E.-No. 2

Tenei tetahi mea te hohoro ai te mutu, lie reta kore na TV Kawana, me he mea c tukua atu ana c Te Kawana tana ake reta, kua tuhituhi mai hoki a Tainihana, a Eewi, he reta he reta. Tena ko te kupu mau atu a nga tangata Maori ka mea na Te Kawana te tikanga, ekore ratou c whakarongo. Kotalii kupu pouri a Tamihana i rongo ai au ki nga herehero nei, ko te kupu tenei i whiriwhiria c taua iwi nei—ko te kupu tenei. Xi te mea ka mau te rongo, ka orna a Tainihana raua ko Matutaera, ta te mea ko te mutunga o tenei whawhai ko ia te utu, ko Matutaera, ko Tamihana, ka taronatia o raua kaki c Te Kawana mo tenei mahi. Na Paoea Tuhaere. Translation. Paoea Tuhaeke's account of meeting the two prisoners BnHAJU and Hapimax.y on their return from Waikato, and what they reported to him. On the Ist June we met Eeihana and Hapimana at Kawehitiki (on their return). They asked us to speak. We said that we had nothing to say (no news), and we asked them to speak. They said: You will not see the "Waikatos. We asked : Where are they ? They said: They have gone to -Tauranga. We said: What to do there? They replied: They were written for by the chiefs of Tauranga. You are the only one they approve of going to see them. As for the other neutral chiefs, Aihipene, Waata Kukutai and the rest, they are not to go ; an oven has been dug to cook them in ; but you may go and walk over the blood and dead of the Waikatos. The fault is with Te Awaitaia (Wi Nero)." When he went to te Tiki, at the time when they were there, his word was : " Give me " your guns ;if you do not give up your guns to-day you will be attacked to-morrow." Mohi said : Whose plan is that, the Governor's? Nero said: It is my own. Waikato then said that they would hold to their guns, so that Nero might carry out his wish, and fight them. They waited three days for Wi Nero's word, but it did not reach them, and they then went away. Lt is this that sets Waikato against the neutral Natives, their deceitful (or false) statements One piece of deceit of Wi Nero's at that time was, concealing the Governor's letter; he did not shew it to them. It was not given until Mohi demanded it. The \Vaikatos,.therefore, said that Nero was a very deceitful man, proposing his own plans and concealing (or keeping back) those of the Governor. This was another cause of hesitation with the Waikatos. Had the Governor himself, by his own word proposed to them to make peace, and said that their guns should not be taken away, peace would have been made long ago ; they would have agreed to it; and then after peace had been made some time, for the Governor to go and quietly talk with them, that they might see his good talk (that he might explain his good intentions), they would then give up their guns, powder, and lead to the Governor (or lay them down before him). They do not give up their guns now, lest they should be deceived, lest when they had given up their guns they should be apprehended and taken to prison. The Waikatos judged thus from the General's talk at Rangiriri; the General said that the Maoris should be taken to the Ruato (Queen's Redoubt) to stay, and that they should be judged there. Had that talk of the General's been correct, and had they not been brought to the town, peace would have been made, the King would have been done away with, and the mana would have been yielded to the Queen alone , they therefore think that the peace now shall be this, that there shall be no fighting in Waikato, and that Waikato river and Waikato land shall be given up, with the fern upon it, in consideration of the visit of these prisoners (i.e., of their having been permitted to visit them), but if the pnkehas attempted to carry on the war in any district beyond the boundary, they would light again ; if the pakehas did not do so, there would be no fighting.. There is another thing which prevents it being ended quickly, there being no letter from the Governor. Had the Governor himself sent a letter, Tamihana and Rewi wpuld also have written (in reply) letter for letter, but a mere verbal message taken by Maoris who said it was from the Governor, they would not listen to. There was one dark word of Tamihana's that I heard of from these prisoners ; this was the word which that tribe deliberated upon. It was this :if peace was made Tamihana and Matutaera would run away, because, when this war was ended, they would be the payment; Tamihana and Matutaera would be hung by the Governor for this work. Paoea Titiiaebe. No. 25. MEMORANDUM by Ministebs. Ministers are glad to learn, from His Excellency's Memorandum of the 21st instant, that His Excellency puts so favourable a construction on the statements made by Hapimana, and Reihana, and Paora Tuhaere, as to what passed between the two former and the leading rebel chiefs whom they visited in Waikato. While equally anxious with His Excellency to detect any indications of a desire for peace on the part of the leading rebels, Ministers feel it necessary to be cautious not to ground any very sanguine expectations on the statements referred to. Ministers are ready however, in deference to His Excellency's views, to advise that steps should be taken to ascertain whether the leading rebels are really desirous of submitting on terms which can be reasonably acceded to by the Government, our recent success at Tauranga, of which we have just received the news, may possibly render them more amenable to reason than they otherwise would have baen. Ministers propose that His Excellency should make known authoritatively to the rebel chiefs and tribes of Waikato the terms upon which their submission will be accepted, and especially that the best assurance should be given to satisfy them of their safety and freedom from personal punishment if they give up their arms and ammunition. William Fox.

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PAPERS RELATIVE TO NATIVE AFFAIRS.