of two hiro^Q watch- dogs and of the heavy shutters and door, Mr. Mitford rode in to The (ilade. He chatted for a few minutes on ordinary subjects, and then Mrs. Renshaw said: "Is anything the matter, Mr. Mitford? you look more serious than usual." "I can hardly say that anything is exactly the nuitter, Mrs. Renshaw; but I had a batch of newspapers and letters from Wellington this moi-ning, and they give rather stiriing news. The Hau-Haus have come into collision with us again. You know that a fort- night since we had news that they had attacked a party of our men under Captain Lloyd and defeated them, and, contrary to all native traditions, had cut off the heads of the slain, among whom was Captain .:! 218 THE HAU-HAU OUTlillKAK. I'. »t ! 1 : i! Lloyd himself. I was afraid tliat after this we should soon hear more of them, and my opinion has been com- pletely justified. On the 1st of May two hundred of the Ngataiwa tribe, and three hundred other natives under Te Ua's prophet Hepanaia iiud Parongi-Kingi of Taranaki, attacked a strong fort on Sentry Hill, garrisoned by fifty men of the 52d Regiment under Major Short, "The Ngataiwa took no part in the action, but the Hau-Haus charged with great bravery. The garrison, fortunately being warned by their yells of what was coming, received them with such a heavy fire that their leading ranks were swept away, and they fell back in confusion. They made a second charge, which was equally unsuccessful, and then fell back with a loss of fifty-two killed, among wliom were both the Hau-Hau prophet and Parengi-Kingi. "The other affair has taken place in the Wellington district. Matene, another of the Hau-Hau prophets, came down to Pipiriki, a tribe of the Wanganui. These people were bitterly hostile to us, as they had taken part in some of the former fighting, and their chief and thirty-six of his men were killed. The tribe at once accepted the new faith. Mr. Booth, the resident magistrate, who was greatly respected among them, went up to try to smooth matters down, but was seized, and would have been put to death if it had not been for the interference in his favour of a vounor chief named Hori Patene, who manao-ed to Ljet him and his wife and children safely down in a canoe to the town of Wagnai. The Hau-Haus prepared to move down the river to attack the town, and sent word to the i ^ THE NATIVE BATTLE. 219 Ngatihau branch of the trihe wlio lived down tlie river to join tliein. Tliey and two otlier of the Wanoanui tribes living on the lower part of the river refused to do so, and also refused to let them pass down the river, and sent a challenge for a regular battle to take place on the island of Moutoa in tlie river. •' The challenge was accepted. At dawn on the follow- ing morning our natives, three hundred an11 led bv their chief, held their oronnd, but wei'e driven slowly back by the overwhelniinf,^ force of the enemy. The battle appeared to be lost, when Taniehana, the sub-chief of one of the tlyinrr sections, after vainly trying to ivilly his men, arrived on the cri'onnd, and, refusing to obey the order to take cover from the Hau-IIaus' lire, dashed at the enemy and killed two of tlieni with his double- barrelled gun. The last of the three leadei's was at this moment shot dead. Nearly all his men were more or less severely wounded, but as the Hau-Haus rushed forward they tired a volley into them at close quarters, killing several. But they still came on, when Taniehana again rushed at them. Seizing the spear of a dead man he drove it into the heart of a Hau- Hau. Catching up the gun and tonuihawk of the fallen man, he drove the latter so deeply into the head of another foe that in wrenching it out the handle was broken. Finding that the gun was unloaded, he dashed it in the face of his f(.)es, and snatching up another he was about to tire, when a bullet sti'uck him in the arm, Neverthless he lired and killed his man, but the next moment was brouuht to the ijfround by a bullet that shattered his knee, "At this moment Hainoma, who commanded the reserve, came up with them, with the fugitives whom he had succeeded in rallying. They fired a volley, (I ^ DEATH OF A moniET. 221 ^ and tlien charoed down upon the Ilau-iruns witli tlieir tonialiaMks. After a desperate h'ol.t the enemy were driven in confusion to tl.e upper end of tl.e island, wl.ere they rushed into the water and attempted to su'im to the right bank. The prophet was reco-- imed anioncr the swimmers. One of the Wan.r.-mui plunged m after liim, overtook him just as lie reached the opposite hank, and in spite of the propliet utterin.r the maoic words that should have paralyser! his assail" ant, kdled him with his tomaliawk and swam back with the body to Hainoma." "Tlieyseem to have been two seiious af^iirs " lilr Renshaw said; "but as tlie Hau-Haus were defeated in eaeh we may hoi)e that we have heard the hist of them, for as botli the prophets were killed the belief in the invubierability of Te Ua's followers must be at an end." "I wish I could think so," ^h. Mitford said; "but it IS terribly hard to kill a superstition. Te Ua will of course say that the two prophets disobeyed his positive instructions and thus brought their fate upon them- selves, and the incident may therefore rather strenothen than decrease his influence. The best part of the business in my mind is that some of the tribes hav*^ thrown in their lot on our side, or if not actually on our side at any rate against the Ifau-Haus After this we need hardly fear any general action of the natives against us. There are all sorts of obscure alliances between the tribes aiisino- from marriaovs or from their having fought on^he same side" in some far-back struggle. The result is that the tribes who have these alliances with the Wan<-anui will M I . i i 1 V 900 NO LONGER CONFIDENT. U l\ henccfortlj range themselves on the Scamc side, or will at any rate hold aloof from this Pai iMarire move- ment. This will also force other . tribes, who might have been willing to join in a general movement, to stand neutral, and I think now, that althongh we may have a great deal of trouble with Te Ua's followers, we may regard any absolute danger to the European population of the island as past. " There may, I fear, be isolated massacres, for the Hau-Haus, with their cuttii.