Kāwhia, 15 June 1840

On 15 June three further signatures were added to the Manukau-Kāwhia treaty sheet at Kāwhia. It is not certain, but the first two of these signatories were possibly from Ngāti Maniapoto. W. C. Symonds, recently appointed police magistrate, had instructed the local Kāwhia Wesleyan (Methodist) missionaries, James Wallis and John Whiteley, to seek out signatories from Ngāti Maniapoto, and sent them the Manukau-Kāwhia treaty sheet from Waikato Heads.

These three signatories were: Taonui, from the Patupatu pā in Waikato, Hōne Waitere from Aotea and Te Mātenga, who was possibly from Te Wahapū. No details of the discussions with these rangatira (chiefs) were recorded, but a letter of instructions from Symonds from 8 April has been conserved, which states that the missionaries should explain the Treaty ‘perfectly’ and gift signatories with blankets, making sure that this is not interpreted as a payment or a bribe