CONTRADICTION TO THE "BEST AUTHORITY."

Thames Star, Volume VI, Issue 1857, 15 December 1874, Page 2

CONTRADICTION TO THE "BEST AUTHORITY."

(To the Editor of the Evening Star.)

Sib,—ln reply to your communication of this date,'as to whether Te Moananui told me that Dixon had written the letter in which I am described as " a reptile crawling in the grass," I beg to inform you that Te Moananui did tell me so on the verandah of Mr. W. H. Taipari's, house on Friday last. He came to shake hands with me, and I said, "I am ustonishe(i at your wishing to shake hands with the' nakahii " We had a laugh over it, and he said it was not written by him, but by that Fakeha. I said, " Who- do you mean ? " He replied, two or three times, " Yojj know, that Fakeha;" as if he had forgotf&f; the name. Is ugges ted Dixon. He said yes, it was Dixon. There were several Europeans and present who heard this conversation, and three or four of the former spoke to me about it, which is probably the source from which you derived the information. I subsequently heard that Dixon suggested the word? "a snake crawling in,the grass," and commenced to write the letter, but was unable to complete it, and a Native named Kanapia then "wrote it in the large room of Mr Fuckey's office. Te Moananui this morning reiterated the statement that Dixon suggested the phrase and proceeded to write the letter, and I understood him also to wish me to believe

"that it was written by Ranapia, Dixon i being present and dictating it. I do not ■ think Mr Puckey has in the slightest < degree anything to do with the letter. The Natives are in the habit of writing letters in the large room of Mr Puckey'a office, and the same in^nine—they prefer , doing so to being disturbed in the public house ban. The only person to whom any blame attaches is JDixon. If it were not for your letter I should have taken no notice of the matter.—l am, &c, ; Jambs Maciat, Jun. Shortland; Tuesday.