A.—No. 5a

6. I beg further to observe, that neither General Cameron nor Brigadier-General Waddy have informed me of, or in any way alluded to, the nature of the instructions under which the latter was acting, nor of why these were, and still are, kept secret from me. A simple furnishing of these instructions to me at the time, which was what 1 was clearly entitled to, would have set the whole matter at rest. These instructions ought not to have empowered the Brigadier-General, at a moment of great peril, to decline to perform necessary and urgent military service, until he could receive direct instructions from General Cameron on the subject, although that officer was then at so great a distance. This point, which is the real question at issue, is left out of sight by General Cameron. I have, Ac, The Eight Hon. Edward Cardwell, M.P. G. Grey. No. 14. (No. 118.) His Excellency the Goyernor to the Eight Hon. the Secretary of State for the Colonies. Sir,- —■ Government House, Wellington, 15th September, 1865. The disturbances which commenced upon the East Coast of this Island by the murder of the Rev. Mr. Volkner unfortunately still continue, although the rapid successes gained by H.M.s Colonial Forces and the friendly Natives will, I trust, shortly bring them to a close. 2. From the Enclosure* herewith transmitted, you will find that H.M.s Colonial Forces, under Captain Fraser and the Native Chief Te Mokena, gained an important success over the fanatics, whose loss has amounted to 87 killed and 47 prisoners. On this occasion H.M.s Colonial Forces behaved with the greatest gallantry. 3. Our loss in these operations has been :—of the Native Contingent, 15 killed and 14 wounded ; and of the European Contingent, 10 wounded. I have, Ac. G. Grey. The Eight Hon. Edward Cardwell, M.P. * Printed in Gazette No. 34, 24th August, 1805. No. 15. (No. 119.) His Excellency the Governor to the Eight Hon. the Secretary of State for the Colonies. Sir, — Government House, Wellington, 15th September, 1865. I have the honor to transmit for your information, a copy of a Despatch* I received late last night from Captain Hope, of H.M.S. " Brisk," the senior Naval Officer in New Zealand. You will be glad to learn from this Despatch that Opotiki —the stronghold of the fanatics, and the place where the Eev. Mr. Volkner was murdered—has been taken by Her Majesty's Colonial Forces; from other letters 1 find that the enemy have sustained a severe loss, whilst we have only had a few men slightly wounded. 2. You will be gratified to see the terms in which Captain Hope speaks of the conduct of Her Majesty's Colonial Forces. In a private letter he tells me : " The Native Contingent were the admiration of us all yesterday ; we could see it all from the ship, and it was beautiful." I have, Ac, The Bight Hon. Edward Cardwell, M.P. G. Grey. * Report printed in " Independent" Extra of 14th September, 1865. Enclosure to No. 15. Sir— • H.M.S. "Brisk," off Opotiki, 12th September, 1865. I have the honor to inform your Excellency that I arrived at Hicks' Bay on the 2nd instant, and that the steamers conveying the expedition for Opotiki arrived on the morning of the 7th. The expedition sailed from Hicks' Bay that evening, and arrived off this place at daylight on the morning of the Bth. The division on board the "Lady Bird" immediately embarked on board the steamer "Huntress," and the weather being fine and bar favorable, she proceeded into the river piloted by Mr. Levy, but although that person professed a perfect knowledge of the place, and also examined the bar from the masthead of the "Brisk," from whence I also took a survey of it, and saw a clear and distinctly marked channel, which I pointed out to him—either from utter imbecility or gross treachery, he deliberately ran the steamer aground completely out of the channel. Meanwhile I had ordered the boats of the vessel to land the Native Contingent from the "Storm Bird," but when this disaster happened every boat was iv requisition to land the twenty men from the "Huntress," which vessel was hopelessly aground for that tide at all events, and this party could only be landed on the sandspit at the mouth of the river, where they entrenched themselves as they best could. Scarcely was this done, when the wind suddenly set in strong from the N.W., and a heavy sea got up, which not only rendered the bar impassable, but obliged the squadron to put to sea, and after laying-to for the night, we anchored next morning under the lee of Whale Island. The position of Major Brassey and his men was a very critical one, as they were only two hundred strong, surrounded by the enemy, with but a small quantity of provisions and not much ammunition. I had however placed a six-pounder gun on board the "Huntress" with an officer and men to work it, and also left a boat and crew in the river to assist. Nevertheless, I was extreme^ anxious for their safety, and the wind having moderated, I ran down to Opotiki in the afternoon, leaving the steamers at Whale Island, as the sea was still running high. I had the satisfaction of seeing the "Huntress" afloat, and the troops in safety, but the sea was so heavy I could not even auchor, and returned to Whale Island for the night. 3

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ZEALAND TO THE SECRETARY OE STATE.