NATIVE COMMISSION

Greymouth Evening Star, 17 May 1934, Page 12

NATIVE COMMISSION

FURTHER EVIDENCE [PER PRESS ASSOCIATION.] ROTORUA, May 16. Giving evidence to the. Native Commission, Michael Chris. Burgess, of Ougarue, brought a complaint, before the Commission that he had been unable, on behalf of his wife, to obtain from the Waikato-Maniapotoe Native Land Board the sum of £559 which was held by it on behalf of Mrs. Burgess, and which was the final instalment of payments made to her through the Board from the alienation of native lands.

Burgess said that, over a period of years he had made requests and representations, and he had interviewed the Native Minister, but. without success, except that he had been told that the money would be made available if Mrs. Burgess placed her land under the control of the Native Department. The Chief Clerk of the Department, George Patrick Shepherd, said the position was that the Board had not. the funds available to make the payment at present. The Minister had minuted the correspondence indicating his opinion that. Mrs. Burgess would be paid when funds were available. Burgess had already received £3,635 from the Board, the proceeds of alienation, and.it had been suggested that the Department exercise supervision over her property in order to ensure that the final instalment of the money would not be squandered. George Orr, at one time Supervisor of Bay of Plenty schemes, said he had inspected the Horohoro and Ti Kitere schemes, near Rotorua. He considered Ti Kitere fair land, with reasonable prospects of being successfully farmed provided that care was exercised in the management; but he did not think the Horohoro country suitable for dairying under any circumstances. John Thomas Cunningham, clerk to the Waiariki Land Board, corroborated the evidence of the Registrar in regard to shortage of staff. He recognised that it was not the proper procedure for him to draw the wages sheets and also pay the men, but this was unavoidable. He had expressed his objection to the practice. In the office he had accepted the time sheets sent into him. He had no knowledge of any false time sheets. He admitted that he had received a note from Rodgers, manager of the Maketu scheme, referring to alterations in one of the time sheets, but this had been because the time sheet, had been signed three days before the mon finished work, in order to enable them to draw their pay early for Christmas. The fact that one or two of the men did not turn up at work next day necessitated the time sheet being altered accordingly. Men who stayed away afterwards made up the time. Witness said the Registrar had approved his action in handing over unemployment wages to a man named Asher" at Tokaanu for payment to the men. He did not consider Asher a person unauthorised to pay wages.

Evidence that an improved system with regard to stock returns had been introduced was given by Arthur Mclntyre, who was recently transferred to the head office from Rotorua.

When the Commission adjourned, Les Brown, Farm Supervisor, was giving evidence in regard to various schemes.