NATIVE AFFAIRS.

Daily Southern Cross, Volume XXIII, Issue 2962, 22 January 1867, Page 3

NATIVE AFFAIRS.

Thi new* from Tauranga, whioh we publish to-day, is of a very distressing character, bat just what might lutve been expected from the unsatisfactory way in whioh the ' negotiations for the land at Tauranga were left by the last great meeting, and the death of William Thompson. Surveyors and settlers have been, driven in, with threats that on a certain day no one would be spared. A body of 450 men of the 12th Begiment, Ist Waikatoß, and volunteers marched out on the 15th, and occupied, without resistance, and even without seeing the hostile natives, a pa at OropL The detail* of jthe movements will be found in our correspondent's letter. The hostile natives are the Firirakau, who say that their land is being taken wrongfully ; some of the Ngatiporou, and a few Ngaiterangi. The Pirirakau were entirely under Thompson's influence, but f^rom intelligence received from natives, and which does not seem to be known at Tauranga, we barn cthat they have declined to be led by bjs son, < and; hive opened up oommnnioation with. Bewi andMatutasra, Mesfengtip «• continually going to and fro/ and, •mc« th« but mwi of the itoppag* of the ■oivtyori,

t, good, many stragglers have pasrad into the Tauranga district, from the interior. A man named Hopata, one of the Twelve Apostles, has been fora short time amongst the Pirjrakau, doubtless inciting them to stop the survey, and, under all the circumstances, it fo a wonder that the natives have confined themselves to earnings. So far as we know, and we believe o^r information is full and accurate, the hostile Drives are not so numerous nor so welt organise ta to bei tble to Bfcwid wen a much sm' -t l w force than we oan turn out at Tauranga ; b^ z t fc ey knovf quite weU their poucywto, prevent thelandbeingsurvejedoroocupied, and th^y think they can prerent that in spite of tne «roops, who cannot be everywhere. The NgatiTUjrou who are assisting the' Pirirakau are some men "who joined in the warvin Waikato, andhavesinse been straggling about theinterior. We have notheard that the JPirirakau have got any recruits from the Thames, •ad Te Hira, the great ohief of that river, would seem to be in a peaceful frame oE mind. Taraia is now in Auckland. An to the plan to employ the Arawa to deal with the Pirirakau, our information », that an understanding has been oome to between these , tribes, "vrbioh would make that very difficult, if not impossible. Thfl Arawas think that they have been faftdiy treated in referenoe to the land at Tauranga. The stoppage ofjMr. Bollestone, Native Secretary, at Aotea, means nothing more than that the natives there are determined to prevent any one, especially a Government officer, from getting information as to they are about.