LAND PURCHASES

Hawke's Bay Herald, Volume I, Issue 11, 5 December 1857, Page 2

LAND PURCHASES

To the Editor of the Haivks's Bay Herald. Sir, — Since my arrival here from Wellington, I have seen in your issue of the 24th Oct., under the head of Land Purchases, a communication relating to the failure of the late negociation between Mr. Richmond, the Colonial Treasurer, and the Superintendent, for purchases of lands from the Natives. You have prefaced that communication with the following remark, — "We think it right to express our own opinion that, although the letter in question emanates from a highly respectable source, yet, as an ex ■parie account of rather a delicate negociation, its contents should not be received without some degree of caution." The propriety and justice of this observation will be clearly apparent to your readers, when another and rather different version of this affair has been laid before them. In the first place, I would notice one or two rather glaring inconsistencies in the communication itself, and, in the second place, I wish to lay before your readers Mr. Richmond's statement to myself, personally, relating to this ''delicate negociation," during his very recent visit to Wellington. Admitting for the sake of argument, that the Superintendent had a perfect right to "offer" without the previous consent of the Provincial Council "to find, the Colonial Treasurer £25,000 or £50,000 any day he might require it, for purchases agreed upon between the General and Provincial Governments, without saying one word, as to whether it was a free gift or an advance," we are told that "the Treasurer then insisted upon his Honor giving, on. behalf of the Province, a guarantee that under no circumstances would the Province insist upon the claim it possessed under the 62nd clause of the Constitution Act to prepayment of any funds expended in ex-

tinguishing the Native title, out of the Land Revenue of the whole Colony." We are soon afterwards to\\ that "his Honor offered simply to give the General Government the £50,000 i\ r the purchase of Native Lands without any other stipulation" (which I presume means condition) "than that the Provincial Government should have a voice in directing the districts to he purchased, or, rather, in insisting upon certain districts being purchased." Now, it is quite evident that two conditions are here both clearly implied and expressed, viz: — Ist. — The condition that the Provincial Government should indicate the districts to he purchased. 2nd. — The condition that the money advanced by the Province for land purchases should be repaid to it out of the Land Revenue of the whole Colony. And yet, a little farther on, the writer of this letter states, in italics, — "the Superintendent offered funds to purchase the whole Province, ivithout any condition whatever" — thus clearly contradicting himself. Mr. Richmond's statement to me was to this effect : — lst, — with regard to the blocks to be bought, — -Mr. Richmond proposed that a large sum should be sent at once to Napier for purchases in this District. The Superintendent required that all the money should be disbursed at Wellington. The blocks to be bought were indicated by the Superintendent, thus ; — Ist. The Manawatu and 70 -mile-bush. 2ud. When these purchases were completed, then the Ahuriri Plains, Porangahau, and other blocks, in such order as might be agreed. Mr. Richmond protested in the strongest manner against postponing further purchases on the East Coast until the completion of so long an undertaking as the purchase of the Manawatu district. I have been informed that the Superintendent has given his denial to the above statement. Which of these versions is the correct one will appear when the whole correspondence connected with this negociaticn is published. The negociation however failed, owing to the resolution which was passed in the last session of the General Assembly that the Land Revenue should be treated as Provincial Revenue, which put it out cf the power of Mr. Richmond to agree on behalf of the General Government to the Superintendent's claim for a repayment of any advance made by the Province out of the General Land Revenue of the whole Colony under the 62nd clause of the Constitution Act. it was thefore simply impossible that the General Government could appropriate any portion of the Land Revenue of other Provinces to purchase Native Lands in this Province ; and all that Mr. Richmond could promise was that any advances made by this Province for Land Purchases should be repaid out of its share of the Half-Million-Loan, or, in the event of the failure of the Financial Scheme of last session, out of whatever funds should be specially provided by the General Assembly for land purchases. Under any circumstances, the cost of Native land purchases, in the long run, will have to be paid by the Province, as the funds provided by the General Assembly fur the purpose are a loan, to be repaid in progress c.f. time ; and Dr. Featherston himself voted for the resolution of the House of Representatives in the session of 185-1, which was carried almost unanimously, affirming the principle that the cost of extinguishing Native title, should be a Provincial charge. My own belief is that Dr. Featherston sought so entrap Mr. Richmond, and through him the General Government, into an arrangement totally incompatible with the Financial S.heme of last session, which he had himself opposed in the General Assembly. His Honor, however, clearly met his match ; and I will add, that my opinion of Mr. Richmond's ability and integrity is such us compels me to attach to the full as much credence to his version of this affair to me personally, as to his Honor's denial, either of the whole or of any portion of it. As I said before, the whole truth will appear when the entire correspondence is published. It is a fortunate thing for this District that this "delicate negociation" failed as it did, since the successful negociation of the Half-Million-Loan has now placed the General Gvernment in a more .independent position to deal with these important matters • i I am, Sir, Your Obedient Servant, J. Valentine Smith. Napier, Dec. 2, 1857.