A LAND TRANSACTION.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLV, Issue 13873, 6 October 1908, Page 5

A LAND TRANSACTION.

DISCUSSION IN PARLIAMENT. [BY TELEGRAPH. association.] WEixrsGTO.v, Monday. Ix the House of Representatives this after- j noon the Hon. T. Y. Duncan moved th» ; adoption of the report of the Lands Com- j mittee on the Woodward-street exchange of i ''■'■':. ■''',■ land. ■ Mr. Fisher reviewed at considerable length the history of the transaction, quoting largely from correspondence given before the committee. He alleged that this -proved conclusively that the area of land was a material factor in the case, that the Government had been hoodwinked by a misleading statement of fact*, and that, contrary to the terms of the Land Act, a private individual had acquired Crown land {■ without going to auction, or the land be- j ■ X. ing offered to adjoining owners. It was astonishing that the Government should ok May 29 agree to convey the land to . ;.. 'the City Council, and yet that the City Council knew nothing of the transaction till August 27. He maintained that if the evidence given before the committee had been given before a judicial tribunal there would have been a very different verdict i to the wishy-washy report of the commit- ■.■■■■:■■■: 'tee. ' ' The Hon. C. H. Mills defended at some length the action and findings of the-com-mittee. i Mr. Massey said the committee in its .report said the Minister for Lands was jus- .-;: tified by the circumstances of the case in selling the 'and to the City Council, but '. that it was an absolutely wrong statement of the position. The land had been sold not to the City Council, but to Macdonald, ; Wilson, and Co. Again, it looked as though the plan, a photographic facsimile of which had been circulated that afternoon, had been tampered with. Members -would notice on the piece of land exchanged ■'four perches." Now it looked very much as though the bust . letters of the word "perches" had been added afterv wards. It was generally known that the word "perches" was not usually written in full on plans; it was customary to put . the letters "per." only. He would like to have a handwriting expert's opinion . thereon. He also was 'distinctly of opinion that section 117 of the Land Act did not sover a transaction of this kind. Tim Hon. R. McNub replied at consider•hie length, maintaining that the Government was justified by section 117 of the Act. He «lso maintained that the area of W obtained by. the City Council by exchange was quite immaterial, so far as the Crown was concerned, whatever import- '■-.'■:'•*» might attach tr it from the Council Point of view. "The discussion was continued at considerate length by Merer*. Field, Remington, - »I»dW. t'vneer. The Hon. T. Y. Duncan, chairman of *"* committee, in reply, vigorously deeded tlio report; which was agreed to <.n the voices.