^" oH' of heads and carrying them about, have introduced an entirely new and savage feature into Maori warfare. I was inclined to think the precautions you and Atherton are taking were rather superHuous, but ai'tcr this I shall certainly adopt them myself. Everything is perfectly quiet here, but when we see how readily a whole tribe embrace the new religion as soon as a prophet arrives, and are ready at once to massacre a man who had loncj dwelt amonir them, and for whom they had always evinced the greatest respect and liking, it is impossible any longer to feel confident that the natives in this part of the country are to be relied upon as absolutely friendly and trustworthy. " I am sorry now that I have been to some extent the means of inducing you all to settle lieie. At the time I gave my advice things seemed settling down at the other end of the island, and this Hau-Hau move- ment reached us only as a vague rumour, and seemed so absurd in itself that one attached no importance to it." " Pray do not blame yourself, Mr. Mitford; whatever comes of it we are delire were hostde natives ahout they would be at the e.!-e of the bush. Then I got down into the river and wa.li'd aloncr the edge. The hank in front here was tkH l.ioh enou-d" to hide me, though I sto.,pe !! ' ifin I i '! li ! ■' lit J the gun, Wilfrid, as it turned out, and you would have heen knocked on the head to a certainty it' your sister liad not come to your rescue." "That I certainly should; and I know tliat I owe Marion my life. \N'hat do you think we had better do now ? " " I do not think we cin do anythincf, Wilfrid, beyond trying to find out whether the fellows who came here were alone, or were part of a larger party. Where are your natives?" "The three men are chopping, and Jack went out with the Grimstones to look for the cattle." " Was he with you when you heard the shots fired, Bob ? " "He was w^th us a minute or two before, and was following a track. After we heard the signal we did not think anything more about him, and whether he followed us or went on looking after the cattle I do not know." " If you go to the door, Wilfrid, and give a loud c it will brinor him in if he is within hearinnf. You may be sure that he heard the signal, for his ears are keener than those of your men; but he would not rush straight back, but would come cautiously through the woods according to his nature." Wilfrid went to the door and gave a loud cooey. A minute later the Maori issued from the bush, nearly opposite the house, and ran in. "That's just where the natives took to the bush," Wilfrid said. "Perhaps he will be able to tell ua something about them." " I expect he has been scouting," Mr. Atherton said, i <« TIIEY NOT FltillTINO-MEN. !35 011(1 You 's are rush the said, "and his coming boldly out from that point is a pretty sure proof that the natives have made otf. Well, Jack, so you heard our signal?" Jack nodded. *'And what have youbeondoing since?" Wilfrid asked. "Jack went throiudi the bush fast till he got near house, then, as the guns were not going of!', he knew there could be no attack; but thought black man might be lying in bush, so he crept ami crawled. Presently he heard man talk, and then saw four Maori walking fast away from house. He only heard them say as he passed, ' No use now; too many I'akehas. Come another day and finish them all.' Jack was coming straight to house when he heard cooey." " You have seen nothing of your father and the other two men. Jack?" The Maori boy shook his head. "They chop wood; perhaps not hoard signal." " More likely they heard, but thought it better to stay away," Wilfrid said. "No got guns; they not fighting-men," Jack said, as if in excuse. "There is something in that," Mr. Atherton said. "The Hau-Haus have always proved themselves even more merciless towards the friendly natives than towards the whites* fM'^ these men, being unarmed, might, even with the best disposition in the world, be afraid to come to the house. At any rate, I am glad those fellows have made off. You see, they were in a position to shoot any of us if they got the chance, while we were scarce in a position to return the com- pliment." I i t$ 23G "WE SHALL LEARN IN A DAY OK TWO." ■ ;■;'' 1 ;i n , " Wliy not? " Jaiuos Allen asked. " lU'caiiHc, althounfh we could have now no doul-t wliatever as .to thuir iFitentions, they have coiimiittt'd no af.'tual assault. Tlioy tried their Itest to |iiisli their way into the house, and when Wilfiid opjiosud theni one of them drew his club; hut they niin'ht say this Mas only done to frighten him, and that they had no thought of using it. If they had lired a shot, we sliould of course be justified in killing them; but were we to begin the shooting, the whole tribe they belong to would take it up, and there would be a cry for ven- geance; and even if nothing were done at onee, we should be nuirked down to be wiped out at the first opportunity. " We shall learn in a day or two whether the matter was serious or not," Mr. Atherton went on. "If there is anything like a general defection of the natives in these parts yours will not have been the only j)lape threatened, and we shall hear of attacks on other settlers. If we do not hear of such attacks we can safely put it down that these four fellows were mere haphazard passers, like tramps at home, who were tempted by the fact that the house contained only two persons. In that case we need feel no further anxiety- for as you would be able to recogni/ce them if you met them anywhere, they would not be likely to come near this part of the district again. At any rate I will set oti* with the boy here and one of the dogs, and will follow up their tracks and see if they have gone well away. I have no doubt they have done so; still, it will be more comfortable to make certain of it." "By the way, Bob," Wilfrid said, "don't you take " IS ALL WLLL?" 2:'. 