Wallingford Oct. 23rd. 1867. My dear McLean, I have not much to write about as we parted so lately. You wanted the name of some one to do the Census (sub-enumerator) for Porangahau. The only person to be got is a man called 'Alfred Lambert' he is an individual who gets drunk at times, but he keeps all tight when he has work to do and the fellow has a large family who are very destitute and who will be helped by the trifle he will earn at the census job. The man is quite able for the work. If he is wanted and has to get instructions better send them to me and I will see he is properly made aware of them. What are we do for our Policeman down here - the Council struck off our District man and as I thought there was no one appointed I did nothing about it. However it seems now that there is a man who has been district constable some time and who has been induced by representations from the Magistrates and G. Cooper to buy a bit of land and settle here on the faith of the £50 a year from District Constable. The man bears I hear a good character and if the Magistrates are to do any work he is wanted. By the bye in travelling up the other day from Napier I found every public I came to in the most disgracefully drunken state. It really is quite a scandal to the Province the entire want of supervision that exists in regard to these licensed houses in the country - who is responsible? really some one ought to be made responsible and told the existing state of things must end. Do give some one instructions to see to these houses a little. The country is looking splendid, my place in particular is doing wonders this year in the grass line, the paddocks are really not to be beaten anywhere and everything of course is doing and looking well. I haven't quite settled down yet to the station work. The exercise tires me but I suppose that will all wear off in time. I was awfully sick of that filthy Prov. Council this time. It was not the fighting, but the want of any fighting that could be creditable, that made it so wearisome. I hadn't time at Napier to look at the reports since I came home I have and I think it is a pity they try to report at all. There is one thing quite certain and that it that the reporting is most unfair - I notice that Mr. Buchanan gets every point he raises reported (perhaps he writes his speeches out) whilst you and I and particularly me get what we do say made such a hash of as to be not understandable. I am most vexed at a lot of rubbish I am reported to have said about the Post-Master Genl., The Col. Secretary, etc. - by chance in the particular cases in which I made reference to them the reporting has made me say nearly the opposite to what I did say. If Stafford or Hall do read read the papers as they say they both do, they will come to the conclusion that I have invented a good many opinions for them about which they never heard and which I am certain I never dreamed of. I thought at first of writing and contradicting particular cases of mistake but on looking through the reports that wd. be nonsense it wd. be implying the portions not corrected were right. So better leave it as it is I suppose. Don't forget to warn the N.Z. Bank that you will want more than the £30.000 or rather that you will want additional sums over and above the £30,000 after the expiration of the six months - I told Weber to press forward with the advertisement for his Road and Harbour Contracts as soon as possible inorder that the best months of the year may be made use of. It is very late and I am very tired so goodnight. Yours always, J.D. Ormond.