TE AKAU BLOCK.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 176, 25 July 1907, Page 3

TE AKAU BLOCK.

APPEAL COURT ARGUMENT.

(By Telegraph.—Press Association.) WELLINGTON, Wednesday. In the Te Akau Block case Mr. Morrison, on behalf of the plaintiffs, claimed that the issue of a Crown grant had extinguished all tribal or hapu boundaries and all native customary titles, and that, therefore, in referring the question of tribal boundaries to the Native Appellate Court the Legislature had wrongly assumed that these boundaries still existed. That being so, it was the duty of the Appellate Court to decide that the tribal boundaries no longer existed.

"Mr. Earl contended that there was no abandonment of the land by the Crown under the New Zealand Settlements Amendment and Continuance Act, 1865, and that therefore the block remained Crown land. The part of the block returned to the loyal natives was given as compensation, and was not an abandonment of land. • It was plainly Crown land that was given to the loyal natives, and all tribal boundary lines had gone.

After Mr. Bell had replied the Court intimated tha,t it would give judgment on Friday morning.