H.— 28

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Natives of Te Kaha. (Telegram.) Hon. Premier, Wellington. Opotiki, 25th June, 1906. Te Kaha Natives wish me convey their sincere regret at sad loss of Premier and Minister of Education. Hope. Natives of Te Rarawa Tribe. The Hon. W. Hall-Jones, Wellington. June, 1906. A word of farewell. A loving message from Te Rarawa Tribe and its hapus upon the death of the Right Hon. R. J. Seddon, Premier: — Farewell, father, the parent of the two races inhabiting this colony ! Depart, thy spirit, to the permanent resting-place. Your acts of administration remain as a source of increasing benefit to this colony, and a cause of congratulation to your peoples after you. The Maori saying runs, " The grave of evil will not be mourned, but the grave of good will be lamented." Therefore, depart 0 grave of good ! These loving messages and these words of fareyvell arise through your having departed from amidst your two races; you left us in health ; you returned to your people, to your family, to your Ministers, to the land, you came back to us—dead. Therefore nil measure of loving sympathy is expressed for you. Farewell ! The representative of our great King, the strong man, the furnisher of ideas, the man who held the Premiership of this Islai d for this length of time, your reputation has reached to the ends of the earth. Depart in obedience to the ordinance of God. God has said that man sojourns as a stranger in this world. The Lord gave and the Lord hath taken away. This is a loving message from us to the widow of the Premier and her family : — 0 mother ! greetings in the great and sorrowful misfortune which has befallen you and your family ! He has been taken by God from before your view, and from the view of his two races. 0 mother ! may God keep you and your family and strengthen you to bear this great sorrow yvhich has descended upon you and your family. To conclude our message of loving sympathy we employ the ancient Maori mihi. This was a message of condolence used in the case of the fall of great minds, of the founders of principles of peacemakers. Ka tupu te toi ki tua, ka tupu te toi ki aro; Ka tupu te toi nui. haa kau taku rata. R. T. Puhipi, On behalf of Te Rarawa Tribe. Tongariro Council and Ngatituwharetoa Tribe. (Telegram.) Hon. Hall-Jones, Wellington. Taupo, 16th June, 1906. He mihi aroha na te Tongariro Kaunihera me Ngatituwharetoa katoa ki to tatou Pirimia tino atawhai aroha nui ki ona iwi c rua. Haere te matua ote pani ote pouaru me te rawakore. Parati Paurini, Tiamana Kaunihera Heuheu. (Translation.) This is a heartfelt lament from the Tongariro Council and the whole of Ngatituwharetoa Tribe for our (late) Premier. Great indeed yvas the loving kindness that he shoyved to both his peoples (the pakeha and the Maori). Gone is the father of the orphan, the widow and the poverty-stricken. Parati Paurini, Chairman of the Council, Heuheu Tukino. Natives of Waima. (Telegram.) Acting-Premier, Wellington. Waima, 12th June, 1906. Ka nui te pouri o nga tangata o Waima mo te matenga o to tatou rangatira nui. J. Tawhai. (Translation.) Great is the grief of the people of Waima because of the death of our great rangatira. Residents of Dargaville. Dear Mr. Mills,— Dargaville, 25th June, 1906. I forward, under separate cover, six copies of the Wairoa Bell containing a report of the memorial service held in Dargayille, as a slight recognition of our respect to the memory of our departed Premier. All shades of political opinion were represented, and the deepest respect and regret were expressed at our great loss. 1 may state that the committee, of which I have the honour to act as secretary, presented a copy of a memorial card to every one that attended the service (over five hundred). Yours, &c, Hon. C H. Mills, Wellington. J. Hay, Postmaster.