7 take those two flocfs out aLrain. I tloii't tliiiik tliov would be any uood for hunting cattle, and would he much more likely to frighten and hunt them away than to help you to drive them in. At tiny rate they were bought as guards, and are to remain about the house. Shall I go with you, Mr. Atluiton?" " N(», thank you, Wilfrid; .lack will be onougli to help me fallow the tiacks, for what he lieard them say is almost proof tliat they have gone. I shall go round to my own place when I have followed them fairly otV the land, but will come round heie to-morrow morning, when we will hold a jjfeneral council of war. It is no use my coming back again this evening, as your father and the others will not be here before that time. Jt is possible that they will bring us some news from the Mitfords. If there is any trouble anywheie along the river Mitford is sure to be the first to hear of it. I will send a mes.sage back by Jaek when he has gone as far as necessary for our purpose." Two hours later Jack returned with the news that the Maoris had gone straight on without making a stop. Mr. and Mrs. Pvenshaw were expected Ijack at about ten o'clock. They were to breakfast early at the Mit- fords and to come up with their light canoe. They arrived, how^evci', soon after eight o'clock. "Is all well^" Mr. Renshaw shouted as he stepped from the boat. " All well, father," Marion replied, running down to meet them. " We had a little unpleasantness yester- day, but nothing of consequence. What la'ings you back so early ^ You must have started before day- light" :i 2:\s HAD NKWS. !.1 M. " Vmd news caino in yesterday eveninrr, and we shouM liavo conio stnii^lit ovrr if it liad been |t()ssil)le, but Mr. Mitl'ord would not let us leave till morning. We have been very anxious about yon." " What is the news?" Wilfrid asked. "The natives murdered two settlers at a farm some four miles from Mr. Mitford's. Yesterday he received h'tters both from Poverty Bay and Napier saying that the natives were in a very disturbed state, that Hau- Hau proj)hets had been going about among them, and that in both districts there had been several murders. Corps of volunteers are being raised at Napier, and they have sent to Wellington for a company of the constabulary. The settlers at Poverty P)ay are also making preparations for defence. Mr, Mitford was asked to i^et all the colonists on this river to arm and I)repare for an attack. Of course this news was very alarming in itself, and when two or three hours later the news came in of the murders in our own settle- ment we were natu'^. lly most anxious about you. However, as we could not come over in the dark through the forest, and as Mitford pointed out that the house was well prepared for defence, and that you would certainly be on the alert and had the dogs, who would give you notice of any body of men coming, we consented to remain if he would send us home in the canoe at five o'clock in the morning. And now, what is it that happened here yesterday ? ' "It was nothing very alarming, father. Four natives came up and asked for food, which of course I gave them. Then they wanted gin, and seeing that I was alone tried to push their way into the house A COUNCIL OK WAR. 'J:'.'.> very later jttle- yoii. dark that ,t you who ig, we n the what Four bourse that iQuse I tried to stop thotn. Tlic fellow snatchei] at liis clul). As lie (ii(l so Marion a[)|)eanMl at the door with a leselled ritlo, and the lelloWH, who luul no ;;iin.s witii them, took to their heels. Wo u^avo the alarni- 8i;^auil, and the Aliens and Mr. AtluTton came over at once, and the (Jiimstones ran in from tlaslr work. However, the natives luicl made their way otl', and 1 do not suppose we shall hear any more of them." "I don't know, Wilfrid," his father sai.l. "If it had been ordy this atl'air I should not liave thou<:^ht nuieh about it. The natives are often rude and insolent, and these men ndght not have meant to do more than help themselves to a bottle of spirits, but taken with these accounts from Napier and Poverty J'ay, and with the murders yesterday, 1 think it is very .sericnis." "Mr. Atherton and the Aliens prondsed to come over at ten o'clock, father, to chat the matter over with you, and hear whether you had brought news of any troubles elsewhere. So we shall have (|uite a council. And now let us have break fa.st. We were Just going to sit down when we heard your call, and 1 am sure you must be as hungry as hunters after your three hours on the water." Breakfast was scarcely finished when Mr. Atherton and the Aliens arrived, and were made acquainted with the news of the murder of the two settlers on the previous day. " It is clear," Mr. Atherton .said, " that the affair here yesterday was not, as I hoped, a mere incident, such as might happen anywhere if a party of ruilianly fellows arrived at a lonely house which they thought they could rob with impunity. This sad busine.ss you tell ill •240 I AM CLAD TO HEAR YOU SAY SO. US of shows that there is a ^mu i ■! 'f ':i|f' the natives, the result, I su Cfeneral iiiovement anionfj ppose, of the ai'»'ival of some einissaiy from the Han-Hans. It is an awkward busi- ness. What i.i Mr. Mitford's opinion on tlie subject?" "He thinks it will be well that all settlers on tlie river capable of bearing arms should be enrolled as £., volunteer corps, and be in readiness to turn out at a moment's notice. He is of ()[)inion that all those whose farms lie at a distance from the main body should drive in their animals end brinir in such jjfoods as they can carry to his station, as one of the most central. Huts could be got u]) there, and tlie animals all kept at night in his large stockaded yarle to you than we can help, and with the addition of our three iiujis I think we could defeml ourselves against any number of natives. What do you think of my proposal, lads^' The Aliens said at once that they thought it was an excellent one, if Mr. and Mrs. Kenshaw wei'e willinir to have the tiouble of them. "It will be no trouble at all," Mrs. Kenshaw said, "and will V>e a very great comfort. With .seven men to ( 005 ) V 124 Oi-) JOINING KOKi.'KS. If .' I V- I, Mil protect us Marion and I sliall feel perfectly safe, and it will be in all ways pleasant to