NATIVE LAND COMMISSION.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLIV, Issue 13392, 22 January 1907, Page 6

N ATIVE LAND COMMISSION.

[liY IKt.KOR —OWN (lIRRKSPON 1)K NT. ]

Christcnt'RcH, Monday. Si'l-.akinu to a representative of the Press the Attorney-General, Dr. Finiilay. referring to the Native Land Commission, said that Sir .Joseph Ward has. given the native land piob'.em more attention during the last fi-w months than any other of the troublesome questions he has had to consider and deal with. He might have waited for legislation until the end of the forthcoming session, have then set up his Royal Commission. and thus lost about one year in the really good work his scheme has in view. The ordinary rule, no doubt, is to pass legislation and then set- the machinery in work to carry it- into practical effect. That litis been tried time and again in native land matters, with but lamentable results. Sir Joseph is tiist and beyond all things a business man. He determined that business methods should Like the place of the somewhat theoretical and academic methods which have hitherto prevailed. He decided to find the most efficient machine our colony could provide, and all pirty considerations have been sunk in choosing two men who, beyond all others in this colony, possess the uualiliealions for stienuottsly. fairly and expeditiously handling the complex conditions of the native land problem. No one can fair'.y appieciate the Ptemier'.s sagacity in putting the Commission into operation at once who has not traced the tortuous career of native legislation ill the past. With such a machine as this dealing with the large blocks of unutilised or inadequately utilised native land along the lines of Sir Joseph Ward's scheme you will secure to the Maori all the land that he or his descendants can reasonably use or farm, and you will set tire to the European such an area of good land in the North Island as will dwarf for some years to come till operations of our hid for Settlement. Department-. and even the importance of the Land Bill itself. The Wellington correspondent of the Press, 1 see, states that in the North the importance of this native land scheme of the Premier overshadows the Land Bill altogether. He further states that- the feeling there is that the native land problem is of immediate importance.