The name of James Wallis, a Wesleyan (Methodist) missionary, is recorded on the Manukau-Kāwhia treaty sheet next to the signatures of three rangatira (chiefs) who signed at Kāwhia on 21 May 1840. Te Kanawa was from Ngāti Mahuta of Waikato. Unlike all the other signatures on the Manukau-Kāwhia treaty, which are marked with a simple cross, Te Kanawa signed two wavy lines next to his name. Tariki, from the Patupatu pā (fortified village) in Waikato, and Haupōkia may have been from Ngāti Maniapoto.
The Wesleyan missionaries, Wallis and John Whiteley, had been sent the Manukau-Kāwhia treaty sheet to gain the last signatures in the region from rangatira at Kāwhia and Aotea. Any discussion preceding the signings was not recorded.
