A.—No. 6.

No. 3. Copy of a Letter from Major Fbaser to the Under-Secretary, Colonial Defence Office. (No. 12.) Sir, — Napier, 15th December, 1865. With reference to the subject adverted to in your letter to me, No. 778-2, of the 2nd instant, I have the honor to state that on my return to the AVairon, which will probably be to-morrow, I will obtain and forward to the Government the separate statements of each officer present on the occasion referred to, and will also forward at the same time such explanations as will put the Government in a position to answer any questions which way be asked them. I have, &c, Under Seeretaiy, Colonial Defence Office, James Eraser, Brevet-Major. Wellington. No. L Copy of a Letter from Major Phaser to the Uuder Secretary, Colonial Defence Office. (No. 8.) Camp Te Tawa, Upper Wairoa, Sic,— 30th January, 1866. I have the honor to enclose, for the information of the Government, letters from the officers ■whose names appear in the margin* relative to the attack on Sunday morning, the 20th November last, by the Hau Hau at Waereugaahika, Poverty Bay. I have also the honor to state, for the information of the Government, what came under my own notice on the occasion. It will doubtless be remembered by the Government that on the preceding day, Saturday, Lieut. Wilson's position had been charged and taken by the enemy, on which occasion Lieutenant Wilson was misled in some measure by the enemy wearing the same badges as the friendly Natives, viz : —some white calico or linen round the left arm ; when, therefore, on Sunday morning, after having passed an anxious night in our trenches, we saw three large bodies advancing against our positions, with, seemingly, a white flag carried among them, the men at once thought that the rebels were intending a second charge. I, however, gave an order not to fire, as I wished to be more sure of what they proposed doing. When they got close to us I saw their flag had a red cross on it in one of its corners, and I immediately ordered the men to fire, the results being as I stated in my Despatch. I regret that in writing my report, which I was obliged to do hurriedly and under great difficulties, I did not allude more fully to this affair, as I am certain, had I done so, none of the absurd reports concerning it would have ever been allowed to appear in the newspapers. I have, &c, James Eraser, Brevet-Major, Commanding Colonial Forces, Upper Wairoa. The Under Secretary, Colonial Defence Office. Enclosure 1 in No. 4. Copy of a Letter from Captain Biggs, H.8.V., to Major Eraser. Sir, — Napier, loth December, 1865. I have the honor to forward you for the information of the Hon. the Minister of Defence my opinion respecting the flag of truce at the Waereugaahika. Even supposing it to have been a flag of truce (which it was not,) after the treachery the Hau Hau had been guilty of the day preceding, in wearing our badges, I consider that, accompanied as it was by such a large number of armed men, you would have been very much to blame had you allowed the fanatics to come any nearer our position without firing upon them. The only reason why any of us were warranted in supposing that it was a flag of truce is, that a similar flag was hoisted at Hungamagatoroa when the Hau Hau surrendered at that place and some of the Hau Hau from Hungamagatoroa were known to be amongst the fanatics at Poverty Bay. Erom subsequent information, as you are aware, it was never intended to be looked upon as a flag of truce. I have, &c, Brevet-Major Eraser, Regix.vm) Xewton Biggs, Commanding Colonial Forces, Tauranga and Waiapu. Captain H.B.V. Enclosure 2 in No. 4. Copy of a Letter from Lieutenant St. George to Major Eraser. Sir,— Camp Te Tawa, Upper Wairoa, 20th January, 1866. In answer to your request that I should write a statement of what I saw at Waerangaahika on. Sunday morning, the 19th November, 1865, I have the honor to inform you, for the information of the Government, that I was in the trenches on the morning in question. About 10 a.m. I saw some 200 Hau Haus advancing from the pa on to our lines ; they were in three companies, one of which I noticed had a flag of truce, and at first thought it was a white one. We were ordered not to fire. When the enemy got a little closer I saw that the flag had a red cross in the corner. The order then came to fire, which we did. This fire was returned, and the Hau Haus charged our lines. ' I have, &c, Brevet-Major Eraser, J. C. St. George, Commanding Colonial Forces, Wairoa. Lieutenant Colonial Defence Force. * Captain Biggs, H.8.V.; Lieutenant St. George, C.D.F.; Ensign Richardson, KM.; Ensign Tuke, H.B.T.

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DESPATCHES PROM MAJOR FRASER,