D.—No. 21

ISSUED TO FRIENDLY NATIVES.

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E.—No. 14. Copy of a Letter from Mr. J. A. Wilson to Major St. John. Sir,— Whakatane, the Mill, 4th September, 1867. I have the honor to state that, having arrived here yesterday from Te Awa-o-te-Atua, I find the Hauhaus, in considerable numbers, have been several days in possession of Ruatoki, Otamuku, Opomiao, and the upper portion of the Whakatane Valley, and have swept away many horses belonging to the loyal Whakatane Natives. For this loss the Natives are making claims on the Government for the compeUsation to which they are entitled. I especially regret this, as had the loyal Natives been sufficiently armed, they would have prevented the enemy's incursions by occupying a position at the head of the valley, for although eighty fighting men in number, they have only thirty stand of arms among them, and those that are armed have only forty rounds of ammunition each. There is a large amount of property, Native and European, in the Whakatane District now lying at the mercy of the rebels, who are daily augmenting their force. Sixty well-armed men were counted in one party to-day, and have been heard to consult whether or not they should march down Whakatane Valley to-night or to-morrow night. Considering these circumstances, and the fact that the loyal Natives themselves are in danger, and the English who are here, I beg to suggest that fifty stand of arms, if they can be spared from Opotiki, with ammunition, may be issued for a time to the Natives who bear this letter, as the expenditure thus incurred would, be as nothing compared to the compensation claims that would probably otherwise ensue. Unfortunately too many such claims have been made already in the Bay of Plenty District. I have, &c, The Officer Commanding Opotiki District, J. A. Wilson, Opotiki. Crown Agent.

AUCKLAND. A.—No. 15. Copy of a Letter from Mr. Gisborne to Dr. Pollen. (No. 1023.) Colonial Secretary's Office, Sir, — Wellington, 9th September, 1867. The attention of the Government having been drawn to the report that seventy stand of arms have been issued from the Militia Store at Auckland for the use of Ngatihaua Natives, I am directed by Mr. Stafford to request you to be good enough to furnish, as soon as possible, a full report, showing what arms and ammunition, and by whose authority and under what circumstances this issue was made, and what security has been taken for the proper preservation of these arms, &c, and for their return into store when required. I have, &c, W. Gisborne, The Government Agent, Auckland. Under Secretary.

A.—No. 16. Copy of a Letter from Dr. Pollen to the Hon. E. W. Stafford. (No. 1211.) Office of the General Government, Sir, — Auckland, 13th September, 1867. I have the honor to acknowledge receipt of Mr. Gisborne's letter No. 1023, of date September 9th instant, in which, with reference to a report that seventy stand of arms had been issued from the Militia Stores at Auckland for the use of Ngatihaua, I am required " to furnish a full report showing what arms and ammunition, and by whose authority and under what circumstances this issue was made, and what security has been taken for the proper preservation of these arms, &c., and for their return into store when required." I enclose copy of the requisition made to the Colonial Storekeeper, and copy of a letter from the Civil Commissioner to Mr. Searanckc, R.M., Ngaruawahia, to whom the arms and ammunition wore sent, and in whose custody they still are. The packages are unbroken, and may be returned into store whenever it is thought to be desirable. The circumstances under which the arms, &c, were withdrawn from store were these :—After the late Native meeting at Peria, a deputation from the friendly section of the Ngatihaua Tribe, having Te Raihi and Hargraves, Native Assessors, and Hotene, William Thompson's eldest son, at its head, waited upon the Civil Commissioner in Auckland, and informed him that they were threatened with an attack by the Hauhau Kingites, in consequence of their determination to protect Mr. Firth in the occupation of the land which he holds under agreement with the late William Thompson. The deputation represented to Mr. Mackay that they themselves and their friends were without arms (having only two or three old shot guns) to resist the threatened aggression, and they required that, as men who throughout the war had been loyal, they should receive the protection of ihe Government against the violence which they feared, or if that protection could not be given, that they should at least receive aid in their efforts to defend themselves. On the 21st August the deputation came with the Civil Commissioner to this office, and repeated to mo the statement of their danger, and the demand for protection or aid already made to Mr. Mackay. I was impressed, at this interview, with a conviction that the fears of tho men were real; and as there were grounds to believe that the danger in which they declared themselves to stand was at least not wholly imaginary, it was resolved, after consultation with Mr. Mackay, that forty stand of arms and some ammunition should be sent to the Resident Magistrate at Ngaruawahia, with instructions to issue them only when an emergency arose. With this arrangement the deputation was satisfied. 4