liave you here with us. I do not see that you need huild a hut outside at all. There will be no difficulty in making up beds here and in the kitchen, and then we shall be all together." " But I do not propose that yoa should cook for us, ]Mrs. Renshaw. If w^e had a hut of our own our boys could do that for us. You see, we are coming up here for our ow^n defence as well as yours." "I should (lot think of such a thing," Mrs. Renshaw said decidedly. " There is no more trouble in cooking for nine than there is for six; and, as I have said, it will be a real pleasure to us to have you stoppi?jg here." " Very well. Then in that case, M is. Renshaw, we will accept your invitation. I will bring over my belong- ings to-day and store them in y^our loft above, and the Aliens had better bring over anything they do not want burnt by the natives. I still hope that these outrages are the work of a few ruthans, and that tlie natives in general will not allow themselves to be per- suaded into hostilities Mgainst us; still, if the worst comes to the worst, I am convinced that we can hold this house against (juite as strong a force as they are likely to bring to attack it. There is one precaution I should ad\ i^ 3'ou to take at once, and that is to lay in a store of w^ater. I daresny you have got some em])ty molasses and pork casks, that is if 3'ou do not burn them as soon as you empty them. It* not we must set to work and make a strong wooden tank. In case we were really besieged, it would be fatal to us if w^e were caught without a supply of water. ' i V' ' I m M i A voT.T'NTKFR r'<")rrs. o I o and ath side Ijeds ! all •r US, boys here isliaw oking aid. it here." ve will iclong- iid the lo nut these lit th.e )e per- Nvorst 111 hold ey are ■aution lay in empty (t hurn list set ase we e were Fortnnnt<'ly tliore wore tliroo or four oni]ity cn^ks. These were taken down to the river and tlioron^hly washed, tilled with water and rolled up to the house. While this was beins; done, Wilfrid, with the (h-ini- stones and the natives, had u'one out and driven in all the animals from the clearinL;s, and as soon tis they were broui^ht in Wilfrid with the natives started to Ui. .e them to Mr. Mitt'ord's. Mr. Atherton went over to his hut, and before niq-ht his two natives had brought over all his most valuable property, and the next uay his hut was completely stripped. The Aliens only brouj^ht over a few things. Their furniture was rough an' hea\y, and they contented themselves Ijy canying it out into the fon.'st near ami hiding it in the underorowth. Wilfrid returned to The (Hade in the evening. He said that many of the settlers had come in, and were erecting shelters of hidiNs, canvas, and wood near Mr. Miti'ord's house. The men wei'e all being enrolled. Ollicers had been appointed, and th<> natives were likely to meet with a sloiit resistance if they ventured on hostilities. Mrs. Mitloid had sent an earnest invitation to ^Ir.s. Rensliaw and Marion to take u]) their abo(le with her. Mr. Mitfbrd had appr./ved of their intention oi" holding the house. He knew its capabilities of defence and thought that, unless ta.ken by surprise, they would be able to hold it. "It will be a ^ort of outpost for the colony," he said, "and will aud to >in- saletv: for if any stiong boilv of natives were approaehing they would prot/al)ly attack you before cominu' on here. 'J'he instant W(! hear that you are attacked we will come up to aid you. Wo 244 A STRONG MUSTER. shall be al)le to muster in all sometliing like fifty mounted men — a strength sufficient to meet any num- ber of natives likely to assemble in these parts." CHAPTER XIIL THE ATTACK OX THE GLADE, Mu t !.■ ' M : (I, IT^OR three days thin!::^s went on quietly at The Glade. The tirst thinLC in the moriiinL!; Jack went out with two of the doijs and scouted in the bush. As soon as he returned with tlie news that he could find no signs of natives the household broke up. The Aliens went through the bush to their clearing and continued their work of felling trees. ]\Ir. Atlierton sauntered ott' with his two dogs into the forest in search of plants. Wilfrid and the Grinistones pursued their work of digging and planting in the upper part of the i-Iade. Jack and the two dogs were on watch round the house. J\ir. Renshaw worked at his Maori vocabular}', and his wife and daughter carried on the business of the house. At night two of the dogs were chained up outside; the other two slept in the kitchen, while Jack was allowed to sleep up in the loft. At daybreak on the fourth da}' the paity were awoke by a growl from one of the dogs outside. Kach of the oceu])ants of the house hans of life. Then Mr. Atherton said: "There is a movement among that corn, Jim. Do you see, theie — just in a line with that big: tree at the other end of the clearinjx? It is mov- ing in several places. Call your brother and young Grimstone to this side of the house, and do you all take steady aim at these moving patches. I will hre first. I think I can pretty well mark the spot where one of the fellows is making his way down. If I hit him the others are likely enough to start up. Then will be your time for taking a sli(;t at them." A.s soon as the others were in portion and ready II ili 248 '• YUU Oi:(niT TO HAVE DUNK liKTTKU. !t ! t I Mr. Atljorton firod. There was a yell. A dark fii^ure aprani^ uj), stood for an instant, and then fell hack. Ahnost at tlie same instant half a dozen others leaj)t to their feet and dashed away. Three ritles were fired. Two of the natives fell, hut one almost immediately rose a0 A NON-(;OMnATANT. 1!'!< I i " We have litid tliroo shots. 