LAND FOR SATTUEMENTS. (From Our Special Correspondent.) WELLINGTON, July 19.

Otago Witness, Issue 2471, 24 July 1901, Page 17

LAND FOR SATTUEMENTS. (From Our Special Correspondent.) WELLINGTON, July 19.

The Land for Settlements Act Amendment Bill, circulated this morning, proposes that section 54- of the Consolidating Act of 1900 shall be retroactive, so as to bring land leased before the passing of the act of 1896 •under the special provisions regarding buildings situated on land when it is disposed of by way of lease. The special powers as to preparing land for settlement conferred on the Minister by section 65 of the act of last year are extended so as to include the power to construct or join with any perecn, or local authority, or the Crown, in constructing roads, bridges, drainage works river protection works, and such like. The expenses to the administration of the act" are made payable out of the land for'settlements account, without further appropriation than the act. Further procedure is provided on the compulsory taking of land, and under this it is provided that the claimant shall, not later than 21 days after service of the claim for compensation, file in the Supreme Court a copy of the claim, and a notice stating the name and address ■of the person he appoints to act as his assessor, and shall serve a copy of such notice on the Minister, who must file a similar notice in the court within 21 days after it reaches him. If the, claimant or Minister makes default in this respect the Chief Justice may, on the application of the other party, appoint an assessor or make such orders as in his opinion are necessary to enable the claim to be heard and determined by the Compensation Court, and if the default consists of not making or serving the claim the Chief Justice may order the matter to be heard by the court in its absence. It is also provided- that in applying the pro- j -visions of section 40 of " The Public Works Act, 1894- " (dealing with unrepresented absentee claims), it is not necessary for the Minister to offer the amount of compensation. In order to prevent any evasion or avoidance of the provisions of the principal act as to the right of the owner to seject and retain any limited part of the estate intended to be acquired by the Crown, it is provided that the area of the whole estate shall be computed as at the commencement of the negotiations for purchase, and no subsequent disposition of the estate, or any part of it, shall operate to defeat the power of the Crown to acquire the land. To make this provision more complete, it is provided that the date at which negotiations shall be deemed to commence shall be determined by the Governor-in-Council. Land recommended for acquisition may be purchased by the Crown at any auction sale. In disposing of land by way of lease the board is required, -unless otherwise ordered by the Minister, to , give preference to landless men with families. During the land for settlements debate Mr G. W. Hussell referred to the slow rate of purchases by the Government. He had asserted in the debate on the Address-in-Beply that not £20,000 worth of land had been bought by the Government during the •first three quarters of the last financial year. The Eremier had challenged his statement, and had produced a return showing purchases to the amount of £356,000. But, said Mr Russell, this was a trick. The purchases were as follows: — June quarter, £524-5; September quarter, nil ; December quarter, £5897;— total for three quarters, £11,142. .The Premier had given a return for the calendar year, this including £331,108 for the last quarter of the previous financial year. The purchases for the last quarter of the financial year ended March 31, 1901, were £175,225, Riving a grand total for that year of £186.621, as shown by the Gazette returns. But of the £186,000 paid, no less than £141,000 was for Hatuma, negotiations for which had been going on for years. Deducting this and £5245, the balance of purchase money paid for the Ohakea estate, the purchases for the year were only £39,000, whilst the incidental expenses amounted to £9274, excluding £408 Hatuma costs. The only Canterbury lands purchased were Lyndon, £15,000, and Tarawahi, £2800. No j wonder, said Mr Russell, that the earth ! hunger continues. Referring to the return ! mentioned, he said that it showed 177 farms leased in the colony during the ' calendar year, whereas in the Premier's speech in Hansard it appeared as 777. He asked the Premier to do him the justice of admitting the error, and the Premier replied it must be a Hansard reporter's mistake. Mr Russell then proceeded to advocate an energetic land for settlements policy in Canterbury.