a.—6a

2

taken under the Equitable Owners Act, 1886, or under Part V of the Native Land Act, 1909, to ascertain who were the beneficial owners. A large part of the island was sold in 1870 by Wiremu Wharepa and Toenga te Poki with the consent of the other grantees, but Remihana Tapae received no part of the purchase-money. The question of relative shares was gone into very fully in 1898, and the Court awarded to Remihana Tapae 2,200 acres and partitioned off for him Rangiauria 4a (Chatham Islands Minute-book 2, p. 130). Remihana Tapae appeared in Court later and asked that his sister Unaiki and his nephew Wi Tamihana (who is one and the same as Hapua Hutana, the present petitioner) should be included along with him in the title for Rangiauria 4a. The Court, however, informed Remihana that it had no power to import new names into the title, and advised him -to consult a solicitor with a view to conveying a part of the land to his nephew and sister (Chatham Islands Minute-book 2, p. .139). Nothing seems to have been done. Unaiki died without issue, and the only remaining member of the family—Hapua Hutana, alias Wi Tamihana —was recognized by Remihana as being entitled to one-half of Rangiauria 4a, and he has occupied the western half of the block up to the time of his death, on the 17th September, 1926. The petitioner has passed away, therefore, since he lodged the petition to Parliament, leaving two children, Pohe Hapua (m.a.) and Whiurangi Hapua (f.a.), and it seems clear that these two are entitled to the western half of Rangiauria 4a. 1 At' least two of the children of Remihana (who' is now deceased), Hireke and Ngipera : , agree'to Such inclusion and recognize the justice of the petitioner's claim. The following whakapapa shows the family relationship :- 1 - Patukumikumi (a Ngati-Mutunga conqueror) i Ngapera = Tapae i ] i i i i Ngaki Pinikera Unaiki Hapua Remihana (d.) (d.) (d.) No issue No issue No issue I ' Hapua Hutana (Wi Tamihana) I i - i Pohe Whiurangi .i"IlI I " - i Kauri Hireke Taurewa Ko Ngawha Ngapera. (d.) No issue M. Gilfedder, Judge.

Approximate Cost of Paper.—Preparation, not given; printing (450 copies), £2 58.

By Authority: W. A. G. Skinner, Government Printer, Wellington.—l 929.

I'rict 3d.]