1 fired twice and Bill once. 1 think I missed once altogetlier, the other time the native went down. Bill woundctl his man — hit him in the shoulder, I think. They haven't tired since" " Then yon can put down your fjnns for the present. Mrs. Rcnshaw has just told me that breakfast is ready." Mrs. Kenshawand Marion had indeed gone (juietly about the work of preparing breakfast for their defenders. "80 you are a non-combatant this morning, Miss Marion?" Mr. Atherton sjiiity. At the sai e time I can (juite enter into your feelinL;s, and think yon are peit'ectly riglit not to taiar no inoru of tlit'iii at present. Mind, I do not say that alter tliis I thiid-c tliat it would l>c safe to contiime to live in an outlyint,' station likt; this until matters have n,L,^ain settled down in tids part of the island. No douht, as soon as the news is known at Napier and Wellin;^'ton a force will be sent here, or pei'liaps to Povcrtv J lay, which is oidy some twenty miles hiudier up the eoast, and is, I tliink, from what 1 hear, hetter suited as thi; base of operations than this river would be. " Tliis force will no doubt make an e\pedltio!i iidand to ]>unish the tribes connected witli this atl'air, for it is of course most important to let the natives on this side of the island see tliat they cannot attack our settlements with im[)unity. Alter that is dove a hundr lear of the natives enijaiied in attaekintr the house from the left. The latter began to fall hack, and the defenders of the house presently caught sight of their figures as they flitted from tree to tree. " We must be careful," Mr. Atherton said, "for every bullet that misses mist of us will make a dash down to the edue of the bu.sh and then skirfnisli throuu'h it." Mr. Ivenshaw, the two (Jrimstones and tne of the settlers were appointed to remain beiiind to gu.ird the house, and the rest ^f the party then dashed at full speed acros.s the glaody of con- stabulary for tho piotcction of tlie settlers. Sir J)onald M'Lean, the superintendent of the province, sent word that this was impossible at present, as the alarming news had just been received tliat the notorious chief Te Kooti, who had been captured and imprisoned at Chatham Island, liad efi'ected his escape with t)je whole of the natives conHned in the island, had captured a schooner, and had, it was reported, landed near Poverty Bav. "It is probable," Sir Donald wrote, "that it is the news of his landing which has excited one of the tribes of the neighbourhood to make an attack ujjon you. A strong eypedition will be fitted out, and we shall doubtless have to supply a contingent. I can oidy advise you to organize yourselves into u militia, and to stand for the present on the defensive. As soon as operations begin from Poverty Bay you will be relieved 204 Ti;<>ri;F.r.s nkar naimkh. ^ I'roin all I'lirtlior diUiLfor, ns tlie attention of the hostile tril)es will hu fully occuiiieij in tliut direction." Hitherto tho |(roviiice of IJuwke Hay iiiid been coir.pjii'ativcly ficc fri)iu the trouMos thfit had .so Ioiilj distu)"l)cd Auckland. Taianaki, and tho iioithurn portion of Wellington. Only one rising" had taken place, and thi.s had heen so promptly crushed that the trilies liad .since nMiiained perfectly (luiet. Tn ()ctol»er iNfJii a party of a hundred tigliting men had suddeidy appeared near the Mejuiee vilkiL^e. 'J'heir jtrincipal chief hail liithei'to home a verv hiijh character, and had bil(iiii>ts opciirM a frnss-tirc iijioii tlii'iii, ami al'trr llulitiiiL;' U>y soiih' lime ilic iiati\e.s were <1 1 i Veil out of their ro\ t-r. Fiiiilin.;- i»o iiiodo (»f I'eti'cjit ojH'ii to them tiny laiil down tiirir aims, sonio wlio cihlfaxoiiiT 1 to ocjipi' lpi'iii!4- <'"t '■!' 'I'ld also captuivd. 'lilt' native loss w s twmty-tliree lnly iwo or tlii'ee of tlio whole party escaped. Tpon the Haiiio day Major Fraser's little force nttacked the other party of Haii- Jlaus, killed their chi"t' with twelve of his folhjwers, and put the I'est to tliL;lit. From that time peaee liad hecn nnhrokeii in II;iwk(! Bay; hnt there liad been -everal out hreaks at I'overty J5ay, which lay just north nf the pre • ince, and massa- cres at ()))otaki and other places further to the north, and almost continuous tiuhtin-^ in the noithcrn districts of Wellington 'I'he news of Te Kooti's escape and of his landing- at I'overty Bay naturally caused considerahle alarm amoni;' tlu3 settlers, hut lio])es were; entertained that the whites at Poverty Pjay, aide(l hy the friendly natives, would !»' ahle to recapture Te Iwxjti and liis followers before they could do any liarm. 'J'he next day a small vesscsl came down from Poverty Pay with a messaiLi-e from Major liiiiLC-, ^^'ho comniaiuh'd at tliat settlement, to ask for assistam-e if it couhl he sjiai'ed him. A consultation was held and it was airreetl that the best i)lan of defendintjf their own settlement was to aid in the I'ecapture of Te Kooti, and tliat the little force of tweniy men should at once go up to aid the s(>tt]ei"s under Major Pi;;''4s. Accordingly they embarked without delay, Mr. Ather- ( i IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) 2? // // ^>. ^ /. y. ^ 4^ 1.0 1.1 ■50 ~^^ HII^B B^ 1^ 12.2 ^ b£ 112.0 »^ll 11.25 III 1.4 iiiiim 1.6 VQ /2 V o /: ^ > / / / Photographic Sciences Corporation 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. 14580 (716) 872-4503 V iV ^^ v^ ^ <^ 6^ .^ ^ I I. ■ . 11 'i' 2G6 MARCH ACROSS COINTKY. ton making a separate bargain with the captain of the craft for liis passage, and the next morning they arrived in Poverty Bay. Major Biggs had, as soon as the news reached him, raised a force of a hundred Europeans and natives. He found Te Kooti's party, a hundred and ninety strong, holding a very strong position near the sea, and sent a chief to them to say that if they would lay down their arms he would try and smooth matters over with government. A defiant answer was returned, and Major Biggs gave orders to commence the attack. But the natives, who formed the bulk of his force, refused to move, saying that the Hau-Haus were too numerous and too strongly posted. Under these circumstances an attack was impossible, for had the little body of whites been defeated the whole settlement would have been open to ravage and destruction. Durinfj the nioht Te Kooti and his men started for the interior, carrj-i^-g with them all the stores and provisions they had taken from the schooner. When it was found they had escaped Major Biggs ordered Mr. Skipwith to follow with some friendly natives, pressing on their rear until he ascertained their line of retreat, when he w^as to cut across country and join the main body who were to march to Paparatu, a point which Te Kooti would in all probability pass in his retreat. The arrival of the coaster with the little band from the Mohaka River was hailed with joy by the Poverty Bay settlers. They arrived ji.st in time to join Major Biggs, and raised his fo»ce to fifty white men, who, with thirty Maoris, started for Paparatu and arrived there on the following morning. THE SUPPLIES EXHAUSTED. 