A,—No. 16.

4

PETITIONS FROM EAST COAST NATIVES

On a very late occasion a Native Lands Court was advertised to sit; but the Natives, although they had been to the expense of some two thousand pounds to survey their lands (in order that they may pass the Court), chose rather to lose that than bring them into Court under the provisions of the East Coast Land Titles Investigation Acts, for they had applied to the Native Lands Court, and in all other districts that Court is not an instrument of confiscation as in theirs; but had they been ever so anxious to have the Court sit, it would not have been permitted so to do by the Government Agent, as your Excellency will perceive by a report of the proceedings wdiich appeared a few days back ; still by the Act in question the Government can at any time have the titles to such lands investigated for their own purposes, whether the owners wish it or not. I would now, on behalf of the Natives for whom I am agent, request your Excellency to endeavour to prevail on your Government to pledge the Natives that the provisions of the East Coast Land Titles Investigation Acts will not any further be insisted on, and that if they again make their applications to the Judges, that the Native Lands Court will be allowed to sit in their district as untrammelled as it is in any other part of the country. I fear I have wearied your Excellency with the lengthiness of this communication, but I feel convinced that in a cause of justice you will pardon my trespassing so much on your valuable time. I have, &c, To His Excellency Sir George E. Bowen, .1. W. Preece. Governor of New Zealand.

Enclosure in No. 1. Copy of a Petition from the Turanga Natives to His Excellency the Governor. Turanga, 14 Maehe, 1868. Xi a Ta Hori Pauene, Kawana o Niu Tireni, me ona wahi katoa, — E hika, tena koe. Tena koutou ko to wahine me o tamariki. Kia ora tonu koe hei whakahaere tikanga i roto ite motu nei. Haere mai! Haere mai kite whakaora ite motu nei, kite titiro i nga pouritanga, kite rapu i etahi tikanga c puta ai te maramatanga, o mutu ai nga tautohenga ote Pakeha raua ko te tangata Maori. Heoi ano te tikanga marama ko nga Ture kia rite, kia kaua c anga ke te pai ki ki tetahi taha anake; otira, kia rite tahi te pai ote Ture kotahi ki runga ki nga Iwi erua, kite Pakeha raua ko te tangata Maori. He tamariki tahi hoki matou na to tatou matua na te Kuini, heoi, haere mai, ma te Atua koe c whakakaha. Ka huri te mihi, ka tv te kupu. E hika, ko matou ko ou tamariki kei te noho pouri. Ehara inaianei te pouri, no nga tau erua kua pahemo nei. Te take oto matou pouri, ko te whenua o o matou tupuna c whakararurarutia nei etc Kawanatanga. Ko te toru tenei o nga tau kua pahemo nei ite timatanga ote raru ki tenoi wahi. I taua takiwa, ka puta mai etahi tangata Maori o Taranaki ki konei whakawai ai i etahi o o matou tangata kia tahuri kite karakia porangi, kite Hauhau. Kihai i taro, ka pa te whiu ate Kawanatanga Maori, a a te Kawana Pakeha ki a ratou, ka hinga ratou i te whawhai, ka hercherctia ratou, ka kawea ki Wharekauri, ko te rua tenei o nga tau me te hawhe i noho ai ratou kite whare herehere, a kua mate tupapaku etahi o ratou ki reira. Otira ho tini nga whiu ipa kia ratou, kihai hoki i nui te hara o taua iwi, kihai hoki tetahi kohuru i mahia c ratou. Kotahi tonu te wiki i wdiawhaitia ai ratou, mutu tonu. Kihai hoki i puta te kupu o te Kawana kia riro i a ia te whenua hei utu mo to ratou hara, kihai tetahi panuitanga i puta kia matou kua riro te whenua iterau ote patu ate Kawanatanga. Heoi, noho tonu matou i runga ito matou whenua a taea noatia tenoi takiwa. No ta matou tononga kia whakawakia o matou whenua i runga i te Ture mo nga whenua Maori, katahi te Kawanatanga ka rapu i etahi tikanga, hei whakararuraru i o matou whenua. Ko te Kooti i panuitia ite tuatahi hei whakawa i aua whenua i te 12 o nga ra o Hepeteina 1866. Huihui kau matou kihai i tu. Tuarua 29 o Oketopa o taua tau ano. Huihui noa, kihai i tu. Tuatoru, ite 3 o nga ra o Hurae ite tau 1867. Ka hui matou c whitu rau matou i huihui. Kihai ano hoki itu to Kooti. Tuawha, no tenei marama no Maehe, no te 9 o nga ra i te tau 1868. Ka huihui matou, a kihai i tv te Kooti. Ka ki mai ia, ara te Kawanatanga, kite tukua c matou kite Kooti, ka raru matou, notemea nana te Kooti, ehara ia matou i tono te Kooti. Heoi, wehi ana matou. Katahi matou ka mea heoti tonu te take i tono ai i te Kooti, hei whakaputa ite Karauna Karaati ki a matou, heoi pouri ana matou. Toia ana inaianei c matou o matou whenua ki waho kia kaua o whakawakia i runga i tenei Ture i te huhua hoki o nga tini raweke a te Kawanatanga c whakararu nei i a matou. E hika, c rapu ana matou ite take i peneitia ai te whiu i a matou tahi ko te Hauhau. Ko Taranaki, ko Waikato, ko Whakatane, ko Opotiki, ko nga kainga o te toto kino kihai i pcnei te whiu i a ratou. Ko aua iwi he nui to ratou hara, ko te kohuru, ko te tohe tonu kite whawhai i roto i nga tau katoa. Tena ko nga tangata o konei, kihai i pena me ratou te nui ote hara. Titiro hoki koe, kahore he kohuru i roto i tenei takiwa, kahore he muru, ko te karakia anake kite Atua porangi anake, kotahi tonu te wiki i tv ai te whawhai. Titiro koe kite nui ote hara o Waikato, kite iti oto tenei iwi. Ko nga whenua o nga tangata o era atu iwi kihai i riro katoa, kihai hoki nga tangata i hereheretia i mauria ki tetahi atu motu ranei. Tena ko tenei, i whiua nuitia tenei iwi ite tuatahi, kihai i tangohia te whenua. A taea noatia te tau ka pahemo nei, katahi matou ka rongo i te kupu o te Kawanatanga, ka tango ratou i nga whenua. Ko to matou whakaaro tenei kua maroke noa atu te toto, i tenei ra he aha te pai kia tono i te whenua kia hoatu, kua rite noa atu hoki te hara ote iwi ? Heoi kahore matou i mohio he Kawanatanga kei tenei motu, me i kore te hoki tonu mai o ratou i roto i nga marama katoa kite tawai i a matou kia whakaae matou kia hoatu rukaruka i to matou whenua ki a ratou. Whakarongo mai koe kite kupu a Kawana Hori Kerei, nana pu i whakaputa ki a matou i te mutunga tonu ote whawhai ki tenei wahi. Ko tona kupu tenei: "Ka ora tenei taha oto motu nei; i ora ai, he kaha no nga rangatira Maori kite pehi ite kino. Ka ora tenei taha.o te motu ka mate tera taha; te take i mate ai, he kore kaha no nga rangatira kite pehi ite kino." Koia matou c titiro tonu nei ki tana kupu. Na Te Makarini tenei kupu : " Tikina whakahokia mai o koutou whanaunga, kite patua rua mai te kino ki tenei whenua kei taku ringa te whenua."