A.—3a.

66

crop, one acre. He is engaged in preparing more land for the plough ; after that we contemplate covering the large flat by the side of our settlement with soil from the adjoining ridge of clay, and preparing it for light crops for next year. In all his labours one or more of the boys have been associated with him. Some of them can manage horses very well, particularly two, who can make a fair attempt at ploughing. lam happy to report that my young people take great pleasure in agricultural labours. As far as my experience goes they seem to prefer them to handicrafts, such as carpentering, &c. They are particularly partial to the management of cattle. I feel more than ever satisfied that, whether we regard the benefit done to the people themselves or the desirability of supplying the colony with trained labourers, no measure can be compared with that of grafting industrial training upon our missionary labours. The two objects admirably dovetail into each other. The good effected is not to be contemplated as merely confined to the scholars themselves. These labours afford an example and stimulus to the surrounding population; even already the people in our neighbourhood are talking of ploughing their land. We still keep close to our average number of sixty. Of these thirty-five are boys and men, the rest are women and girls. I find the Native teachers most valuable and efficient assistants. In order that your Excellency may form some idea of the different branches of our labours, in most of which we have been more or less assisted by the farm servant, I will briefly enumerate the chief duties of my four head teachers, who have all the boys divided amongst them. The duty of No. lis to take care of the schoolhouse and all the cooking and eating utensils, take care of the provision store, weigh all the meat and other provisions that are brought for sale, receive from the store the monthly issues of sugar, candles, soap, and issue them with the meat and bread to the different parts of the establishment; always laying before me in the morning, on a slip of paper, a copy of the entries in his books. I find him for the most part very careful and accurate. By these services he much relieves me, and gains also, I consider, very useful habits and knowledge. No. 2, with his boys, takes care of the sheep, of which we have now of our own 200; of others, on thirds, 100. Besides marking them, &c., he keeps a regular entry in his book of the names, numbers, and marks. His business also is to take care of the general store, issue the monthly rations, and purchase provisions that have been weighed and reported by No. 1. He acts also as accountant of the labour of the school at Mr. Whytlaw's factory, laying always before me his report in the morning as No. 1. No. 3 takes very good care of the cows (of which we have upwards of thirty in all) ; with his boys he milks and churns. The surplus milk and butter he sells to our neighbour, Mr. Whytlaw, for which he keeps a book, and presents his accounts monthly. No. 4, a very excellent rising young man, is our mason and gardener. 1 hope yet to have the pleasure of seeing your Excellency here, and showing you two chimneys of his erection. He received instructions from a mason I had in employ for two months here. We have twelve lads whose ages range from fifteen to eighteen. These I have endeavoured, as much as possible, to keep under the instruction of the European labourer. I have made many efforts to get some of my lads taught carpentering, but have not yet succeeded to any extent, from the difficulty of procuring competent teachers and steady employment. Tour Excellency will, I trust, see from this short report that the assistance which you have bestowed upon us has not been without some fruit. I indulge great hopes that every succeeding year will see an increasing improvement in our proceedings. Want of proper assistants and proper accommodation retards us much at present. Still lam free to confess that lat least fancy that I see considerable progress in every branch; certainly not near what it ought to be, but still to increase the interest which I take in this work. We contemplate building more houses this year, and the sawyers are now all at work. This will draw largely upon our scanty resources, and may render it a question whether we can yet maintain the farm labourer from our own funds. A prolongation of his service from the Government would indeed be most acceptable ; but I can scarcely venture to ask it after the many acts of liberality that we have already received. Whether this, however, be practicable or not, I shall always, I hope, feel thankful for the very acceptable assistance that I have received from the Government, and shall ever remain, Tour Excellency's much obliged, His Excellency the Governor-in-Chief. E. Maunsell.

Enclosure 4 in No. 27. Archdeacon Hadpield to the Hon. the Colonial Secretary. Sir,— Otaki, 26th December, 1850. I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of the 24th instant covering certain extracts from a letter of Dr. Dorset to the Secretary of the Colonies, in which he animadverts on the missionaries and Natives of this place; and further, to forward to you, for the information of His Excellency the Governor-in-Chief, certain observations which I have thought it necessary to make on his animadversions. It is not easy to ascertain what Dr. Dorset, and the persons whom he represents, are endeavouring to establish in the remarks they have made. It appears, however, to be that the improvement and civilisation of the Natives are more rapid when they are in contact with the settlers alone, than when they are under the influence of the Government and missionaries. Ido not wish to misrepresent them ; if this is not their meaning lam unable to say what it is. Assuming then that this is their meaning, I shall endeavour to show that the statements contained in their letter are very little to their purpose, even though they can prove, what I very much doubt, that the Natives of Motueka are in a more improved and civilised state than those of Otaki. Besides, I think I shall be able to make it manifest that their statements are not altogether correct; in fact, that the writers have but very limited information on the subject on which they write. The writers say :" In examining, then, the relative success of the two experimental systems of Native civilisation above described," &c. Here, then, they assume that two distinct systems have been pursued with a view to the civilisation of the Natives. If a