2C7 for 1 The Europeans were conimantled by Captains Westrupp und Wilson. In the afternoon Mr, Atherton arrived with a party of four natives whom lie had hired to carry his store of provisions, ammunition, and baggage. " So I am in plenty of time," he said when he came up. "'I could not bring myself to undertake a night march, but as those fellows have got to lug all the stores they have ca])tured over the mountains I felt pretty sure that I should be in time." "I am glad you are in time, Mr. Atherton," Wilfrid said. " The assistance of your rifle is not to be despised. The sooner the natives come now the better, for we have only brought four days' provisions in our havre- sacks. I hear that a reserve force is to come up in two days with rations and ammunition; but one can never calculate upon these natives." The camp was pitched in a hollow to avoid the observation of the enemy, but it was proposed to fight at a point a mile distant, in a position command- ing the spur of the hill, up which the natives must advance after cross'ng a ford on the Arai River. Four days passed and there was no news of the convoy with the provisii ns, and the supply in camp was almost exhausted. That evening Major Biggs started to bring up the supplies with all speed, as otherwise starvation would compel the force to retreat. The same day ]\Ir. Skipwith had arrived with news that Te Kooti was undoubtedly marching on Paparatu, but was making slow progress owing to the heavy loads hi.>i men were carrying. The fifth day jiasscd slowly. The men being alto- gether w^ithout food Mr. Athertim divided his sniall L'G8 '♦an awkward liUSINKSS." i! H .stork of provisions and wine ainon<^ them, and then takinir his ritle went out anioni; tlie hills, accompanied by two of liis natives. Late in the evening he re- turned, the natives bearing an old boar which he had shot. This was a great piece ot' luck, for the island contained no wild animals tit for eating, and the boar liad probably escaped from some settler's farm or native clearinir when vounir and taken to the woods. It was at once cut up and divided among the hungry men. The next day Mr. Skipwith, with two natives, went out to reconnoitre, and soon returned at full speed, snyin,,' that the natives were crossing the river. Cap- tain Wilson, with twenty men, to(jk possession of a hill on the right tiank — an almost impi-egnable posi- tion, while Captain Westr'jpi>, with the main bobandin- their ammunition. .Mr. Atherton ha.l arrived breath" less in the rear of the ] arty, and had thn.wn hims.lf down by Wilfrid s side, the two Aliens lyin- next in order. For some minutes Mr. Atherton .lid not speak but lay panting heavily. "This is a nice preparation for shootin'^" he sa.'d 270 UKl'ULSE OF THE IIAU-HAUS. ', ! i I presently. " However, T suppose my hand will steady itself ai'ter a bit. I have seen a fellow's head show under that bush there twice, and each time his bullet came just over our heads. I will have a talk with him as soon as I iret mv wind back aj^ain. This is not a bad position alter alb providing they don't work round to our lii-ht." Ten minutes later Wilfrid, who had his eyes fixed on a bush from which four or five shots had been tired, waiting for another puff of smoke to indicate the exact position in which the man was lying, heard the sharp report of Mr. Atherton's ritle. "You have got him, I suppose?" "Of course, lad; there is one less of the yelling rascals to deal with. I wish we could see BijxJXS and his people coming along the road behind. If we could get a square meal all round and a good supply of ammunition I think we should be able to turn the tables on these fellows. The men are all lighting very steadily, and are husbanding their auniiunition better than I expected to see them do." The fij;ht went on for four hours. Then a number of the Hau-Haus leapt to their feet and made a rush towards the settlers, but the volley they received proved too much for them. Several fell, and the rest bolted back into shelter. Ajrain and ajrain this was tried, but each time without success. At three in the afternoon some men were seen cominof alonor the road behind towards the deserted camp. Captain Westrupp at once wrote i note and sent it down by one of the men, but to the disappointment of the sottlers he soon returned with the news that the new arrivals consisted A RETKEAT. 271 of only nine Maoris carrying rations. They had opened the rum bottles on their way. and most of tliem were excessively drunk. Two of them who were sufliciently sober came up to help in tlie defence, but one was shot dead almost immediatelv, one of the settlers being killed and many wounded more or le.s severely. Just as evening was coming on the force was startled by hearing a Hau-Hau bugle in their rear, and presently niade out a party of the enemy moving towards the camp through the broken ground on the left rear. It was now evident that either the enemy must be driven off the hill in front or the party must retire to a position on the hill behind the camp. Cap- tain Westrupp determined to try the former alternative first. Calling upon ihe men to follow him, he dashed across the gully and up on to the crest held by the Maoris. The men followed him gallantly; but the fire from the IMaoris hidden among the bushes was so heavy that they were forced to fall back again, seven more of their number being wounded. They now retired in good order down to the camp and up the hill behind it. and were here joined by Captain Wilson with his twenty men. It was now determined to throw up a sort of intrenchment and hold this position until help came; but the settlers, who had hitherto fought well, were dispirited by their want of success, and by the non- arrival of the reinforcement, and were weak with their long fast. As soon as it became dai-k they began to steal off and to make their way back towards their homes, and in an hour half the force had retreated. 