E.—No. 3a.

house, don't fancy that I have become a kingite, or am prepared to listen to his words. The Government will not be guided by the wishes of the King natives. The Police Force will be stationed wherever Government may please. As long, however, as lam satisfied of the peaceful intention of the Natives, and that no danger need be apprehended at Waikanae, Otaki, and Manawatu, I shall probably advise that no Force be at present stationed at either of those places ; but I certainly shall advise that a Force should be stationed at Rangitikei, as that is the road (as Heremia himself admits) by which a marauding party would probably come. Wi Tako and Heremia both said—That is right and reasonable—let the boundary of the district within which no Force is stationed be the Pakakariki and the Rangitikei river. The meeting then broke up, and the Superintendent, accompanied by Wi Tako and others, rode on to Otaki, where they arrived in the evening. The following day the Superintendent met the Natives in the Court House. The meeting was attended by about two hundred Natives, including the three leaders of the Kingites, viz., Wi Tako, Wi Hapi, and Heremia, with a few of their followers. Mr. Hamlin acted as interpreter ; and Mr. Buller, the Besident Magistrate of the District, and most of the European settlers resident in the village were present. After a few words of welcome from Tamihana Te Rauparaha, His Honor the Superintendent said as follows : I thank you, my friends, for having invited me to meet you here, for I am glad of the opportunity of repeating to you what I said yesterday at Waikanae to Wi Tako, Heremia, and the other Natives present at the meeting there. It was my custom during the last war to put you in possession of everything that occurred, and to explain fully the intentions of the Government; and I purpose doing the same as long as the present disturbances last. Ido not know whether you will believe all that I shall tell you, but you know that I have lived twenty years amongst you, and that I, in common with many others, did not hesitate to condemn Governor Browne, when we believed that he was acting unjustly ; and I certainly shall not now hesitate to declare to you very plainly what I think of the conduct of the Natives who are engaged in war at Taranaki and Waikato. I must first allude to some of the reports which are spread both amongst the Maori and Pakeha by bad men for bad purposes. You are told that the war at Waikato is the commencement of a war which will spread over the whole Island ; that after the Governor has subdued the Waikato, he will attack the other tribes ; that it is the intention of the Governor to kill the Maori indiscriminately, and then to seize their lands. You are told that the Governor has increased the number of his troops and vessels of war ; that he has built steamers that are bullet-proof, and can easily go up all your rivers ; that he has erected stockades, and has called out the Militia for no other purpose than that of exterminating the whole Maori race. These are some of the reports circulated amongst you by bad men for bad purposes. On the other hand, the settlers are told that at almost every Bur.anga that has been held during the last year a proposal that the Natives should suddenly rise in every District of this Island and murder the whole European population has been the constant subject of discussion ; that this proposal has found acceptance with a large number of the Natives ; that this is now the chief object that the King party have in view. The settlers are told that emissaries from the Taranaki and Ngatimaniopoto have been incessantly moving about this Province preaching this wholesale massacre ; they are even told that you, Wi Tako, and other Chiefs, although you have not yourselves consented to join in this conspiracy, are no longer inclined to restrain your people, but are prepared to let them loose. These are some of the reports which are spread amongst the Pakeha by bad men for bad purposes. lam not surprised that these reports should be believed by both Maori and Pakeha, for they are based upon facts which are admitted by all. It is perfectly true that the Governor has increased his forces, Military and Naval; that he has built steamers that are bullet-proof; that he has erected redoubts, and that he is arming all the settlers. But it is not true, it is utterly false, that he has any intention to wage a war of extermination, or to seize and confiscate Native lands. On the other hand, I know that emissaries have been sent amongst you to urge you to rise and attack the settlers—to burn, plunder, and murder. But Ido not believe that any Maoris of this Province have consented to this foul proposal. These reports, however, do a great deal of mischief; they create and keep up a constant state of excitement and alarm ; they cause feelings of suspicion and mutual distrust between the two races. lam anxious to allay these feelings of alarm, suspicion, and distrust, by explaining to you, without reserve, the intentions of the Government, and the sole object of these Military preparations; and I shall require from you an equally open declaration of your views and intentions. Don't attempt to throw dust in my eyes, for I can and will judge of your real intentions quite as much by what you do not say, as by what you do say. I have already reminded you that I with many others protested in the General Assembly against Governor Browne's proceedings at the Waitara. We then condemned him, and still condemn him for the seizure of the Waitara. We then stood up on behalf of the Maori, and shall ever do so, as long as they have right on their side ; but will any of you tell me that the Maoris now engaged in war at Taranaki and Waikato have right and justice on their side . Was Rewi right in sending that letter of his urging the Natives of Tataraimaka to fall unawares upon and massacre the Military Escort 1 Were those Natives right who executed Rewi's order and murdered the escort—were those Natives right who broke into Mr. Gorst's house, stole the printing press, and drove away the inmates—were those Natives right who forcibly took away the wives and children of the Pakeha—were those Natives right who by threats and violence forced many of the settlers at Raglan to abandon their homes and take refuge in Auckland were those Natives right who formed a plot to murder all the settlers at Patumahoe—were the Natives right who within the last two or three weeks have murdered in the Province of Auckland five or six unarmed settlers—are those natives right who openly avow their intention to kill every white man, woman, and child they can lay their hands on I These are questions to which, though Wi Tako and

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TO THE SECRETARY OF STATE.