REVIEWERS IN HAWKES BAY. THE WOBURN RUN.

Evening Post, Volume XLIII, Issue 121, 23 May 1892, Page 4

REVIEWERS IN HAWKES BAY. THE WOBURN RUN.

Tho Board of Reviow under tho Land Tax for tho Waipawa County, Hawkos Bay, has begun its sitting. Tho first uaso which oamo before it was that of Mr. Purvis Rusioll's Woburn Run, through which tho railway runs near Waipukurau. Mr. Russell is an absentee of long standing, and objection was roado on his behalf by Mr. Logan, who claimed that the assessment of the run at Jfri 17s 6d per acre was too high, and the amount allowed for improvements was too low. Mr. Russell would agree to a valuation of £A 10s. Mr. C. D. Kennedy, Inspecting Assessor, asked for an adjournment to enable the Commissioner toreaommendtho purchase of the run. Mr. Logan alainiad that Government could only purchase under section 30 at the Assessors' valno, but ho thought an adjournment would bo best. Tho Assessors' value was £129,944 for 2G.665 acres of the freohold portions of the run (excluding leasehold), improvements being set down at .£21,007, and unimproved valuo at .£108,937. Aftor a brief consultation, Mr. Kennedy announcod that Mr. Logan had agreed to accept notice to raise assessors' value of £4 17s Gd as if already given, tho Commissioner considering that the Assessor had placed too low a valuo on the run, and desiring to havo it raised, and that ovidonco to assess valuo would now bo callod. Expert ovidonco was then taken at oon.sidorablo length. Mr. T. Crosse said ho had gono ovor the run on tho 23rd April, and valed it at £4 10s por aero. There were 1468 aores ploughed and in grass, 1 portion in turnips, 17,700 aores, selfsown, 80 milos of fencing, buildings worth .£2085, five yards and dips, plantation of 25 acres, Ac Tho snoop barely clipped 81b, and thore wore 39,700 shorn last year, the surplus stook boing lin 3. The cost of tho inaintonanco was from .£'looo to .£SOOO per annnin. Mr. C. Mackersy corroborated this witness. Mr. J. Crawford, manager of Woburn, valued the run at £4 10s per ttoro, baaed on the carrying oapacity. Seventoon hundred acres wero still virgin land, the surph s stock was from 9000 to 10,000 a year, and the cost of maintenance £4500. Mr. C. A. Fitzroy valuod tho run at £137,000, or £5 4s por aore, and considered it oapable of carrying another 15,000 shoop. Ho calculated last year's profits at £9964. After retiring for consideration, tho Board sustained the assossors value, fixing improvements at .£25,000, subjoot to amendment at a speoial sitting to bo hold on Wednesday. Mr. Lyons, for tho Bank of New Zealand Estates Company, objooted to .£84,852 (improvemonts .£30,700) as tho value of 30,584 acres of tho Mangatoro run taken over from Mr. Hamilton. There woro 6000 aores of standing bush on the run, and as tho objection, involved sovoral knotty points it was deoiaod to consider it at a sitting to bo hold at Woodville. The cose of Mr. Sydnoy Johnson's run at Takapau, was also considered ; 16.388 acres was assessed at .£03,950. 7214 acros wore surface sown, 4744 ploughed, and tho remainder in nativo grass, with 85 miles of fencing and 25,000 sheep. The valuation was sustained.