10

tw! th v? T tl T and 3 PT on of would be of more use to the settler* but it i«o y r °? S ; , The nativesare Unifying their pahs in all directs no of°r r v!" new . c l uarrels and the y always maintain that they have no intention of hurting the settlers. \ large party were coming up from the Southward to assist the friendly natives but were turned back at Wanganui, so I do not think they will attack Katatore at present, but there will be no peace in the settlement until he is killed or a fugitive, or rather outside the settlement as his path is without our boundary, and unless the friendly natives bring the fight 'thin our boundary, I think they will not meddle with the whites. I intend to start on Tuesday overland by way of Kawhia and Rangiawhia and I shall proa ybe in Auckland about the 20th. The country around this is magnificent far superior to any part of New Zealand that I have seen, and capable of supporting a very large population ; but there is great difficulty in induing the natives to part with their lands, in fact through bad management this quarrel has assumed the aspect of a land quarrel; the settlers being arranged on one side i«nd the non-settlers on the other. The excitement amongst the natives is very great and I do not see how a fight can be avoided amongst themselves, but by prudence we can avoid mixing ourselves with it although by doing so we lay oui selves open to imputation of being afraid to avenge the death of a native who was killed in carrying out the wishes of our officers A war, however, with the natives would be the destruction of Taranaki as a settlement, and would turn it for a few years into a mere military post. (Signed) C. L. Nugent.

MEMORANDUM OF NAMES, PRINCIPAL NATIVES RESIDING NEAR TARANAKI.

Names. Remarks. Wiremu Kingi Strongly opposed to sale of land and generally called unfriendly, but was formerly an ally of the Government. Katatore The chief who killed the Native Assessor in August last,. ion account of disputed boundary. Thaiaia Formerly a Native Assessor, but the cause of the last disturbance, on account of his having killed a Native of the Ngatiruanui tribe. This man is hostile to Katatore and Wiremu Kingi and calls himself a friendly Native. Tamata Waka Puketapu Natives. Te Haena Supposed to be friendly to the Government, and thoroughly Karipa opposed to Katatore and W iremu Kingi Almost all these Te Waka Okorera men except Wiremu Kingi have been slaves, having been Rawira captured by the Waikato and N.a Fah Natives during Matin former wars, and afterwards released, through the influHone Wetere ence of the Missionaries. Having been formerly in slaTe f'orhipi very they are a more difficult people to deal with than Foharamu other tribes as they do not acknowledge any particular chief. Iharaia's people have lately perpetrated a gross insult on the bodies of two of the people killed in the last fight, by disinterring them and firing shots into the bodies, this will probably bring the Ngatiruanui against them. Wiremu Kingi has expressed his intention of remaining neutral unless attacked. Neither Katatore nor Wiremu Kingi profess themselves hostile to the Government, but deprecate the interference of theGovernment in the quarrel. The others, Iharaias, &c., on the other hand are loud in their calls for ammunition and to enable them to revenge themselves on the opposite party, and would gladly see the Government and the settlers implicated in the quairel. (signed) C. 1. Nugent. March 13th, 1855.