THE Grey River Argus, PUBLISHED DAILY. TUESDAY, JANUARY 18, 1887.

Grey River Argus, Volume XXXIV, Issue 5796, 18 January 1887, Page 2

THE Grey River Argus, PUBLISHED DAILY. TUESDAY, JANUARY 18, 1887.

It appears from what we published yeaterday in reference to the statements of Mr Salt, at the recent meeting of the Midland Railway Company in London, that the original basis upon which the allocation of the land grant was to be proceeded with has been materially altered. According to the original proposals the land was* to be laid off in rectangular blocks with not more than a mile frontage to the line, the company to be entitled to an alternate choice of blocks ; and the cost of surveying and laying off to be borne one half by the company and the other by the Government. According to Mr Salt the latest arrangement is that Government gave the company a lump grant of two and a half million acres, out of which they will take blocks as the construction of the railway is proceeded with. This, must be more convenient for the company than the original plan, otherwise they would not so readily have fallen in with it as appears to be the case. It is possible it may suit the Governments' book equally well ; but a little more detail is - necessary to remove the obscurity that surrounds the statement. A lump grant of land is so widely different from selecting alternate blocks that we are curious to know a little more about it. It may be that this new departure has been arrived at with the object of avoiding the enormous cost of surveying the country into rectangular blocks with mile frontages. That is an object the force of which is readily comprehended, as a good deal of the -land in parts of the coast would cost as much to survey as it is worth. Even allowing the most favorable conditions/for carrying out such a work, it would necessarily be very costly, and expenditure in that direction might wall be put on one side until such time as it became an absolute necessity. It will be the object of the company to have their land available for selection with the least possible delay ; and this will be materially facilitated by having it in large areas instead of in blocks of a limited size. This will enable the miner, the bushman, the sawmiller or the settler to select his land bafore survey and proceed with his particular industry without any red-tape delays. Any reasonable concession Government may have made that can be shown to be calculated to facilitate the opening up of the country and the occupation of the land for any productive purpose, will no doubt meet with the approval of Parliament and the public. In a great undertaking of this kind we cannot afford to have its progress checked by the delays of red-tapeism.