LAND SETTLEMENT IN HAWKE'S BAY.

Daily Telegraph (Napier), Issue 9292, 20 July 1901, Page 5

LAND SETTLEMENT IN HAWKE'S BAY.

Protest-by Captain Russell.

Also by Mr A. L. D. Fraser.

[F£OM OUR PARLIAMENTARY MEPOIiTJiR.)

[by telegraph.]

Wellington, Last nighfe.

An interestiug description of the methods employed by the Government in acquiring land for settlement was given to thd House by Captain Russell this afternoon. An old settler who fought for the colony in the Maori wars died, leaving a widow and six children, together with an estate of some six or seven thousand acres of land in Havvke'3 Bay. Some tima ago the property wa3 compulsorily taken by the Crown. Tho land, raid Captain Russell, was -situated near the Hatuma estate, and the &iz3 of the sections on the Hatuma estate were as follows :—1217 acres, 1134 acres, 1509 acres, 1158 acres, 878 acre 3, 782 acres, 2747 acres, all the land being superior, to Uuii Qwaed by Ihs vviaow raid hc-L , family. T.he sue'.ione into which the Hatuma estate was cut up would have given just over 1064 acres each to v family of seven, which was exactly the area which tho widow and her six children would have had if they had been allowed to divide the property amongst themselves, and yet that family were rendered 1 o neless by the Crown in order to provide land for the people. The Premier said the widow offered the land to the Government. Captain Kussell said slie did offer it when she had an opportunity of investing the money in a better property, but the Government refused to take it at her prica, and months afterwards they said " Bjc-iuse you olfered it to us once we are going to take it now," Meantime, said Captain Kussell in conclusion, the opportunity of investing her money fell through. ' Subsequently Mr Fraser addressed the House on the question, and corroborated Captain Russell's statement relative to the widow. Ho said, however, that an explanation was necessary. The lady in question had offered the land at £4 10s per acre, but the Government did not know the circumstances of the offer or they would not have brought the compulsory clause into operation. He (Mr Frasor) believed that a great injustice had been done to that family by the Government. Mr Sedilon here interjected that he thought the whole lamily were leaving the colony, to which Mr Fraser replied that it was not so, and added that a great injus:ice had been done, unintentionally, to the family. Speaking on the broad question of land settlement Mr Eraser pointed out■that Taranaki, with a third of the acreage of Hawke's Bay, was within 2000 of the population of the East Coast province, and he strongly advocated closer settlement in Hawke's Bay. Mr Gilfedder followed Mr Fraser, and concurred in the necessity of close settlement being adopted in Hawke's Bay.