The regular troops were at this time being withdrawn, and Colonel McDonnell, although he had not yet assumed the command of the west coast, was anxious to make a move so as to get the men out of the camp and strike another blow at the Hau Hau. The Kupapas had returned to Wanganui, so he issued orders for three companies of the Forest Rangers to make a night’s march up the Waingangora and beat up the enemy, who were in force in that district, and it was on this patrol that death was to be brought home to me. We left camp at sunset, loaded as usual, but each company had to carry four stretchers as we had no hospital men with us, so that we had to take turn and turn about with the butchers’ trays, as the men called them, and we marched all through the night, resting for two hours before daylight. We were moving in three separate bodies, and were destined to get a lesson on how difficult a matter it is for combined movements to be carried out successfully when working in a rough, bushed country, especially when no communication can be held by the various units. Our company was to make the frontal attack; the other two, making detours, were to try and envelop, or at least outflank, the enemy’s position, Mr Roach’s orders being to advance to the attack as soon as it was light enough for a man to be able to see his fore sight. This we did, taking every care and precaution in our advance, and found the enemy, far outnumbering us, posted in a very strong position. We, however, in accordance with orders, gaily began the fight, expecting our flankers to chip in every moment, but they had been delayed on their march and did not do so, and soon the Hau Haus began to outflank us, so that Mr Roach was forced to give the order to retire, an order we carried out as coolly as if on parade, disputing every fathom of ground and daring the enemy to rush us. Still we must fall back or allow the natives to outflank and eventually surround us, which spells being cut to pieces in bush fighting, so we were retiring very steadily by alternate groups of four, my four consisting of myself, Hutton, Jack and Buck. The bush was an open one--that is, it consisted of the usual huge trees without much undergrowth--so that we could move quickly from cover to cover but were more exposed while doing so. Hutton and myself were together behind one tree; Jack and Buck behind another, about six yards away, and at the time were in the firing line, not more than a dozen yards away from the advancing Hau Haus, who were yelling like a lot of fiends newly let loose from the pit.