NATIVE AFFAIRS.

Timaru Herald, Volume XLII, Issue 3511, 30 December 1885, Page 6

NATIVE AFFAIRS.

[By Telegraph, j WbMilßOton, Dec. 6. A Press Association telegram dated from Auckland on Wednesday last stated that the prim ipal Kingite chiefs had iaauod a manifesto, addressed to tho Maoris and Kuropeau*, protesting against 400,000 acres at Rangitoto being made over by tho tribe Ngatimakore to tho Waikato natives. The Minister since then has communicated with Mr Wilkinson, Native Agent at tho Waikato, on the subject, and he to-day received the following reply : — " From the pensioner Hitira Paerata, who culled upon me yesterday evening I have ootained the following particulars regarding the manifesto about the 400,000 acres m the King Country. In the beginning of last month a meeting of Tawhiao's supporters was held at Afanguronga, at which Major To Wheoro and ' others were present. At that meeting some of tho members of the h»pu called Ngatimakore (Hops, te Bangianias hapu) stood up and handed over to Tawhiao the land m the Waipa Valley, which thoy claimed to own including Mungaronga, and said to extend to ■"angitoto. In the report of the meeting which appeared m the newspapers it was intimated there were 400,00 i acres. The document was. signed by all who were willing to give tho land up, but notwithstanding this there is a feeling that the meeting was one got up merely for the purposo of giving those who wore willing an opportunity of publicly acknowledging I'awhiao and giving their land to him. _ Considerable political capital hns boen made out of the transaction by Te Wheoro and others. The matter having come to tho oars of four confederate tribes— Ngatimaniopoto, Ngatiraukawa, Ngntiwharoto and Wh&nganui (to the first two of which the Ngatimakoro are closely nllio *) thoy or some ot them have written a letter or manifesto ignoring tho whole transaction, and dating that 'he 'Ngatimakoro havo no power to alienate their land without the consent of the four tribes, and intimating that if they had the power the land owned by them docs not amount to anything like 400,00, > acres. The letter is signed by 24 chiefs and members of the abovo-mentionod tribes." Tho Native Minister reboivod a telegram this morning from tho Government agent at Alexandra respecting the opening of tho King Country by European prospectors. The Kawhia Native Committee havo done s imo good work during their sitting just finished. Apart from their fixing the price for timber, about which there may be differences of opinion, they have passed a resolution to tho effect that the whole country shall be thrown open to prospecting, and that tho Government be n»ked to find some qualified and respectable Europeans to do the prospecting m company with soino natives to bo chosen by the ■ 'ommitleo. Should gold be discovered Government are to mako arrangements with the Committee about opening a field. Mr Oniißby, the Chairman, will at once sco about: making arrangements bs to «ho are to bo tho native companions of the prospectors, and will then negotiate with Government about furnishing the Europeans. After this resolution was passed by the Committee, it wa» read to both Wnhanui and T.iionui, who are m the settlement, nnd they did not dissent. Another proposition was to put a wholo block of land through tho Native Lands Court, but that was lost. An amendment was, however, carried that tho ' ommittoe investigate titles. Subsequently "r Ormsby proposed a resolution to the following effect— " That m order that the fooling of the people regarding the proposal that the Cormnilf.o* shall inretbgute titles, a lurger meeting shall bo cal ed, and a request made pubiiolv to the people that the; shall allow their cufmi to bo settled by the Com'

mittee, and if they refuse -to dor so, that the Committee will no longer consider it advisable to oppose the Native Lands Committee dealing with native titles within tribal boundaries."