MB. MCKAY'S MANIFESTO.

Thames Advertiser, Volume VII, Issue 1829, 2 June 1874, Page 3

MB. MCKAY'S MANIFESTO.

To the Editor of the THAMES ADVERTISER.

Sib, —In your issue of to-day appears a notice signed by Mr Janus Mackay, jun., as agent for land purchases under Immigration and Public Works Ac, to the effect that on May 23 list, the Ngatipaoa tribe had agreed to sell to her Majesty only, the whole of their lands adjacent to the Piako and Waihou rivers, and had received a deposit of £200 Then follows a caution to intending purchasers not to have any dealings with such lands, as the same will ha invalid. This appears to rae to be a m ist extraordinary, unnecessary, and un-olEoial act nn the part of Mr Mackay. Most people who are acquainted with that gentleman are aware that he-does not generally stick at trifles when he requires a thing to bo done, inasmuch as we occasionally hear of him when in want of a policeman acting as a policeman himself, and when h - wants a little bullying or bouncing done, even going so fir as actual assault, to either European or native, he turns to and does it himself, which is very creditable to him, provided always that ho has right on his side and that he dois hot get hold ,of a Tartar. ' But one was hardly prepared to find that in the absence of a Governor, he makes a Governor of himself, and acts accordingly. He certainly appears to have done so in this case, where we fi id him as land purchase agent only taking upon himself to caution people against dealing with linds o>vned by one tribe called Ngatipaoa', and on which a deposit of £200 has been p lid-on bjhalf of the Q'teen. Surely he is aware that the Governor only can do tlwt. By referring to the 42nd section of the Immigration and Public Works Act Amendmint, 1871, tho law of thcm<uter appears as follows: "It shall be lawful for tlm Governor when ho shall have determined to enter into negotiations for the purchase of' such- lands to 1 i isert a notice in the Neiu Zealand Gazette that it is his intention to euter into such negotiation, and after such notice is inserted it shall not be lawful for any one to.purcha.s-> or acquire from the native owners any right, title, or interest, &c.. * * * unless jucii notice be'cancelled by the Governor.

.That, sir, seems to bq the proper wuy to exclude cartuiu lands from' private purchase Itdoos not say that Mr .Vlaokay is to doit, or anyotherland purchase agent. The residents of the Thames are nearly ail awe that in accordance with the terms of this let the (J-pernor saw (it some time ago to set apart for Government purchase only certain lands in the Uauraki district, the b lundaries of which were inserted iii due form in the /Veto Zealand Gazette, the western of these boundaries being the foot of the range on this peninsula, so that any lands that vf'ere to the westward of this line were in the market for public comp;tition— several blocks of which have already (if report speaks true) been bought by pri vate speculators. Now we find thac Mr Mackay. or the Governor, wish to acquire the lauds for'her'Majesty'which lire outside the already proscribed bumdarics. It appears to me tha. the way to do so was simply for the Governor (not Vliickay) to issuo a proclamation 1 in the Neto Zealand Gazette, declaring suc'i •lauds, with tbeir boundiries, as set ipirt t'of purposes of the Im nidation and Publio Works Act, and the thing was done; but. Mr Mackay, as agent; does' not do it in that way, he.makes himself a Governor and the Thames :A.DVSitriSEtt a ' iVew Zealand Gazette, signs his i\um and the thing is done. This appears to I)' a very hurried 1 and blustering way of doing business, to say nothing of the illegality of it. Then, again, the way he describes the lands agreed to be sold by this one tribe, is .rather unique. Hie whole of thoir lands _ ad* to tlw EiaM wl Wwliqn

—■ a rivers ! Where is the end of his ad- , jacency to the Fiako andWaihou rivorsP How far does.it go up towards iho Waitca and Waikato Valley,; and how much land does it take in on either side? Then, again, are the Ngatipaoa tribe the only owners of land in that district P Have not nearly all the Hauraki tribes an ownership over lands there, several blocks of which bavo been surveyed and put through the Native Lands Court at great expense to the native owners thereof. How about blocks of this sort P Then, again, we may find here and there some of Mr Mactay's Ngatipaoa owning certain lands conjointly with members of other tribes who did not receive part of the £200 deposit. Supposing I dial with those natives, and also with their co-grantees, or owners otherwise, as tho ■ case may be, am I tn be stopped in my negotiation by fear of Mr Mackay'a £200, which be has advanced to the Ngatipaoa P No right-minded perion, I think, would object to the Crown getting whatever ■ land is neceirary for immigration and other purposes, but it certainly is not right for Mr Mackay to endoavour by an illegal act to execute a coup whereby all the lands in tho Piako and Wailiou districts, to an unlimited extent, aro mado to appear to an inexperienced person as if they were preoluded from prirate speculation. The act is a bold one, and speaks well for the executive powers of the originator; but it is most unjust aiid unfair, and I believe it to be illegal.—l am,&c., PflfflNixi;