G.—s

42

corner, and handed the money to Young. That is all I know of that L 125. Young did not pay the money in ray presence. The next thing I know is about L 35, entered on the 27th September, 1879. I brought two vouchers from Maketu, from Mr. Mitchell. There was LB5 filled up in the bottom and L 35 in the column at the foot in e.ach voucher. Voucher No. 41,852 was brought over with another by me from Mr. Mitchell's own hand. Mr. Quintal has got the other. It is not filled up, but there was L 35 in figures at the foot and L 35 in the body-receipt. Hans acknowledged 41,852 in my presence, and I witnessed it. The other was witnessed by John McPherson. On the back of the voucher Quintal has is a memorandum from Hans Tapsell that he had received the L 35 from Mitchell, and that it was to bo deducted from the L2OO. On the front of the voucher there is a minute of Mitchell's informing Mr. Young that he had paid the L 35, and authorizing him to deduct it. Young placed the L 35 to the credit of Mr. Mitchell, so I believe. I do not know of my own knowledge. Mr. Young, after this, when Hans Tapsell came to Tauranga for a settlement, asked me to reckon up what moneys had been paid on the L2OO, and told me to draw out a cheque for the balance. I drew the cheque for Ll5. .Re Te Mapu, Nuku Pauro, and Maria Maraki. —-The two first items of Ll5 and Ll5, payments to Nuku Pauro and Maria, are correct. The subsequent two payments are incorrect, and the Natives did not get the money. It arose in this way : The bank clerk, in entering Young's No. 2 account bankbook, made a muddle of the Natives' names. The vouchers were selected from the blank vouchers, and filled vp —Ll5 for Nuku, Ll5 for Maria. I picked out these two vouchers because I forgot that credit had already been claimed for them. The result was that the accounts rendered to the Government showed L3O as being paid to the Natives beyond what was in reality paid. Immediately upon my discovering the fact, I went to Mr. Young and requested that Mr. Gill should be informed of it. Mr. Young said, "Let it slide over." I told him I was very uneasy. In fact, I was broken-hearted, because I perceived at once that Mr. Young was not acting rightly. Afterwards there was a credit — on the 30th June, 1879 —of L 45 15s. to the banking account more than the books showed there should be. Young afterwards drew this amount out (L 45 155.) to square his account with the bank. He placed it in an envelope, and put the envelope in a box in a corner of the room in his office ; and afterwards, when he wanted money, he used to take it from this. Te Mapu : I cannot give any information for the present. Re Hohapata. —I remember Hohapata coming to Tauranga with a sum of money. This was about the 7th of April, 1879. He paid it into the hands of Mr. Young for the purpose of paying for a dray. 1 know this, because both the Native and Young told me so. Young asked me to write out a receipt for the sum of L2O. I did so. Young signed it in my presence, and it was handed to the Native in my presence. The bullock-dray was built accordingly, and Mr. Young handed oeer to me LlO, to pay to Dailies for the dray on behalf of Hohapata. This was about a month or two after Mr. Young received the money. I paid the LlO to Mr. Dames. Mr. Dailies pressed for the remainder, and I never heard that the balance (L 10) had been paid until I saw it in the cheque-book. Afterwards a voucher for LlO was filled up by me ; the voucher purported to be signed in blank by Hohapata. I do not know who wrote the name, nor can I tell anything more about it, except that Hohapata cannot write. The voucher was taken by me from the blank vouchers in the portfolio, and filled up by Mr. Young's directions. No money was paid to Hohapata in my presence. He Tarakawa. —l remember the settlement of the purchase of the Te Puke Block, and remember L 2,000 being drawn from the bank. I remember that a sum of money was retained in notes, to pay certain Natives —I do not know whether it was LlOO or L 150: the entry in the minute-book shows that LlOO was retained. Of this LlOO, Tarakawa was to get L5O. The money left was handed over to Mr. Young, who took charge of it. Ido not know what became of it. I know that afterwards Tarakawa was paid Ll5O, which was drawn by cheque.—A. Wakbrick.

By Authority : G-eorge Didsbttby, Government Printer, Wellington.—lBBo. Price Ib. 9d.]