PUMICE LANDS

Southland Times, Issue 21198, 26 September 1930, Page 8

PUMICE LANDS

COSTS OF PRODUCTION MR DAVID McDOUGALL’S OPINION ATTACK IN HOUSE PROVOKED (From Our Parliamentary Reporter.) Wellington, September Jo. By expressing his opinion on pumice lands in the Taupo district during the discussion on the report on the petition praying for the continuation of the construction' of the Rotorua-Taupo railway in the House of Representatives this afternoon, Mr David McDougall (U., Mataura) drew forth a sharp attack from several other members. The position according to evidence received by the Petitions Committee, Mr McDougall said, was that land through which the desired railway would pass would cost £8 an acre to bring into bearing. If a man went on to the land he would have to spend that sum before he received anything in return and what was he going to live on until the land returned him something? He understood that the land was not suitable for close settlement and in view of the fact that the land would cost so much to bring in, he had supported the committee when it decided to bring in no recommendation. The decision of the committee had been found on the casting vote of the chairman, but there was one member who voted—. The Speaker (Sir Charles Statham): Order, order! The Hon. J. B. Donald: You cannot tell that. Mr McDougall: He wasn’t there very often. Anyway, what I want to say is that you cannot make a living off that land. Mr W. L. Martin (L., Raglan) said that it was a pity the honourable member for Mataura had condemned the petitioners as he knew that some of them were most successful farmers in the Waikato. They were men who probably knew more about farming than anyone in the House. It had been admitted that it would cost £S to bring the land into bearing, but that was not the question. The question was whether or not the land could be developed and he believed it could. He had been over the land and h : s opinion differed from that of the honourable member for Mataura.

Mr W. E. Parry (L„ Auckland Central) : He admitted that the land was suitable. Mr Martin: I don’t know. He condemned it loudly enough before we went over it, but I thought he was convinced.

Mr Parry: He admitted that there were possibilities in the land, even if there was room for argument. Mr Martin said he was satisfied that if development was taken in hand in a sound and sensible way good results would come from the continuation of the railway. If the statement made by the honourable member for Mataura was a samole of the opinion of the committee. Mr H. G. Dickie (R., Patea) said, the House should refer the report back to the committee. The land in question would carry a cow to three acres and there was no land in New Zealand which would do that to be bought for less than £8 an acre.