OWNERSHIP OF LAND.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIII, Issue 19447, 1 October 1926, Page 12

OWNERSHIP OF LAND.

CLAIMS R Y AN AMERICAN.

OLD CASE FINALLY SETTLED.

REJECTION BY TRIBUNAL.-

[BY TELEGRAPH. —OWN CORRESPONDENT.'] ■WELLINGTON, Thursday. It was announced to-day by thp Hon. F. J. Rolleston, Attorney-General, that the 68-years-old claims of William Webster, an American citizen, to largo areas of land in New Zealand alleged to have been purchased by him from the natives during the. years 1836 to 1839, had been finally rejected by a British and American Claims Arbitration Tribunal.

The claims were first dealt with by the New Zealand Land Claims Commission, set up under the New Zealand Land Claims Ordinance, 1841, and consisting of Colonel Godfrey and Captain' M. Richmond, of tho 96th Regiment. By the decisions of this and subsequent commissions Webster and his assigns were granted areas totalling about 42,000 acres. His original claims varied from 184,000 to 500,000 acres. Webster left New Zealand in 1845 and arrived in the United States in 1853. Ho then for the first time presented his claims to the Government at Washington. In 1873 he went to London and there prosecuted his claims before tho Secretary of State for the Colonies, but without avail. In 1858 and 1859 the matter was beforo the Senate of the United States. In 1876 it was before the United States House of Representatives, and again in 1880 and 1884. In 1887 the Senate again had the claims under consideration. The claims have twico been the sub-, ject of a diplomatic demand by the United States upon Great Britain, first in 1890 and again in 1893.

The case was also dealt with in 1878 and again in 1887 by Sir Robert Stout and in 1909 by Dr. Fitchett, the then Solici-tor-General, who visited Washington and England in connection with it. Webster died on June 19, 1897, leaving his entire estate to his widow, Augusta J. Webstar. Failing in its effort to induce the British Government to allow the claims of Webster the Government of the United States presented the claim for arbitration and it was included in the schedule of claims attached to the. special agreement between the two countries, dated August 18, 1910. The matter wjs duly prepared for hearing by the British and American Claims Arbitration Tribunal and was set down for hearing in 1914, but owing to the outbreak of war the matter was postponed. It finally came for hearing in November and December, 1925, before three arbitrators, appointed by the British and American Governments. The award of the tribunal has now been received from the Imperial Government and the whole of Webster's claims have been rejected. The claims varied from £1,300,000 in 1859 to £265,000 in 1890. "That the Arbitration Tribunal arrived at its unquestionably just decision to reject the claims," said the Attorney-gen-eral, "is to be attributed very largely to the able and convincing manner in which the British case was prepared by the late Sir John Salmond, who., as Solicitor-Gen-eral, visited Washington and England in 1913 in connection with it."