orted from Poverty Bay to the Chathams two years before, without
trial. Unlike most of his fellow prisoners he had never borne arms
against us. The charge against him was that he was in communication
with Hau-Hau insurgents in 1865. His real offence seems to have
been that he was regarded by some of the Poverty Bay settlers as
a disagreeable, thievish, disaffected fellow, and there is an
uncomfortable doubt as to whether he deserved his punishment. During
his exile he vowed vengeance against those who had denounced him, and
against one man in particular. In July, 1868, the schooner _Rifleman_
was sent down to the Chathams with supplies. The prisoners took the
chance thus offered. They surprised the weak guard, killed a sentry
who showed fight, and seized and tied up the others, letting the women
and children escape unharmed. Going on board the _Rifleman_, Te Kooti
gave the crew the choice between taking his people to New Zealand and
instant death. They chose the former, and the schooner set sail
for the east coast of New Zealand with about one hundred and sixty
fighting men, and a number of women and children. The outbreak and
departure were successfully managed in less than two hours. When head
winds checked the runaways, Te Kooti ordered an old man, his uncle, to
be bound and thrown overboard as a sacrifice to the god of winds and
storms. The unhappy human sacrifice struggled for awhile in the sea
and then sank. At once the wind changed, the schooner lay her course,
and the _mana_ of Te Kooti grew great. After sailing for a week,
the fugitives had their reward, and were landed at Whare-onga-onga
(Abode-of-stinging-nettles), fifteen miles from Poverty Bay. They kept
their word to the crew, whom they allowed to take their vessel and go
scot-free. Then they made for the interior. Major Biggs, the Poverty
Bay magistrate, got together a force of friendly natives and went
in pursuit. The Hau-Haus showed their teeth to such effect that the
pursuers would not come to close quarters. Even less successful
was the attempt of a small band of White volunteers. They placed
themselves across Te Kooti's path; but after a long day's skirmishing
were scattered in retreat, losing their baggage, ammunition, and
horses. Colonel Whitmore, picking them up next day, joined them to his
force and dragged them off after him in pursuit of the victors. It
was winter, and the weather and country both of the roughest. The
exhausted volunteers, irrit