POLITICAL NOTES.

Lyttelton Times, Volume CXXIII, Issue 15861, 26 February 1912, Page 7

POLITICAL NOTES.

[Fbom Our Cor.KEsroxnKNT.] "WELLINGTON, February 25. THE CONWAY ROAD.

Mr Q. W. Forbes has been informed that instructions have been given to proceed with work on the KaikouraCheviot Road up the Conway River, for which £IOOO was voted last session. The road' will be taken up the Hawkswood side, which will cost considerably less than the route on the Fernhurst side. The money will be spent on. the top end of the road. VILLAGE SETTLERS. Mr T. Buxton is urging the Minister of Lands to consider the removal of obstacles in the way of village settlers or other small settlers to enable them to go to the ballot for larger sections if they can satisfy the Land Board that they are able to work the larger holdings and agree to transfer their smaller holdings within six months to some landless person. Mr Buxton points out that a settler holding five acres of land is debarred from taking part in a ballot, although he may have a grownup family of boys l to help him on a larger holding. A YEAR'S MORTGAGES.

Mortgages totalling £20,998,622 in value were registered in New Zealand during the year ended Maroh 31, 1911, the number of deeds being 26,421. By far the larger proportion bore interest at the rate of 5 per cent or less. Shown in provinces, the mortgages were registered as follow:

Number. Amount. Auolcland Poverty Bay . 6,257 . 627 £ 3.866,073 823.597 Hnwko's Bay Tarauaki Wollington Marlborough Nelson . 1,603 . 1,575 . 6,025 . 435 . 518 1,090,784 1.542,161 5,558,932 341,987 366,077 Canterbury Ota-go . Southland Westland . 4,400 . 2.583 . 1,492 . 200 4,061,717 1.352.761 1,000,900 73.630