E.—No. 2c

MEMORANDUM by the Governor. Tho Governor has received the Ministerial Memorandum of the sth instant, upon his Despatch No. 144 of the 18th of October last, which, in compliance with their wishes, he will transmit to the Secretary of Slate. The" Governor feels sure that his Responsible Advisers will pardon him for saying that he thinks that they are the pari ies who have not acted rightly in the question of the fulfilment of the instructions of the British Government regarding the cession of lands by the Natives, and that he has only done his duty in the matter. 'file instructions alluded to were issued on the 26th of April last. One of the Ministers then in England made the following promises on behalf of his colleagues in relation to these instructions : — •• i take this opportunity of staling formally and officially that which I have previously had the honor of stating to Mr. Secretary Cardwell verbally, that there is nothing in the instructions of April 26th to Sir George Grey that does not represent tlie views of the Colonial Government in practically carrying into effeel the policy of confiscation authorised by the Legislature in the New Zealand Settlements Act." "The Government never had any intention whatever of confiscating land in districts about which there could be any doubt as to the Native inhabitants being in a state of rebellion. On my own behalf therefore, and that of my colleagues, I can give to Mr. Cardwell a full assurance that the Local Government will cordially co-operate with Sir George Grey iv carrying out that just and temperate policy towards the Native race embodied in the New Zealand Settlements Act, as limited in its operations by his instructions of April 26th." The members of the Colonial Ministry, at the time resident in New Zealand, then published in the Government Gazette, on the 30th of June last, the Secretary of State's instructions of the 26th of April—notifying in this manner to all the inhabitants of New Zealand what were the instructions to which the Governor was bound to give effect. After this, he feels it was his duty to do that which he has done. With regard to the allegations made by his responsible advisers that the Governor has taken to himself all the powers in matters of importance, and that he leaves to them powers only in the most .subordinate matters, the Governor's view is, that if the records arc consulted, it will be found that the exact opposite of the view stated by Ministers is really the case. Government House, Auckland, November 6th, 1864. G. Grey. MEMORANDUM by Ministers. In His Excellency's Memorandum of 6th November he states that "he feels sure his Responsible Advisers will pardon him in saying that he thinks that they are the parties who have not acted rightly in the question of the fulfilment of the instructions of the British Government regarding the cession of land by the Natives ;" and in order to prove the accuracy of this opinion, His Excellency quotes passages from a document written by one of the Ministers in England, making, as His Excellency states, certain promises on behalf of his colleagues in relation to these instructions. His Excellency altogether overlooks the fact that the Minister in England (Mr. Wood), in the document referred to, never mentions the word " cession ;" nor was ho likely to make any promise on the subject, because his opinion is understood fully to coincide with that of his colleagues, that any attempt to carry the object into effect would in all probability be futile. It is hardly worth while to draw the obvious distinction between making promises and stating opinions, but accuracy requires that what Mr. Wood said should be designated by the latter rather than the former definition. But what Mr. AVood did say had no reference whatever to cession as His Excellency assumes, but to confiscation, as fully appears by the extract quoted by His Excellency. It is remarkable thai these extracts intended to prove one thing fail altogether in that object, and do prove that which His Excellency did not intend. Ministers may also add that it appears to them that His Excellency has altogether mistaken Mr. Cardwell's meaning in reference to cession, and it surely will not meet Mr. Cardwell's views that His Excellency should have prolonged the war in order to make a futile attempt to carry into effect an impracticable scheme. Ministers have always been ready, and have repeatedly so expressed themselves, to accept Mr. Cardwell's view s as to the extent to which confiscation should be carried ; and they do not hesitate again to repeat, in the words of Mr. AVood, " that there is nothing in the instructions of April 26th to Sir George Grey that does not represent the views of the Colonial Government in practically carrying into effect the policy of confiscation authorised by the Legislature in the New Zealand Settlements Act;" and His Excellency's Responsible Advisers have always been ready (again to use the words of Mr. Wood), cordially to co-operate with Sir George Grey in carrying out that just and temperate policy towards the Native race embodied in the New Zealand Settlements Act as limited in its operation by the instructions of April 26th." But Ministers have always been strongly averse to the substitution of cession for confiscation (though they once consented on certain conditions, in deference to His Excellency, to do so), as they believed and still believe that the former plan will not to any extent be adopted by the Natives, and will certainly produce contempt for the weakness and vacillation it displays. November Kith. 1 St! I, Ebedk. AVhitakek. .MEMORANDUM by Ministers. Ministers have read with much -uirpri.se His Excellency's despatch to Her Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for the Colonies, dated 7th November, 1861, No. 162, forwarding their memorandum of the Ist November, 1861. complaining of His Excellency having withheld from Her Majesty's Government for a period of three months an important memorandum of theirs which wis necessary to enable the Secretary of State to understand the subject to which it related, and in reference to which for want of that memorandum, he had evidently arrived at a conclusion unjust to Ministers.

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