No. 17.
Mr. Commissioner Hay to Chief Commissioner.

I have the honor of forwarding for your information the following report of my surveys and purchases on the Piako and Thames; attached to this report is a copy of my diary from the time I left Auckland until my return. On my arrival at Maukoro, on the Piako, I found the residents on the block (Ngatirauhea, formerly vassals of the Ngatipaoa) prepared to assert their right, not only to sell land on their own account, but to retain all land belonging to them that had been sold to Webster without their consent, and without their sharing in the payment. The Natives dispute a good deal amongst themselves, one of the bones of contention being the frontage to the River Piako. In almost all the receipts for instalments on land on the Piako the River Piako is named as the eastern boundary, but now they one and all denied and ridiculed the idea of their ever having sold the land right down to the river, especially while the old claim had been so long unsettled (meaning Webster's). I found that my insisting on the fulfilment of their agreement with regard to boundaries would, as far as the River Piako was concerned, be mere waste of time. I accordingly proceeded with the survey. On referring to the plan, it will be seen that there are two small reserves north of the Waikaka; these were unavoidable at the time, as opposition often makes a Native more obstinate. (I have since purchased the adjoining land, and with it the reserves.) At Pouriuri all the land east of the surveyor's line was reserved by the Natives on account of burial places, concerning the removal of which they could not agree, and also in order to retain sufficient for the resident Natives (Ngatirauhea) to occupy. I had one continued discussion with the Natives with regard to Webster's claims, but they were always most consistent in ignoring entirely the boundaries as laid down in any documents to which I had access. From all that I have seen, I am inclined to think that the Natives are in the right, at any rate far more so than the European, in this instance. The land included in Webster's claim that was retained by them south of Pouriuri amounts to about three thousand acres (3,000 acres); out of this I have since purchased and paid for finally about twelve hundred acres (1,200 acres); the river frontage in the block surveyed begins where the surveyor's line meets the river beyond Te Areiriri. The last mentioned purchase brings the frontage nearly two miles further north. Another reserve at the south-west end between Hangawera and Te Pukeiti, and extending towards Waikato, was also made on account of burial grounds that the Natives could arrive at no understanding about. This reserve contains about 3,000 acres. At the creek called Te Weiti, about 2,000 or 3,000 acres have been reserved. This part of the district having been the debateable ground between Ngatipaoa and Waikato, the burial grounds are more plentiful than elsewhere; however, the chief objection to sell these consecrated spots, is the number of claimants who would rise up, not because they had any right to the land, but: because they were distantly related to some of the bones. I shall however in all probability purchase all the land during the summer; and with the exception of a small reserve at Maukoro for the Ngatirauhea, thoroughly extinguish the Ngatipaoa claim in that part of the country. From Te Toke to Te Pahua, on the western boundary, the land is purchased right up to the Waikato boundary. For further information I refer you to the plan.

All the land north of the boundary of the block in question, has been purchased by me since the survey. This land extends on the west to the Waikato boundary, on the north to the Ngatimaru boundary, and on the east to the river Piako, taking in the two small reserves at Waikaka. I do not find the Natives either anxious to sell, or thoroughly averse to doing so. I do not know exactly what the feeling is amongst the Ngatihaua, but I look forward to having as much work as I can get through. It will be borne in mind that my district is not one with only one or two large tribes; but that the valley of the Thames, and Piako especially, and the neighbourhood, has been the battle field of some six or seven tribes for ten generations, consequently the claims of different tribes become so mixed up and intricate that it requires a great deal more time and careful enquiry than ordinary purchases, and for the same reason the land is subdivided into smaller blocks. It is my opinion that where the Government has an opportunity of extinguishing the Native title satisfactorily, where that title is intricate and involves two or more tribes, it should be done however small the block.

For further particulars I refer you to my letter and enclosure of the 15th instant.