E—No. 3h

No. 4. MR. STRODE TO THE NATIVE SECRETAET. Dunedin, 20th November, 1860. Sir,— I have the honor to report that the Natives residing on the Reserve at the Heads of Otago Harbour and those at Aparima on Jacob's river, have at length consented to a proper division of the land with the view of individualizing their holdings, and that they are now perfectly willing to cede the Res-ryes to the Government on condition of their receiving Crown Grants for the portions allotted to each individual or family. Ttiey have requested me to beg of you to be good enough to obtain the sanction of His Excellency the Governor to the employment of a surveyor to lay out the allotments in proper form, the Natives themselves being perfectly willing to assist in cutting lines or otherwise in the performance of the work. I apprehend that the Government will not object to bear tin expense of the survey of these Reserves, considering the great advantages that will accrue from the plan contemplated ; and I would urge strongly the necessity for prompt action to be taken in the matter as, should any length of tim» elapse before concluding the arrangement, I fear it would involve considerable trouble hereafter, if not the entire abandonment of the idea on the part of the Natives. I have, &c, Donald McLean, Esq., A. Chetham Strode, Native Secretary, Auckland. Assistant Native Secretary.

No. 5. ASSISTANT NATIVE SECRETARY TO MR. STRODE. Native Secretary's Office, Auckland, July 13th, 1861. Sir,— I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of the 20th November last, reporting that the Natives residing on the Reserve at the heads of Otago Harbour and those at Aparima on Jacob's river had consented to a subdivision of their land, and were anxious to have it laid out ia allotments by a surveyor. I much regret the delay that has taken place in replying to your communication, and hope that it may not affect the carrying out the proposed arrangement. It was the intention of Mr. Richmond to confer with you personally on the matter when he last visited Otago ; your letter was taken by him t» the South for the purpose, and appears to have been mislaid. I have now the honor to convey to you the authority of His Excellency the Governor to employ a surveyor to subdivide these reserves in accordance with the wishes of the Native proprietors who should each be furnished with a plan of his own allotment. For this purpose you are authorised to incur an expense not exceeding £250, to which amount advances will be made to you by the SubTreasurer at Dunedin on your requisition ; such advances to be accounted for in the usual manner. It has been considered expedient to carry out this arrangement as a preliminary one, and that one year should then be allowed to elapse before anything further is done in order to avoid present suspicion or misunderstanding in the minds of the Natives or inconvenience hereafter, which might b« the result of now requiring a cession to the Crown, and granting conveyances to individuals before time is given for the apportionment to become well understood and fully established in the minds of the Natives. I have, &c., T. H. Smith, Assistant Native Secretary. A. C. Strode, Esq., Assistant Native Secretary, Otago.

No. 6. Kaikohe, Hune 22, 1859. E boa c Te Kawana, — Tena ko koe. He hiahia ano taku ki a koe kia mea atu ahau ki a koe mo te mapi o taku whenua kia hiritia no te mea kua oti te eka c Te Pepene, vote mea hoki kua tukua c ahau te moni c £40, Kahori he pai kia waiho noa te whenua kua oti te ruri i te mea hoki kuinitia te whenua me nga tangata hoki i raro i te maru kotahi o Te Kuini, whakaatia mai c koe. Heoi ano aku kupu ki akoe. Na to hoa, Na Te Hira Pure, Kia Te Kawana, Kui-whawa Maori. Kei Akaratm.

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