HAUTOTARA ESTATE.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 643, 21 October 1909, Page 8

HAUTOTARA ESTATE.

* EXPLANATION BY MR. W. C. BUCHANAN. REPLY BY PBIME MINISTER. The subject of tho suggested purchase of the > "Hautotara Estate, neat. Martmboroogh, led to : ■ an .interesting discussion iin the House of Ro-:-v presontatives' yesterday. *' '• "'r./ Mr. -W C. Buchanan, member for Waira-"\v-.::."Tapa,':said'!thftfc.tha"Prime.<Minieter..'lmd']iad a great deal, to Bay&bootmisrepreseirtatKra; and v ho; regretted,.that ho should have, to accuso him in that direction. The Prime. Minister had said that the member for Wairnrapa had been beseeching the • Government to acquire the. Hautotara' Estate, and had ■ stated thai the purchase of that estate would be for the bonoht of.oce man, that it was grazing land, and could only be divided into six homestoads, . and that he would refnso to purchase from . ;;-large landed proprietors land which had to be . ■ rented atterwards at. from 40e. to 58s. by tho unfortunate occupiers who took up the land. . The fact was"'that thero was no pressure put . upon the Government to purchase. There was a..petition;,from -people .of all sorts—farmers, townsmen, and > others—in Martinborough, asking the Government to-.send one of their best .« falners to value the property, and if the : : owner wished :to sell,' and the pneo was satis- ' factory, to purchase' tho estate under the Lands . for. Settlement: Act He had never asked the Government to»bny the land, because he did not know if the price demanded was esocssive cr otherwise. It was part.of a block of country. a considerable area of which had beep , already purchased by, tho. Government, and put undor, settlement, with" the result that ' th« . .-.settlers were doing very well on.it The block among the very best tie.Government had-.--put -through their hands, and though he did ; ■■: not-know, what tho actual value of the land woaH bo, some of it . compared very well with the best laiid of four other estate that, had ' : s?^ n taken by the Government. The Prims -very, seriously-misrepresented the pcHltion; Ire did not say- intentionally. ,The owner :;o£ the land had com- ■ . : n?enced-> without: a - shilling'to: his iCredit, He . v :know -of t no more hard-workmff man or bettoer - : Battler,,ana all. honoar to hun if to-day he was m a poabcc to offer te the Government - . .. St affair price a large block of useful country . ' lise this,'that wotrftl carry a largo number of ■ : families,. He hoped that ths Prime Minister ' would looJe into the matter, deal with it on . its monts, and purchase this land if he could getvit-at-a.fair, price, because he conld not ..., enter;into.a better transaction in the intercuts ' or the conntry. * , The Prime Minister, later, stated that the estate .contained 9774 acres .of freehold and j>f>B. acres of leasehold. A deputation asked the .Government .to,, aeffure- the freehold portion ■v f -W, the-property. It .was not likely that the • ■ Government would purchase the- property; as it .would be in the interest of-one person, and it , S?nld only, accommodate half a dozen settlers. Tare® months before the deputation nrtomewed • the Minister,- the ■< freehold,' j.valned, at 282, .but 31, 1908, tho owner gave ®°.«ce^to.v.hayo.'vthe value raised to J>70,200 - .Upon, the basis' of one settler to> every 510 • ; aores, it;would have cost .£4OOO to place each . on® i.onv tho property. -Why the Government anxious to. do. anything hrrmodly was . • the. fact^that, the value of the . leasehold por* • :• .estato-'had -not- bfon mcreasod at • .• : ::. ;he same.«time, as the: freehold portion. < • Mr. ; Buchanan said thai? the deputation did :.v;\Mt:urgeijthe;Government to'purchasethe• pro*'' ; ; perty. bat requested it to\ consider- the def, ;. jirnbloness of acquiring it and to send its-best property.' V Siiv Joseph Btid. t also .mado .a' cristate in; stating, ttiat 'only the freehold was in the market Whv, som« Jf-r; thd leasehold' land .was equal to'the best 1 :; .the island-1--It was> under lease - from the" owners .under, 10ng.. 1 lease: '-'Sir Joseph' /y/vjaaa niade a big: mistake m.estimating tbe cost r- v settlers'oni'the -land.-- 'a-.- • i •.'.•••Sir; Joseph; The leasehold land'was under l^ ;^:i^gotiation : fo^;;s^le/from":the'Nativestb" : the • \.«:^the^e^i»:'at , ''tKb/tinie;t vV.-'.vv v Mr. Buchanan That would not affect the position ' t