AUCKLAND.

Hawke's Bay Herald, Volume 13, Issue 1053, 1 June 1869, Page 2

AUCKLAND.

Oau dates from Auckland are to the. 27 th inst. Tbe Duke had been at the raoes and tlie birth-day ball, and seems to have enjoyed himself. It was expected on the morning of the 27th that H.R.H. would leave Auckland for Tahiti thafc afternoon. The Southern Cross says :— "We are informed that his Honor the Superintendent received a communication yesterday morning from his Excellency the Governor,- in which it was stated that H.M.s. Galatea would take her final departure from Auckland and New Zealand afc two o'clock this afternoon; also, that his Royal Highness would much prefer to go on board privately." Later in the day, however \ past 2 p.m. —a Southern Cross extra contained the following : — H.R.H. has decided to remain in Auckland for a few clays longer, and will visit the Waikato. This morning a letter signed by a number of influential settlers was sent to bis Excellency the Governor through the Hon. Dr. Pollen, Resident Minister, urging upon his Excellency the expediency of H.R.H. paying a visit to the Waikato, and meeting the natives afc Ngaruawahia. His Excellency the Governor accompanied by Capt. PifcfcA.D.C. went on board the Galatea. His Excellency the Governor has written a reply to the effect that in consequence of tbe strong representations contained in the letter, the Prince's stay in Auckland will be prolonged. Ten days is mentioned as the probable limit of H.R.H.'s further stay. Extensive preparations (says the same journal) are, ifc appears, being made by the friendly natives resident in the vicinity of Ngaruawahia to provide suitable entertainment to the King party who may come down to meet the Governor. The friendly chief Te Wheoro, we now learn, has taken the matter in hand. He bas invited the King, Tamati Ngapora, Rewi, and all the leading *n«u to visit Ngaruawahia, and the meeting between his Excellency the Governor and the natives will take place on Tuesday. The Royal Alfred, which arrived on the 26th from the Thames, brought up 1,100 ounces of gold from the Shotover Claim, which was lodged in the Union Bank. The following Auckland-members of the General Assembly were passengers by the Lord Ashley : — His Honor the Superintendent (J. Williamson, Esq.), R. J. Creighton, Esq., C. O'Neill, Esq., H. W. Farnall, Esq., P. Dignan- Esq., J. Kerr, Esq., J. Yogel, Esq., T. Macffarlane, Esq., J. Farmer, Esq., and Major C. Heaphy, V.C. The Hon. Dr. Pollen, Resident Magistrate at Auckland, returned from the Waikato on the 26tb, after arranging all necessary matters pertaining to the holding of the native meeting at Ngaruawahia. F. D. Fenton, Esq., Chief Judge of the Native Lands Court, has been called to the Legislative Council by his Excellency the Governor. A discovery of an extensive deposit of meerschaum clay has been made in a district nofc more than 30 or 40 miles from Auckland. An informant states that there are at least two acres of ifc, and that its depth is as yet undetermined. There is no doubt of the accuracy of the statement, as the person who has discovered this mine of wealth was afc one time connected with the manufacture of .meerschaum pipes.