9

G.—4c

Jones, who said that he would, be his share towards the steamer. I took his word for it that he had means to do so. I said if we could get Holmes to take half share in the steamer the expense would not be to us above £800, and asked if he could manage that. He said, "Yes, decidedly." I did arrange with Holmes on those terms; and on their assurance that the cost to us would not be above £700 the steamer was built and brought round the North Cape to the Manukau, and at the request of Messrs. Holmes my son went up to Manukau to pilot her into Mokau Eiver. When the boat was nearly finished I received a letter from Messrs. Holmes, telling me that they wanted £700 from me. Mr. Jones was then at New Plymouth. A few days afterwards he came down to Mokau, and I showed him. Holmes's letter, and asked him to give me a cheque for £700 as he had promised. It had been previously arranged between us that Jones was to find all the money for the steamer, and 1 was to find money to carry on a store. Jones said he had not got seven hundred pence. I told him it was very hard he should have led me astray like that, as I had passed my word to Messrs. Holmes for the money. He said they could go to hell and wait for their money. I could get no money from him. I was so much put about that I had very little further conversation with him. The steamer was brought down, and ran for some time between Manukau and Mokau; and, so far as I know, the Holrnes's were never paid for it. It was about six years ago that Jones first came to live at Mokau — that was after he had obtained his present lease. Jones had not told me that he was going to get that lease prepared. Ho said nothing to me about it until afterwards, when he said he had got a lease of the land, and would have me out of it. I was present outside the whare when the document was signed, which Jones claims as a lease. I had heard from the Natives that they were going to give Jones permission to work the coal and lime; they said nothing about the timber or about any lease of the land. The document that was signed in Captain Messenger's presence I suppose related only to the coal and lime. Heromia, who is a leading man at Mokau, distinctly told me on the morning of the signing of the document that the Natives were only going to give Jones permission to work the coal and lime for a certain time until the money was enough to pay the cost of surveying and of putting through the Land Court the Poutama Block, and that Jones would then have to get a fresh arrangement. I did not hear Mr. Grace explain the deed to them. Had I known that the agreement was a lease of the land I should have protested against it on account of the agreement in which I was interested. After the Natives had signed Jones's lease, Captain Messenger asked me if I knew that my name was not in it. I said, from what I had heard, I believed it was not; but that Heremia had told me that he would make.it right for me. I was not at that time on speaking terms with Jones. I had my suspicions that what was going on was no good for me. I should explain that, after Jones had given instructions to Mr. Standish to prepare a lease, I was told by Mr. Holmes that Jones was getting a new deed drawn up in his own name. Mr. Holmes had by that time come to reside at Waitara. I went up to New Plymouth to ,see Mr. Standish, and know the truth of it. He admitted that Jones had given instructions to have a new deed prepared. I saw the original agreement at that time on the table, and called Mr. Staudish's attention to it. He had his elbow on it at the time. He said that Jones was a better business-man than I was. I said, "If you call that brotherly love, I have done with it." This took place in Mr. Standish's own office in New Plymouth. I used those words on account of our both being Freemasons. Mr. Standish must have understood that I was protesting against the new deed. I did not go inside the whare w 7hile it was being signed, so I cannot say what took place. After the deed was signed. I heard Mr. Grace ask the name of the boundary. He asked Heremia, who was sitting just inside the whare. Jones jumped up and said " Totara." I presumed he meant Totoro. Heromia jumped up and came to me outside the whare ; he said, " This is a bad man ; he is stealing the land from under my feet. Do you know any way by which he can be stopped? " I said, " You did not ask my advice when you were taking the land away from me; now you can go and talk to Captain Messenger and see what he says." He did so, and Captain Messenger told him in my presence that if Jones was doing anything that was not right, he should write to the Judge of the Trust Court not to pass anything until the Natives were all agreeable.- Captain Messenger was stopping at my house at the time, and in the evening he asked me if I was aware that my name was not in the new deed. I told him from what I had heard from the Natives I had believed not; but that I had Heremia's word for it that it would be all right. This was all that took place with reference to the signing of the deed. I have heard that the boundary was altered from Totoro to Panirau ; but I know nothing of it myself. I have remained at Mokau ever since, and am still living there ; but in consequence of molestation by Jones, and of actual violence, I have removed to the other side of the Mokau Eiver. Jones is a much younger man than I am. Jones has been living at Mokau for about six years. He lives in a raupo wharf! nearly a quarter of a mile from the beach. He has only a small gardenperhaps a quarter of an acre ; no other cultivation of any sort. I know the place where the coal is on the south bank of the Mokau Eiver. Three or four years ago Jones made arrangement for working the coal. There were some three or four men employed, who got out a few tons of coal. There was no shoot erected or any permanent work done. The men were working at it perhaps for two or three weeks. As soon as Heremia heard of it he came with his people and threw the coal into the river. The people who were working there then left, and nothing has been done there since. After that he had two men there getting limestone. They got a few tons, which was nevertaken away. There is a mineral-spring on the south bank of the river, nearly opposite Totoro, and another, also on the south bank, at Mangapohue, a long way down the river. The last-mentioned spring, which is called by the Natives Waipirau, is about fourteen miles in a straight line from the mouth of the river ; and that was the point which was intended in the original agreement. It is 2,-G. 4c.