272 A TKUIlir.r.K NIGHT MUJCII. li) M. Ml M The officors held a council. It was evident the posi- tion could not ionijc bo lield, and that wai'.t of food and ammunition wouhl conjpel a retreat in the nior- ninj^. It was therefore decided to fall back under cover of the darkness. The chief of the friendly natives, wlio liad behaved a(hnirably throuj^di ^he liLjht, otl'ercd to guide the party across the country. The otliccrs were obliged to leave their liorses, and the party of forty half-starved men, of whom a fourth were wounded — two so se- verely that it was necessary to carry them — set out. It was a terrible march for the exhausted men, up the bed of a mountain creek, often waist-dee}) in water, and over steep fern-covered hills, until, just as day was bi'eaking, they readied an out-station. Here they managed to get two sheep, and Just as they had cooked and eaten these Colonel Whitmoie, the commander of the colonial forces, arrived with thirty volunteers from !Napier, who had I'cached the bay on the previous day. He at once paraded the men, thanked them for their behaviour on the previous day, and w.arned them to be ready to start in pursuit of the enemy at once. One of the settlers, acting as spokesman for the rest, step[)ed forward, pointed out that they had been fighting with- out intermission for twenty-four hours, that they had beei\ for the last forty-eight hours almost without food, and that it was impossible for them to set out on a fresh march until they had taken some rest. Colonel Whitmore was a hot-tempered man, and expressed himself so strongly that he caused deep olience among the settlers. They remained firm in their determination not to ' UNmUTUNATK DKI.AYS. 273 I 1 * move until tlic followinn: day, and the forward n.ove- inent was tlifivl'ore necessariiy abandoned. ( )ri tlie day previous to the fi(,d»t Lieutenant (Jascoiniie liad beeli des,)atched by .Major IVv^^^s to Te Wnin-a with des- patclies for Mr. D.'iuhton, wlio eonniianded at th.-.t station, warning Id,,, to nuister all the force at his disiM.sal, and prepaie to intercept ^J'e Kooti at the AUihau Lakes i„ case lie should tiirht his wav tluoiigh (. aptain \Ve,stiU|)p's force. Orders weie sent to the friendly Mahia trihe to muster, and a hundred men at once assembled; but as they had only four rounds of ammunition apiece, nothinL,^ could he done until three casks of ammunition were obtained from some of th«! ^^'ai^oa chiefs. Two days wore lost in consequence, and this gave time to Te Kooti : they then started— eighteen Luiopean volunteers and eiglity natives: a Inrger body of natives preparing to follow as soon as possible. After being met by messengers with several contradictory oixlersfthey arrived at Wnihaii. and just before dark Te Kooti was seen crossing the hills towards them with his whole force. Captain Richardson determined to fight them in the position he occupied, but the native ehiov«!, wli«'nc(» tlit-y replied viLjor«)Usly to tlie lluu-ilaus, wlio wm- within a few yards of th»'ni. in the meantinie tlm enemy had opened tire from the base of the hill at the river brnd upon the main body, wdio, standing in sini^de file in the river, were unable to reply or to scale the steep bauK and take covering in the scrub. Colonel Whitinore and Captain Tuke tried to load the men uj) to charge, but this could only be done in single tile, an enemy, and reported the death of Captain Carr and IMr. Canning, another volunteer. The natives now pressed through the scrub above the dills to cut off the retreat. The friendly natives, who were well behind, were ordered to soale the cliff then, and hold the enemy in check. One of them was wounded, and the rest hastily' retreated down the river; the constabulary and settlors, altogether about fifty strong, fell back to an island about half a mile to the rear, and here calndy awaited the attack of the enemy. These, however, drew off without disturbing them, disheartened by the fact that Te Kooti had received a wound in the foot, and the troops then retired. Only a few of the strongest men reached the cainp that night; the rest, knocked up by want of food and A I'ALSK IN IIUSTII ITIKS. 277 f.iti.,Mio, lay down in tlie pouring' miii and did not get in until tlio i'oilouin«' niornini;. Tiie roMult (if tlu.s lii^lit was most unrortiinatt'. Evi'n Colonul Wliitnurii saw tliat, with tht; Icmo at ids dis[)osal, notldni; could l)0 done ai,'ainst T(^ Kooti, who was dailv iMCoudni; uioro powerful, and was hcinir joined Ity thu tribes in the vii-inity. Jit; U'liovL'd that Te Kooti would carry out his expressed intention of nuirchiiiij north to Waikato, and nt'tor collectiuLj tliere all the tribes of the island, march ai^ainst Auckland. Thinkiuij:, therefore, that Poverty Jlay was not likely to be disturbed, he left the settlement and went round by sea to Auckland to confer with jjovernment as to the steps to be taken to raise a foreo capable of copiuLj with what apjieared to be the <;reatest dan-j^er that had as yet threatened tin; island. Te Kooti did not, however, move noith, but remained in his camp near the scene of the tii^dit from the iSth of Auijjust to the 2sth of October, sendiuLf messages all over the ishmd with the news of the defeat he had inflicted up.on the whites, and proclaiming himself the saviour of the Maori peo[)le. From the position he occnpied, about e(juidistant from the settlements at Wairoa and Poverty Pay, he was able to attack either by a smlden march of two or three days, and yet there was no onat mieasiness amoiii,' the settlers. The force that had oj)eiated against 'J'e Kooti had been disbandt'd, the Napier volunteers liad returned, the C(»n--tabulaiy witlMliawn, and the J^arty of settlers from the Mohaka river ha '" 111; ill the world ti) prevent Te Kooti coinin;jj down and cutting all our threats whenever he pleases." "You don't say so, Mr. Atherton!" "I do, indeed; it is known that he has sent messages down to the natives here to remain