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Auckland Star, Volume XLI, Issue 171, 21 July 1910, Page 6

At the meeting of the executive committee of the Canterbury Farmers' Union, Mr Paterson, from Lincoln, complained of the methods of the Government land valuer in his district. The valuer, he said, had visited his farm and had afternoon tea on his front verandah, and had arranged to increase the valuation from £20 to £25 an acre, but when the notices had been received from the Department it had been found that the land had been valued at £35 an acre. Similar methods had been employed all over the district. One farmer's valuation had 'been agreed to at £37 10s, and had ultimately beeu made £47 10s. In almost every case the valuation had gone up from £5 to £10 over the price agreed on. He had received his notice on Monday, hut the time for the lodging of objections had* closed on the previous Saturday. It was suggested that the valuer might have gone over the laud after seeing Mr Paterson, but Mr Paterson replied that the valuer had never seen the farm except from the front verandah of the house. In the other case he had done his valuing from a fig. It wa,s decided to leave the mutter'to the Lincoln ftranch of the union.