NATIVE LANDS FOR SETTLEMENT.

Marlborough Express, Volume XLIII, Issue 59, 5 March 1909, Page 3

NATIVE LANDS FOR SETTLEMENT.

! The Hon. J. Carroll and the Hon. : A. T. Ngata have during the last two . days been busy hoicung important con- _ ferences in regard to the opening up ' of Native lands in the north. As a result of tnese deliberations some im--1 portant developments are about to be ; given effect to, and these were out- . lined to a Star representative by the Minister tor Native Affairs. The Hon. | J. Carroll stated that ho was busy all i day at the Government buildings in i conference with the presidents (Judge j Brown and Major Pitt) of the Maori j Land Boards in the Auckland provincial district, covering the whole of the north of Auckland, Waikato and the King Country, and the East Coast and Bay of Plenty districts between Coromandel and Opotiki. The Hon. A. T. Ngata and Judge Fisher, the Under-Secretary for Natiye Affairs, were present, and also Mr H. T. Mitchell, who is in charge of the Native land surveys in the Bay of i Plenty district. .. Two large blocks, one of nearly 20,000 acres, in the Hokianga district, and the other of 35,000 acres in the Bay of Islands are, Mr Carroll says, nearly ready to be offered for selection. It is understood that on the latter block there are roughly 50,000,000 ft. of timber. The open lands <m this block should be ready to place on the market in May next. The measurement of the timber will necessitate the holding of the balance of, the block until some time later. The bulk of the timber is situated along th-3 railway line near Kawakawa, with.. good facilities for shipping and handling the product. .Twenty-five million feet of this timber have, already been measured. The unmeasured balance is estimated at 25J million. The timber of the Te Karae block, in Hokianga, has not yet been measured, but instructions will be given to proceed with this necessary work. In the north, as in other Native land districts, Mr Carroll says it will be necessary to obtain the services of oempetent surveyors in the first place to complete the orders of the Native Land Court, so that some of the areas may be brought under the Native Land Settlement Act of 1907, and the machinery of that Act set in motion, in the second place to subdivide the areas recommended for general settlement and have them placed upon the market. The Native Minister has directed arrangements" to be made for getting out two or three surveyors' parties for the North of Auckland and the same number for the King Country. In the Bay of Plenty district, outside the area affected, by the Thermal Springs Act, steps are being taken to vest in the Board for European settlement an area of 36,000 acres, for the greater .part of which there are complete titles, so that the Board should be in a position to put a large proportion of this area on the market without much preparation. Within the Thermal Springs district an area of 3600 acres, at a distance of three or four -miles from Rotorua on the main road to Rotoiti, have been surveyed, ana a scheme of subdivision for settlement purposes is under consideration by the authorities. This area should be on the market within the next three months. The Hon. J. Carroll will visit the Urewera Country in order to constitute a general committee for that special district, the appointment being necessary before the Government can acquire the land for settlement, being about 80,000 acres, dealt with by the Native Land Commission. Arrangements have, been made for carrying on surveys at Tekaha, Opotiki and Whakatane over an area amounting to about 50,000 acres. The position of Native land in the Waikato and King Country was also considered at the conference, and arrangements were made to put on two or three surveyors in the latter district to visit and report upon the lands set apart for general settlement. In view of the recent acquisition by the Crown of a large area in the King Country, it is important to ascertain how far the Commission can fit in with the settlement of the Crown, lands now undergoing survey.