ADMINISTERING THE LAND ACT.

Evening Star, Issue 6815, 1 February 1886, Page 4

ADMINISTERING THE LAND ACT.

TO THE EDITOR, Sir, recent sale of small grazing runs you make out as good a case as could be expected, seeing that the argument was not reported. Will you kindly allow me to supply the omission ? My contention is that the “ declaration ” is a form partaking of the nature of a schedule to the Act. Now it is an established maxim in law that where the form or schedule varies from the text of a statute, the words of the statute govern the form—the form cannot govern the text; the lesser cannot rule the greater, but is subsidiary. The insertion of a form or schedule in the body of a statute, instead cf at the end, does not alter the case, nor give the form any greater force. Now in the text of the Land Act it is nowhere laid down that no man shall have more than one run. On the contrary, it provides an express limitation that he shall not have in all more than 0,000 acres inclusive of the land for which he is a bidder. The form of declaration, in so far as it is at variance with this provision, is bad at law and of no effect. If I err in this construction of the Act, I assure you that I do so in very good and learned company. There are other points at issue in connection with the “ conditions of sale.” As for instance—the Act does not require a declaration to be lodged before, bidding: nor need this bo done until the lease is tendered for acceptance. Again, the mere fact of having made a bid for a run docs not constitute a bidder “ the holder of a leane,” which, de facto, is not in existence. It is not for me to discuss the intention of the Legislature, but it seems clear that if it had been designed to limit purchasers to one run, it woidd—at any rate it should—have been specified in the body of the Act, and not interpolated in a mere form.-—I am, etc., Vincent Pvke.

Dunedin January 30. P.S.—lt may not be out of place to mention that the House, by a large majority, refused to limit pastoral holdings to " one run,” when Mr M'Kenzic endeavored to introduce a clause to that effect. .See ‘ Hansard,’ vol. 53, p. 215. V.P.