THE CHEVIOT PURCHASE.

Thames Star, Volume XXIV, Issue 7499, 16 August 1893, Page 4

THE CHEVIOT PURCHASE.

Discussion in the House.

(Pbbss Association.)

Wellington This day.

In the House last night, the Hon. Mr McKenzie moved the second reading of the Cheviot Estate Disposition Bill, to provide for the administration and disposition of certain land in the County of Cheviot by tbe Crown. He gave lengthy details of the purchase As to the question of the disposal of the property, he might say that he had heard on good authority that a syndicate in ChriatchurcbJ would take up the whole of the property at a handsome profit to the Government. After consideration the Grbvernment had come to the conclusion that that the estate should be broken up for; settlement purposes. They had leased a portion of the land for six months at a good price, and he believed that if they could have leased it for twelve months, they would be able to receive 4| per cent on the purchase money, which, he thought would convince tbe House that the transaction was a good one for the colony. The surveying ofthe estate was now being *apidly proceeded with As to the disposal of the estate, the Government had to consider -whether the land should be sold for cash on the perpetual lease, or lease in perpetuity, but he was of opinion that they should have a mixture of three schemes. They had, therefore, provided in the Bill j that one third of the land should be sold for cash by public auction, and a third by lease in perpetuity, and one third by lease for glazing farms. He proposed to refer the Bill to the Waste Lands Committee, and he had ho hesitation in saying that the estate could be made a financial success, in which event there would be farther subdivisions. He hoped those members who were opposed to selling any portion of the estate for cash would look at the matter from a practical point of view, and remember that, it was impassible to road aud survey the property out of revenue. Mr Richardson complimented Mr McKenzie for having spokeu on this Bill in a more practical way than he had done in the ast. If Mr McKenzie could have sold the whole estate at a profit of £50,000 he shonld have done so, and thus protected the revenue. He objected to tbe purchase of the estate, because the land had been under cultivation before being purchased, and the same amount of money would have purchased-one million acres of native land which was at present unproductive, and ro&ded and surveyed it, Tbe first duty

of the Government should be to deal with unoccupied land. Sir R. Stout thought Mr MoKenzie had made out a good case for the purchase of the estate. The only point be hoped the Waste Lands Committee would consider was whether it wts advisable to dispose of two thirds of the li-.nd on the freehold tenure, as lease in perpetuity was practically freehold. He thought a reasonable compromise would be to alter the terms to one third for cash, one third on perpetual lease under the old Land Act, and one third on lease for grazing farm. He regarded lease in perpetuity as a perfect sham, and he was opposed to selling land for cash at all.

Messrs Buchanan, Duncan, Robt. Thompson, Lake,. Saunders, Sandford, Fish, C. H. Mills, Duthie, Bruce, Fisher, Harkness, Joyce, TBO9. McKeDzie, Buckland, and McGuire also took part in the debate. It was generally agreed that now that the purchase had been completed the House should make the best of it. Several of the speakers, however, took objection to any portion of the estate being sold. In the course of his reply the Minister of Lands said that members who had criticised the purchase had mixed up the Land and Income Tax Act, and the Land Act in a most extraordinary manner. This was the only estate offered to Government under the Land and Income Assessment on which the Government valuation not had been upheld. Every acre of land in the Cheviot would be required for settlement. As to the argument that this money should have been spent on land in the North Island, he would ask whether the South Island had not as much right to Government settlement as the North. Last year the Government had spent £117,000 on roads, the greater part of which had gone to the North Island.

The second reading was then agreed to on the voices, and the Bill 'referred to the Waste Lands Committee.