UNDEVELOPED LANDS

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LV, Issue 17657, 22 December 1931, Page 11

UNDEVELOPED LANDS

OFDEPAETMENT U|jßD FOR GREATER EFFORT PROPERTIES AVAILABLE A qritieism of the Lunds Department ras made in- a report presented at a meeting of the New Zealand Laigl iettlehienb and Development League in kuckfcjincl. Tho president, Mr. W. J. ioldktvorth, presided. The statement, which was tabled by he secretary, Mr. N. G. Gribble, menioneij that at a ballot for six sections in the Hauraki Plains 205 applications fere received, and at the same time a tatement appeared in the press, in re)ly to inquiries by the Auckland Cham>er of Commerce, in which the Undersecretary for Lands said that New Zealand had been "combed” for land uitable for development and that nothngi suitable had been discovered. It yould seem, the report continued, that he Lands Department was devoid of onstructive suggestions for extension. •The two points made convinced that here was nothing to hope from the delartment as it was at present constitutid. Its officei’3 seemed entirely devoid if the vision or ability which would nake rib possible for them to succeed, f the Under-Secretarv’s statement were orreet, while an unsatisfied and hunger in the Dominion, the delartment could not help. If on the ither hand there were ample lands in he hands of the Grown—but the officers ither were unwilling or unable to make hem available—then a complete weepjng out of the present adminisrators and the placing of the lands inder a Settlement and Migration Board nust be insisted upon.

Gjafe 1,000,000 ACRES IN AUCKA. LAND jllfcl It seemed necessary definitely to stato hat Giere wem in excess of 1,000,000 cres-of Crown land still available in the irovihce of Auckland: In addition there rere very large reserves of State forest nd provincial forest reserves throughat New Zealand aggregating! some ,000,000 acres. Of that, a large proortion was in the Auckland Province, 'herft were more than 200,000 acres of Irowh land in the North Auckland land listrifit and some 400,000 acres the totoim-Taupo district. North of Waihi Jiere -were 210,000 acres of Crown land nd forest reserve and there were other inds in the South Auckland land disrict, Such as that contained in the Vhangamarino area, of which 30,000

ores of State land were not being tilised, and the Moerangi, Hoe-o-Tainui ,nd other blocks. In the North Auckind 1 ijistriet tho delegation which toured lew "Zealand last year inspected and erified the potentialities of some 0,000 acres lying in what were known s the Pnwera lands, near Whangarei, he Kapiro and Okaihau lands in the }ay df Islands, areas near Kaitaia and xtensive areas nehr Dargavxlle. Tho report added that in, all those larts, although the ' official attitude enerally had not been helpful, vesponible and successful farmers had been nteryiewed who pbinted out that the ence line was the only determining actor between their Idghly productive armp and the portions"till held by tho Trown. Tire cost of improvement and encing given by those men varied from bout £6 to £8 an acre and it was useess for any officer of a Government delartment to combat the figures. FERTILITY OF DISTRICTS

■ In connection with the Whangamarino Bud Waihi districts, the report proBeeded, members of the league would reBiemljer that details had been set before ■he executive regarding, the fertility of if properly treated and the Bovominent’s own success at Ngakura Bnd Guthrie. In addition, there was the Bine work of Mr. E. E. Vaile to show B.:-/''.

what could be done in the pumice areas. “The tragedy of the thing,” Mr. Gribble continued, “is that the Department of Native Affairs is meeting with substantial success while the Lands Department is adopting this attitude. It brings home with renewed force the necessity for a revival of enthusiasm and the lighting of a flame in New Zealand which will not be quenched until we have a ‘back to tho land’ movement spreading throughout our national life.” The report was adopted.