The Sun.
London, England, 1863-12-15 00:00:00

Waikatoes and their insurgent allies at a stronghold
called Meremere, within no great distance from
Auckland. The present mail brings but a partial
confirmation of a rumour which we always feared
was too good to be true. When the steamer left
there was indeed a " shave" that this mountain for-
tress had been assaulted with success. But the re-
port, such as it was, needed confirmation, and all
that was known for certain was that Gen. Cameron
had received succours from all the Australian colo-
nies, and that another sloop of war, theEsk, had been
added to the force already upon the New Zealand sta-
tion. If, however, good news was scarce, as much,
unfortunately, could not be said for tidings of an
opposite character. In two different quarters col-
lisions with the natives had taken place, and in both
all the advantages of the skirmish had rested with
the insurgents. It would appear that upon the Bth
September a party of Te Wheoro Wheoro's men,
one of the few chiefs who has sided with us upon
the present occasion, were despatched in canoes
down the Waikato River, to convey some stores to
a " pah" called Camerontown, which was manned
by their companions for Queen Victoria. In at-
tempting to land they fell into an ambush of the
enemy, who fired upon them with such deadly effect
that oat of 20 friendly Maories tour alone escaped.
Mr. Armitage, the resident native police magistrate,
fell at their head, and no less than 40 tons of con.
missariat stores were the reward of this daring on-
slaught upon the part of the insurgents. Nor wag
this all. Immediately upon the receipt of the news,
a detachment of the 65th Regiment, stationed
of
Tuakau, was despatched, under the command of s
captain and subaltern, to intercept the attacking
force. Why, with a knowledge that his opponents
consisted of some 200 old warriors of the Ngatirna-
niepoto tribe, a party of 50 men only were detailed
for this perilous service, we are not informed. The
result seems to have been that this ill-fated band
were taken in their own snare. Before they had
advanced far through the bush they were made
aware that they were in close proximity to an unseen
enemy. They were immediately " thrown into
ambush ;" but, after waiting some time, resumed
their march with fixed bayonets: UnfortunatelYt
their concealed adversaries, either with more pa-
tience or more good fortune, bided their time, and
upon the reappearance of the party, fired a close
volley into them. The commanding officer fell
shot through the heart, and a running fight en-
sued which proved fatal to two more men, and
placed several others, as well as the remaining
commissioned officer of the party, hors de combat.
Darkness alone, and the steadiness of the sergeant,'
lett in command, seems to have saved the whole
party, who, even as it was, had to hide the lifeless
body of Catain Swift in the bush, as the only
means of saving it from insult at the hands of the
Maories. Ten days later another affair took place on
the old battle-ground in front of New Plymouth.
A column of Maories, 1,000 strong, suddenly ar
peered before the place. Col. Warre, in order to
prevent an attack, ordered a sortie in the direction
of the Bell Block, and successfully repulsed the
enemy. In the meantime, however, a small detach"
ment of the 57th, with Capt. Swift's party " vying
in ambush" upon the south side of the town, found
themselves, like him, circumvented by the Maeda.
In due time they were reinforced by the main body
of the troops, but not before several casualties had
occurred, while the diversion thus created proved
successful, and Col. Warre was compelled again to
abandon the Bell Block. Indeed,so little impression
seems to have been made upon the insurgents by
the demonstration, that, when the mail left, fears
were entertained of a night attack upon the town,
for the protection of which the force stationed there
was said to be barely adequate. At bead-quarters
Gen. Cameron appeared to be steadily pursuing big
original tactics. There was no doubt that the flying
columns had succeeded to a considerable extent in
driving the Maories within their own lines, and
they were now said to muster about 2,000 strong
at Meremere. There, if anywhere, the principal
struggle would take place. The great fear, how-
ever, confirmed by the very latest advices, was that
no stand would in the end be made anywhere, and
that the first symptoms of a regular assault being
contemplated upon Meremere would be the isles'
tor a general dispersion of the Maories into an in-
definite number of scattered and predatory bands.
It is needle's to say how serious would be the com-
plications involved were such a system to be pur-
sued. The one sole advantage possessed at tb®
present moment in New Zealand by her Majesty
troops over their opponents in such a warfare is
the superior quality of their arms and the greater
facility which they have of obtaining beamene-
lion. In knowledge of the country, in in-
dependence of commissariat arrangements, in fleet-
ness of foot, and in the lightness of his equipment,
the Maori is indubitably the superior. Should sedi-
tion draw to a head, it will be comparatively easy
to deal with it. But, split up into detached parties,
the insurgent bands can do an infinite amount of
mischief, and harass the troops out of their lives,
without presenting any very tangible point of re-
sistance. The war itself may be—nay, we believe,
is--inevitable, but it is not the less to be deplored.
While it drags its slow length along the best inte-
rests of the colony are languishing, and a serious
check has been placed upon all its expansive ten-
dencies, That it will take a different turn we rather
hope than expect. In its present phase it is simply
a proof of the proportions to which a " little war
may attain when it is waged by a savage and ns-
scrupulous race against those who mast be guided
more or less in their proceedings by the maxims of
civilised warfare.