apparently loyal, get what arms they can from the whiles, and prepare to join him. I will say for Biggs that he has repeatedly represented the unprotected position of the hay to government, and has ohtained permission to ])lace an officer and nine men on pay as scouts to watch the roads leading to the settlements. Gascoigne is in charge of them. There are two roads by which the natives can couie; the one a short one, anerfectly safe from pursuit, though we shall have to be cautious, for there maybe parties of these scountlrels wandering about the country. W^e may hope that a good many of the settlers lieard the firincf and made off in time, but 1 fear we shall hear some sad stories of this night's work." Lying down the whole party were in a few minutes fast asleep. Wilfrid had ottered to keep watch, saying that he had done no walking and could very well keep awake, but Mr. Atherton said that nothing would be gained by it. " You could see nothing, and you would hear nothing until a party of natives were quite close, and unlciis the}'^ happened by sheer accident to stumble upon us they could not find us; besides, though you have done no absolute walking, the exertion of sitting up and holding on has been quite as nnich for you in your weak state as carrying you has been for us. No, we had best all take a rest so as to start fresh in the morning." Mr. Atherton woke as soon as daylight broke, and f; I t A SAD STORY. 2^0 yon i rousincr himself, cautiously looked roun.j. There was nothm- in si-ht, and he decid.d to let the party sleep tor a tew hours ioni^.r. It was .-iuht oVh.ek and the sun was hinh before the other, opened their eyes. Mr. Atherton wa.s standinn' ..p. "Then, is a horse- man conun;^- across the phiir.," he said; " no douht he is followin;,^ ,h,. track; hy the lin. he is taking he will pass a little to our rjoht. 1 will ces by the waives Jhe bullets rattled thickly against the rock and cut leaves from the bushes behind which Wil-' ind was lying, but he ha.l drawn hin.self back a foot or two the moment he fired, and the balls passed harmlessly over him. Not so the ndssive despatched by Mr. Atherton m the direction of a puff of smoke rom a bush some forty yards away, for the fi-ure behind It remained still and immovable while the frav went on. For upwards of an hour the exchan-^e of shots continued, and then the assailants wa^re joined by hf teen other natives, who had been attracted 'to the si)ot by the sound of firing. "I expect they will pluck up their courage to make a rush now, Wilfrid," Mr. Ath.^rtou said, "if it had not been for these new arrivals I think they would have soon drawn off, for we must have diniinished their numbers very considerably. ])un't fire again for a bit; we had best keep our rifles loaded so as to be ready for them when they pluck up courage to char-^e ^^hen they do, be sure you keep your revolver a^a reserve for the critical moment." Five minutes later a tremen.lous yell rose in the air. I he natives leaped fo their feet from behind the bushes, 294 A IIAND-TO-HAND FIGHT. i. i I f: ;' { piir fired their guns at their liidden foes, and then, toina- liawk in hand, riislied forward. Three shots raiiij: out almost siinultaneoiislv from the moutli of the defile and thieu of tlic natives dropped dead in tlieir tracks. The rest ruslied for- ward in a Lody. Mr. Atherton and the settler leapt to tlieir feet, and the former opoiKMl fire with his Colt's revolver when the leading: natives were within ten yards of him. His aim was as accurate as when directed against a mark stuck against a tree, and a man fell nt each shot. But the natives' blood was th jroughly up now, and in spite of the slaughter they rushed forward. There was no room in the narrijw defile for two men to swins: their rifies, and Mr. Ather- ton and the settler stepi)ed forward to meet the foe with their clubbed rifles in their hands. Two crashing blows were delivered with efi'ect, but before the settler could again raise his weapon three ^laoris were upon him. One tomahawk struck him in the shoulder and the rifie fell from his hands. Another raised his tomahawk to brain him, but fell with a bullet from Wilfrid's revolver through his chest; but the third native brought his weapon down with terrible foree upon the settler's head, and he fell in a heap upon the ground. The tremendous strength of Mr. Athert 298 MAKINd A LITTKR. .1 J "We iHiisfc cut a couple of saplini^s and make a littor," lie said. "If one of you ladies can spare a j)etticoat, please take it oti" while I cut the poles." He went away and returned in a few minutes with two poles ten or el(!ven feet long. " Here is the petticoat," Mrs. Renshaw said. The settler's wife was too absorbed by her grief and anxiety to hear Mr. Atherton's request. " What is to be done with it?" " In the first place it must be taken out of that band, or whatever you call it," Mr, Atherton replied, " and then split right down. Here is my knife." When the garment had been operated upon there remained a length of strong calico nearly three feet wide and three yards long. " That will do well," he .said. "Now we have to fasten this to the poles. How would you do that? It is more in your way than mine." " I should roll it twMce round the pole and then sow it, if I had a needle and thread. If I had not that I should make holes in every six inches and tie it with string; but unfortunately we have no string either." "I think we can manage that," Mr. Atherton said; and he walked ra})idly away and returned in a few minutes w^ith some long stalks that looked like coarse grass. "This is the very thing, Mrs. Renshaw," he said; "this is what is called New Zealand flax, and I have no doubt it will be strong enough for our purpo.se." In a quarter of an hour the litter was completed. Just as it was finished Mrs. Sanqison uttered an exclamation of joy, and turning round, they saw that her husband make a spare a s." He ith two I The anxiety be done it band, d, " and n there ^ee feet ell," he I. How \>y than ion sew b that I it witli ther." •n said; L a few ) coarse »e said; I have irpose." 1. Just unation iUsbund "IT WILL DO ME A WOULD OF HOOD." 299 ]..i