THE NEW MINING BILL.

Otago Witness, Issue 1952, 23 July 1891, Page 14

THE NEW MINING BILL.

The Hon. Mr Seddon's Mining Bill is for the greater part merely a reprint and rearrangement of " The Miniug Act 1886 " and the several amending acts. Some of the new provisions are, however, important. The first of these occurs in the interpretation clause, where a new definition is given of " Crown lands." To the definition given in the act of 1886 the words are added—" But except where specially otherwise provided does not include any land licensed or leased under any act relating to Grown lands trith the right of acquiring the fee Bimple thereof." This, it will be seen, exempts lands j sold on deferred payments or held under sgri- j cultural leases from mining occupation. The next additions to the interpretation clause are definition? of "legal manager," "Minister," "private land," and •' share," but these do not seem to involve any important change in the law. Section 18a of the bill is a new provision. It provides that—" The Governor may appoint post offices at which miners' rights and business licenses respectively may ba issued by and payments of rents, royalties, and fees may be made to tbe postmaster or chief officer in charge of any such post office." Passing over several comparatively unimportant alterations and amendments we come to section 49a, which is evidently framed in the interest of employes. The first part of the section, which provides that wages men shall have a lien for unpaid wages on the claims in which they work, is fco be found in the act of 1886, but to this is added a proviso in the following words: — "And in any case where there are several liens registered against the same claim the warden shall determine the order of priority in which such liens shall be satisfied in accordance with the provisions of • The Workmen's Wages Act 1884.' " The next section 49b is still more important, inasmuch as it provides that tributers and men working on contract are to be deemed " wages men." It is very doubtful whether these/ provisions will prove of any practical value, seeing that in general the reason for wages not being paid is the worthlessness of the claim to which the lien attaches. In section 49c it is provided that — " Every tributer employed in a mine where the tribute exacted does not exceed 10 per centum of the gross yield of the gold gotten by him shall be deemed to be a wages man. Every contract made with a tributer for a tribute exceeding 10 per centum of the gold gotten by him in a mine shall be absolutely null and void ; and every such tributer shall be deemed to be a wages man, and may recover the current rate of wages for the time be may be or have been working in such mine. Any tributer paying more than 10 per centum of the gross yield of gold gotten by him in , a mine shall not be deemed to be a person employed forthe purpose of complying with any covenants in respect of performance of labour under which any claim, licensed holding, or special claim is held." These provisions have a sinister significance, and if passed into law and acted upon are likely to produce results which will not promote the interests of labour. Section 49d provides that mining companies providing tributers or workmen in mines are to furnish quarterly statements of affairs to the inspector, and a penalty of £5 per day is provided for those making default, t Section 49e gives a right to shareholders, j with or without an expert, to enter and inspect the workings in mines, and provides a penalty of £100 for the case of a manager of a mine, or a director or manager of any company, obstructing or delaying such inspection for erery day during which prevention, obstruction, or delay continnes. This last seems a proper provision, but the penalty is somewhat out of proportion to the offence. Section 50 provides that — " Every claim from and after the day on which the claim has been marked out or taken possession of shall be bona fide and continuously worked from day to day by the number of men to be prescribed in respect of such description of claim by regulations " ; but as a qualification of this very stringent provision it is provided that — "Preparations indispensable to the working of ground in any claim, or any work in connection therewith or in the erection of mtfchinery for the same, shall bo deemed to be work in respect of such claim." It also exempts owners of quartz claims from employing anyone but themselves for 10 days after the claim has been marked out. These modifications are taken from the act of 1886, section 104, the first part only of section 50 being new matter. A desirable amendment is made in providing in section 53 that a person suing for and obtaining a decree of forfeiture shall have priority in obtaining the benefit of the forfeiture. Section 54 is partly new, but is bad in principle, as it provides for forfeiture without any adjudication, and a person might thus be deprived of his property without being heard. Section 58 introduces a provision which heretofore has existed only in the regulations providing far the amalgamation of claims. In section 60 the area which may be granted as a special claim is to be limited to 50 acres. Heretofore there has been no limit to the area. The rents of licensed holdings are to be reduced to a uniform rate of 10s per acre throughout the whole term (sec-

tion 65), and by section 70 no licensed holding held under one license shall exceed an area of 30 acres. Payment of survey charges is not to be exacted for land already surveyed. The other provisions with regard to special claims and licensed holdings are but slightly altered, and the alterations are generally improvements. Sections 19 and 80 bring the granting of mineral licenses (other than gold) under the jurisdiction of the wardens, and expense will thus be saved to applicants by their being enabled to apply locally instead of having to attend land boards at a distance. Section 92 contains new and important provisions providing that "private lands which, after the commencement of the act, may be alienated or agreed to be alienated by the Crown in fee simple shall be open for prospecting" — provision being made for compensation to the owner for surface damage. The Australian colonies have been in respect to mining on private land behind other gold-bearing countries — the republic of Chili, for example, which even as early as the time of Darwin's visit in the Beagle permitted mining on private lands. Section 96 contains a provision which should not be allowed to become law without modification. It proposes to enact — " That every such license (license for a water race) shall be granted subject to the condition that the holder thereof shall not be entitled to compensation in respect of the pollution, or diminution, or total stoppage of water in such race caused by or resulting from the deposit of tailings in or about any spring, pool, or stream from which such race is supplied with water." This provision was included in the bill introduced by the late Government last year, and is absolutely inconsistent with loßg-established legal principles. It is impossible within the limits of space allowable to the subject to mention all the proposed changes contemplated by the bill. It is quite clear that Mr Seddon is not contented to do what his predecessors have invariably done : servilely copy what has been done by others. It is refreshing to see mental capacity and practical common sense applied to a subject which has been too much neglected and permitted to run to seed. Some of the proposed innovations are not improvements, and want thorough discussion, but in a statute notoriously one of the most badly drawn of any which disgrace tbe Statute Book, the chief matter for regret is that Mr Seddon has not proposed to wipe it out altogether and begin de wow.— Daily Times.