The New Zealand Times (PUBLISHED DAILY). TUESDAY, MAY 27, 1879.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIV, Issue 5665, 27 May 1879, Page 2

The New Zealand Times (PUBLISHED DAILY). TUESDAY , MAY 27, 1879.

Our. attention was lately called to an advertisement bearing the Royal coat of arms, which appeared and still appears in our columns. Our readers are aware that Government advertisements but rarely find their way into the columns of Opposition journals : the exceptions therefore deserve and receive our especial attention. This official notice sets forth that twentynine town acres situated in Adelaide-road, Rintoul-street, and Russell-terrace, will be let for a term of forty-two years, by public auction, to be conducted by Mr. J. H. Wallace, on the 18th June next. The advertisement also states that the auctioneer has been instructed by the Commissioner of Native Reserves to offer the land. Up to this point there is nothing very remarkable contained in the notice, but the very unusual conditions contained in the following foot-note attracted our attention :—“ These lands will be let “in one lot for a term of forty-two “ years, subject to a premium of £3721, “ payable at the fall of the hammer.” Two explanations of this foot-note appeared to be open to us—one was that the natives concerned desired, while giving the lease, to obtain a lump sum of £3700 down either to meet certain liabilities connected with the property or for some other purpose ; the rental being reduced accordingly. The other solution was that the present leaseholder finding his term drawing to a close, or being in want of ready money, proposed to surrender his lease, provided that he could obtain both the consent of the Commissioner of Native Reserves and also what he deemed the surrender value of the document. It will be seen from the information given below that neither of the above solutions were correct; the facts of the case caused us so much surprise that they appeared to us worthy of all the prominence we could give them. Upon inquiry we find that by a lease dated 16th January, 1878, the Commissioner of Native Reserves, acting under the powers delegated to him, pursuant to the provisions of the New Zealand Native Reserves Act, 1836, leased to Dr. Alexander Johnston and to Mrs. Mary Jane Burns the eighteen town acres, numbered from 972 to 989, for twentyone years, at the following rentals : For the first seven years, £35 per annum ; for the next seven, £45 per annum ; and for the remainder of the term, £6O per annum, and with no other obligation than that of enclosing the land with a fence. We also find by a lease of the same date that the acres numbered from 995 to 1005 inclusive were let by the Commissioner of Native Reserves to the same parties for a similar term of twentyone years at the following yearly rents: — For the first four years, £2O; for the next seven years, £25; for the following seven, £3O ; and for the remainder of the term, £4O a year—without even the above obligation of enclosing the land. From the above facts it appears to us that the lease of the land will be submitted to auction under exceedingly unfavorable conditions of sale for the natives concerned. In the first place, no private owner, still less a trustee of another person’s property, would during the present commercial depression desire to submit to public auction any long lease of , a property in which he was interested, if it could possibly be avoided or postponed. In the second place, the required payment of £3700 cash down would at once cut the number of buyers down to an exceedingly small quota. A lease of 29 town acres is a heavy responsibility for any one man to undertake, and even supposing that there were urgent reasons, which have not been made public, for the property being forced upon a stagnant and depressed market, we believe that the interests of the lessees would be far better served by theseotions being submitted in half-acre or one-acre lots. The premium required would be comparatively trifling and the number of bidders would probably bo multiplied one hundred fold. In addition to the above restrictive conditions of sale, we desire to point out that any bona fide bidder would enter into competition, as against the present leaseholders, handicapped to the extent of nearly £4OOO. If the present lessors were anxious to convert their leases of 19J; years into a 42 years’ tenure, matters appear to have been so arranged as to give them every facility for accomplishing this object. If, on the other hand, they chiefly desire to realise on the lease, they cannot receive less than the joint surrender value of the leases they hold, viz., £3721. We are not in a position to estimate, with any approach to accuracy, the present leasehold value of the twenty-nine town acres indicated. But judging by the general depreciation of property during the past eighteen months, we should be inclined to estimate it much lower now than in January, 1878. Assuming that a year and a half ago the surrender value of the twentyone years leases given by the Native Commissioner was only £4OOO, it may be worth while to point out that the tenants only pay for the first four years £55 a year for their bargain ; and if they had decided to stick to their leases, they would never have had: to pay more than £IOO of rent a year for twenty-nine town acres, the-full amount only being due during the last three. years of the term ending in 1897. In conclusion, it may be as well for us to state that we know nothing of the parties concerned, nor of the circumstances connected with the case. Our attention was attracted-to the advertisement by the Royal arms heading ; and as it proclaimed an important auction of a large area of town laud in one lot for a

very long term, under peculiar and unusual conditions, we thought it right in the interests of the natives and of the public to make some inquiry into the matter, with the above result. Those persons whose opinions we have solicited in respect to the facts which we have disclosed, characterise the transaction in the strongest terms of disapprobation. As we believe that the main facts speak for themselves, and that some further elucidation of the matter may yet be forthcoming, we shall reserve any comment for a future occasion.