The Land Commission.

Taranaki Herald, Volume LIV, Issue 12818, 28 March 1905, Page 7

The Land Commission.

(Per Press Asst»ciation.) >T . . JJiiucdiu, .Mur.cU 27. The .Land Compii'ssipn sat iti DuueJiii thiy jn^orniiig and .toojc tho ' cvi.- . di-npo ofjMEj'Jolu^Aakvw !^>tott, of, the, Otago Liberal itiid Ropre^entative Organised r ' 'Wo river's. ' .avid i be ,had ijee-4 apjujiiijled to give cviJonce ojci behul£ .of tbe Olago' Trude« jind , Laljoia** 1 l'oimci'l and Allliliatcd L^nion.sl . , speaking generally, t]ie Council was. a'giiiii.st the, Cro\vn granting the freehold, fiptly because they considered "it r oj)p,oscd 'to, thp- public policy, and/" secondly, because, they considered it a breach ' pjf fai f th wi'ih ihe State., yhcy lopked upon the'» 'ands of colony/ ! as beipijg the family estate o,f ISTew' and/ felt that ,the Crown was exercising its. functions «yhen it acted #s.. trustee of that estate,. The sajp of' .CroAvn land and land acquired hy the Crown should b;* stopi^pd» k an'fl,i'n future owned* or aclfninisifv.ed I Crown slumlt? fc)e'lea««l : at a' fair rontal and | irjade subject to pKriodicul vuluation. -Tho workers 'were opposctl to any extension of tho freehold on the ground that the freehold and tho landlord system w*as one groat l>av ;to the prooress of the mass of M w pconlo, mid onft of tlie'grcnt % factors '/which l<opt Ihein from roapimr t no full benefit ofv the proffrossivo lec-jsjlation that had been passed on" their behalf.-