G.—l3

4

Payments made to Waata Tipa by Mr. W. Moon. 1884.—4th April, To cash, J. P. Thomson's cheque (private account), £10; 10th May, To cash, W. Moon, £20 ; 12th November, To cash, W. Moon, £25. By refund made by Tipa, £10 and £20. To balance due, £25.

Copies of Beceipts. Ngaruawahia, 12 Noema, 1884. Eeceived from Mr. Wm. Moon the sum of twenty-five pounds, cash lent. 12th November, 1884. Waata Tii>a. Kihikihi, 10 May, 1884. Kua whakaputaina mai e te Munu (Wm. Moon) ki au inaianei tenei moni erua tekau pauna he nama naku kia te Munu makue whakahoki ki a ia £20. W taata Tipa (over duty-stamp). Translation of the above. —Has been issued to me by Mr. Moon now this money, twenty pounds, a debt of mine to Mr. Moon. I will repay it to him—£2o. Waata Tipa (over stamp).

Deak Sir, — Cambridge, 28th November, 1885. I have made diligent inquiry as to the dates of repayment of the sums of £10 and £20 paid to Waata Tipa. I enclose you a letter from Mr. Thomson, who was alluded to by Mr. Moon, which refers to the £10. Eepayment of the £20 seems to have been made direct to Mr. Moon ; but I will forward you further particulars in a day or two —say Wednesday. I regret the delay which has taken place, and which I have been unable to avoid. I have, &c, Seth Smith, Esq., Commissioner, Auckland. F. A. Whitakeb.

Cambridge, 28th November, 1885. Ee Waata Tipa Case. —I have to state that in April, 1884, at the request of Mr. William Moon, I gave Waata Tipa, Native Assessor, the sum of £10, as a loan. About ton days or a fortnight after Waata Tipa called at my office and paid ma the amount, stating that he did not require it, on account of his not having gone to the Thames to see his wife, as he had intended. F. A. Whitaker, Esq., Solicitor, Cambridge. James P. Thomson.

Inquiey held at the District Courthouse, Auckland, on Tuesday, the 22nd December, 1885, at half-past ten o'clock. Present: H. G. Seth Smith, Commissioner; H. F. Edger, clerk; and H. H. Lawry, interpreter. Also Dr. Buller, J. M. Fraser, Major Jackson, and Pomare Kingi. The Commissioner read extract from the Commission appointing him to inquire into the charge of a bribe of £25 having been paid to Pomare Kingi on the rehearing of the Eangipo case at Upokongaro. At the request of Mr. Fraser the Commissioner read the evidence given by Dr. Buller before the Native Affairs Committee, which was interpreted to Pomare Kingi. Mr. John King, as one of the executors of the late John Sheehan, was present at the opening of the inquiry, but stated to the Commissioner that in the opinion of himself and his co-executor it would serve no good purpose his remaining. He would therefore retire. Dr. Buller requested that the correspondence which followed might also be read. [Letter read from Dr. Buller to the Native Minister, dated January, 1884, enclosing correspondence between himself and Mr. Fraser.] Dr. Buller stated that he wished it to be understood that he was not desirous that any inquiry should be held in this matter now that Mr. Sheehan was dead. Mr. Fraser said he had been asked by the Government to go on with his petition for an inquiry, but he had refused to do so on the ground that Mr. Sheehan was now dead, and he would not cast a slur on Mr. Sheehan's character now that he was no longer able to defend himself. Pomare Kingi said it was not true that he had received a bribe of £25, nor that Mr. Fraser had been to Whangarei to see him on the subject. John Munro Fraser (sworn): My name is John Munro Fraser. Before giving evidence I desire to say that I have not asked the Government to grant this inquiry ; that I have been asked by the Government to petition for an inquiry, by letter, and also verbally, but I have refused to do so because of the death of Mr. Sheehan, and his mouth is closed. I told Messrs. Buller, Jackson, and Searancke, at Cambridge, and no one else, and in the presence of no other person, except, perhaps, Dr. Buller's son, that when I was in the employment of Mr. Sheehan, at Upokongaro, in March, 1882, Pomare Kingi came to me and said there was a horse he was anxious to get, which would cost £25; that he had not the money, and would I ask Mr. Sheehan to give it him. I said I knew Mr. Sheehan had not the money. Mr. Sheehan was at Wanganuithat day. Pomare pressed me to ask for it. I wont to Wanganui that evening and repeated to Mr. Sheehan the conversation I had with Pomare. Mr. Sheehan said, "We must get the money for Pomare." We got it from Mr. Moorhouse. I paid the cheque into the bank to Mr. Sheehan's credit, and Mr. Sheehan gave a cheque for the £25. Mr. Sheehan told me to write out a receipt for the money as a loan. I looked upon it in that light at that time. The money was paid to Pomare. He got the horse. Shortly after judgment was given in the Eangipo case, on Easter Monday, 1882, Pomare came from Upokongaro to Wanganui. Mr. Sheehan asked me for the receipt. Pomare and Sheehan were in the lower room in the Eutland Hotel. Sheehan took the receipt and tore it up. This is the whole statement I made at Cambridge. With reference to my replies to Dr. Buller of the 11th September and the 24th September, 1883, I wish to say that they were based on Dr. Buller's letter to me, dated August, 1883. The evidence given by Dr. Buller was not then in my possession ; had it been, I could not have stated its correctness so positively.