THE ARGYLE SETTLEMENT.

New Zealand Times, Volume LXXV, Issue 5008, 4 July 1903, Page 7

THE ARGYLE SETTLEMENT.

DISPUTE OVER THE HOMESTEAD BLOCK. Special to tub “ Times.” NAPIER, July 3. Parliament is to bo asked to discuss the position of affairs which has arisen in regard to a section of laud comprising 086 acres of tho Argyle settlement. This is known as tho homestead block, on which is situated a four-toou-roomod house and outbuildings. Tho Government offered it at a rental of £-111 per annum. Obviously this block scarcely offered opportunities for a man of small means, and out of twenty applicants all but four were rejected by tho Land Board. Tho Board, in throwing out sixteen of the applicants, was guided by the information before it, and says tho Crown Lands Comraiss’ouer exorcised its discretion accordingly, after carefully considering tho amount of capital possessed by each applicant. The homestead block, undoubtedly the best in the settlement, fell to the choice of a recent arrival from South Africa. Tho Land Board on Thursday was asked to put tho section again up for ballot, but tho Booi’d declined to reopen the question. Tho reasons given for this request were—ol) That the rejected applicants -were misled as to tho amount required to enable them to participate in the ballot; (2) that thoir. means arc sufficient to enable them to Bii-cessfully farm tho land and to carry out tho terms of tho lease; (3) that they have all had considerable practical experience and arc tho class of people to mako satisfactory settlers. The applicants state that by reason of tho misrepresentations made that £1 per acre was ail tho capital that each applicant need show for this section, they refrained from showing as much as they could have done, and in consequence of thoir rejection have boon debarred from going to the ballot for other sections. Some of them, they say, were never called upon by tiro Board for examination as to fitness. ■ 'The applicants have been put to considerable expense and loss of time, and unless tho Board reconsiders thoir applications and, reopens tho ballot to them for this section, I am instructed (says thoir solicitor) to apply to tho Supreme Court.” It may be added that some of the applicants for tho homestead block allege that they coiijld have raised enough money between them to buy a largo portion of tho estate, but it this is correct then the information was not set out in tho statutory schedule, which requires each applicant to state the moans he possesses. Therefore it is contended by members of the Land Board that tho Board could only act upon tho information; "officially laid before it. The result of the appeal is being watchod with interest by the small farmers in tho , southern part of Hawke’s Bay.