NATIVE QUESTIONS DISCUSSED.

Waikato Times, Volume XXVI, Issue 2106, 7 January 1886, Page 3

NATIVE QUESTIONS DISCUSSED.

TliK following icport of a meeting of the Native Committee for the diariict of Kawhia, at Te Kopua, on the Ist. December has been piinted (in (he native language) foi tit dilation and will be read with interest :—: — Member* present •--John Ormsliy (chairman), Whaaro, Ngakuru, Te Para, Matakit.iki, To Paetai. Tlie Chairman : Tiiu follow ing subjects will bo submitted fwi the eon-idei 'turn of this meeting. The Witive Lands Court, pi ice of tmihor, lo.ises, gold piospecting, -.'lt* ot lands, u>al mining, limestone, grim I 'oil gates, establishment of stores and butchers -hops, pi ices of cattle, hor-e*", pit,*-, wlic.it. oat-, uud potatoes. Whaoro : lam not willing that our block should be submitted to be de.dt w ith by the Native Land-* Couit, but am in favour of all claim* inside the boundaiy being dealt with by the committee. Te Paia : I second that motion. Ngakmu: I piopose that thejb'mtidHiy line be submitted to the Native Land Court, because vi.my yeai.s have elapsed since we agieed that the committee .should deal with it, and as yet, nothing ha,s been done in the matter, and even this day thcie is no sign of that resolution being earned out, and, theiefore I piopose that the ti\iug of the boundaiy lino be left to tho Native Land Conit. and that everything inside be left to the management oi the committee. The Chairman : I second Ngakuru's motion. The motion that the buundan lineiTe lluhe Potae) be submitted to tlie Native Lands Court was then put to the committee. Ayi*, Xtjakurn and John Oimsloy. Nofs, Whaiuo, Te F.ira and Mat.iketake. Whaoro 's motion was caried. R()>.\M'\ OX TIMUKH.- Ml Wllsull, (in. yerniueut engineer f«n the lailwav, furnished the committee u ith such iufoi mation as he possessed as to the loyalty chaigud on various kinds of timber in other places. Ngakmu : I propo.-e that the price of trees, whether standing 01 fallen, good or bad, large or small, shall be as follow. : — niatai (each), 64; maire, £4; limn, £4 ; kaiiikatea, £4 ; totaia, £•"> : tawai, 61 10s ; toatoa, £1 10s; Miio. 10s, and other timber as agreed. A long discussion eiiMial at> to the royalty to be charged on timber, when the committee adjourned until tlie following moming, Wednesday, 2nd .December. The Chairman moved an amendment to Ngaluuu's motion, as follows :— For totara (each), £3; matai, £1 10- ; nmu, £1 10s ; kaiiikatea, £1 10s ; tawai, £1 10s ; toatoa, £1 10s. The royalty on mho, rata, hinau, mnngeo, and kohekohe, when u-ed for any of the following purpose*, post-, rails, houseblocks, or biidgc-building, to be determined by the size of the tiees, the price to be from 10s downwards. The royalty to be charged on rata, miro, hinau, kohekohe and mangeo, fallen in or taken from waerenga's (i.e., bush dealing-, for cultivations) according to agreement as to the falling of timber on such waeienga's, always providing that such agreement shall not affect tho pi ice of the fhst si\ tree* above-mentioned thuchaigesfor which have been definitely settled. Firewood, Is per ton. The price.* abo.e-mentioned shall be in force over both Maoris and European* during the pleasure of the c immittec, or until such time a8 tho railway lino from Puniu to the Kerenga o Toakohuru shall be completed, and shall only apply to timber used for railway purposes or other woiks connected with the railway within the Rohrpotae. Aftei a long discussion, Xcrakuru withdrew his motion, and the chairman's amendment was passed unanimously by the committee. 3. Shall Te Poro n-tarao be leased, or not. Pioposed-by Ngakuru and seconded by Whaoro, That Poro-o-tarao be leased to the man who is excavating the tunnel. The Chairman : I wish Ngaknru to w ithdraw his motion, because. Tho Native Lands Amendment Act 18S3 piovides that no lands shall be sold, leaded, or otherwise dealt with, before all claims to the said landsshall have been considei cd. There fore, I propose that we carefully consider this matter in order that we may find some way of authorising the Europeans to reside at Poro-o-tarao. Ngakuru, and the committee consenting the resolution was then withdrawn. 4 Sale of Laxds. — Ngakuru : Owing to there being no authority to sell or lease any land before it has been passed through the court we have nothing to say on th.it subject. All that is left for us t-> consider, i j the lands which are being taken by the Government for the Public Works of the colony, nnd the damage which is being done to grass land cultivations and other places through the nfoiesaid works, and in con sequence of the doubts and unensines felt by the persons from whom land has been taken, or damaged, I propose that the (Government be requested to appoint some person between now and the end of January, 1880, to act with the committee, on their behalf, for the puipose of settling the \alue of tho lands which have been taken or damaged. — Agreed to. 5. Coal Mixing.— Xgakuru : This subject comes under the law which prohibits the sale or lease of lands prior to their being passed through the court. I propose, therefore, that this matter be allowed to stand over till we discover gome way of dealing with it. b". Golo Prospecting.— The Chairman : I have something to ?.ay in reference to tbi** matter, and I speak with reluctance of what I know about it. . Some of our friends outside of the committee object to gold being searched for before their claims to the land have been settled, and the law supports these people m their objection. But the people are not unanimous in the matter, and some of them have suneptitiously consented to prospecting for gold, and Europeans sire thereby eiic<mr«j»ea to persevere in tlieii attempts to prospect in seciet, and to evade the laws which have passed to deal with such people. It is not now for the lir.st time that we hear that there is plenty of gold in our district, and we have vainly en deayoured to prevent people fiom seaiching for it, even dming the time that our district was strictly closed against Europeans. And now, when the coiintiy has been thrown open to Europeans who wish to see the land to survey, and for navvy work, is it possible to prevent prospecting? How are we to know that these people are behaving properly, and that they are not prospecting for gold? In order to illustrate my meaning I w ill tell you something that occurred to me. I met a European on the road, and during our convei\sati >n ho told me that his reason for coming trom Hauruki to work on the railway line was to get near where he could go prospecting for gold. Now, if there is gold in ourdi«tiict, it is not right that it should be neglected, and even if there should not be any, it is only right that it should be sought for, so as to set our hopes and doubts at rest. My word" is this, let the gold be searched for under the following conditions : — 1. That the committee stmll select some persons from the tiibes under its jurisdiction to prospect for gold within the Rohe Potae. 2. That the committee lequest the Government to appoint some thoroughly experienced men to accompany the natives, and that the men so appointed by the Government shall be tnwtwoithy and truthful, and men of good reputation, upon whom the committee can rely. 3. And that if gold is discovered the committee shall have full control over it, This proposition being seconded by Ngakuru was, after a long discussion, finally agreed to by the committee. 7. Limestone ano Gr w ki, in the Creeks. —The Chairman : I propose that the con-« sidoration of these subjects be adjourned till the next meeting of the committee. Agreed to. 8. Establishment or Storks and BUTCHERIES INSIDE THE ROHE POTAE.— Proposed by Ngakuru and seconded by Paitai : That permission be granted for the erection of stores and butcheries on payment by the proprietors of such stores or butcheries of the sum of £5 for the first year and £15 for the second year. The Chairman : I move as an amendment to Ngakuru's motion, "That all tho words after the words "first year," be struck out. and that the English translation of ,the word "Piha" (i c butcher) bo inserted. The amendment wan ueconded by Whaaro. Ngakuru 's motion was then put to the committee. Ayes, Ngakuru and Paotai ; Noes, John Ormsby, Whaaro, Matakitaki, and To Para. The words were then struck out and the amendment carried. 9. Toll Gate at Manuokewa Bridge. —Ngakuru To Haere should be asked how much the erection of the bridge cost him, and the amount of money he has received since tho establishment of the toll gate, and if the amount of money be hae received exceeds the cost of thu bridge, tho toll gate Kbnuld be abolished, and even though the sum receiver? as tolls, should not be equal to the cost of the bridge the toll bar should be abolished, and tho committee find some W&UZ tf fya.kui|j yp tfc> dOficlotK-^. Tbk

