OUR LAND FOR SETTLEMENT POLICY

Evening Post, Volume LXX, Issue 155, 30 December 1905, Page 5

OUR LAND FOR SETTLEMENT POLICY

CAPITAL WITHDRAWN FROM THE COLONY. (FROM Ottt OWN CORRESPONDENT.) LONDON, 17th November. The day boforo yesterday the annual general meeting of the New Zealand and Australian Land Company was held at the head office of the company, at Edin-. burgh. Mr. Robert Stewart (Chairman of the company) presided. I have already sent you the report issued by the directors. In moving its adoption, the Chairman remarked that the New Zealand Government indicated that they desired to purchase, under the Land for Settlement Act, the only agricultural estates left to the company, viz., Clydevale and Totara, which togelhor contain about 32,000 acres of cultivated lands. Perhaps no change had affected the company's position and surroundings more than that which had taken place in the past two years, during which time it had become much more an Australian than a Now Zealand company — not of its own seeking, but because the day for large land companies in New Zealand was past, and instead of having fully half of its capital in that colony, it now had only one quarter of it invested there. The compulsory sales of land to the Now Zealand Government, coupled with the sales voluntarily made by the company, liborated, roughly speaking, about £550,000 of capital, all of which had necessarily been withdrawn from that colony. As regarded the temporary employment of tho money, the Chairman felt sure the best possible had been done, and a substantial sum had been received as interest on short loans; while as regarded the permanent ie-investment ot tho capital, the whole amount had now been placed in the State of Now South Wales by purchase of an exceptionally fino pastoral property, capable of carrying about 125,000 sheep when fully stocked. The cost of the lattor, with about 95,000 sheep, and including somo outside lands added to it, would be about £300,000—and the acquisition, whilo promising to be advantageous to the company from a profit-earning point of view, would also maintain the-security from tho deben-ture-holders. Should tho company be deprived of Clydevale <md Totara there would be only about 135,000 sheep left in New Zealand, while in Australia there would bo about 925,000, or about sixsevenths of the company's flocks, which wag quite s sufficient renson for the setting aside of 565,000 this year for the contingency fund, which would then amount to £105,000.