A.—No. 16,

TO NATIVE AFFAIRS.

21

One of them, a Taupo native, replied in a long speech, the purport of which was, that they had come at the request of Tawhiao, to recommend peace and quietness, the same as he had done for several years past. He explained a good deal about Te Kooti's proceedings and stated that the reason Tawhiao sanctioned Topia's pursuing Te Kooti was on account of his (Tawhiao's) blood. Here Piripi Kiore, of Pariaka asked him what was meant by Tawhiao's blood ? To which he replied " Taupo," by which he meant the attack made upon a Taupo village by Te Kooti when he was ordered away from Tokangamutu. Piripi Kiore then asked him what was the ostensible reason of their visit to Waitara ? To which he replied that they were sent for the express purpose of communicating with Mr. Parris and Ihaia Kerikumara to request them to conduct things quietly, and remain or stop at the threshold (me ata whakahaere niarire nga mahi, me noho kite whatitoka). These were the words used, which were intepreted to apply to Ngatimaniapoto at Mokau and the White Cliffs as the threshold or line not to be crossed. He further stated that More, the old travelling delegate for several years past from Tokangamutu, was at Mokau, where he had been stopping for some time past for the purpose of checking any hostile movements of those natives who still refuse to allow any natives to pass Mokau whether from Tokangamutu or elsewhere, and that they had to come by way of Taumatamahoe and down the Waitara. Te Motu here took up the discussion, and enquired the reason no advices had been sent to Taranaki as well as Waitara, and said that Tawhiao had broken his compact with Te Whiti by sanctioning Topia'sfollowing Te Kooti with the sword, which it was agreed should not again be unsheathed. That now he perfectly understood what the purport of their visit to Waitara was; to induce Parris and Ihaia to do* the same as Topia had done. To go to Mokau against Ngatimaniapoto. Tou must have come by way of Parininihi and opened the road. Te Motu's speech was a mixture of irony and contempt, which rather astonished the messengers from Tokangamutu, and one of them rose and said : " I am dead with the language of the last speaker, whose accusations are all false ; we have come on a peaceful mission; we did not come by way of Parininihi, because that road is closed to us, and we came by way of Taumatamahoe to come to Waitara." Seeing the two Tokangamutu natives were rather hurt, I asked them if they knew the person who had been addressing them. To which they replied that they did not. I then told thorn that he was one of those men that the Maoris foolishly call a prophet, whom Te Whiti at the great meeting at Pariaka in March pronounced to be all fools. This caused a general laughter, which Te Motu took very good humouredly, and said he was no prophet, that Parris was the only Hauhau prophet. In 1867 Tikaokao (Tawhana) sent his daughter to Waitara to be espoused to Eruera, son of the old chief Eawiri Rauponga. Since then she has been living with Eruera as his wife. I took this young woman (who was present) by the hand, and led her out before the meeting, and asked the two natives from Tokangamutu if they knew her. They replied iv the affirmative. I then told them that in 1867 she was sent up from Mokau as a peace offering, and that in consequence thereof we all supposed that Ngatimaniapoto wished to be friendly. That for two years afterwards they were in the habit of visiting the Europeans and natives at Pulsearuhe and Urenui until the very day when Mr. Whiteley and several others were murdered; on which day four of the Mokau natives who had been stopping at Urenui fraternizing with Europeans and Natives of that part for more than a week left Urenui to return to Mokau. I explained to them that on account of such conduct the Government had been put to the expense of protecting the district with an armed force ever since; that so far as Ihaia and I were concerned we had only to obey the Government. I have, &c, The Hon. the Native and Defence Minister, R. Parris, Auckland. Civi Commissioner.

WANGANUI. No. 23. Memorandum for the Hon. Mr. Fox. Ranana, December 31st, 1869. Mete Kingi and myself have collected what few men were left together with Kingi Herekiekie and four others from Taupo. If the weather clears up at all to-morrow we shall go to Ohinemutu. Tahau has his peeple assembled at the Aomarama. The thirty guns are to go up there to-morrow. If news comes down that they have had a fight, we shall be able to act according to the information we may receieve. J, Booth, R.M.

No. 24. Mr. J. Booth, R.M., to the Hon. the Colonial Secretary. Sir, — Whanganui, January 19th, 1870. Mete Kingi who is leaving this place for Wellington to-morrow, wishes me to send this letter to you by him, that he may have something to deliver when he arrives. I have great pleasure in saying that Mete has done good service to the Government during the last two months, and that he has great influence over the tribes which have recently abandoned Hauhauism. The Hon, the Colonial Secretary, I have, &c, Wellington. James Booth, R.M. 6 ~~