New Plymouth April 13th. 1853 Dear McLean, I received with much pleasure your note dated from Wellington and am glad to see that you have so far recovered your sad bereavement (which I most deeply deplored) as to be able to resume your correspondence. Your having obtained the consent of the absentee natives to the sale of the Waiwaikii block is a grand preliminary gained, I learn from Cooper that old Etuki is the only remaining resident of any influence who offers any obstacle to the sale of it, I hope you will pay us a visit on your return from Auckland, your presence would effect much good in getting over the difficulties in the way of land purchases. A sale of town purchases took place last week which placed £580 in the hands of the Sub Treasurer, but ou paternal Government at Auckland keep us so short of Cash that one half of it was at once applied by Mr. Flight to the payment of salaries of the Police etc. - you cannot do our poor neglected settlement a greater service than pressing the Governor to send us the means in specie to be held in readiness whenever the natives may be disposed or willing to receive payment when the arrangement might be concluded at once without giving them time to alter their mind. At present, we have not an acre of available land for sale and I am persuaded that if you were now at New Plymouth you would be able with your usual tactics to remove whatever difficulties may stand in the way of our obtaining all the land from the Waiwaikio to the Mongoraki river and I am of opinion that all future purchases should extend inland ten miles from the beach or sea coast. We are daily expecting the Sir Edw. Paget she comes here direct and has goods and a number of passengers for this place. The Brigantine Camilla arrived last week from Twofold Bay landed 600 sheep and 16 Horses, passengers Mrs. Imlay and family to remain for a time if not altogether. The reduction in the price of land to ten and five shillings per acre may probably induce intending emigrants to give N. Zealand the preference and N. Plym. would have a fair proportion of them if land could be had. I see that Scrip is only to stand as the value of an acre of land which appears to me unjust, for as scrip was originally as one pound all those who hold any have been wronged by a delusive arrangement. You are aware we have no cattle runs. Couldn't you manage to buy the block to the north of the Waitera the longer it is delayed the more the purchase money will be enhanced. We feel more and more the want of a supply of agricultural labourers and female domestics the wages of both have in consequence much increased. Could you put us in the way to get some of the Scot families here that are emigrating from the Islands, we might get up a Subscription to aid the society that sends them out, but no one here knows how to go about it. I see by the late proclamation with regard to the sale of land that military and naval officers are only allowed as their grant the upset or fixed price of one acre of land for each pound of remission money but it seems to me that this clause unless I have mistaken it arises altogether from a misconstruction of the naval regulations which provide that every officer according to a fixed scale efiall be allowed a remission to a certain extent of the purchase money of such land as he may buy at public auction and cannot conceive how the Govr. can impose any condition in direct, contravention of the terms of the regulation made by the home Government, and beside the injustice of the regulation is manifest as the amount of remission money (so states the regulation) cannot be increased should the upset price be higher than one pound per acre and in equity should the upset ppice fall below that standard, the remission money Should not be lowered, will you state this to Dr. Sinclair and let me know what he thinks about it. I shall expect to see you shortly as there appears little chance of Cooper doing anything without your assistance. With kind regards from all at Brooklands, Believe me yours faithfully, Hen. King.