LAND PURCHASE SCANDAL

Evening Star, Issue 14533, 8 December 1910, Page 6

LAND PURCHASE SCANDAL

VICTORIA THIS TIME. I're?s Association—By Telegraph—Copyright. MELR-OUR.NE, December 3. (Received December 8, at 9.55 a.m.) The Commission appointed to inquii-c into Hi,' surround im; t-lio lPi;i-i-ii;!fio of land in ll." Cohnna district by tho ('loser SeUlen;.-:i', j'.-iard examined Mv KI wood Mead (Ybaiii'i.-Ki of the Y-'a-ter Supply Com.mk.sion). Dr Mead .said that be recommended 1 in- (loveir.mnvt k> purchase the land at Oohuna. Prior to ibis, and before anything had !;«:) done by the (!(iv.-ni:iiciit towards bind in tbo district, bo had .oiisullcd with Mr Anderson, the engineer in the. employ of tbo Water Commission, a:.d a fa,ra.'Cr named Kemp bad suggested thai they buy the iilock. lie then left or. a, trip for Europe, telling tin- othcis that if they did buy fbc block bo would like a. farm o\*. of it. lie made do secret- of (he matter lie- wanted part of I ho land for two friends in America, and tbo res*, for himself, in order lo demonstra'.c. the. value of ,n:gation. He admitted ii. was not- desirable. t/> make an offer if the State should lra:I:e in tbo land, but Ju% advised Amiojw>u lo purchase tbo land, buaiise be wished to get the farmer?; who were anlagoni-tie. to irrigation cm of the district, H" was not then aware that Anderson was connected with the sale of la.nd t-> the Covf-rcimonl. Mr Brown (AU'rwy-Geiieralj stated tbat as a wait of bin inquiries Ke found tluifc Anderson bad bought the, land as: an investment, but t-bat it wrx-i r.ot proposed to extend the irrigation scheme to tbo district, lie- did ::»,i know that Moad was interested in the bind. A letter from Mead to Anderson, dated March last., read, informing birr, that ih-i Settlement. Board bad codded to make. •! i-:JI for the. lards bi Comma, -which the Board had pi-cvio' sly declined, and advising Anderson to oire-r hie land to the Boaid.