PAGE TWO OF MAUNSELL'S "MAKE-DO" TREATY
It is uncertain how Reverend Robert Maunsell acquired this unofficial, non-government issued (for treaty signing assemblies) document, which was never pre-signed for use in Treaty meetings. Dr. Phil Parkinson identifies the handwriting to be that of James Stuart Freeman, Hobson's secretary. With Hobson being ill upon arrival in New Zealand and severely incapacitated by a paralytic stroke only 3-weeks after stepping ashore, many administrative blunders occurred in the first weeks or months. Not least amongst these displays of "functionary ineptitude or incompetence" was the careless production of many varied English renditions of the Treaty. Virtually every version sent overseas to Australia, Britain or the United States was different. Freeman tended to dip freely and unrestrained into the early, rejected and superseded, rough draft treaty notes and grab whatever took his fancy on the day. He had a very careless tendency to swap various Preambles or Affirmations around at will for his several English versions, as if the English text didn't really matter much. About the only authentic renditions of Hobson's/ Busby's "final draft" to be sent overseas went in despatches by James Reddy Clendon, U.S. Consul, to the Secretary of State in Washington D.C.

One of Freeman's ad hoc documents somehow ended up in the possession of Reverend Maunsell at Waikato Heads and its content is mostly based upon Busby's 3rd of February 1840 rough draft Articles of the Treaty in English, rather than Busby's final draft of the 4th of February. The Preamble is based upon one of Hobson's/ Freeman's early efforts and the Affirmation section is a severely edited back version of Busby's 3rd of February text. Freeman used his own "literary licence" and edited or spliced in various preferred sections that have no affiliation with the final English draft of the 4th of February 1840. Maunsell's "make-do" Treaty documents were used again by William Cornwallis Symonds in his 3rd meeting at Manukau Heads on the 26th of April, 1840. For his first two meetings there he had used the official government issued and "signed-off" document in Maori, which, by the 26th of April 1840, was being used by Reverend John Whiteley at Kawhia.

Maunsell's "official document", issued by the Government of Willoughby Shortland (standing in for Hobson who was severely paralysed and recuperating at Reverend Davis' house in Waimate) had not arrived with Symonds by the 11th of April and was, in fact 3-days late in getting to Maunsell's meeting. Maunsell used one of William Colenso's printed Maori texts (the official text) on April 11th for his oral delivery of the Treaty wording to the Chiefs and 1500 tribespeople.

Whatever signatures would not fit onto the printed Maori text document, presented at Maunsell's meeting, were allowed to overflow onto the defective and unofficial English document. Hobson later signed the "make-do" document in May (with a stroke affected left hand signature) to acknowledge the wishes of the Waikato Chiefs, whom he knew had heard only the official Maori Treaty presented to them by Maunsell. The actual, official document for the meeting of 11th of April at Waikato Heads or 26th of April at Manukau Heads was Colenso's printed Maori text. The accompanying English document was used solely as an appendage piece of paper to the official printed document and acted in no other capacity than to accommodate the overflow signatures. The Waikato Heads meeting or 3rd one attempted at Manukau Heads, had been conducted no differently than other Treaty meetings in the scattered districts of New Zealand, where documents, in Maori, represented the only authorised text for presentation, consideration or signing.