COLONIAL AGENTS.

Wellington Independent, Volume V, Issue 428, 17 November 1849, Page 3

COLONIAL AGENTS.

(To the. Editor of the " New Zealand Journal.") Sir, —In your last number, of May 5, I see you introduce a subject often spoken of before in your paper, viz., the complaints of the-Colonists of Cook's Straits against the absentees, and of the absentees against their agents... - You will, perhaps, be surprised at my .assertion that both complaints arise from the same cause, the. very mistaken notions of the majority of the-absentees as to the nature and value of their property in New Zealand.;.but so.it isj-and- my desire to jilace the' subject before the absentees in ; its proper light, must be. my excuse for intruding on your columns. -

The majority of the agencies are, or were, held by gentlemen who on every occasion have shewn, thut they have not only the interests pf the. Colony, hut also that of their clieuts, much at heart. They, have repeatedly endeavoured, in various ways, to explain to the absentee proprietors in England, the absolute necessity of giving the fullest powers to let on long leases, and to grant purchasing clauses to the lessees, if they wish to get any return for their outlay. But, in most cases, their letters touching.on these matters have either been unanswered, or else they have been told it did not suit the owner to give the powers required; and in some instances, that the owner had certain information that his land was much more valuable than his agent declared it to be. Consequently, the land has remained an uncultivated waste, and as the agent could only repeat his former arguments, he would most likely think it useless to write at all. .-..-..•'.

The probable reason,why many of the absentees refuse to give the requisite powers to. en.able their agents to let their land is contained.in the following extract from the article in your Journal—" That they know, what New. Zealand .will be at no distant date, and that, as no one can run away with their land, they will wait till they can expend' niouey on it to advantage." 7

Npw, this is a most mistaken idea on their parts, and for. the following reasons: —The country around Port Nicholson, in which their land., were chosen, is divided into various districts, separated from the town and from each other Jby ranges of hills, and air of them covered by a dense forest.., With two exceptions, no road has been, or is likely to bo, made through any of these districts, except by the outlay of private capital. 'Excepting some early and. choice selections, country land is considered worth little, while the labour. to be expended upon it., is .considered to .be worth much, ahd both will,be considered, so until such Hbour ha_ rendered the land valuable: ,

I In many of theso districts, by far the larger proportion of the sections are held by absentees, who, from tho. above-men-tioned idea, will not let or sell ,ou such terms as con be taken, and consequently the- few owners resident in tbe Colony can'make no use of their land, from their n,ot being occupiers enough in the disbear the expence of making a rpad-Vo.it. i ,The'conse<juence k -i < s,,tha,t p.opWtiorfflock_ to Sistvlei»,'v{|_ere th"o*' same

difficulties do npt exist; others, of course, follow in their.wake. Villages are formed—the country is opened out for new arrivals—and. a district, perhaps intrinsically the more valuable of the two, is thus likely to be left for ytjars in the same state as it was previous to a single colonist setting foot in the country. There is also another reason why agents in the Colony may be excused for appearing rather lukewarm in forwarding tin. interests of their principals, namely, j the difficulty they often have in obtaining I,'tny remuneration for their services. Now, in a new colony, uiost people have quite sufficient employment to prevent their attending to agencies merely for amusem.iiit; and after spending much time and trouble in endeavouring to further the interests of a client, it is somewhat discouraging to be told, when the account is sent in, that he has' already spent enough money in the purchase of the land, and any charge the agent may have to make, may be taken out of the rents when they accrue. This would be all very well if land could-be let in the wilds of New Zealand oh the same, terms as in the .county of Middlesex.. But in the. former-country, a tenant cannot be had for country; land, except on a long lease, and for several years of that lease at a pepper-corn rent. The agent having had the trouble of describing the laud, and probably spending several days in pointing it out on the spot to numerous applicants previous to getting a tenant, then the onus of drawing out a suitable lease, and afterwards of seeing that the clauses of the said lease are properly carried out—and also, perhaps, had occasion to make some small advances out of his own pocket—does ..not, consider himself fairly dealt with in receiving such a reply. All this operates, very.much against the interest of the absentees, and many gentlemen have declined holding agencies at all. In fact, it is only those who happen to have clients who take a more enlarged view of their interest, who now follow the prpfession. I know of several instances where land at present lying waste might have been for some years in profitable occupation, to the manifest ad- j vantage of both the owner and the Colony, had there been any agent with sufficient powers who would take the trouble to look after it. . .

That there have been instances where agents have abused their trust, of course it js impossible for me to sayj but if so, certainly they have been exceptions to the general rule, and the absentees have only to blame themselves that their interests have not been better looked to.

As the vexatious questions of the land claims are . satisfactorily set at rest, and the Colony so rapidly progressing, both resident and-absehtee 1 ow T ne'rs of land have a much better chance than they ever had before of obtaining a good return for their outlay, and I.trust that both parties will now see their interest in assisting each other as much as possible. To further this end, I shall be happy to give information to any absentee proprietor who may like to call upon me. I remain, sir, your obedient servant, •

Charles Clifford, Of Wellington, New Zealand 20, Baker-st., Portmau-square, 12th May, 1849.