then I must return here, get through the Session of the Provincial Council, and then set to work to prepare for the Assembly Session. It has leaked out here that I do not intend to give up the Superintendency - it came through Wellington from Buchanan's brother - now as I only wrote about it to Fox and Gisborne the subject must have been talked over at Wellington - Napier Buchanan is wroth as he was silly enough to think he wd. be elected if I gave it up - his brother also telegraphed from wellington that the other members of the Govt were opposed to my retaining it i.e. all except you. Of course I shall hear all about this when I get down there, but my mind is quite made up, and if it is thought undesirable that a member of the Govt. shd. be a Superintendent then I shall give up the former and keep the latter - Since you left it has become more apparent than before that it wd. be suicidal on our part for me to give up the key to the command here. Those wretches the Russells are more active than ever - every transaction they can get at they are pepping up - their activity is wonderful. The following are transactions they have in hand and will if they can force into the Supreme Court, Raukawa-Kinross, Ngatarawa and Mangateretere, yourself, Camphell late Chapmans - Colemans