LAND SETTLEMENT IN OTAGO.

Otago Witness, Issue 2782, 10 July 1907, Page 23

LAND SETTLEMENT IN OTAGO.

STATEMENT BY THE MINISTER. (Fboic Otjb Owsr Cobbhspondent.) WELLINGTON, July 2. Mr Thos. Mackenzie has been interesting himself in the question of land settlement in Otago. The other day he wrote to the chairman of the Land Purchase Board as follows: — "On July 23 of last year a petition was presented to the Hon. W. Hall-Jones asking that certain estates should be purchased by the Government in the Waikouaiti district. The Prime Minister then promised that your board would immediately attend to the matter. In the Palmerston Times of June 12, 1907, you are reported to have promised the Mayor of Palmerston that you would favourably consider the proposal to pur- : ohase 2000 acres of Mount Royal Estate. I have also had the matter of closer settle- ! ment in that district under the notice of the Government for some time, and have not received any communication from your board in that connection for a very ' considerable period. Being the represenj tative for the district, I am endeavouring to learn what you propose doing in this connection, and desire to be in a position to inform my constituents of the position of the matter." To this letter he has received a reply from Mr M'Nab as follows : — " Sir, — I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of July 1, addressed ;,to the chairman of the Land Purchase Board, fn which you state that a petition was presented to the Hon. W. Hall-Jones i on July 23 last, asking that certain estates should be purchased by the Government in Waikouaiti, and that the Prime Minister had then promised that the Land Purchase Board would immediately attend to the matter. In reply, I beg to state that I have an extract from the Evening Star of July 24, 1906, in which it is stated that you had asked the Prime Minister that morning to take into consideration the question of opening up more land within 50 of 60 miles north and south of Dunedin, and that you had specially mentioned the Mount Royal Estate of 20,000 acres and the Springvale Estate. The Prime Minister said he would look into a number of estates offering in Otago to see if anything could be done in the direc- j tion suggested. In accordance with this promise negotiations -wtere opened with the owners of the Mount Royal Estate, and ultimately an offer was made by the trustees to sell two blocks — one of 1440 acres on Mount Royal and one of 5378 acres near Flag Swamp. The<*j blocks were inspected in December, 1906, and a report was furnished, when it was decided that no further action should be taken. With regard to the statement that the Land Purchase Board had promised to favourably consider the proposal to purchase 2000 acres of the Mount Royal Estate, I beg to say that no such promise hag been made. A portion of Ashley Dowiis— -2700 acres, equally good land, but not so highly improved and burdened with buildings — has been acquired. Springvale is an estate which has not been offered for sale, and I do not know

its situation. With regard to that portion of your letter in. which you state that you had brought the question of closer settlement under the notice .of tile Govern- , ment for some time, and had not received' any communication from the Land Purchose Board in that connection for a very considerable period, I beg to say that f cannot find that any of your oomxnunica.tions have not been attended to. In- the northern part of Otago five estates, of an area of 30,646 acres, have daring* t&*» pa6t year been acquired, as well a* the 37,000 acres estate near to Balclutha already mentioned, and four Otago estates of 12,879 acres nave been offered for selection within a very recent time. If you know of any properties of a fair size which are suitable for division, and can "be purchased at a fair price*- I shall be obliged If you will inform me thereof so that negotiations for their acquisition may be initiated." MR MACKENZIE REPLIES TO THE MINISTER. : (Fhom Otjb Own Cohhespondent.) WELLINGTON, July 5.' Mr Mackenzie has addressed the following letter to the Hon. R. M'Nab, Minister of Lands: — Sir, — I beg to acknowledge receipt of your favour replying to my letter addressed to the chairman of the Land Purchase Board regarding closer settlement in Otago. I note that you say the promise was not made to Mr dark, of Palmerston, that the purchase of the 2000 acres of land was to b© favourably considered. There is an inaccuracy in the extract you quote from the Evening" Star of July 24, 1906. The following is what appeared on. July 25 in the Evening Star:— "The areas of the estate mentioned yesterday by Mr T. Mackenzie, M.H.R., which he considered should be acquired by the- Government, are as follow: — Meadowbank, 6000 acres; Mount Royal, 20,000 acres; and Clydevale.. 30,000 acres. Mr Mackenzie emphasised the fact that two valuable estates had for years been offered" to the Government — namely, Moa Flat and Hillend. The Government got a report' condemning the former, and it would not take up the latter. Specu- . lators had now acquired Moa Flat at a much bigger price, and settlers had taken it up. The enterprising proprietor of Hillend hsfilt himself cut up his property, and was erecting a dairy factory, while some , 20 farmers would soon be settled there. He , contended that ther Government ought to have acquired both these estates, which would' have meant settling the people there at a lower rental than they were at present paying." You- will notice that the Springvale Estate, which you say you are not familiar with, is actually the Clydevale Estate. ' I cannot but express my regret that after my strong references to the Land Purchase Board permitting Moa Flat and Hillend Estates to slip through their fingers they should have allowed Clydevale to go in the- same manner. I desire to say also that I am not familiar with the property you mention of 37,000 acres situated near Balelutha. Although you point out that certain properties have been opened up in- Otago, you will see that within the radius I mentioned — namely, 50 or 60 miles of Dunedin— not a single acre has been purchased. You ask if I know of any properties of fair size suitable for division that can be purchased at a fair price. It seems to me that I have already pointed out several very suitable estates that could be purchased at a fair price, including Moa Flat and Clydevale, but the Land Purchase Board will not give a fair price. In the case of. Clydevale, they offered £4 5s for , what others could give £4 15s for and make ! easily 20s an acre profit by the transaction. I might direct your attention, however, to the movement at present being made in Palmers-ton. South with "a view to closer settlement, and ask your board, in any offers you make for the purchase of an estate, to let your price be at anyrate equal to the average valuations put on by your own officers, and at least equal to what the Government values the lands at for taxation purposes. This question of closer settlement in. Otago is one of such vital importance that the most serious attention should be given to it, because not only are we losing much of our natural increase of population, but the representation of Otago is lessened in consequence. In the case of the sale of Clydevale to the present syndicate, the regrettable fact remains that something like 20,000 acres of it goes into the hands of four or five purchasers, whereas that estate could have supported 100 families. — I have the honour to be, sir, yours obediently, Thos. Mackenzie.