0.—2.

90

7. — Major Brown to the Commissioners. Hawera, 27th May, 1880. The West Coast Commissioners, Government Buildings, Wellington. I had authority to give as much as 7s. 6d. an acre compensation, which, on the Waimate Plains only, would have been about £35,000, and to a much larger amount including all the coast to Waitara, which is west of Waingongoro ; but there was no rule laid down for the distribution of takoha. My main guide was expediency, which I now think cannot be further served [by] it. Ostensibly it was given as an act of grace, and not of right. As regards the expenditure of Teira and others, it was thought that, as the money was to be spent, they might as well have the credit of being the hosts out of it, which they thought much of. C. Brown, CC

H.—Major Brown to the Commissioners. Hawera, 27th May, 1880. The West Coast Commissioners, Government Buildings, Wellington. Teira's wife is connected with Arama Karaka's people at Opunake, but is very likely also connected with Ngatiruanui. It is difficult to say w rhere the relationship and claims of Natives of rank end, as rank always endeavours to mate with rank. It is said that Titokowaru has more claim at Tangahoe than where he is. Hone Pihama has recognized claims from Opunake to Waitotara, and probably further. One of Te Whiti's complaints is, that his claims in the vicinity of New Plymouth have been absorbed by us without reference to him or other claimants, and [he] condemns Government and Native Land Court accordingly. C. Brown, CC.

9.— Major Brown to the Commissioners. Hawera, 27th May, 1880. The West Coast Commissioners, Government Buildings, Wellington. Teira had 100 acres, Neta 300 acres, and their two daughters 50 acres, awarded between Te Hoe and Omuturangi, which have principally been waste paper since they were issued. C Beown, CC. [Note. — See Compensation Aivards, Division N., Appendix B, page 19.]

Letter from Major Brown to the Commissioners.

Sir,— Patea, 10th July, 1880. I have the honor to forward the following particulars of the expenditure of £1,000 at Waitara, signed for by Teira and others, and referred to by the Hon. J. Bryce in his speech on the 15th ultimo, and reported in No. 6 of Hansard, lately to hand. In the month of June, 1878, Teira and others complained at my office of their inability, through poverty, to be the entertainers of tho visitors at the approaching meeting at Waitara. I considered the whole question, and arrived at the following conclusions:— The approaching meeting of the Hon. Sir G. Grey and Rewi was having a beneficial influence on the confiscation question, with the impression that in future Rewi would be found acting openly in concert with the Government. And on this ground I recommended that the expenditure for the meeting should be charged against the confiscated lands. And I recommended that the chiefs should have the credit of being the hosts, because their poverty was due to their having been throughout friendly Natives, whose land had been all confiscated without any compensation, with the exception of some town sections in Waitara, and an average of 11 acres each rural land that had been given back to them. Some members of these families had also recognized claims elsewhere, but that practically had been of no value to them since the confiscation. I attach copies of my telegram making the above recommendations, and of the Hon. J. Sheehan's reply approving them. I then sent in a requisition for an imprest in respect of " Confiscated Land, West Coast," to be paid into the Bank of New Zealand, Patea, where my imprest account has always been kept, and from where I have never seen any reason to move it. The first cheque drawn against it was on the 18th July, 1878, in favour of Mr. George, contractor for the buildings for the use of the visitors at the Waitara meeting, for the amount of £383 6s. 6d., on a voucher signed by himself, debited to " Confiscated Land West of Waingongoro," and showing on the face of it what it was for. The cheque for the amount of Teira's voucher was drawn on the 20th July, 1878, after the accounts of its expenditure had been received. This was also debited to " Confiscated Land West of Waingongoro," and would probably be posted to the Land Purchase Office, Wellington, at the same time as the former. I debited these accounts against the " Confiscated Land West of Waingongoro" with the intention of including the Waitara and excluding the confiscated land east of Waingongoro that had been dealt with, and on which only some definite balances were due. And I was unaware that they had been debited by the Land Purchase Office, Wellington, to the Waimate Plains, until I was so informed by the Royal Commissioners, and against which I took an early opportunity of informing them that they should not have been so charged. When Teira and others signed the voucher it was explained to them, and they fully understood that the amount was granted as compensation "in consideration of their former claims," as appeared on the face of it in Maori and English, and that the money was for the entertainment of their visitors.