NATIVE LAND PROBLEMS

Auckland Star, Volume LIX, Issue 30, 6 February 1928, Page 9

NATIVE LAND PROBLEMS

A NORTHERN SOLUTION. CONSOLIDATION OF INTERESTS

ONE BLOCK FOR EACH

LANDHOLDER

A large number of natives representing, the Ngapuhi, Rarawa, Aupouri and other tribes met at Otiria on Wednesday last to discuss the proposal for the consolidation of native lands, and the payment of native rates.

The meeting was addressed by Sir Apirana T. Ngata, Colonel Allen Bell, tnd Mr. Tau Henare, M.P.'s.

Interviewed on his return to Auckland, Colonel Bell said that the conference had been a great success, and easily one of the most important that had been held in the Northland for fifty years. The proposals had had an excellent reception. r

Asked what was the real object of the! scheme, Colonel Bell said that for the past 50 years the natives of the Northland had been making a living at bush work, gum digging,, and road and railway construction. Timber and gum had now about petered out as far as^the native was concerned, and the back of road and railway construction would be broken within the next ten vears. If nothing were done to place the native on his land, the charitable aid boards and the Government would find themselves burdened with a large number of indigent natives. Under the consolidation scheme, in cases where a native had several areas of land situated in different blocks and districts, it was proposed to give him his whole area in one block, and assist him favourably to embark in dairying or other farming pursuits. ° r

Does the native take kindly to dairylag? asked our representative. "In my own electorate," replied Colonel Bell, "I have over 600 natives supplying the dairy factories. At- every factory except one—where the cream has to be carted a long distance—the amount of second grade cream is under five per cent, in some cases a§ low as three per cent. The Maori is proving an excellent dairyman, and I have no doubt whatever that, under the wider scheme of settling him on his land, he will be entirely successful. Of course, as is the case with Europeans, there are natives quite unsuited for farmin» nureuits. ° F

What is it you propose to do with regard to the payments of arreas of survey liens and rates? was the next question put.

"As far as survey liens are concerned," replied Colonel Bell, "the suggestion is that they be written off

! Unfortunately in the past a large j amount of money has been uselessly ' spent in cutting up blocks into most I unsuitable areas and shapes. Many of j the subdivisions would not even pay ! for the fencing. All this will have to be, and will be, altered under the coni solidation scheme. As far as arrears of rates are concerned, the suggestion ' made to the natives is that the amount

of rates—agreed upon with the local body to be collected —should be all loaded on to one block of native land called a '■'sinker/' This block would then be purchased by the Government for cash, and the amount of rates agreed upon be paid by the Government to the local bodies, which, especially in the Far North, have in the past been very heavily penalised."

Asked if the scheme was going to be entirely successful, Colonel Bell replied:

'"I 'have no doubt whatever about that. Mr. Tau Henare and myself have had the inestimable advantage of the services of Sir Apirana Ngata, who has made a success of a simlar scheme in his district. We have also the advantage of special men being loaned from the Lands and Native Departments, and in the North we have a Native Land Court judge who is an enthusiast in the scheme. Under these conditions I have no doubt whatever that we will make the scheme a great success. In a few year? we will see the native working his own bit of land and placed in a position to pay rates, which he is in many cases unable to do at present. The scheme, in my opinion, will prove the salvation of our native people, and should have been brought into being twenty years ago."