THE LAND QUESTION-

Evening Star, Issue 12989, 7 December 1906, Page 7

THE LAND QUESTION-

THE MINISTER’S CAMPAIGN. [Special to xue Stae.] WELLINGTON, December 6. The Hon. R. APNab returned to town oil ■Wednesday evening from his visit to the Auckland "district, and left for the South by this evening’s boat. Ho will speak in the hall at Balclutha on the Laud Question to-morrow (Friday) evening, after which he will bo entertained at a banquet by the mayor and citizens. On Saturday Ire will visit the Clydcrale Estate, reaching his own home at midnight On Tuesday the Minister will probably speak at the new theatro at Invercargill. On Thursday ho will address a meeting at Nnseby, ami on the following night at Omakau, and ho w3l then return to Wellington to complete his departmental work. Air APNab wll probably spend the Christmas season touring the West Nelson district, where a large area of land is now being thrown open, and he will afterwards go to Hawke s Bay. AN INTERVIEW. The following interview with the Afinister is published in this mornings ’Aew Zealand Times ’ : “I suppose that I could not have struck anywhere a stronger antr-Lacd Bill conttituency than the Mannkau.” AA ith tins itznatk the Hon. R. APNab on AAednesday afternoon prefaced to a ‘ New Zealand Times ’ rej-orlcT his impressions upon ,<is Northern tour just concluded. “ Everywhere I went,” he continued, “lie meetiugs were crowded. I don’t il-i ik there traa one that could not correctly be described as overcrowded, and I got attentive hearings everywhere : in fact, tremendous interest was manifested, ’t was very strange to notice the view that tic jeople took of the Government land proposals. It has been instilled into them that a dire attempt is being made to destroy tiie:r little freeholds, and tin-re are a very l.rgo number of small Freeholders in that district. This feeling has been assisted ly the fact that in Auckland there are not many large estates. The land gcner.itly is held in small areas, and no: having ary object-lessons of large propertic '. the on.v idea of tile proposals to limit the areas that has been formed is tin I ‘ hey are a blow at the small holder Die district is largely Freeholder at the original value. They "arc as strongly opposed to Freehold at the present value a.- they arc to I .ease - hold. They made that very on bevcrul occasions, but in spile of that there is a strong body of supporters of our proposals. Only on two occasions could tliey carry their hostile resolutions, and the meetings were in all cases fortified by officials of the Fanners’ Union, who came considerable distances to attend. I found, also, in the district a very strong feeling of North versus South —not much the North Island against the South Island, as Auckland again.et the co’.ouy. lam afraid this is fostered by some of the loading politiciaEE, and it is a matter to be regretted. Some of the questions raised were very interesting, as indicating tho reasons that, actuated the people in opposing our proposals. And I think it will be found that the strongest opposition in the colony will centre round Auckland; they have had so much of tho native land that has not been put in the market, and thi; was pul forward as a reason why the option of a further area, should be at tlrcir disposal. The holder of the lease in perpetuity docs net seem to realise that there are two classes of Freeholder, and thinks that in the end ho is vound to get his freehold at the original value. I don’t know whether what I said caused any doubt to come upon that view or not. Tliey feel >x> strongly on it, arid have been told so often that it

arid have been told so often that it can bo got, that I think it will be a bit of a shock to them when the division in the House comes, and the Fnfeoho'.d proposala at the original value are hopelvdy defeated. Moreover, I think that when that has been shown by myself tiic Government proposals in regard to lease in perI'ftaitv will be generally received. “ There was also an idea prevalent that the endowment proposals would place a very largo area of Auckland lands aside ns an endowment, and that tbo money from that endowment would go to supplement the educational funds of the South, which were already over the normal. They were not aware of the manner in which the educational endowment# of Otago and Canterbury were arranged, and they learned. I think for the first time, that it was in Otago that the largest proportion of the Endowments would be ; they seemed to think that it will be in Auckland. The native question and the feeling of hostility to the South, which, I am afraid, lias been fostered by public men, are the two elements in which the Opposition in the North differs from this locality and the South. Neither of these considerations, however, appeared to me to render their position irreconcilable with the proposals of the Government. The history of the hostility, so far as the meetings are concerned, is as follows:—At Onehuega a hostile motion was defeated, at Hamilton no hostile motion was proposed, at Clevedon a hostile amendment was carried, at Otahuhu a hostile amendment was defeated, at Papakura a hostile amendment was carried, and at Howick a hostile amendment was defeated.