Auckland Jan. 6th 59 Dear McLean, First and foremost let me wish you a - I hoped we should have had you back before its advent so that my good wishes might have been spoken instead of written - Not a line from you since you left Hemi Tautari tells me you were at Hokianga when last heard of - I hope you are succeeding in disentangling or cutting through some of the knotty points belonging to the old claims - The Provincial Govt. are openmouthed for more land to satisfy the expected immigrants - Daldy and Porter have been urging upon H.E. the necessity of meeting the wants of the land buyers by allowing individual purchase or something tantamount to it, they express dissent from the views of the Ministry with respect to the Nat.Territorial Rights Act and would give the Govr. the indpendent discretion in issuing Crown Grants to Natives. The Gov. inclines to a trial of some system of the kind proposed by Daldy, within districts to be defined for the purpose - The Austrians have been enlivening us during the past fornight - the geologist and botanist of the Scientific Corps have visited the coal districts and report favorably - a report was in town yesterday that coal had been found on the Waitemata -''needs confirmation'' Dr.Scherzer the Ethnographer and head of the scientific expedition is anxious to take natives of New Zealand to Austria - Wm.Toetoe is anxious to go and will be accompanied by three or four young men of his tribe - they are to ship on board the ''Novara'' as sailors - to get about £1 per month with liberty to leave the service on the return of the ship to Europe -Conditions have been drawn up which are to be signed by the Commodore and the natives today - I wished to stipulate for the natives being sent back at the expense of the Austrian Govt. in the event of their wishing to return after a certain term of service - but this the Commodore would not pledge himself to - Dr. Scherzer, however, promises to take every care of them and to present them to the Archduke the Emperor's brother, on their arrival, and thinks it most probable they will enter his household and become great lions - W.Toetoe's moko is to make his fortune I have sought neither to persuade nor dissuade - confining myself to putting the proposal before them as clearly as possible and to make them understand that they must act on their own responsibility in the matter - The native witnesses in the case of Reg. v.Fox of Turanga have come Up and are being cared for they are occupying a tent behind the Guard room and are supplied with rations by the Sergeant of Police at the expense of the Province - The Session opens on the 12th inst. - Wiremu Te Ahoaho is in town and is waiting to see the Govr. and yourself - he will return by the steamer to Taranaki - He states that the Waikato Chiefs of the King party propose to insist on peace being made between W.King and Ihaia - That if they succeed the land is to be handed over to the ''runanga'' - that if peace is brought about through the intervention of the Chiefs who are on the side of the Govt. the land is to be sold - Halse reports the sudden death of Hone Ropiha Moke - No word of Rogan since he left - Drummond Hay's services are, I presume, in requisition by the Austrian officers - he has scarcely been in the office since the ''Novara'' arrived - Friend has been keeping at home with his lame foot - here some four or five timessince you left - Baker laid up the last three days - Steady going Monro always in his place and at work - Preece reports the offer of a fresh block at Coromandel but gives no particulars. Last but not least - I have seen Mrs.Gascoygne and MrsMcLean several times - Douglas was here with the former this morning and looking very well - The White Swan -looked for daily - no news stirring - I send you 8 private letters The ''Novara'' is to go to White Island some of her party will probably visit Rotorua - A chance for you to go down to Bay of Plenty in a man of war if you were here - Adieu - mail closing Yours sincerely T.H.Smith