us on a string till then, Granville and Co. will suddenly go off to the Moors on the 12th August by limited mail, and we shall be left out in the cold. My notion of our position as diplomatist is this. First eliminate what it is evident will not be yielded on any terms. Then decide which of two courses to take: 1. to go in for what can be got out of the Imperial Government, or 2d. To wish them finally bon voyage and go off to ascertain what we can do on our own hook absolutely in the way of Emigration, taking up money for public works, constructing telegraphs, and so on. I don't see there is any other choice. If we take the first, we can get (a) a separate naval station, specified ships at certain ports, to be permanently stationed, say at Auckland, Wellington, and Tauranga, and a cruiser between. (b) Magniac's or Morrison's or Bell's or somebody else's plan of emigration with moderate Imperial aid, either by direct advances, grants, or guaranteed N. Z. Treasury Emigration Bills. (c) Arms lent. (D) small things if we choose, such as loan of officers and so forth as so urgently recommended by Fitzherbert last session. If we take the second, we can get whatever we choose in London, for our credit stands very high everywhere in the City. I am inclined to neither course in preference to the other; each has its advantages. But we shall very soon have to decide which we shall take, and I think you would as well as Gisborne and the rest of our colleagues not care very much which we took provided we got immigration set going. don't think I have anything more to say this mail, except that at dinner at Lord Granville's the D. of Argyll asked me why we made such a fuss about 1000 or less savages which I answered by asking him why Cameron with 10,000 men and a fleet could not settle the matter seeing he never had a thousand or anything like it against him at any one point, and why if it wasn't so easy for him it should be thought so easy for us. Yours very truly, F. D. Bell Honble William Fox