NATIVE LANDS.

Taranaki Herald, Volume LXI, Issue 144149, 19 July 1913, Page 3

NATIVE LANDS.

WAYS OF SPECULATORS. PER PRESS ASSOCIATION. ' % WELLINGTON, July 18. Some remarks legardmg the manner , in which Native land transactions are often conducted wore made by Mr. Young, M.P. for "Waikato, during hia . speech on the Address-in-Reply. Tie Native land, he said, wasbeingdis-., posed of very rapidly, but.'the wrong, ; people were getting hold of it. He , complained ot the practices: of the speculators, half-casto interpreters and. pakeha Maoris, who, in league with certain lawyers, were scheming to get lard from the Natives. He had been informed, he said, i that .such interested persons had .gene:.,to .the- Maoris saying: “The Government is .going to takevoud land from you. You had better , sign transfers and sell your land to us.” "Hiis was how the efforts of the , Government were blocked. The dealings of the Government in regard <to Native lands were fair and square. , It went into court and threw its cards upon tho table, and everybody knew what it was doing. At. the same time,, however, tho - speculators, to whom he \ had referred, hung about the Court and, after-thovGovcrnment had-named tho price that it would give, they " would offer a shilling or eighteenponoe more per acre. Mr. "Wilson (Taumarunui): Or a penny. Mr. Young: - Yes, or even that if.-it . would pay ilie Government to give a certain price for land it -would., pay - them to give a little more. Sometimes these people had the impudence afterwards to go to tho Government and offer it the land for settlement purl poses. He considered that.all who took up Native lands should be given’ a certain: time, say twelve .* • months, in which,.to. .make definite ira- . provoments. If they did not make, these improvements ’ .their interests should be forfeited to the,State, which’ could then open it for bona Ado settlement. AU private tinkering-in -Native lauds should bo made impossible."