THE LAND BILL.

Feilding Star, Volume I, Issue 269, 18 May 1907, Page 3

THE LAND BILL.

[PEB FBBSS ASSOCIATION.] Ashburton, May 18. Interviewed by an Ashburton Guardian reporter, the Hon. R. McNab said in regard to the Land Bill and the Endowment Bill:— "So few of the members absolutely oppose all endowments that I have, without hesitation, even in the face of continued and interrupted hostile votes declaring for option (as in the North Island), stated that the Land Bill will be put on the Statute Book, and I see no reason to doubt that. The endowment provisions will also be put on the Statute Book. There is no alteration in my views as to what is likely to happen, except that I cannot profess to indicate the exact area that the Committee on the Bill will finally settle on for endowments. In the Land Bill the freehold which we offer by auctioning land and protecting tenants' improvements may not be carried, but he freehold at the original value will not be carried. I still believe the proposals which will prove acceptabl will be our 90 per cent, proposals, based on the original value. Time will show whether lam right. I have been astonished at the members unanimously regarding the limitation proposals. Men who were strongly against us on the area of endowment are prepared to go further than we are m limiting private estate?. They have astonished me with their limits of value or the rate of the graduated tax. I think the decision of the House on the. limitation proposals will astonish many people who think they know what the House is going to do." The Minister said, in regard to the New Plymouth by-election, that Government had lost ground there owing to a divided vote for the Liberal Pairty. "It sems to me," he said, "that it must always have that effect when two men of standing are on one side, and are both strong men, and Mr Malone was without doubt a strong man. No doubt Mr Okey would never have seen the House if my Absolute Majority Bill had been on the Statute Book." A suggestion in connection with the Clydevale Sstate brought forth the reply:— "We could not come to terms. The estate wasn't missed; the Government simply couldn't come to within 10s of the 1 price required. All negotiations between the Government and the owners were off before the purchasing syndicate appeared. You see other people, when they have bought and subdivided for sale an estate, can auction it and recoup themselves easily. We can't. We hadn't to compete with the syndicate at all, for they didn't go near the property till they got word from us that our negotiations were off. Another property, too, the same syndicate stood out of while the Government was negotiating. We secured it. The syndicate acted very honorably. There will be a big debate in the House in regard to Clydevale. The public have got interested over it, artd Tom MacKenzie is on the trail." "How is it that you could not negotiate?" the reporter asked. "The reason," said the Minister, "is that we have got to open # up ground with roads before subdivision, and experience has shown that tenants will put up with far less from private landlords in the roading of property than from the Government. When we put up property we have got to distribute tne total cost over the whole land, and then the successful man is determined by ballot. IF 300 men wanted one section, we don't get one single penny more than if only one wanted it. The private individual might get 600 per cent, more -Taks^tSat ail over the property, and 10s an acre is nothing. You can very easily regard 10s as nothing on a property when there is that distinction." "If, under the Lands for Settlement Act, you had power to auction leases, you could afford to buy at the highest price?" "My answer to that," said Mr McNab, "would be undoubtedly, and more active the land market is the more we feel our disability, because vendors won't mention terms or give a firm offer for any length of time. The" result is that outside buyers intervene and anticipate the actions of the Government. A property was put under offer to us the other day, and before the statutory formalities could be complied with* another person had it at the same figure/ "To sum up, in regard to the Land Bill," said the Minister, "I still feel very confident, and I still think my anticipations will turn out to be cofrecf." In conclusion, Mr McNab remarked, I see from a telegram that the Taramaki Farmers' Union Conference opposed any method of dealing with native lands which would create native landlordism. They want the country, like the moa. The freehold of the Maori over his land is to be destroyed by men who profess that they will defend the freehold to their last breath. No. I've got nothing to say about it."