VILLAGE SETTLEMENTS.

Auckland Star, Volume XIX, Issue 178, 30 July 1888, Page 2

VILLAGE SETTLEMENTS.

A meeting was convened in tho Lomestreet Hall on Saturday evening for the purpose of listening to Mr John Lundon's explanation with regard to the village special settlement scheme. Mr J. Lamb was voted to the chair. He made a few preliminary remarks with regard to the necessity for isett ling tho land. He said woo betide the Government who would not pay attention to the settlement of the land. In the North of x~nd ho was glad to say that not many farms were burdened with a mortgage. That was good, for if a man had a'mortgage it kept, hia nose to tho grindstone. He knew that it was said that bhey suffered from over-production ; but that was not t.':o case in Auckland, for they had never produced enough to satisfy their requirements. A great mistake had been made in constructing railway* thiough land that Was not settled and not likely to be. If tho country were settled as it should be, they would be much better off. Their land produced good wheat, and they could be in a position of independence provided that they could Ret people to settle on the land. Mr John Lundon then came forward, and B aid that although he had been active in originating the Village Settlement Scheme, s-ill bo claimed no connection with any settlements that were not north of Auckland. He had started nine, and they were a success. Ho had done his besb to keep all the promises which lis had made bo the special settlers. (Applause.) The speaker then reviewed the work done by himself. Ho defied any man to prove that he had ever told a political untruth. (Applause.) Therefore ho wanted them to believe him. The Minister of Lands had said that the small-farm system had been a duccess, because during tho last 12 months 600 persons had purchased land for cash. Well, if they had, it was nob north of Auckland. He believed that the perpetual lease system was the besb, aa a man could not mortgage that. Ab Herekino there were now 300 settlers, and that was not enough to support a church and a public-house, and if they could not do thab they could never gob on. (Laughter.) It wanted 3,000 people at Herekino to make it a success. Unfortunately, the present Government, lor the sake of £160, had broken faith wibh the settlers, and discontinued the steamer during the winter months. The resulb was that flour had to be brought from the Kaipara, and it cost 19s per cwt. Ab Herekino the land was good, but a good road was wanted to the portage. That road had been promised, but ib was not yet surveyed: That was the result of the Into Government being- put out of oSice by the vube of the working men. The present Government would nob give any assistance, and so the land would not be taken. The papers and the owners of the papers had supported him from the first, bub the people who wrote lebtors to the papers had not. Another point where the Government had broken faith was, that while they paid for felling bush, they had refused to pay for the open land where swamps had to be drained and scoria stones to bo removed. Another thing was that bhe Herekino settlers did nob geb bhe whole of the money set down against them. A lot of it went to tlie cockatoo settlers. £168,000 had been expended in opening up virgin land, of which £33,000 had bsen expended in the Auckland district. Roads had been made through land which had nob yet got a living soul upon it. Herekino had only gob „5,800 up to the 25th of May lasb. Up to the present, according to the returns, only £10,000 had been expended on village settlements all over the colony. Was ib nob worth ib, for now bhey had over 470 families sebfcled. Why, £50,000 had been expended on relief | works in Wellington, and there was not so good a result. If £50,000 could be so expenaed, surely the Government who had settled the land for so small a sum deserved their best thanks. (Applause.) Mr Eallance got a lob of credib for the scheme, and he deserved it, but every member of that Ministry was equally deserving of thanks. (Hear, hear.) He considered that those men who had gone into the wilderness to form homes were as brave as the 600 who charged at Balaclava. (Applause.) Shamo on the people who said they were paupers ! They were not. They were really brave men. He hoped that the meeting would press upon the Government to continue the village settlement scheme. (Applause.) There was no other safe existence for a working man. Mr W. Duncan moved, " Thab members of Parliament for the Auckland District be requested to arrange that when the House is being moved into Committee of Supply, tho following resolutions shall be proposed : —'That a humbe address be ptesented to His Excellency the Governor, praying that he may be pleased bo direct by message bhe placing upon the supplementary estimates ot the sum of £10,000 for the purpose of continuing and extending in the Provincial District of Auckland the special village sebblemenb scheme, as initiated by the late Government." He referred to the success which had attended the settlements in the Auckland district. He considered thab the action of the Government was unreasonable in not fulfilling bheir obligations to the settlers. At the same time tbe Government could vote a sum to send a man to the Melbourne Exhibition, or to supply gold medals to hang on their watch chains as a free pass on the railways. Surely it was better to vote £5,000 for the settlers than to pay £5,000 in Auckland in charitable aid. He thought that they would do well bo urge the mabter sbill further upon the Government.

Mr Lepper seconded the resolution, and spoke in favour of the scheme. He referred to the lavish expenditure of the Government for the extermination of rabbits. If they settled the land the people would eat off the rabbits, and export their skins to England. He preferred the leasehold system, as it precluded bhe settlers from mortgaging their sections.

Mr Lundon spoke in support of the resolution. He said that although the •'Herald" mieht support the village settlement schema he felt sure that their reporter ab Wellington was against it, from the telegrams which he forwarded.

The resolution wa«i then put to the meet ing, and adopted unanimously.

Mr G. M. Reed then came forward, and referred to the past labours of Mr John Lundon for village settlements. He mentioned that a petition asking for village settlements was, already signed by 300 persons who wished to be settled on the land. It was necessary that the petition should be taken down by tome person who was interested in the movement. He therefore moved :—" That this meeting ask Mr John Lundon to take with him to Wellington the petition now being signed by persons desirous of procuring land under the village settlement scheme, with a desire that he will adopt proper means to secure its favourable consideration by the Government."

This was seconded by Mr Jury, and adopibed by the meeting. Mr J. Grace moved, " That this meeting, while denouncing- bhosa members who had called tho village settlers paupers, pledges itself not in future te support I hem ; also, that bhe best thanks of the meeting be accorded to Mr Ballance, Mr J«hn Lundon, and others, who had rendered practical assistance to the village settlementscheme." Mr Grace spoke strongly against those persona who had called village settlers pauper*, and attacked Sir Georyo Grey for not manifesting a more friendly spirit towards the scheme.

Mr Reed asked Mr Grace to withdraw the resolution, as it would tend to damage the movement. Hitherto it had been kept entirely apart from party feeling.

Mr Lundon also asked^ draw the resolution SI with regard to sl'g_M plause.) eotß«G^ Mr Grace accordingly „;«, ' solution, and a vote of fi_!'>! man terminated the pro^H