29

A.—l

honour to inform your Lordship that my Government, while considering that it would be more expedient to encourage the immigration into the colony of younger men receiving their full pension, rather than of men who have attained the mature age of fifty years or upwards, would not decline to pay the balance of the pensions of men so immigrating as suggested by your Lordship. I have, &c, The Eight Hon. Lord Knutsford, &c. ONSLOW.

No. 33. (No. 66.) My Lord, — Government House, Wellington, 12th .December, 1889. With reference to your Lordship's Despatch No. 30, of the 28th September last, respecting the claims of Messrs. Donald and Edenborough against the German authorities in Samoa, and purporting to be accompanied, by copies of two despatches on the subject from Berlin, I have the honour to point out that the copies referred to do not appear to have been transmitted, as I have not yet received them. I have, &c, The Eight Hon. Lord Knutsford, &c. ONSLOW.

A.-2, 1890, No, 32.

No. 34. (No. 67.) My Loed, — Government House, Dunedin, 20th December, 1889. I have the honour to inform your Lordship that on the 26th November I opened the New Zealand and South Seas Exhibition in this city. I was accompanied on the occasion by the Premier, Sir H. A. Atkinson, and by Captains Bosanquet and Pelly, commanding" respectively Her Majesty's ships " Opal" and "Lizard." 1 send herewith a copy of the Otago Daily Times, containing a full account of the proceedings. Just before the opening ceremony I received, and read at the opening, the following telegram from Her Majesty: "The Queen heartily congratulates New " Zealand on the marvellous progress made during the past fifty years, and on " the signs of recovery from the recent temporary depression. She highly values " the continued expressions of loyalty of the people of New Zealand, and " authorises me to say that she hopes the attachment to the Mother-country, " which has been unbroken since Proclamation of sovereignty on the 29th " January, 1840, may long continue unimpaired." To which I replied by the following telegram: " The Earl of Onslow presents his duty to the Queen, and " begs to inform your Majesty that the New Zealand and South Seas Exhibition " was this day opened in your Majesty's name amid manifestations of devoted " loyalty. Your Majesty's congratulatory telegram was received with great " enthusiasm." Having now had an opportunity of studying with some care the various courts of the Exhibition, I have the honour to report to your Lordship on the Exhibition as a whole. The three principal colonies exhibiting are this colony, New South Wales, and Victoria. The New Zealand exhibits occupy the whole of one avenue, each province having a separate court. The exhibits show in a remarkable degree the progress which has been made during the fifty years which have elapsed since the foundation of the colony. They may be divided, roughly, into four classes—(l.) Agricultural and Pastoral —of which the chief exhibits are a model working-dairy, and dairy products. (2.) Wool : One of the most important classes of all. (3.) Canned meat. Frozeirmeat, as I need not now point out to your-Lordship, is the article of export from New Zealand which is growing at a more remarkable rate than any other, but unfortunately by it's nature not available for exhibition. (4.) Trophies of grain. (5.) Mining : (a)' Coal, (b) gold, (c) buildingstone. (6.) Forestry, the chief exhibits of timber being from the Public Works