GOVERNMENT'S PROMISE

New Zealand Herald, Volume LX, Issue 18563, 22 November 1923, Page 10

GOVERNMENT'S PROMISE

GRIEVANCES OF SETTLERS.

: MINISTER'S \ INDIGNATION. ■" , PLEDGES ALWAYS HONOURED, TEVIOT " ESTATE TROUBLES. v „ [BY ]■■ TELEGRAPH.— ; OORRESrOJTOEN'T.] WELLINGTON. Wednesday. <V A charge that the Government did nOt £ "honour its promises to soldier settlers led ' to a sharp retort by the ; Minister ; for % •Agriculture, in replying .: to a depuV tation from tho Dunedin Returned bo!diers' Association regarding the soldiers on the Teviot Estate. The deputation, which was introduced by the general secretary of the N.Z.R.S.A., Mr. E. H. Harrison, included Mr. J. McCrae, vicepresident, and A 0. Laing, secretary, of the Dunedin R.S.A. The Hon. R. F. Bollard and the Dominion Land Purchase ; Controller, Mr. R. Ritchie, were also pre- ■ sent. ' > '.'■'. ■ ■'■ ■: ''■* -^'<i'l ,, . Mr McCrao preferred two requests tna» the soldier settlers should be allowed to purchase stock from Teviot station and that "on account of the failure of. the Government to honour its promise as made by the Minister for Lands, Hon. D. U. Guthrie, any profit made by the Government from the sheep supplied the settlers should go toward reducing the price to the soldier settlers." ■ -,-.. • ; , Mr. McCrae reviewed the history of the settlement; saving that as the blocks were taken up during the slump, it did not suit the Government to allow them to be fully stocked. The price of sheep had fallen and the Government committed an injustice in not letting the settlers have the sheep at the slump price. The Minister : How many settlers were . there then? .'..•.' ,±\ Mr. McCrao: Through the action of tlio ' Government the number was reduced to four. A number of them left. They were allowed to spend their own money with no pvospect of a return. . The Minister: They were not. charged

any rent. _ , .■ , .", ~ Mr. McCrae said Mr. Guthrie bad said that if the Government allowed the sheep to go at. the slump price, it would have tost a large sum of money on the settle- i ment, but that if the Government mad© any profit on the sheep during that-sea-son the settlers -would get the benefit. Mr. Ritchie said the sheep cost the Government up to 42s for owes and fell in price during the slump to 12s or 13s. Heavy Losses by Settlers. Mr. McCrae said most of the men had lost pretty heaviiy through the .attitude - taken up by ; the Government and it was now up to the Government to do something m the way of handing- the sheep over. ' . The Minister: You suggest that they should be given to them. ' Mr. McCrae : You would only be deeming the promise made by Mr.* Guthrie. The Minister: Any promise that has been made by the Government or a member of the Government • will be kept, as it always is, but frequently find that -what is* put to me as a. promise made by : \ the' Government turns out to be no such

thing. . '""' ; ' : ./ In reply to a question, Mr. Ritchie said there were - only " four of the original settlers there, tour more had gone there since, making a total of eight settlers on about co-blocks. To let the • sheep go at the. slump price would have involved the - Government in a loss -. of £20,000. ; That .. was _an .unreasonable thing to ask. . / -r Tired of Pin-pricking v./;';- • "I am. convinced that the great majority .f of the soldier , settlers are satisfied with ; the Government's attitute toward them," . said Mr.. NosworthY. ; Xt has already ex- * pended : < thirty millions on soldier settle- !. ment. I 'am.! getting tared of pin-pricks "' , such ,as this type of statement.. We are ' willing- to do -our best. Had ) all that land .beeuAtaien up it would have been easy ' . to subdivide among the settlers, but when 'yon have only four or five settlers spread . over a ' large j area, you must appreciate the difficulty of working the country." Mr. McCrae: You do not seem to realise that this is your own doing in not keeping your word to the settlers. The Minister: You have no right to tell me I have not kej* my word. . ;v. McCrae : ■',! am preferring. ; -to the i. . Government; officials, ■ -. > • The Minister.- I have- to satisfy myself that the ; Government officials are wrong. , Hitherto I have found them to be absolutely right. They are carrying out their duty to the; taxpaye/s very efficiently. -K It has? already been understood : before this - deputation that the sheep would be avail- \; able after ; the shearing. Mr. , Nosworthy 'k added that the Government was doing its : ? best to keep the rabbits in check. , They : ; ; had cleared Mount Pisa ; in/a way it had never been cleared before and he expected .. every settler in . the oonntry to co-operate '\n reasonably with the Government in its campaign against the rabbits. : In coaclus ,sion he said; he would examine -the cor- „- respondence and representations that had ,r been made and whatever promise had been made would be kept.; Meantime the sheep • would be available as he bad indicated.