HANDSOME DONATIONS

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIX, Issue 21252, 4 August 1932, Page 8

HANDSOME DONATIONS

SETTLING UNEMPLOYED GIFTS OF SAVINGS BANK. ~ " I FINANCING TWO SCHEMES HELPING MEN AND BOYS Two handsome donations toward schemes ( for settling unemployed men and boys on the land have been made by the ( trustees of the Auckland Savings Bank. Subject to the necessary legislative authority, the trustees decided at fcho ,

monthly meeting yesterday to donate £IO,OOO toward a scheme, promoted by Mr. D. V. Bryant, of Hamilton, and other practical farmers, for the settlement of unemployed men on the land. The donation is subject to certain conditions, one of which is that, before the bank makes any funds available, Mr. Bryant's organisation should be properly constituted and should have raised from the public at least, £IO,OOO by way of giftDeeming the provision of suitable employment for unemployed boys to be of vital importance, the trustees also propose, subject to the necessary legislative sanction being given, to mako available £2OOO toward the acquisition of a suitable block of land and to expend on the scheme during, say, five years, a sum not exceeding £20,000 for the development of the land and the training and settling there of a number of boys of suitable type. 8 Developing Bank's Project Arrangements have been made for the scheme to be supervised by a competent organisation, which will act in conjunction with a management committee appointed by the bank. The full details of the bank's own scheme, including the purchase of suitable farmland areas, have not yet been completed. However, the plan is one the trustees have had in mind for some time, and no time will be lost, in bringing the scheme to maturity. The proposal for assisting Mr. Bryant's project has also been under consideration for some time. Mr. Bryant left last week on a health trip to Australia, but conferred with the trustees just prior to his departure. In a memorandum explaining his scheme Mr. Bryant said it was proposed to acquire blocks of land, preferably partly developed, and to subdivide the areas into lots of about 50 acres. Cottages would be built, and the necessary stock and farm requisites would be supplied. When improvements were fairly complete the individual farms would be handed over to approved men selected from those who had been doing the work of improving the land. Scheme lor Walkato

In order to place the scheme on a businesslike footing it is proposed to form a J body, to be known as the Waikato Land Settlement Society. The board of directors of the society will purchase a property, establish a camp, make a survey on a basis of 50 acres, approximately, proceed to the erection of cottages and, at a later stage, purchase stock and other farm requisites. When the cottages are erected they will bo occupied by married men and their families. The central camp will then be available for housing the balance of the men who have been assisting with the work. The men will be selected because of their willingness to learn and their general aptitude. In that way it is hoped to train new men in the farming industry. The overseers will be specially selected on account of their ability in teaching. Malting the Allotments The occupiers of the cottages, which will be rent free, will be encouraged to do everything possible to produce their living from their allotments. The order in which cottages are to be taken will be decided by ballot where applicants are, in the opinion of the directors, equally deserving. The original allocation of allotments, however, will not necessarily nor ordinarily be final. Where there are two or more equally deserving applicants for a particular holding the final allocation will be made by ballot. At first all work will be carried out on a community basis. The men will be working for the society full time, although their pay is merely sustenance paid by the Government at relief work rates and although the worker may not get a section on the block on which he begins to

work. Co-operative work will, in general, be carried on over the whole block so that it may be brought to a fully improved state as soon as possible. The Government has promised that the men employed under the plan will receive pay as though on relief work. The men will be expected to work full time in consideration of present and future benefits. When sections are sufficiently improved co-operative work will cease on such sections and they will be allocated. At that stage the allotments will be valued by the directors oti the basis of productive value (irrespective of cost) and will be handed over to the men selected under an agreement of sale and purchase. luterest will bo charged at the rate of 5 per cent on J the value assessed and a. sinking fund will j be added. i