G.— 6g

1922. NEW ZEALAND.

NATIVE LAND AMENDMENT AND NATIVE LAND CLAIMS ADJUSTMENT ACT, 1919. REPORT AND RECOMMENDATION ON PETITION No. 203/1919, RELATIVE TO THE ADOPTION OF NGAWHAREWITI TIWAI AND OTHERS.

Presented to Parliament in pursuance of' Section 34 of the Native Land Amendment and Native Land Claims Adjustment Act, 1919.

Gisborne, 22nd September, 1922. Petition 293/1919, re Ngamoni Ngawharewiti (deceased) and Alleged Adoption of Ngawharewiti Tiwai and Others. HeeBWITH I forward report of the Native Appellate Court hereon for transmission to the Native Minister. Report is in triplicate. The Under-Secretary, Native Department, Wellington. W. E. Rawson, Judge. Hon. Native Minister. The report is to be presented to Parliament. sth October, 1922. R. N. Jones, Under-Secretary.

In the matter of section 32 of the Native Land Amendment and Native Land Claims Adjustment Act, 1921-22, and of Petition No. 293 of 1919, of Ngawharewiti Tiwai and others, regarding the adoption of certain children by Ngamoni Ngawharewiti (now deceased). To the Hon. the Native Minister, Wellington. Report and Recommendation of the Native Appellate Court. An empowered and directed by the said section, the Native Appellate Court sitting at Wellington on the, 28th August last inquired into the claims and allegations made in the said petition, and now submits the following report and'recommendation as to the alleged adoption by Ngamoni Ngawharewiti (now deceased) of the three children Ngawharewiti Tiwai, Te Manu Tiwai, and Ngamoni te Waari. According to Ngamoni's own statement before the Native Land Court at the Chathanis in 1907, the two first-named children had been adopted by her mother, Paranihi to Ringa, who had died on the 26th January of that year. That adoption gave no right to share in the succession to the mother's lands, as it had not been registered in the Native Land Court as required by section 50 of the Native Land Claims Adjustment and Laws Amendment Act, 1901. It was only natural that Ngamoni should desire to provide for these two, who had boon brought up in her own home, and whom she would regard as her own foster-brothers, and this was the object of her application to have their adoption by herself registered. She informed that Court (which was placing her evidence on record for use when a formal application was brought before, a future Court) as follows : " I desire to adopt those three children, and wish them to succeed to my lands after my death as though they were my own children. I say that two of them were previously adopted by my mother, and I wish to adopt those three children so that they may succeed to my father's land. It is true that the children I am adopting are related to mc on my mother's side, but I claim I have the right to dispose of my father's lands as I may think proper. [To Court.] My desire to adopt these children began in the past and has continued to the present time. It was not through any ill-feeling towards relatives on either side that I desired to adopt them."