MAORI LANDS.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXVII, Issue 5730, 27 October 1905, Page 5

MAORI LANDS.

SETTLEMENT BILL IN THE COUNCIL. v The Maori Lands Settlement Bill was considered bv the Legislative Council last night. Tho Hon Mr Pitt, in moving th© secand reading explained that tho bill was an honest endeavour to settle large areas of native land, but if it did not effect all that the Government had wished it to do—if it not affect such a large area of land as had originally been intended—it was not the fault of the Government. The Hon Mr Mahuta was satisfied that if the bill became law the natives would benefit considerably. The Hon Hr Ormond agreed with some portions of the bill, and disagreed with other portions. The good that was in the bill justified it being passed. He favoured the abolition of Maori Councils, but ho viewed with disfavour the bodies set up in-place of them. Under the new bxly tho natives would liavo no rights whatever in regard to their lands. He had urged many times that tho Government ehould £ct up Courts to decide ownership of the six or seven million acres of native lands, and then to bring them under th© ordinary land laws of the colony, that is to say, to tax them so that tliev could not bo held as waste lands.

The Hon Mr Macdonald was not in favour of many of the bill's provisions, and he'regretted that such an important measure was being discussed at such a late period of the session as to preclude any chance of alteration to the policy. One extraordinary pnevision was that after the Maori Lands Board had held land for fifty years the fee simple was handed hack this after the Europcin , taxpayers had expended largo sums of money to improve the value by reading, etc. The fee simple of property farmed and improved by a benevolent State would have grown to,-an enormous value. Contrast that with th© position of the European settler! The advantages given to the .native were unfair. The position should'bo' faced of treating the Maori land under the Land for Settlements Act; paying the Maoris the placing aside sufficient areas for thciiynecds, .and the purchase money of the residue put on on© - side for th© sustenance and keep of the natives to prevent th© Maori pauperism that was fast coming upon this country. Tho present bill was inadequate, and ho could only hop© it was a forerunner of something better—something to deal with the native land question in a comprehensive manner.

The Hon Mr Jones said th© taxpayer would not have to pay for this improvement of the native lands at all—tho money for th© improvement of tho lands would be loaned to the natives at 5 per cent. Briefly the Maoris were not to be treated any differently from Europeans. The Hon Mr Bigg said the philanthropic efforts of tho lion Mr Carroll in th© matter of native land administration should be given a trial. The Hon Mr Pitt, in reply, said that unless the Government took th© course as provided in the compulsory clauses it was hopeless to expect that tho settlement of native land would advance. The interests of th© natives were fully protected.

The second reading was carried on the voices.