A.—B.

Land taken for Road at Mangaia, Cook Islands. ■■ : :■■■■■■- ■■ - . Plunk ex, Governor. Whereas the land mentioned in the Schedule hereto is required to be taken under " The Cook and other Islands Government Act Amendment Act, 1904," for certain public work, to wit, for a road between the settlements of Oneroa and Tamarua, in the Island of Mangaia, Cook Islands: Now, therefore, I, William Lee, Baron Plunket, the Governor of the Colony of New Zealand, in exercise and pursuance of the powers and authorities in me vested by the said Act, and. of every other power and authority in any wise enabling me in this behalf, do hereby notify that on the date of the publication hereof in the Cook Islands Gazette the land mentioned in the Schedule hereto is hereby taken for the purpose of a public road. Schedule. All that piece of land in the Island of Mangaia, 10 meters wide, starting from the concrete block numbered I at the junction of the Makatea Road with the Main Coast Road at the settlement of Oneroa; thence southerly, 1847-2 meters; thence south-easterly, 1007 meters; southerly, 187-5 meters; south-easterly, 6322 meters; easterly, 132*9 meters; south-easterly, 227 meters; easterly, 95-6 meters; south-easterly, 17229 meters; easterly, 19278 meters; north-westerly, 57"4 meters; westerly, 83 meters; northerly, 134 meters; easterly, 388 meters, to the concrete block numbered 17 at the settlement of Tamarua. Area 7 - 5 hectars, more, or less. The said land is more particularly delineated in the plan deposited in the office of the Cook and other Islands Land Titles Court at Avarua, Rarotonga. A copy of the said plan is also deposited in the office of the Resident Agent at Mangaia. As witness the hand of His Excellency the Governor, this 27th day of August, 1905. C. H. Mills.

No. 53. g IRj Cook and other Islands Administration, Wellington, 29th August, 1905. I have to thank you for your letter of the 25th instant, with reference to establishing a fortnightly steamer-service between New Zealand and the Cook Islands. I regret that your company cannot see its way to undertake such a service until the produce for export from the islands is much more extensive; but lam grateful for the offer you are prepared to make in order to induce people to visit the Cook Islands for temporary residence, by granting return tickets at single fares. As showing how rapidly the fruit trade in the Group is expanding I enclose an extract trom a letter I received recently from a committee of planters at Rarotonga, and the opinions they express as to the capabilities of the islands for an almost unlimited production are entirely indorsed by the Resident Commissioner. . _ r . ... - As you are aware, the shipments of fruit from the Cook Islands, after arrival in Auckland, often, through no fault of your company, miss the steamer coming south, and when they reach Wellington they are frequently too far gone for distribution further south. This means a great loss to the shippers and disappointment to the consumers in the South Island, who have to pay dearly for their fruit. lam of opinion that if we could have a monthly steamer between Wellington and the islands in addition to the present service, the consumption of oranges, bananas, &c, would very soon be quadrupled, and the passenger traffic would prove to be far greater than is generally contemplated. I have The Managing Director, l>• "-■ mills. Union Steamship Company of New Zealand (Limited), Dunedin.

No. 51

No. 54. g lß .__- ... Cook and other i s i an( i s Administration, Wellington, 30th August, 1905. I enclose for your information a copy of a letter received from the managing director of the Union Steamship Company on the subject of * fortnightly steamer-service between New Zealand "and the Cook Islands. I enclose also a copy of my reply. -■:• I shall be glad to hear your views on the company's letter, particularly as to paragraph o, as Twould like to be able to assure the company that we will fall in with any action they may take in "the directions indicated in their letter as soon as they are in a position to move The concession promised as to passenger-fares is an important one, and will no doubt be justified by results; but the question of a fortnightly service will be determined principally, if not entirely, by the amount of : cargo that can be promised in addition to the present output. » -: - The Resident Commissioner, Rarotonga. C H. Mills.

Enclosures. See Nos. 51 and 53.

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