D.—No. 2

I have the honor to request that you will favor me by laying the following statement of facts before Ministers ; and with a view to the verification of the statements, I have further the honor to place before you the original memoranda of instructions received by me, and the office letter-book, containing copies of instructions, with their dates, issued by me to the surveyors. On the 17th December, 1804, Ministers sent for mo, and said that all lands for the location of immigrants then arriving must be surveyed in a month, and asked what surveyors were available to send out. I stated that there were but two surveyors whose services were at all available, and that of these one was a t ipsy character and the other a ehainman, who might be promoted. I was told I should receive instructions in an hour. On the 20th December I was informed that I should have the temporary services of Mr. Mclntosh, and that the Waiuku Block had been decided upon for the site of the first settlement; but delays took place in arranging with the Provincial Executive for the administration of the matter ; and it was not until the sth of January that I was enabled to dispatch Mr. Percy Smith and Mr. Keny to the Waiuku Block, to lay out the first 5-acre lots. This delay was no fault of mine. On the 19th of the previous month I had warned Mr. Clayton, surveyor at Waikato Heads, to hold himself in readiness to go to the Waiuku, and on the 30th to proceed there Mr. Newman was not prepared to set the surveyors to work until the 12th January, not having decided on the exact localities for the settlements. The surveyors at Waiuku, under Mr. Percy Smith, did their work by contract; and Mr. Newman, on his return from Waiuku, reported that the surveys were iM'oceeding in a satisfactory manner. On the sth and Gth of January, his Honor the Superintendent instructed me to survey a town and a series of small lots at Pokeno; and on the same day (the 6th) 1 obtained the services of Mr. Lusk for the town survey, and of Mr. Monro for the small lots. Tiie latter had just returned from the survey of the town site at Onewhero. These gentlemen were contractors, and it was to their interest to get the work completed as soon as possible. With the exception of a delay caused by Mr. Newman moving the town surveyor from the work originally contemplated to another locality, I do not think the work could have been executed more speedily. On the 19th of January I was directed to have lots surveyed, to give frontage to small lots, and a town-site reported on at the Wairoa. Only one surveyor was available, and he could not at once proceed; however, on the 21st, he was enabled to go, but after carrying a road for about half-a-mile, and surveying about 63 acres, was stopped by the Maories. On the 20th January I proceeded, at the direction of the Hon. the Minister of Colonial Defence, to Alexandra and Cambridge, in the Tipper Waikato, but from those places continued to give instructions to the surveyors employed on the 5-acre lots. I returned to Auckland on the 26th, but again went to Alexandra on the 3rd of February, and remained in the Waikato until the 14th February. I do not think the 5-acre work was at all delayed by my absence, as Mr. Sinclair and Mr. Mclntosh transacted business with the contracting surveyors in my absence, and I wrote to them on the subject of their work from Ngaruawahia and elsewhere. On the 18th January I was instructed by his Honor to put a surveyor to work in laying out a village for miners at the Waikato coal-pits. On the 21st I landed Mr. H. Graham and party there to commence work. On the 14th of February' Mr. Bull, a new arrival, was sent by Mr. Sinclair to Maketu, his Honor himself pointing out to him his work. On my return to Auckland, his Honor informed me of what had been done in my absence, and, with the exception of Mr McDonnell's expulsion from the Wairoa, seemed perfectly satisfied with the progress of the surveys. 1 may here state, that from the commencement of these surveys, I have always worked most harmoniously with the Provincial Executive. On the 24th of February, his Honor requested me to send surveyors to Pukekohe, Tuimata, Patamahoc, and Tuakau. The last-named place was intended to be purchased as a railway depot site; but it wa.s determined that roads should be laid out through it. Only one additional surveyor however could be obtained (and he was a stranger). On the same day Mr. Laurie was instructed by me to go to Patamahoe, and Mr. Graham was removed from the coal-pits to Lay out roads at Tuakau. For the surveys at Tuimata and Pukekohe no surveyors could be had. (See Private Journal: ''Tried JScott —engaged with Warner; 24th Feb., tried Eiffe—engaged with Warner; 25th, instructed 11. Graham to go to Tuakau.") On the 17th March I received a letter from the Hon. the Attorney-General, informing me that Mr. Kempthorne was no longer secretary to the Buildings Commission, and that his services were available. On the same day I sent him and Mr. Frazer (a new arriyal, instructions to proceed to Kohekohe, to lay out small lots at that place. Both these gentlemen were contractors. They got to their work with all possible expedition. On the 28th February Mr. Gundry had finished his plan of work at Alexandra, and his services were available. I gave him instructions to proceed to Pukekohe, and lay out 5-acre lots there in such places as afforded both wood and water (it being a volcanic district). Mr. Gundry was to report as soon as possible as to the exact position of the 5-acre land. Additional lots at Maketu being required by his Honor on the 16th March, I wrote to Mr. Bull on that day, requiring him to employ another party under an assistant to lay out lots, while he (Mr. Bull) pushed on in the forest with the roads. This was an unusual course to take with a contractor, but was done to expedite the work. Mr. Bull concurred, and I sent out to him Mr. Campbell, a surveyor just arrived from Mongonui. His Honor requiring additional lots to be surveyed near the Bazorback, I on the same day sent out Messrs. Day and Churton, chainmen, to cut lines by contract under the direction of Mr. Cooper, surveyor on the staff. This plan of placing contracting line-cutters under the surveyors is quite a new practice in this Province, but was instituted by me in order to expedite the work. On the 27th March his Honor asked me to leave off temporarily the 10-acre work at Pokeno, and lay out town lots near the mill; same day sent instructions to him to that effect; same day instructed Mr. Little, a ehainman, to peg out the lots by contract, and cut back-lines, while Mr. Lusk laid out streets and schemed the lots. This was an unusual course, but was adopted to expedite the work.

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CORRESPONDENCE RELATIVE TO MAINTENANCE