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No. 41. The Hon. H. A. Atkinson to the Agent-General. (No. 28.) Sir, — Immigration Office, Wellington, 13th February, 1875. I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your letter No. 1958, of the 15th December, 1874, in which you inform me that in consequence of the difficulty experienced in securing full complements for the vessels for which you had guaranteed specific numbers, you had found it necessary to withdraw the " Rangitikei," which had been laid on for Otago, and ship her emigrants in the " Dallam Tower," to Wellington. Under the circumstances detailed, I have to express my approval of the course adopted by you, but I trust that in future it may not be necessary to ship emigrants to other ports than their final destination, as the expense of transhipment in the colony is a very serious consideration. I have, &c, The Agent-General for New Zealand, London. H. A. Atkinson.

No. 42. The Hon. H. A. Atkinson to the Agent-General. (No. 38.) Sir, — Immigration Office, Wellington, 15th February, 1875. I have the honor to forward copy of a memorandum from the Immigration Officer at Auckland, reporting that an immigrant by the "Assaye," named J P , came out to this colony with the intention of proceeding on to New South Wales, and that, according to her statement, the local agent at Penzance, who recommended her for a free passage, was aware that such was her intention. I have to request that you will cause a strict inquiry to be made into this matter, and if you have reason to believe that the statement of the woman is correct, that you will at once cease to employ the present agent, and appoint another. I have, &c, The Agent-General for New Zealand, London. H. A. Atkinson.

Enclosure in No. 42. The Immigration Officer, Auckland, to the Under Secretary for Immigration. Auckland, 31st December, 1874. I have the honor to report that it has been brought to my knowledge that one of the immigrants ex " Assaye," a single woman, named J P , intends to proceed immediately to Sydney, New South Wales, to join her friends there. On questioning J P on the subject, she informed me that the immigration officer or agent at Penzance, Cornwall, was acquainted with the fact that she intended to proceed to Australia via New Zealand, and that he recommended her for a free passage under these circumstances. The woman made this statement apparently in a straightforward manner, but without any other evidence than her own word. She states that her friends will pay her passage to Sydney; but in the meantime, as she is without funds, she must take employment here, and possibly may not carry out her intention of proceeding further. I considered it proper to report these facts for the information of the head of my department. The immigration agent's name at Penzance, the girl thinks, is Ludlow. H. Ellis, Immigration Officer. Kin^i^i^j^i^Hi^ißMijjjjjjjjjjjjjjjaata.^.^.^.^.^.^MMMc^c^c^ca

No. 43. The Hon. H. A. Atkinson to the Agent-General. (No. 45.) Sir, — Immigration Office, Wellington, 15th February, 1875. Eeferring to my letter No. 370, of 21st December, and to previous correspondence upon the same subject, I have now the honor to forward you copies of letters from His Honor the Superintendent of Otago and the Invercargill District Road Board. In addition to the official communication received by the Government, I observe by the public Press that great and increased dissatisfaction exists in the southern district of Otago at the small number of emigrants which have been despatched direct to the Bluff, whilst several ships have recently arrived there with cargo, having disembarked emigrants at other ports. I think these complaints are very reasonable, and you will please to consider it a positive instruction that, in any contract you may make for the conveyance of emigrants to Otago, you will insist upon the arrangement that one out of every three ships so chartered shall disembark her emigrants at the Bluff. I have, Sec, The Agent-General for New Zealand, London. H. A. Atkinson.

Enclosure 1 in No. 43. His Honor the Superintendent, Otago, to the Hon. the Minister for Immigration. Sir, — Dunedin, 4th February, 1875. I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of 20th January, relative to a resolution passed by the Town Council of Invercargill respecting the landing of immigrants at Bluff,