TARANAKI DETENTION OF OMi OF THE NELSON MAILS BY THE NATIVES.

Otago Witness, Issue 567, 11 October 1862, Page 7

TARANAKI DETENTION OF OMi OF THE NELSON MAILS BY THE NATIVES.

(From the Correspondent of the A T clson Jh-tUiUncr.)

2uth September. I find thft I was in error in seieral pariieulais connected with the wu-ck of the Lord Woisley, -.vim h I reported 'o you by tho iu-st \a-d to JN'eU-'in. The fact <vas that our thankfulness, for the e«-uipe of the pnsseiisjeis ami crew fioisitre fate we bad pictured as not improbable, led to a Miperlieial confederation of smaller matte is (as compared with life) connected with the wreck. As, for in-tance. it was stated tint the remainder of the passengers' luggage would be forwauled to town by the return drajs, and that the mails had been received at the Post Office. But it T.is subsequently .ibceit "ned that one of your NeUon mpil box^s for England, believed to be the Marseilles poition, was not brought in, ami that it is still at the Knmu, v-ith a good deal of passengers' luagage. The natives are divided by jealousy. Mr.tekatt a"s natives desired to h-ive the credit, as well as profit, of housing the p"o;)ie thrown en their coast, and convej ing them to New Plymouth, but neighborine l.ativts, in Uie name of the k ; iy, claimed a sharo in this, and interfered with the stion<? turn. As Kintri Matakatea is not allowed to brin^ anything to town Ly land, he will not allow tlie'kinsj'-. natives to do so. £o, bf-twreu the two stooi.s, John Bull is aadly inconvenienced, if not ab&olutelv plundered. Seveial attempts have be nmale to communicate with Kinui by letter, but the correspondence is seized at the gate and destroyed. The wreck and cargo, as they lay at Naiuu, were sold in town for the benetit of the underwritcis. There was a disposition to oid, with the chance ot recovering some portions fiom tho natives, but it trar.s5 ired during the bidding"., that the Government were determined to become the purchasers, and the lots were knocked down at L"3O and LI 9

H.M. S. Harrier tom-hel, her a few days since. The detention of a mail box was officially reported to the Captain, but I did not hear that Mr M. Macgregor intended to communicate -with ihe Namu on liis way to \V( lhngton. But, w h ite vcriuav be the i.iteution of the Governor in retard to the*e Taranaki natives, we may benzined that a continuance of the present slate of things is impossible, on account of the inti'icsfs involved. Thu wreck will t-ng^e a larae share of attention in England. A mail steamer ca^.t on shoie within a few mile-* nf a British garrison, yet comimu'iciition by land absolutely forbidden by a liandlui of troublesome native; v poition of Her Majesty's mails withlic d at the mere caprice of thote natives ; and the wreck and r-aico taken po^e^ion of iiiul pliiudeicd by them, and pureh.iv 1 at the sale on l.ohalf of the Government, to p.eveut further complication with the wre.'kors ; all this needs oniy to be known to prevent a similar recurrence.

We have news fioni Auckland of a fever ravins' among-t the natives in the neighborhood of llokianga. It has extended to the North Hi ad of Auckland Harbour. The natives were greatly alarineJ, scores having fallen victual to the uuNeeueueiuy.