C—l 2.

1876. NEW ZEALAND.

TAIRUA INVESTIGATION COMMITTEE. (LETTER FROM MR. J. W. PREECE RELATIVE TO LAND TRANSACTIONS INQUIRED INTO BY THE COMMITTEE.)

No. 1. Mr. Pbeece to the Hon. the Natiye Ministee. Sib,— Auckland, 19th June, 1876. I have the honor to address to you a few remarks on a matter which affects myself in relation to certain land transactions which formed the subject of an inquiry before a Committee of the House of Representatives during last Session of the Assembly, and in which it appears to me there has been on the part of the Committee, or at all events some of its members, quite a misunderstanding as to the true position I held in the matter, and as to the facts of the case as far as I am personally concerned; and, with all due respect, I think that, as my name was so freely made use of, and that not at all times in a manner very favourable to myself, it would have only been reasonable fair-play that I should have had an opportunity of appearing before that Committee before it came to any conclusion on the subject, more particularly as my name is mentioned in their report. I have not until a day or two ago perused either the report or the evidence attached to it of the Tairua Investigation Committee, for I was not aware until a short time back that there was anything contained in it which in any way reflected on me ; and, being in my own mind unaware of having done anything improper, it did not interest me to look into the matter. It is therefore with the object of giving you information as to my true position in those matters, in order that you may, if opportunity should offer, be able to state what the facts were, that I now address you, as well as with a feeling that, holding as I do the very responsible and trustworthy appointment of Land Purchase Agent in the Government service, it is due to myself, and to you as the chief of the department in which I serve, that I should distinctly state the facts, and set at rest any doubts which may be in the minds of either the Government or the public by what appears in the proceedings before the Committee, before which I had not the opportunity of appearing, or the knowledge that there was any necessity for my asking to be permitted to appear. With respect to the purchase of the Tairua Block by the Government, it is stated in the report of the Tairua Investigation Committee, —" It was one of several blocks reported on by Mr. Preece, in respect of which the recommendation required by the Immigration and Public Works Amendment Act had been made by provincial authorities ;" and in page 41 of the minutes of evidence, question 883, I notice the Chairman asks yourself, " Did Mr. Preece in his letter in any other way inform you that he was to be made principal owner of the 36,000 acres in the Tairua Block r" to which you answered in the negative ; which is followed by another question by the Chairman, supplemented by an explanation of the meaning of the question, which shows that he was under the impression that I had been guilty of advising the Government to purchase this land for the purpose of benefiting myself in some way or other. The question is as follows, namely, —" No. 884. Then the whole of this negotiation went on on the recommendation of the very man who was to get the advantage of it ? What I mean is this : Mr. Preece, in conjunction with Mr. Graham, was to get from Mr. Mackay the timber on the block of 36,000 acres for ninety-nine years. Now, he is the writer of a letter to the Government hurrying it on; and on the recommendation of that person the whole thing takes place." With regard to the recommendation to the Governmnnt to purchase the land, I am not aware of ever having made any recommendation to the Government to purchase the 36,000-acre block at Tairua, or any other block that I am aware of, excepting that at some time before the survey of the Tairua Block my firm (Preece and Graham) wrote a letter to the Superintendent offering our services in the acquisition of land for the Government, and suggested the purchase of a portion of land at Tairua, on which there is no timber. Nothing came of this, as the whole Thames District was shortly afterwards