MAORI RESERVATIONS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXI, Issue 18711, 17 May 1924, Page 11

MAORI RESERVATIONS.

NELSON AND MOTUEKA. ESTATE VALUED AT £500,000. CONFERENCE OF BENEFICIARIES. [BY TELEGRAPH. — CORRESPONDENT j BLENHEIM, Friday. A conference of natives having interests in -what is known as Nelson "tenths" and Motueka reserves was held at the Wairan pa last week. There were present representatives of various families, including some from the North Island. Mr. A. A. Ore, of the Wairau pa, presided. In explaining the need for the conference, the chairman said some indication as to the importance of the matter might be gathered when he stated that the natives' interest in the reserves in the early "seventies" —even based on the unimproved values in the vicinity of £50,000. It also appeared that the total area the . natives sold to the New Zealand Land Company under Captain Wakefield in 1839 was 151,000 acres, this being in j the vicinity of the present towns of ; Nelson and Motueka. A condition of the j sale was that one-tenth of all lands sold j by the natives was to be permanently re- j served for their benefit, and the proportion represented over 15,000 acres. The ; system of management and the control of ; the reserves since the reservation in 1839 | had undergone various changes. Ha. was j led to believe that strong representations j were now being made by the European j tenants in the direction of their being enabled to acquire the freehold, but owing to the titles being vested in the native trustee and to the complicated nature of the natives' beneficiary titles, nothing could be done until the laws affecting the titles were altered. Furthermore, the present leases were of a perpetually renewable character, and entitled the European tenants to valuation for 1 their improvements, consequently as far as ho could see at present the natives interest would bo based on the unimproved values. , Proceeding, the chairman said it would be to the interest of the natives to secure at least an up-to-date valuation. An inquiry should be made as to the extent to which the natives had improved some of the reserved lands prior to thenbeing let. An estimate should also be prepared of all lands still in occupation of the native owners. If that were done there was no doubt the total value, including the tenants' interest, would be in the vicinity of from £400,000 to £500,000. He would like to see the natives invest the purchase money in the Native Trust Office with a view to creating a fund from which the native beneficiary owners could borrow at the lowest workable rate of interest possible. After the matter had been discussed for three days the conference resolved to form an association, to be known as an association of beneficiary owners of the Nelson tenths and Motueka reserves. It was also resolved to send a deputation to Wellington to wait upon the native trustee, with a view to bringing under his notice various _ matters affecting the native beneficiaries, among the purposes being to urge the Government to issue land transfer titles, to obtain a statement setting out the total area from which the natives are at present receiving benefits, also the allocation, and to ascertain whether the valuations of the native reservations at _ the present time were commensurate with those of adjoining European lands.