Ohinemuri District: Ohinemuri

There can be no doubt that a sitting of the Native Lands Court to settle the title to the goldfield block at Ohinemuri is urgently required, recent discoveries of gold at Waihi and elsewhere on the block by making the land valuable will render the settlement more difficult the longer it is delayed. There is also always a possibility of a collision between the natives and miners, as long as the rights in the land of the former remain undefined.117

Wilkinson was also urging a sitting of the Court at this time.

In consequence of the considerable increase of mining that has taken place within the Ohinemuri Gold Field during the last six months, I think it is advisable that a Native Land Court should sit in that District as soon as possible, in order to deal with the promises made by Mr James Mackay to Natives for Reserves out of the Ohinemuri gold field block.

The location of these Reserves has not yet been settled, and complications are already commencing to crop up; in one case lately, certain Natives forcibly obstructed a contractor from cutting timber in the Waitete Bush, notwithstanding the fact that he had authority from the Warden of Gold Fields, and had paid the usual price for each kauri tree into the Warden's Office.

This matter was brought up at the Resident Magistrate's Court at Ohinemuri, and the Natives complained of injustice at the hands of the Government, on account of these Reserves not being fixed, and requested both the Resident Magistrate and myself to press upon the government the necessity of ordering a sitting of Court to deal with these matters as soon as possible, pending which they promised to abstain from any further obstructions.118

In December 1881 the Under Secretary to the Native Land Purchase Department was in Thames. He was approached about the promise of reserves made by Mackay.

I informed him that such Reserves that the Government had promised would be set apart immediately the Government obtained the fee simple to the land; at present the purchase of the Block was incomplete.119

The Court still had in its records an application by the Native Minister for definition of the Crown's interest made in April 1878. This application was advertised and adjoumed.120

It is possible that a fresh application was made to the Native Land Court during 1881 to have the Crown's interest in the block determined.121

It was then arranged that the application be re-advertised for a Court at Ohinemuri beginning in May 1882. In requesting this timing, the Under Secretary of the Native Land Purchase Department added that

Should there not be a Judge of the Court available for the sitting at Ohinemuri, Mr Bryce will be obliged by your requesting Captain Heale to undertake the work.122

Heale was apparently a retired Judge whose commission had not been withdrawn.

117 Mining Warden Thames to Minister of Mines, 3 November 1881. Maori Land Court Hamilton Correspondence file H883. Supporting Papers #L5.12–13.

118 Land Purchase Officer Thames to Under Secretary Native Land Purchase Department, 5 November 1881. Maori Affairs Head Office file NO 1882/1284. Supporting Papers #C3.13–14.

119 File note by Under Secretary Native Land Purchase Department, 21 December 1881, on cover sheet to file NLP 1881/491. Maori Affairs Head Office file NO 1882/1284. Supporting Papers #03.15.

120 Registrar Native Land Court Auckland to Under Secretary Native Land Purchase Department, 11 March 1882, on Telegram Under Secretary Native Land Purchase Department to Registrar Native Land Court Auckland, to March 1882. Maori Land Court Hamilton Correspondence file H883.

Supporting Papers #L5.14.

121 New Zealand Gazette 1881 pages 1139–1140. Supporting Papers #W14.24–25.

122 Under Secretary Native Land Purchase Department to Chief Judge Native Land Court, 29 March 1882. Maori Land Court Hamilton Correspondence file H883. Supporting Papers #L5.15–17.

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