WELLINGTON NOTES.
By TKI.BGRAPU.
(FROM OVR iPKCIAL CORIIKSPONDEXT.) WELLINGTON, April 9.
We have heard some strange stories here lately concerning a recent sitting of the Advances to Settlers Board. According to the generally accepted version of the affair, it would seem that the Minister of Lands attended the meeting of the Board as the representative of the Government, and, instead of dealing with each application brought before the Board on its merits, dealt out abuse all round, using language to I those present, ie ia. stated, such as would never be tolerated in Parliament. The hon. ' gentleman, however, it would seem, more thau met his match in the usually mildmannered administrator of the Board and ! Public Trustee, who showed an amount of backbone truly creditable under the circumstance*, and who quite held his own in the wordy waririre, making up in terseness what he lacked in noisy bluster. That there is very good foundation for the above story the following article from the morning journal, the mouthpiece of the Government, iv reply to au article appearing in last night* paper, will show : —" A sensational article ou this subject (advances to settlers) ha 3 been published in the editorial columns of our evening contemporary. Hectoring and bullying, bad language aud many other things are therein imputed to the Minister of L*.nds. That is part of the usual romance. The Minister, with whom we have talked ou the subject, assures us that his language was not in any way deserving of the criticism bestowed upon it. At the same time, we have his authority for saying that be told the Board plainly what he thought of its dilatory ways. On that subject he spoke his miud freely, as he maintains he had a right to do, seeing that bis department has been for months inundated with complaints from settlers in every district, from the North Cape to tho Bluff. The Minister assures us that he will take an early opportunity to ventilate the matter from a public platform. He has no wish to coerce the Board iv any way, but he objects to the dilatoriness of the Board's proceedings, for which neither he nor his Government are iv any way responsible. Mr McKeozie's course is perfectly opeu and honest in the matter, and mora will be heard of it."
WELLINGTON NOTES.
Press, Volume LIII, Issue 9387, 10 April 1896, Page 5
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