Conclusion,

Thus ended the most successful trip that has ever been made by a member of the Government through Native territory.

Nineteen meetings were held, and two thousand assembled Natives addressed, representing about ten thousand.

It will be noticed that in the foregoing narrative the speeches made by the Hon. J. Carroll are conspicuous by their absence. This is accounted for by the fact that, wherever the Premier met the Natives, he was introduced to them by Mr. Carroll, who fully explained to them the object of the trip, and at most of the places acted as interpreter, the party not having taken an official interpreter with them. Where their services were available, Mr. G. T. Wilkinson (Waikato) and Mr. W. E. Goffe (north of Auckland) rendered valuable assistance as interpreters, and thanks are due to them on that account.

The Premier's party consisted of Hon. Mr. James Carroll, Mr. Gerhard Mueller, Commissioner of Crown Lands and Chief Surveyor for the Auckland District, and Private Secretaries T. H. Hamer and J. F. Andrews. The latter took a full note of the proceedings throughout the entire trip, and to his skill as a stenographer is due the foregoing very complete record of the many meetings with the Natives. Under all the circumstances the work of recording the speeches was a most trying one. The party was engaged in travelling very frequently all day long, and at night would hold meetings with the Natives in their primitive dwellings. It is no easy task to follow and take a correct stenographic report of a number of long speeches at any time and under favourable circumstances; but, after travelling on horseback over the roughest of rough country, to sit or lie down on the floor of a Maori runanga (meeting-house) and—sans table, chair, or other convenience—record verbatim a number of rapidly-delivered speeches is a feat in phonography.

The party was accompanied during a portion of the trip by Mr. J. M. Geddis (New Zealand Times, Wellington) and Mr. J. Gray (Auckland Star), whose reports were published in their respective journals in extenso, and Mr. William Herbert Jones, F.R.G.S., during the journey through the Urewera country. Mr. Jones is collecting material for a work that he is about to publish dealing with the principal features of the colony, and his researches in this hitherto unvisited locality will prove of considerable interest. Attached are some extracts from newspapers regarding the Premier's trip.

The narrative of the trip was to have been laid on the table of the House during the session of 1894, and it was commenced to be printed just before the session began, but it was found inexpedient to go on with the printing, as the large amount of one class of type required would, if so locked up, have greatly inconvenienced the printing-office staff. The printing was therefore delayed till after the bulk of the sessional work was completed.