G.—s

ment. The difficulties, so far as the Waimate Plains were concerned, appeared to have completely vanished, and, if anything more was wanted to prove that they had, it was found in the successful sale and occupation of the whole of the open lands, which followed almost immediately afterwards. In illustration of the manner in which the continuous reserve and others in the Waimate Plains have heen dealt with, I append a map prepared by Captain Skeet, Chief Surveyor to the Commission, and freely circulated among the Natives, accompanied by a paniiitanga, or notice, in the Maori language, explaining the course of action taken by me in reference to the adjustment of the reserves on the coast. I took copies of both to the chief Titokowaru myself, and explained them to him, and he appeared fully to understand and approve them. The map exhibits not only the continuous reserve, but reserves made for Hone Pihama, for his hapu the Ngatitamaahuroa, for Manaia, and a number of fishing-stations and minor cultivations. The accomplishment of these practical operations very much diminished the difficulty of the work I had before me, and enabled me at once to undertake, what the Natives south of Waingongoro had so often asked should be done for them, the better definition and subdivision of their reserves among the several hapus, and the consequent issue of Crown grants which had been so long delayed, and the non-issue of which had been the source of much irritation. The separation of the West Coast Land District from the Taranaki Land District, and the nature of the work to be done, rendered it necessary to have a survey staff under my own control, and for that purpose I selected as Chief Surveyor, Captain Skeet, who had had great experience of survey work among Natives, and had, as a member of the Taranaki Survey Department, been employed on the work lately effected on the Waimate Plains under Major Parris. My office having no records or plans, some time was necessarily occupied in preparing them, which, with the co-opera-tion of Mr Humphries, Chief Surveyor of Taranaki, was however soon effected, and more attention was then able to be given to the practical field work required in the survey of boundaries and svibdivision of reserves. Some of these have been in exceedingly rough bush country, but I have no reason to be dissatisfied with the progress made, for particulars of which I beg to refer your Excellency to two reports from Captain Skeet, appended. lam glad to state that he has met with cordial co-operation from the Natives, which, a year or two ago, he would not probably have experienced. The surveys of the whole of the reserves from the Ouri Kiver, including those on the Waimate Plains, have been completed either since I went to the district, or previously in the course of the sectional surveys, under Major Parris, with which they were intermixed, and the same applies, to a great extent, to the external boundaries of the reserves south of Waingongoro. But the subdivision of the larger ones, and the outside boundaries of some of them, require a good deal of work, which, however, is now far advanced. While this has been going on, I have, with the assistance of Major Parris, after interviews with the local Natives, got the names of the individuals of every hapu to which I propose to recommend or have recommended separate grants, which, being indorsed on or included in the grants, will remove a ground of dissatisfaction which has frequently existed elsewhere, affecting the subdivision of rents when the lands may be leased to European tenants. There is still a good deal of this Avork to be done, but, with co-operation of the Natives, there is no difficulty in it. And, as I have had frequent interviews and satisfactory discussions on the subject with every group of Natives concerned between Ouri and Waitotara, I anticipate no impediment to the early completion of the transactions, beyond the inevitable delay caused by the execution of surveys where they are necessary I append a list of grants already issued or recommended by me, or in transition between the offices. I held a formal sitting at Opunake for the purpose of hearing some special claims there, but more particularly to endeavour to ascertain the feelings of the Natives who are entitled to that block on the subject of its subdivision, and its being Crown-granted or otherwise technically removed from the effect of confiscation under the circumstances mentioned in the report of last year. The feeling of those present, including Wiremu Kingi Matakatea, the principal chief oj;

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