NATIVE LANDS.

Timaru Herald, Issue 170298, 17 August 1920, Page 2

NATIVE LANDS.

LITTLE LEFT FOB SETTLEMENT

OFFICAL FIGURES-,

From our Parliamentary Correspondent

The annual survey of operacioug of J the Native Land Purchase lioard states that in 19J.1 there were 311 tiie North Island 7,137.205 acres of land held by the Maoris. Since that time 3,100,949 acres were run-chased by. the Crown and 1,339,570 alienated by sale through the Maori T*»nd Boards, leaving the approximate area o.yned by the Maoris at March 31st, 1920, aa 4,787.686 acres. Of the latter total 3.510,408 acres arc estimated to be profitably occupied, leaving 1. acres unoccupied. If to the a"3a of unoccupied land is added 380,000 estimated to be occupied by Maori owners there remain 1.657,278 acres available for the use of the Maoris, but of this it is estimated that about 5o(),U00 acres are witiiin the pumice area, and to this should be added probably another 20u,0U0 acres, which include mountain tops, springs, sand d.mes, and land unlit for settlement. This leaves an area of 907.278 acres that may be considered fit for settlement. This cannot be regarded as nil excessive area for the use of the 4'/,000 Maoris comprising the population ot the North Island and their descendants. It is roughly 19 acres per head. Instead therefore of there being a large area of native land a--nil-able- for general settlement, it v.culd seem that there is barely sufficient for the requirements of the natives themselves. Seeing that the .Europeans have acquired about 62,000,000 acres of native land, it might not be tbougnt unreasonable to allow the native owners to retain the small area remaining to them, for it may safely be said that the lands leased to Europeans win never return to the occupation of the native land owners. The great problem is to get them settled upon tiieirindividual holdings, but this is an object not likely to be fully realised, aa all Maoris will not become farmers any more than will all Europeans. The Native Department is sometimes twitLed with not publishing figures and making statements in regard to the position of native lands, but there are amplo figures published in the various returns for anyone intelligent enough to understand them. All the figures and statements that can be made will not alter the position, which is that the Maoris have disposed of neariy ail the lands that they can dispose of without leaving the bulk of them landless, and later probably to become a charge on the State.