impossible for me to persuade this people to alienate any more land to the Government. It would only be troubling you were I to relate some of my experience in the system of old land purchases and as for the penny an acre proclamation, it never reached so far South as Taranaki. The Manawatu purchase was, as a Maori at Otaki related it to me, the climax of all land purchases, when, it is said that, Mr. Buller and Dr. Featherstone drove in a dog cart to Rangitikei spilled £25,000 out to be scrambled for and left the settlement. With regard to the past working of the present law, I believe I have already expressed an opinion to the effect that the Native Lands Act 1865 was favourably received by the Natives and the working of this Act was satisfactory to these natives who were interested in and attended the Courts over which I presided, whether it was because it was translated into Maori or its mere novelty I cannot say but it is certain that the subsequent Acts and Amendments, which to a very large extent allows every one to give his own translation to the Maori, who has no means of testing their accuracy, has caused