The Fielding Star, Oroua and Kiwitea Counties Gazette MONDAY, DECEMBER 3rd, 1896. A Discouraging Tour.

Feilding Star, Volume I, Issue 132, 3 December 1906, Page 2

The Fielding Star, Oroua and Kiwitea Counties Gazette MONDAY, DECEMBER 3rd, 1896. A Discouraging Tour.

Tire Minister of Lands cannot be said to have succeeded very well in his mission to convert the Auckland formers to a belief in the wisdom of tho. Government's land proposals, although he went so far as to stake the existence of the Ministry on the Bill proposed being placed on the Statute Book. As a rule favourable public meetings are little guide of the real feeling of a district, for it is natural t«.- behave courteously towards a Minister of the Crown, and a new (no at that, so that the fact that adverse resolutions have been carri >d againut the Minister at his own n.eetings are the most significant testimony to the reality of the opposition to the Land Bill. If we are to believe the newspapers which support the land proposals, Mr McNab is a most brilliant advocate of the Bill, bt sides possessing the logical reasoning necessary to place the best case before his hearers. So that it cannot be said that anything was lost by reason of poor advocacy, and yet the pronouncement at two meetings has teen overwhelmingly strong against any attempt to deprive Crown tenants ot the option of the freehold. It n ay be, of course, that the Minister's recent change of front on the question has lessened the force of his aiguments, for it is not a year since he advocated giving the Crown tenaiitp — even under the Land for Settlement Act — the freehold, to enable tl f Government to obtain money to purchase more land; while now he says thajffthe reason the Government a.-; bringing in their proposals to compel large owners to throw their lands on the market is to save raisi'i(. more money to purchase lands.