The Oamaru Mail. WITH WHICH IS INCORPORATED THE NEW ZEALAND AGRICULTURIST. TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 1879.

Oamaru Mail, Volume IV, Issue 1063, 16 September 1879, Page 2

The Oamaru Mail. WITH WHICH IS INCORPORATED THE NEW ZEALAND AGRICULTURIST. TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 1879.

Tut Mt'.'wmir facta witf i ■ t»* ih M 3e r vh*> arc sceptical iw c»> th*. v . of land monopoly that has prevailed in the j Colony in the past. Whatever may be | s>tr George Grey'a failings, he has earned ! the gratitude of the country. Let our | readers ponder over the following figures j given by the fate Edwar.l Jernu.-ham j : Wakefield. p.> they not show e •ne!ss*«vety; that the colonial estate was drifting away at , such a rate that, had a new ortter of things j not arisen, the Colony would soon have, found itself .nm* land, money, an-l credit— , a country as sqitattoeratic as it is t-e.oKitt:l ~ Cheviot County, about equal in size to , Middlesex, is entirely comprised in three j enormous freeholds, one or v.hich ri:et prop-rty of the Hon. W. Robinson. J M.Lc.—consists of a round lOO.out): acres ; two other holders owning the re- j mainitig acres. There is not an I acre of leasehold in the whole County. In Waikato County there is one freehold of SO.out) acres; in Piako County one "f acres, together with a leasehold of 17.1)ftt llobson County one leasehold is S:;.WO acres : in Kaglart County ~:ie of '.>0.000 acres, with a freehold of l'-'OO acres. (This is also partly,, if not wholly, owned by the Hon. W. Robtnaon.) I" Marlborough County there is one freehold of S9 r OOO acres, the j-int property of Sir Charles Ctitlord (former!} Speaker of the House of Representatives) and Mr. F. A. Weld (formerly Premier of New Zealand, and now fiovrrtmr of Tasmania.) In thesanie County there are ten other holdings together comprising acres of freehold and l>i.f>oo of leasehold. In Kaikoura there is one teasehotd of 80,000 acres, with ."700 freehold ; also two freeholds of L'S.-tOO and 13.000 acres respectively. In Atntiri, eight freeWih comprise 2-lS,0()O Ashley, one freehold consists of 70.000 acres "(Sir Charles Clifford and Mr. Weld again); another, 21.000 acres; and two more divide 25,200 acres between them. In Selwyu there is one freehold of 22,000 and another of 13,000 acres. In Ashburt«>n. four holdings together comprise •It.tlOO acre* free and (">5.000 lease. In .'»»Tit«lint% four freeholds togetiier contain V.0.0W iwrw. In H'.iimaro. nine holdings :contain 2SfhOOO acres tree and ! tease, as well as tvw freehold* together 5 containing acres in V> aitaki, one i freeholder lias Si.'XXI acres, and seven j more have US.OOO among them. In Wiukntraiti. one freeholder has 21.0(11. U-res and another 15,000 aotvs, with -!S0O s of lea-u-hot-L In eirttha. f.'itr holdings t'ontain P3.000 acres vf free and Icise. and two other holdings comprise- 25.000 acres. In Tuapeka, one ireeUotd 70.1 W. one -O.iil'i, and two comprising 2*».C00 acres. In Southland Cottnty. there is one freehold of 70.000 acres, besides seven holdings containing 21W.000 free and 10, WO lease, and eight containing 101.000 free and 11.000 lease. In Wallace three holdings include .">7,000 acres free, v-ith *50.000 tease, and four contain r>",">oo of freehold. ' If Mr. Wake field had lived ttll now. he wontd have been able : " gi'.e further proof* »f land monopoly, "le of the estates mention-id above have been : acquired by legitimate means. That is to : 9 a,y, they luivc been acquired by means < f [ fair public competition. Cut there are

"there which, as is generally known, have been alienated either from the CJovernment or the natives for a mere song. It. has been the aim of the present Government to put a stop to the system whereby individuals tver.: t-te it-Iwi i>j gain an .vUantage over their fellows in the matter of land acquirement. ami they have, so far, succeeded Well in tlii.-i direction. Even those who do not agree that the lands of the Colony should split up int.. .small farms will r.cknov.kdge that blocks of land, small or i should be available to ail upon tiie mi., tern:--". Whope that \vc: shall never ; ; i:, ? L .|.- the day when a few men will be : ! icc<l in possession of special advan-;ag..-s it: the matt.-r of land acquirement.