LAND SALES.

Marlborough Express, Volume XLVI, Issue 280, 25 November 1912, Page 5

LAND SALES.

SUBDIVISION OF TJGBROOKB ESTATE.

i BLOCKS OFFERED IN TOWN j | HALL

! There was a large gathering m the Town Hall on Saturday, when llj6Oo acres of Mr H. D. Vavasour's Ugbrooke Estate, subdivided into ten blocks, were offered at auction. _ Keen > public interest was manifested m the event, and the sale was attended by a considerable number of visitors from \ Canterbury and other parte of .New •

• Zealand. , , t The Ugbrooke Estate is intersected !by the Pioton-Ward railway, and ite j northern boundary is distant some ' seven miles from Blenheim. Bounded by the Pacific Ocean, it is divided i from the Starborough settlement by ' the Awatere River, and it adjoins the 1 Dumgree instate, which is also being | subdivided for,sale. ; ! The auctioneers were Messrs JJal- > ' gety and Co., and Mr R. D. Stewart of the Christchurch branch of t&at i firm, conducted the proceedings. ; ! Mr Stewart spoke of Ugbrooke as ; I one of the finest pastoral and agn- • cultural properties hi New Zealand, and as containing some of the cleanest j and sweetest land 'in Marlborough. { Its Shropshire sheep, its wool and lambing returns, and its first-class grain yields had made for it a nigh reputation, which was not only a testimony to the character of the ccmn- ; try, but also a credit to the excellent manner in which Mr Vavasour had ! worked and developed, the place. The i land had not been abused; it retained , its pristine quality, and was in splendid heart. The estate was a part of the most successful barley-growutg district in New Zealand, and it was well watered. There was permanent water on every block, and even in dry seasons Mr Vavasour bad never been compelled to shift hia sheep on account of the scarcity of water. The facilities for transit to the markets ; were especially good. Mr Vavasour ; was retaining the homestead block of j 2400 sterns. The sale was absolutely j a bona"fide one. Mr Stewart said he j had heard rumors as to the reserve i prices being excessively high. These \ were quite without foundation. As ] a matter of fact, the reserves were not; fixed till the previous night, so that the man who bad spoken of them as being too high was a little "previous." Practically speaking, Mr Vavasour left the fixing of the values in the j hands of the auctioneers, and it trans- ■ pired that their ideas coincided very ■ closely with those of the owner. The j terms were very easy, and were especi- j ally attractive considering the tightness of money. Five per cent, must be regarded as a light rate of interest, i So far as the future of the pastoral and agricultural markets were concerned, the outlook was encouraging, j and the prospective values of produc- j ing lands invited confidence. The prices" of" wool and frozen; meat were likely to remain profitable, and it seemed that but a short time would elapse before the Continental 'countries would have to throw open their ports to frozen meat, which event would, of course, be very beneficial to the sbeep-growerß. Mr Vavasour explained that he never even discussed the question of the reserves with the auctioneers. He told them that ther could fix upon what they considered to be fair values, and he would tell them what he intended to do. They placed their figures in his hands, ana lie haixled them back without comment. He was there that- day practically as a nonentity. . ~ The terms of purchase vreie:—s per cent, on fall of hammer; 10 per cent, on Ist of March, 1919; 10 per cent. •» Ist of March, 1915 r balance could remain until Ist of March, 1920; irtterest at 5 per cent.; possession given on the Ist of March, 1913. The blocks were offered in the following order:—Nos. 4, 5, 1, B, 2, $, 8, 7, 10, and 9. The following four blocks were sold: No. 5, of 560 acres., to Mr S. M. Neville, Blenheim, £8 15s per acre; No. 3, of 563 acres, to Mr John Healy, junr., Marlborough, for £11 per acre; No. 6, of 310 acres, to Mr R. Marfellj Seddon, for £6 10s per acre; No. 8, of IG92\ acres, to Mr Hugh Campbell, Marlborough,.for, £6 per acre. . ■ ■

The rernajining .'isix Tbiloctks . wtere passed as fbllows,. it being explained that the person making tlie last bid, would be given the privilege of "first | refusal":—No. 4, of 427 acres, passed to Mr W. O'Donnell, Canterbury, at £12 10s per acre. No. 1, of 615 acres, to Mr J. McGill, Canterbury, at £11 10s per acre; No. 2, of 430 acres, at £8 per acre; Kb. 7, of 430 acres, to Mr P. Meehan, Marlborough, at £7 10s per acre; No. 10, of 4271 acre®, to Mr George Lane, Blenheim, at £3 5s per acre; No. 9, of 2700 acres, to Mr T. Seeley, Timaru, at £4 5s per acre. ~ _ SEA VIEW. Subsequently, Mr T. Avery's farm, "Sea View," in the Awatere district, was offered by Mr R. Stansfield, auc- ■ tioneer for the New Zealand Loan and i Mercantile Agency Company^ The property comprises 684 acres, and was offered; in one lot, and alternatively in two blocks. No bid was attracted, and it was announced that the property would be available privately.