was agreed to, and the committee then adji mi tied to the following morning Thursday, Peccuibt'i 3rd, 18& I }. The Chairman : I propose that the prices of Mich things, a* cattle, horses, pigs, oat<, potato^ nrwhe.it be left to the settlers. L->t e»ciy man --oil liia cattle, horses, Sec, at wh.itfvei piic-us huchoo-e.-. — Agreed to. The Clu'iinuin '' In consequence of the f.iihuunf Xg.uuiu'b ainendmcnt the day before yesterday, that the fixing of our boundary line, lie Mibmitlcd to the Native Jjind Cniiit, the, bound.uy line be considered, and di\dt\uth by the committee, <.nd in oidei tli.it the ideas of the people li'ay hi caught and tisccit.uned by the cniiiinittcc uitliout delay, .nit] that it sh.ill not b' I'-ft on the lijib only, that the committee i-. to I'oiiM'li'i tine inattfi. t now piopo^e that .1 public mooting be c.dlcd at an early dttufoi thu piu pose of havine bona fide claims sent in for the consideration of the committee. 2 And if the people will not send in their claims to be dealt with by the committee, the committee can see no other legitimate way, of pie\enting the Nntiic Lands Coin t from dulling with the lands inside the Kohe I'otae. This un.* unanimously ajfieed to, and the committee was then adjourned till February.