REPORT, The Select Committee of the House of Representatives, appointed 23rd July, 1856, to consider and report on the Native Offenders Bill, after carefully taking evidence of several persons, beg leave to report as follows : — That, from the evidence which has been brought before them, it appears to this Committee that but very few cases have occurred in the history of this Colony in which (in consequence of the refusal of Tribes or their chiefs to surrender to the authorities Native < Iffenders against the law) any resort to such means as this Bill provides would have been needful to enable the Government to enforce the law. That, nevertheless, a majority of the witnesses have recorded their opinion that in certain extreme and peculiar cases recourse to some such means might be expedient, both as regards the vindication of the law in those cases and the prevention of recurrence of similar offences in future. That an extreme rase of this nature has recently occurred, and now exists, in which it appears that certain Natives of the Manai district (Coromandel) have stolen European property. That the tribe refuse either to surrender the property or to give up the Offenders to be dealt with according to law. That the Committee, therefore, consider that it may be expedient to arm the Governor, in this particular instance, with some such powers as are provided by this Bill (but in a modified form), so as to enable him, with the advice of his Executive Council, to test the proposed plan of proscribing districts in which Native Offenders are harboured, but limiting such power to the particular instance referred to. HENRY SEWELL, Chairman. Committee Boom, House of Representatives, Tuesday, August 5, 1856.