indeed he has done so during the last week, when some of the Natives and himself had a dispute through their cattle running over the unfenced land where he has sown his wheat. I hope however we shall be able to keep them quiet. Pohainui is still sulky. Katatori holds out, but I shall persevere in my attempts to win him over; he tells me (he has been at my house once since you left) that his present opposition was occasioned by the manner in which we were compelled to leave the land at "Te ika moana". I have commenced giving dinner to the assessors (don't think me acting the Bon vivant, for I confine myself to the Old English fare of Roast Beef and Plum Pudding). Mr. Cooper was so good as to meet E Ropihia and Rawiti on Wednesday and Dr. Wilson who took his dinner with us seemed very much to enjoy the good behaviour of our Maori guests. I trust that some good may be done by paying this little attention to those Natives whom His Excellency the Governor has been pleased to invest with some authority, I shall endeavour to avoid any jealousy amongst them as guests, a pair every month in rotation. On Saturday last Mr. Harrison who used to live near you at the Henui before he went to Omata, told me that some time since, his oxen broke into an enclosure of the Natives and damaged a wheat rick, for which they came to him for payment, demanding 25/-. He objected to pay that sum but agreed to leave the matter to Te Ngahuru The parties went to him. He inquired very minutely into the particulars of the matter, found that the Natives had calculated the amount of damage on the number of sheaves pulled out, but that they had not allowed for a number amounting to one half which being uninjured they had put back again into the rick. He therefore assessed the amount at 12/6 which Harrison at once paid. Harrison also named another case in which he had employed some natives to cut down some bush for which he was to pay them £6-2-6. The work did not go on well, and he applied to Te Ngahuru