VIEW HILL NOTES.

Oxford Observer, Volume V, Issue V, 9 June 1894, Page 2

VIEW HILL NOTES.

By Demos. In the " Lytteiton Times "of the 2nd inst. under " Wellington items " the following uppears viz: — The Land Board has decided to ask the Minister of Lands to agree to state a case for the Supreme Court to ascertain whether the Land Board or the Commissioner alone has power to deal with villiage settlements, special settlements or small farm homestead selectors." If our land laws are m such a state that the various Land Boards cannot understand their provisions they must be m a pretty pickle. It seems almost incrediable that the law can have been m such an unsatisfactory state and been allowed to remain so all the years it has . been m opperation, without the Boards finding it out before now ; if however the meaning of the act is as obscure as one would gather from the action of the Wellington Board, surely it would be simpler and altogether more satisfactory to the colony to have the law ammended, so as to set all doubt at veaf instead of asking to have the country put to the cost of a court case, which, after all, would probably only show the necessity of inserting clear and definite provisions m the act. It seems absurd for the Wellington Land Board to wish to put the country to the cost of going to Court to get the law interpreted when Parliament will be m

sepsion m a few days, pad the whole * thing can be get at rest once for ail if gone abaut m a propel- way by the Board. } \ , There is iio doubt but that our land jajws want considerably altering. Something ia radically/ wrong somewhere. Whether the law is ta blame, and is to be held accountable for the • different treatment melted out to different people or not, it cannot escape on ea notice that there is a' cojj& .*.;; siderable difference. . Whether this H J the fault of the law or of the Land "^" Boards matters not, the' law should be put m such a shape that there could be no favours shown under it to one class more than another. It is time - the Land Laws were ammended for under the present law all" the difference m the world is made between the man with money and the ' man with none. If a man . has^ money he is generally supposed to be able to look after himself better than the man without, but under our land settlement regulations every favour and latitude is given to t^e man with means while the most embarrassing^ and stringent .< 1 rules are made for the Harassing of small settlers. Some other plan of administering the land is also wanted . 1 for there is no getting away from the ■ fact that the same treatment is not ! dealt out to all alike! The man of 1 means can always get the advantage ; under the Boards as at present constituted. We are supposad to be living [ m a land where all are equal m the c sye of the law, bat anyone seeing the difference m the way the small settlers are treated compared with the large ones m the matter of the land settle- ! ment regulations, must come to an ■ opposite conclusion. Men with large ■ holdings are m many cases allowed to take up land set asside for small settlers only and are allowed to reside ' where they like, but if a poor man ; should, seeing this, take up land think- - s ing he will be allowed to do the sanie*^ the Board or Commissioner, pounces " down on the unfortunate at once, and threatens forfiture, unless he takes up his residence on the land and complies ■, 3 with sundry regulations, (and their 1 name is legion) none of which are ent forced m the case of his wealthy i neighbour. I There are many industrious lr-rd-* ' working settlers m the colony, who 1 would gladly take up small block-; of land and spend every penny they could ' possibly spare, m improving it, . so as ! to provide homes for the future, if provision was made m" our land laws * whereby residence could be dispeneed with for a time, until they couid fifforcf*' to build, fence, .stock, cultivate &c. These sort of people should be incouruged, instead of being discouiaged as at . present. If it could be seen that a person was using the land for his own benefit and not for speculation and ** was properly improving it, every encouragement should be extended to him instead of which. at present tha - ; law debars fcim altogether from hoTding under certain tenures without act ual residence and thus prevents a deserving class from making homes for old age. ' _ 1 Parliament will meet m a few days now and it should be one of ifes chief, duties to see that our laws (especially 1 our land laws ) are framed and worded m such, a way that any ordinary sen--1 sible person can understand them. 1 The meaning of the land act must 1 be obscure indeed when after years of administeration the Land "Boards cannot understate! it and need the courts to interprit it for them, and now that the attention of Government has been „ called to it by the Wellington Board it would be disgraceful if Parliament allowed it to remain m such a stafte""^ any longer. Our M.H.K. is fortunately also a member of the Canterbury Land Board so of course must be aware of the incpngruous provisions <- of the present act, and it is to be hoped he will do all he,, can .to .have it so 3 amended as not ty." favour, pne class If more than another; but treat the poor ' man as liberally as the- .rich.