DowNES. — Earhj History of Rangitikei. 97 



gathered all his people and attacked the Waipu Pa (on the Turakina Lake, 

 the Maori name of which was Otiti : it lies on Mr. Lethbridge's property, 

 about three hundred yards from the railway-station), where the Ngati 

 Apa were exj)ecting and awaiting the inevitable attack ; but the pa was 

 a strong one and its people many, consequently it withstood the siege for 

 a long time, and eventually Te Kahu-te-rangi, who was related to Te 

 Ahuru-o-te-rangi, came to Waipu and made peace, after which the various 

 hapus in the pa retm-ned to their own homes. So ended the trouble in this 

 quarter for a time; but only for a very short time, for Ngati Apa next 

 joined forces with Nga Rauru (Wai-totara Tribe), and, for some real 

 or fancied injury in connection with Rangi-hau-tu's murder, they suc- 

 cessfully attacked Pihaia, a pa on the sandhills between Putiki and the 

 sea, on the Whanga-nui River. In payment, Whanga-nui travelled to 

 Whanga-ehu, where they captured a large pa named 0-hake-to, near the 

 beach at that place, and here they killed O-taRe-hoke and others. Smart- 

 ing under the defeat, a woman of the Ngati Wairiki went to Hawke's Bay 

 to get help to revenge her people. When she reached Wai-rarapa she col- 

 lected forces and returned, and her reinforcements joined with the men of 

 Rangi-tikei, Turakina, and Whanga-ehu, and came on to the pa Tuke- 

 a-maui, at Pari-kino, on the Whanga-nui River, which they besieged. 

 The top end of the pa was defended by Manumanu's descendants, 

 and the middle by Ma-ruru. The pa was surrounded and eventually 

 taken, but the part which the Manumanu people were defending was not 

 attacked. 



Sam Woon, a well-known Whanga-ehu Native, has in his possession a 

 mere pounamu taken by Ngati Apa at the fall of this pa. 



Seeldng further details regarding this fight at Tuke-a-maui, the writer 

 was told the following interesting story by the grandson of one of the chiefs 

 who took part in the attack : — 



" Some of the Ngati Apa people were badly beaten by Rangi-tane at 

 Pohangina, and among those who were taken was a Ngati Apa chief named 

 Te Ahuru." [Te Ahuru was the man who, with his wife, arranged the 

 attack on the Kai-inanga Pa, as related some few pages back. He was 

 afterwards killed at Kapiti, when the combined tribes made their 

 unsuccessful attack on Te Rau-paraha at that place. (An account of this 

 attack has been published in the Jour. Polynesian Soc, so will not be 

 further referred to here.) Details relating to the death of Te Ahuru's daughter 

 will be related later on.] " However, in their eagerness to make this man 

 a prisoner, they allowed some of his men to escape, who immediately fled 

 away to Rangi-tikei, where they raised a party to seek revenge. 



" Now, Rangi-tane, having captured Te Ahuru and others, kept them 

 for a few days, and then set them to work to carry stones for the umus in 

 ■which they were to be cooked. After enough stones had been gathered, 

 they made the vmfortunate men gather firewood for the ovens, then the 

 leaves, and, last of all, they forced them to dig out the umus, and when all 

 was ready the conquerors lined up for the haka which was to celebrate the 

 victory ; but, in the middle of the song, down came Ngati Apa — the party 

 that the recent escapees had brought along. They smote left and right, 

 and before many minutes were over the ovens were steaming, but they 

 contained Rangi-tane instead of Ngati Apa. 



" Te Ahuru was doubtless well pleased at his release, but he desired 

 still further revenge. So he sent messengers to Wai-totara and Patea 

 4 — Trans. 



