LAND PROBLEMS.

Press, Volume LXV, Issue 19567, 13 March 1929, Page 18

LAND PROBLEMS.

CONFERENCE IN WELLINGTON.

POSSIBILITIES OF CLOSER SETTLEMENT. ' 'TZiiti ASSOCIATION TTLKGEAJ*.; I WELLINGTON. March 12. Vnder the auspices of the New Zealand Land -settlement and Development League and the Dominion Settlement As-ociation. of Wellington, a conference on land settlement and migration problems was opened to-day. Mr A. L. Hunt itss voted to the chair. In a lengthy speech. Mr Hunt urgtd th;;t then- should be a vigorous policy or developing and .settling new laud in the Dominion. He uttcriy disagreed with the statement frequently made diiriT-._- the past few* years. even by rospmsi !»!,-• Minist.rs of the Crown, that all the* land orth settling had been taken up. "Ur Hunt also said that million* of horse power were running t > waste tli.;t luifiht be harnessed up privately, in addition to the Got-ern-n.< n: hydro undertakings, and i o.ild h<> utilised for manufacturing purposes. There mu't fx? something wrong when i': a country of preat latent possibilities they had a chronic problem mid c mid not absorb British immigrants. Afi>'r quoting what was 1 >-.*>iiic; accomplished in Western Australia. Mr firihbk. secretary of the Auckland land .Settlement endorsed Mr Hunt's statement as to the urgent need of an Immigration and Land Settlement Hoard.

Mr ir. I!. Dickie, M.P., said any hov cr->i!d make mnncr o-i the land provider] iir v. ns trained on t lio rizht lnu~.. Fir- blamed anard and r rii< i n urlv '.."agfls for people preferring til" liwn to the country. Mr A. \V. Chapman, of the Wnikat-o S'vamp Development League, preferred the d»'\ of unimproved kind to tbi? purchase of large estates for settlement.

After further discussion. the followii!j resolutions were passed • That the land settlement policy of the fnf'ire should he confined largely to :ip new hinds at present hringinj; in no revenue. That in addition to (iovernment effort, pn.ate enterprise ho given every » ncournynient and facility, including removal nf the land tax, to undertake the of second class lands for the puriri.-r- of making them availiihlo fnr settlement. That in the onininn of this oonferr nee. the time has arrived for a nation."*! movement to place land settlement on a sound hasis.

The conference approved of the pnlify of the Mini>ter for Kducation that primary education l>e givpn a bias towards agriculture. an<l expressed the opinion that bov.s should complete their training in the service of a practical farui'T.

The conference adjourned until tomorrow afternoon.