6 Transactions . 



preparations for continuing the migration, and succeeded in inducing Wi 

 Kingi Rangitake, since celebrated in connection with the Waitara war, and 

 his father, Reretawhangawhanga, with many other chiefs, and a considerable 

 number of the Ngatiawa tribe, to accompany him, his followers then consist- 

 ing of his own people (the Ngatitoa), numbering 200 fighting men, of the 

 Ngapuhis who had been transferred to him by Pomare, and of Wi Kingi's 

 Ngatiawas, numbering nearly 400 fighting men, and their several families. 

 Puring the interval between the commencement of the migration and its resump- 

 tion from Taranaki, after Te Hauparaha's last return thither, a large war party 

 of Waikatos, under Tukorehu, Te Kepa, Te Kawau (Apihai), and other chiefs, 

 had descended the East Coast, from whence they invaded the territory which 

 Te Kauparaha was about to seize. The Muaupoko, E,angitane, and Ngatiapa, 

 were all attacked on this occasion, and again suifered great loss, a circumstance 

 which became known to Te Rauparaha through some Ngatiraukawa men 

 who had joined the Waikatos in their expedition, and had communicated its 

 results to him during his last visit to Maungatautari. It appears, moreover, 

 that after he had left Taupo, Whatanui and a large party of Ngatiraukawa 

 made up their minds to join him at Kapiti, but instead of following the same 

 route which he intended to take, they determined to- proceed vid Ahuriri, 

 having been invited thither by the Ngatikahunganu, for some purpose which 

 I cannot clearly make out. On their arrival there, however, a dispute took 

 place between the two parties, and a battle ensued, in which the Ngatiraukawa 

 were defeated with considerable slaughter, the remainder of the party being 

 forced to retreat upon Maungatautari. Late in the autumn of 1819, no doubt 

 after the ordinary crop of kumera had been gathered in, Te Rauparaha 

 resumed the march, which was uninterrupted until they reached Patea, where 

 five of the Ngatitoa men, and a male slave of Topiora's named Te Ratutonu, 

 who had formerly been a chief, were murdered. To avenge this murder, 

 Rauparaha killed a number of the people occupying Waitotara, and thence his 

 party proceeded to Wanganui, the greater portion of the women and children 

 travelling along the coast in canoes, whilst the warriors, with most of the 

 leading chiefs, travelled by land, Rauparaha himself, however, travelling by 

 water in a large canoe taken from the Waitotara people. I may here 

 incidentally mention that his designs, at this time, were not confined to the 

 acquisition of Kapiti, and the adjacent country; he had also made up his 

 mind to invade the Middle Island after he had become well settled in his new 

 abode, in order to obtain the great treasures of green-stone which were 

 believed to be in possession of the people of that island. Of course, he could 

 only hope to effect this by obtaining a number of large canoes, and, to use the 

 words of his son, " canoes were at that time his great desire, for by them 

 only could he cross over to the Island of Waipounamu." Amongst the 



