LAND DEVELOPMENT

Waipa Post, Volume 49, Issue 3555, 8 December 1934, Page 7

LAND DEVELOPMENT

NEEDS OF KING COUNTRY, '• The question of land development was, naturally one of the principal matters brought before the representative meeting of local and public bodies' delegates at Taumarunui on Wednesday afternoon. The meeting was convened by the Ohakune Chamber of Commerce, and Dr Jordan submitted the following for comments—i , . ~ " There are t|wo questions how to" find new avenues of work for our unemployed, iahd one of them is the encouragement of immigration of the right kind. With regard to the first we know that in an organised land development scheme in the King Country, particularly stumping, all the unemployed suitable for that work could be employed for some years. If stumping were accelerated to such a degree, subdivision.of holdings would follow nfttvpsally, and the result would be a rapid increase, in the re-, quirements of urban population. Thiscondition of rapid increase in population would, I believe, be the only T . condition under which immigration" should be considered." • • Mr Gordon (Taumarunui Borough Council) said the, two most important., questions—both requiring' early attention —were the land question and the Native land question. - He. would-? like to see a conference on these questions with Mr Broadfoot and Mr Langstone, M.P.'s, present. They achieve some result. i '\ Mr Cnaig said the rating of Native lands was a very vital question.. - They... had a conference some years ago which achieved results and concessions were made, but some 'ofyjthtP promises were not fulfilled. If they worked together they would get/ results. At present they were working from all angles. The W'aitomo County Council in the 22 years of its existence had lost £60,000 to £BO,OOO in unpaid rates on Native lands. The Te Kuiti Borough lost annually £SOO in Native land rates trfat they could not collect and another £6OO on Crown lands on which the Government would' recognise no liability. Mr Craig suggested that each Chamber of Commerce be asked to discuss tihe quesv tions raised by Dr Jordan and that another conference be held and a deputation sent to Wellington represent-" ative of the whole of the King Country. ■ ■ ~ Mr Jack slaid in regard to the land' development proposal they could find work for a lifetime if they had the finance. Mr Craig said while they had the shadow of the quota hanging over-. '(heir head land development offered many problems. Mr Oa.to said that immigration and land development went hand in hand. We wanted more population of the right kind. Mr Craig said that Mr Ramsay MacDonalds' son arrived in Auckland that day enquiring about immigration. The Imperial Government had £25, r 0<X).OO0 in reserve for the purpose. Tf idle lands of thei King Country were developed and settled there would be less burden on ratepayers and rabbits and rag-wort would disappear. Theiv was a shortage of farm labour -be- ; cause unemployed single men prefer, red the camp life at 15s a week and keep, to farm work at £1 a week-and keep, with its longer hours of labouv. New Zealand could not support four times the population and, in time," ten times tihe population it had today. It would pay the Imperial •.Government to carry out a sound emigra-* tion scheme.