ARE SURVEYORS SCARCE?

Auckland Star, Volume L, Issue 176, 26 July 1919, Page 11

ARE SURVEYORS SCARCE?

A>" EXCUSE CHALLENGED. Does the scarcity of land surveyors explain the delay in opening up Crown land for settlement? The writer put this question to a surveyor engaged in 1 rural work in a district where there are A large tracts of Crown land, including 1 manr thousands of acres of the Urewera. i country. 1 "It does not," said he with emphasis, j " Lt is claimed so, is it not?" c "It is. And it is untrue." r "If tie Government advertised for a j thousand surveyors !" i " Mt dear sir. there are any number ( of surveyors available in New Zealand, | if the Government really wanted them. , You must look elsewhere for your ex- , planation." " l≤ there any reason "why the survey- , ors musx have had a Government train- | ing? - ' " Not the slightest." " Fo>. -uttinc up a block of say 10,000 . acres into farms of 50 to 500 acres, is the ordinary free surveyor qualified?" : " Quite. Otherwise he does not know ihi? business." , I " With an instruction of that kind, how would you proceed?" ! '" Lar out the roads. Everything . ; hinges on the rna>ds. You perhaps make ; several tries before you hit on your i best plan, especially in birsh country. | • Then in relation to the road's tlie sub- ! dividing is proceeded with. Now let mc I tell you something. The most compeitent surveyors are not in Government I i employ. We do not consider it an ad- j !• vantage. It is .better for us to work . free." "On what terms would you surrey ! Crown land?" I '"' About sixpence per acre is necessary ;to maJie it pay us. Sometimes more. I j I could mention a block I would have strr- i ' veyed at Sd. It cost the Government I ■surveyors 3/Q. "An exception porhap~?" " Sir," said this wizard of the theodolite, " I make bold to say we can always • do it at one-quarter of what it costs fie ■ Government —and better. We are here ' ! in Xew Zealand if the Government wants J ut=. Yes. you must look elsewhere for your explanation. That excuse is without foundation."