Napier May 13th. 1873 My Dear McLean, The Rangatira returns today and I must write you by her altho' my letter will be hurried. The Waikato business is awkard and does not look well - but I think Mackay's telegrams are making it worse than it need be, still it seems on the cards that Govt. may be forced into an attempt to arrest the murderers. As to the King giving them up I have n never considered that as at all probable. Still if Purukutu threatens more murders, and attempt them, it will be impossible to stand inactive and you may be forced to attempt a capture - I quite agree with you as to the value of old Tareha's opinion and had sent for him to talk matters over before you suggested it. He was in yesterday and has a long talk. He ridicules the idea of the King party giving up Purukutu and says the murder would not have been committed without a knowledge that the murderers would have Tawhaio's protection. In speaking to me he never mentioned Tawhaio. It was Manuhiri he named. He thinks they may offer to give up Ruru the fellow who attacked Mackay. Tareha further says that Rewi is distinct from Waikato and Manuhiri and he does not think Rewi wd. join in any hostile act Waikato may take. That is the substance of his opinion and it was given very decidedly - he is a staunch old fellow in difficulties sltho' very troublesome at times and always wanting something but that is the way of his race. He told me Henare Matua and the Committee go on a trip to Wairoa, Poverty Bay and up the East Coast as far as Tauranga so soon as the Ngatiraukawa visit is over. Tareha has written to the Wairoa and Coast people to caution them agst. joining Henare's Committee. He admits however that the cry Henare is raising is very popular with the Maoris and that it is difficult to check it. When I asked him what it wd. end in. He said "the same as all similar work in the Island what else can it end in" - He unhesitatingly said the whole work was Russell's but that it was now beyond Russell's control... He bought in a lot of letters from Wairoa about the Telegraph work. It seems the surveyor employed, Drummond, has made most of the difficulty. The donkey put his pegs (sites Telegraph poles) in the middle of villages and in Bial places in fact anywhere the requsite linkage brought it - this the natives naturally enough resented but were told the Poles must go up at that particular place. It has now been explained to them that these were errors of the Telegraph officers and the difficulty is at an end. Tareha wrote a letter today to them to withdraw all opposition. Of course I am instructing Mr. Drummond to avoud all unnecessary annoyance to the Natives. I mention this as I shall not have time to write about it officially by this mail. There is no particular news here since I last wrote - the inland settlers are still uneasy and will I think demand to be armed but it is undesirable at present and only calculated to make matters worse - if things go on as they are and the same agitation and bitterness between the races continues we shall have trouble here before it is ended. I do not say or think there is an immediate chance of it but that will be the end unless the agitation is checked. This is the opinion of all the old Settlers and causes the uneasy feeling I have named. If that little scamp Sheehan cd. be kept at Auckland something wd. be gained. I hope you sent the unauthorised version of the speech to Luckies - as if put in the Croas it wd. do good and frighten Sheehan - do so if you have not already. I am having the unauthorized speech printed in Maori and will circulate it all throught the District and up the Coast. The Natives have got the outline of it already. Old Tareha was chuckling at Hapuku being under Karaitiana and at the Mana of the Maori Committee passing to Russell and Sheehan. But the idea in Tareha's mind was that it was a real speech the Sheehan had secretly made somewhere. They are queer devils and no mistake. Locke came back yesterday from Wairoa he had been ill and the road by Waikaremoana was flooded. So he came back and will now go to Ruatahuna by way of Ahikerekere and Taupo - he starts tommorow. I am very sorry to see you have scab on Akitio run - we must redouble our precautions on the frontier or we shall have it into Hawkes Bay. Campbell R.M. from Waiapu is here he is lame and complains he is getting too old for his work. What he is fit for goodness only knows. I am glad you are urging O'Ronke to get old Rochfort moved out of this - he only gets £50 as Returning Officer and how he lives God only knows but he wd. be better away. If he went John Curling had better be made Returning Officer that wd. partly provide for him and keep him quiet I dont think he wd. take a Native School. I hear your brother Archibald has been hurt by some crazed man at the station and had some of his ribs broken. Little Whitmore goes by the Wanganui he tells me to see Ready Money Robinson and console with him on the death of his wife. "Ready" having expressed a desire for W'S Society the little fellow tells me he goes Home shortly. Wilson also talks of clearing out and if those cursed Russells wd. only go too Hawkes Bay wd. be purified. I must close, Yours always, J.D. Ormond.