A.—No. 3:

36

RELIGIOUS, CHARITABLE, AND

been to the detriment of tho trust property that they have, owing to the want of such occupation' reserves, been allowed to occupy the New Zealand Company's Reserves. It was, however, impossible to avoid this, unless other lands had been bought for them, The Motueka Natives have in occupation about 1,000 acres. They cannot justly complain of want of land to cultivate. The Bishop's Trust, and the land appropriated to the use of the Natives, comprises nearly the whole of the best land. They actually at this moment let 140 acres out of what has been appropriated for their own use, the rental being collected by Mr. Alexander Legrand Campbell, and paid directly to them, without coming into the trust accounts. If I had not agreed to this renting by them, they would have done it illegally and surreptitiously. If the land had been, let in the usual way, and the proceeds not paid to them, they would have had a cause of complaint, as they had been recognized as the legal occupants of the land, which they would construe as legal owners of the land. They have, however, always been allowed to take the whole of the rents accruing from rents of appropriated lands ; and I would say the rents were as necessary for their maintenance as the land itself was appropriated. A section of 150 acres at Takaka was exchanged with Mr. Thorpe for throe of these sections at Motueka —the latter being sandy, poor land, near the beach. I think the trust got an equivalent by this exchange. It was proposed to give Ramari a share of the Takaka land, where she was living with her husband, whose place it was. She could not agree with the Natives there, and afterwards left the place. Ramari, I think, is the only one fairly entitled to have provision made for her. I purpose to locate her on some land on the first opportunity. I have had her case under my attention for some time. I think I can manage to put her upon some of the land other Natives wish to rent, paying them the rental out of the Native Trust Fund. The trustees of the Bishop's land under " The Native Schools Act, 1867," would be entitled to aid from the General Government, which I think they are in a position to acquire a right to. The complaints about the Bishop's grant are chiefly confined to Motueka Natives. I think the' reason we hear no complaints from other Natives is owing to their ignorance of their right to any share in it. ' . It would be a grand thing if they could form a central boarding-school at Motueka, and send the children from all the surrounding districts to it. They would have to change their tactics to do this. They would have to give over the industrial training, so far as out-of-door pursuits are concerned. Indoor handicrafts might of course be taught. On reading over Mr. Greenwood's return I wish to observe that the gross rental produced from the land held by the Bishop is considerably in excess of that received by the trust. Our gross rental for Moutore and Motueka does not exceed £360 a year, although the land let by us amounts to 2,500 acres, or nearly three times as much as that let out of the Bishop's grant —confirming my statement as to the latter comprising the best of the land. I think if the boarding-school alluded was property established and carried on at Motueka, Natives ~ of other denominations than Episcopal would send their children, there. There are very few known Catholic Natives in the Province. 1 think there are none. I cannot call to mind a single individual of this persuasion. Copy of a Memorandum exhibited by Mr. Alexander Mackay, dated 3rd Januaiy, 1870. Native Reserves. The original intention was to have appointed trustees for the management of these lands, to consist of the Bishop of New Zealand, the Chief Justice, and the Chief Protector of Aborigines; but these gentlemen, having found many obstacles to the due execution of their trust, gradually ceased to act, and at last resigned. During the time these gentlemen had the management of the Native Reserves, Mr. Thompson, R.M., acted as local representative at Nelson till he met with his death at the Wairau Massacre, in 1843, when Mr. A. McDonald succeeded to the management as Mr. Thomson's representative. A Board of Management was subsequently appointed in 1848, consisting of Messrs. Poynter, Carkeek, and Tinline, under the superintendence of Major Richmond. The board retained the management of the property till the middle of the year 1853, when the sole management devolved on Major Richmond, the then Crowns Land Commissioner, who was ultimately succeeded, in the year 1857, by Messrs. Poynter, Domett, and Brunner, by appointment, dated Ist December, 1856, as Commissioners, under the Act of 1856. It would appear that the grant by His Excellency the Governor to the Bishop of New Zealand, of ' certain portions of the trust estate at Motueka, as an endowment for an industrial school, was made about the time the Board of Management ceased to exist, and immediately before the writs for our constitutional Government were returned, and just on the expiration of the Governor's power to make them. The accounts show that the sum of £160 was expended out of moneys accruing to the funds for educational purposes, between the Ist January, 1852, and 11th July, 1853; and that, subsequent to that date, the amounts paid on behalf of the industrial school was £201 12s. lid., as the following items will show :— £ s. d. 1853, October. By paid Mr. Tudor, on account of industrial school ... 100 0 0 1854, April 19. By paid Mr. Tudor, on account of industrial school ... 50 0 0 1854, July 10. By paid Mr. Tudor, on account of industrial school ... 51 12 11 £201 12 11 It would appear that the first official intimation, concerning the alienation of a portion of Native Trust Estate to the Bishop of New Zealand, received by Major Richmond, the administrator of the estate at the time, was the receipt by him of a Crown Grant, conveying nearly the whole of the Native Reserves then in the occupation of the settlers at Motueka to the Bishop of New Zealand, for certain..