NATIVE LAND LAWS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LVI, Issue 17141, 22 April 1919, Page 6

NATIVE LAND LAWS.

TENURE OF TOWNSHIPS. HARDSHIPS OF LESSEES. HANDICAP ON PROGRESS. No. 111. DY A SPECIAL REI'ORTRE. A striking example of the manner in which European settlers are penalised in order to protect Maori interests, is! afforded by the experience of settlers in ! King-Country towns, where the full effect i of the iniquitous and shortsighted locking- ! up policy is now being felt. Tho district was barred to settlement for many years, during which the Government slowly constructed through this vast and fertile territory a main trunk railway. Though the land was inalienablo to private Euro-j peans the Government slowly and spas- . modically began to acquire interests in various King Country blocks. The natives, with their commercial spirit sharp- 1 ened by the materialistic teachings so' sedulously impressed upon them, clung, tenaciously to the lands near the railway, | and parted only with isolated blocks in the 1 back country. It was on these blocks that the first European settlers in the dis-1 Met were placed by the Government when j tho insistent clamourings of a land-hungry populaco forced the authorities to open; King Country lands for settlement. The ■ same policy that dictated the construction of tho country's chief railway through' native-owned territory was adopted in re-1 gard to the roading of the district, in j order to giro access to out-back Crown | sections. Maori roads, commencing at j the railway, were formed through native ; lands to tho Crown sections, many native ; blocks thus getting the full benefit of tho Public Works expenditure in regard to both railway and roads, without contributing anything but tho land used for construction purposes. In addition to the enhanced value placed on the lands by the Public Works expen- 1 diture, the enormous increase in values due to European settlement on isolated blocks was soon apparent. The backblock settlers naturally required distributing centres on tho railway, and various places that previously had been little I more than railway stations, without staffs,! soon began to feel the stimulus of settlement, and blossomed into townships. The Case ot Te Kuiti. The politicians in charge of native affairs, with their customary solicitude for tho material welfare of the Maori, planned to firmly establish a system of Maori landlordry in the chief centres of the King Country, such as To Kniti, Tan-' marunui, and Otorohanga. In 1904 the first of the To Kuiti native township sections were offered to the public under the leasehold tenure. The period of the, lease was 21 yoare, with perpetual right of renewal, at a rental based on a revaluation of the properties at the end of each terms of 21 years. ( In the event of the lessee not continuing his tenancy under the revaluation, compensation for all existing improvements on the property was supposed to be provided for, but the impossibility of enforcing a compensation clause in respect to property that is protected against debt is obvious. At the initial sale of sections a fair number of them were taken up for business and residential purposes, and as settlement in the back country expanded all the sections offered at subsequent were readily disposed of at considerably higher figures than the upsot rentals. No improvements were effected in Te Kuiti township by the native owners, or the Native Land Boards which administered the properties on their behalf. Roads were merely shown on tho plan, many of them traversing swamps, others leading over hills, and all requiring heavy and expensive work to make tnem fit for traffic. The only reserve set aside in tho township area was a hospital site on an almost | inaccessible hill. In 1909, local govern- ' ment was established at Te Kuiti, the township and some adjacent Crown land being constituted a borough. Since then improvements to the town have been effected by the municipality at a cost of approximately £76,000, and to this amount the native owners have contributed nothing. Municipal Improvements. Some idea of the enterprise of' tho residents is afforded by the* figures relating to the borough valuation ! for the last rating period. 'The capital value of the borough was assessed at £527,174; unimproved value, £311,957, showing the valne of the improvements to bo £215,217. The amount of special ■rates in the £ per annum for the year ending March 31 last, to meet the interest and sinking fund on loans for borough improvements, chiefly on native leaseholds, was 4Jd, and the general rate struck for the same period was 2Jd in tho £. To Kuiti is probably the bestequipped town of its size in the province in regard to public services. It has a fine water supply, drainage and electrio light services, and its streets are all well constructed and metalled. The bulk of the improvements being on native-owned < land, the unimproved value of the native township has naturally been enhanced in proportion to the vafue of tho improvements. Tho benefit of this increased value will shortly be.reaped bv tho native lessors in the form of greatly increased rentals, which are mathematically calculated at 5 per cont. on tho unimproved value of the sections. In this manner a whole community is outrageously penalised for pursuing a progressive policy in maters affecting the public health and wellbeing.' Inviting Stagnation. An example of how the matter is regarded by residents of other towns similarly situated is afforded by the result of a poll recently taken at Taumaromii for a loan to carry out a scheme of town im-, provemente, the loan proposal being re- j jected by a large majority. Such an in- ' stance merely foreshado vs the stagnation that will ensue as far as public effort is concerned, as a result of the establish- ' ment of the system of Maori landlordry. The spectacle of whole European commu- ■ nities creating modern towns in virgin country and exercising all their energies and financial resources to create wealth for native landlords, to whom the land was useless, may be gratifying to the politicians in charge of native affairs, but it is unthinkable that an enlightened public will approve of it. j There are so many disabilities attaching to the township leases that it seems remarkable that a community should have assumed such large public and private responsibilities under the conditions imposed by the Maori Land Boards in regard to tho leases. Undoubtedly the spirit of optimism which inspires all young and progressive communities led the majority of the people to believe that '• the freehold of their sections would be : obtainable long before the expiration of the first term of the lease. In this be- ; lief they viere strengthened by the fact : that provision was made in the Native ; Townships Act for obtaining the freehold. The power of veto in respect to any con- : tract between native owners and the ' lessee was vested in the Maori Land ! Board, and this power was freely exer- ' fised in regard to early applications on ; the part of lessees to obtain freehold . J titles. I' B BBaga II I " Necessity makes inches of miles— 11 hills of mountains."—Stanus. 'Way over! ! in Sydney a lady tried to get Baxter's ' Lung Preserver— but failing, wrote as fol- 1 lows :—" lam enclosing £2 for some Baxter's Lung Preserver. 'One bottle did mo such a lot of good in New Zealand that [ want more." Get Baxter's yourself. 2s 6d , big bottle. " ' Pago's Stores, Kingstond, for Golden c Rule Soap, at Is 3d ; Golden Rule Candles, t la j Keep Smiling Lino Polish, 8d; No- r Rubbing, Is; Golden Rule School Rulers, f