A DEAL IN NATIVE LANDS

Evening Star, Issue 15762, 27 March 1915, Page 10

A DEAL IN NATIVE LANDS

VL'SKT liY TIIK KCPRKMi- COICT. wa; delivered yesterday by Mi-.liutue Striu-r-r in the n..Uve land ca-e heard in the .Ma;torton Suin-oii.it; Omit ];l,t. Monday. In the action the Oflieiiil .-\.,~i„'uee applied I'm- an order fur t-pceilie performance hv Hurry Nee of the irun-i--;-of the title (if (•mt.iii) native land near Masterton to the Uiiieinl .V~i;;nee. It

\va- explained at the hearhiK thai, in 1826 Patrick Can- had lea-ed eight acres of lami . from Native-. In 1&8 he paid over tii. purchase money, hut the transfer wa* iv.it . completed. In 1902 a fre-h transfer \va ■ ; drawn up, and Can- paid mop. money t < ', obtain signatures, hut the ti-au-fer was not ; completed. Fresh documents were pre- ; pared in 1905. but no title i=su-o<i. In 15! : GaiT l>ceame bankrupt, and the Oriiciai A~-ignee applied for confirmation of d' 1905' transfer as a title from the Native ; Land Court. That Court refn-ed. ami later on granted confirmation of the tran-.- i for to Nee, .who had paid £SOO to tie; ! Natives, I In his decision His Honor =aid that it j was quite, clear that the bankrupt on th? j facts iiad proved that he would have been ! entitled to a decree against the Native : owners for specific performance of agiee- i merit for sale and purchase, but this wa> ; unnecessary, because he had obtained in 1905 a transfer from the Natives, duly . executed, and only requiring -registration. On his bankruptcy in 1911 the Official A ;■ '■ signee succeeded to all the rights. It was clear that the defendant hsd acquired his title with a, full knowledge that Car;- had actually poisessod tho land for many yosrs, and had "spent money in improving it, and had bought and paid for it from the Na- '. tive owners, and held an actual transfer requiring only registration. His Honor declared that"defendant, a mala fide purchaser, held the land only a. tni-te:- n.r the plaintiff, and directed him to U-ansi'oi'J it .to the plaintiff.