WASTE LANDS ACT.

Western Star, Issue 51, 31 October 1874, Page 5

WASTE LANDS ACT.

10 XU iv KDI COK. Sm, —Great diversity of opinion seems to exist abolivritue Waste Land's Ant as to wh«t it means ii,s regards personal vesi deuce on land on deferred payments, til range vines lions are asked, ami strange arguments brought forward, as to its real meaning. Some afjiue that it is not necessary that, die licensee should reside on tlie laud so long as the improvements are put on, no matter who resides on it; some that if the ■ licensee reside on the land seven —or some such definite number of—Jays in each year, that is all the residence that is necessary in order to comply with the requirements of the Act as to personal residence; others that if tiie land is too wet to build upon, the Act cannot compel them to live in a swamp, nor to plough one-tenth part of it if it is loo* wot. Such arguments as these may be sufficient to pacify the consciences of thom who do not inteu I fulfilling the conditions of v.lie Act, and only want an excuse. X do not pretend to bo able to explain the Act ; but if you do not think it would occupy too much of your space, I will quote from the Act, and will a'so give the .Provincial Solicitor’s opinion thereon, as I believe a great many of your readers have never had an opportunity seeing either; uni if ihe Government would do as I would wish, it would appoint me (or someone with more sense) to visit all the deferred payment blocks to so© if any do not fulfil the conditions. I know doseas who would take up land on this system if they were not compelled to resile on it—or in other words, to make it their home. Section 54 of the Olugu Waste Lands Act says : —Every license shall be issued by the Board, and shall contain the following conditions: 1. A condition for the payment of the fee in advance at half-yearly .intervals. 2. A condition that the .licensee, or his assigns, shall not, during the currency of such license, sub let the allottment therein d.-acribol, or any part thereof, and that the license shall become absolutely void upon the said allotment, or any part thereof, being sub-let. 3. % condition that the licensee, or his assigns, shall within three years from the issue of such license enclose the laud described in such license with a good and substantial fence, according to the fencing laws in the province for the time being, and shall during the currency of such license cultivate at least one acre out of every ten acres thereof, t 4. A condition annulling the license in case of non-payment of the fees, or any of them, in accordance with the conditions herein mentioned ; or in case the licensee, or his assigns, shall hot, except in the case provided for by the jlast proviso to section), within six months after the issue of the license, and thenceforward during the continuance of such license, personally, occupy the allotment; or in case substautialanl permanent improvements, certified in writing by the Board, or under the hands of arbitrators, to be of. the value-of ono pound for every acre and fractional j art of an acre of the allotment, shall not have been made by the licensee, his executors, administrators, or assigns, before the end of the third year from the commencement of the license ; or in case of the breach or non-fulfilment of any of t ie conditions of the license, or of a violation; . of any of d ue condit ions of this Act. > , 5. A condition tiiat if the licensee or his assigns shall the sai l period personally jeeupy the allotment, or a contiguous or adjoining .allotment, making together with such allotj.out an area not exceeding in the whole two undrcvi acres, for, not less than two years an a. . .aif„ and shad fence and. cultivate as herein provided, and make the impro.vfineiifcs, of the nature . and value in the previous condition mentioned bh the ttliotpient during the said period of three ‘years, and, ahall prove to the satisfaction, ofdthe Board, by *wh evidence as the Board ro-

quire, that he has complied with the sail condi- , tious, and with all other conditions of .the sai l license; He shall be entitled at any time during thirty years from the , commencement of the license to demand and obtain a Crown grant, ■ upon payment of seventeen shillings and isix- . pence for ea -h acre, or fractional part of an acre ; or otherwise he may obtain a lease of the sail allotment, an I every such lease shall be for a term of seven years at a yearly rent, payable in equal parts half yearlv in advance, of two shillings and sixpmee for each acre, or fractional ; part of an acre, so demise I. and shall contain the j usual covenant for the payment of rent, and a j con iition for re-entry upon non-payment thereof ; . an 1 upon the payment of the last sum due on aocount of the rent so reserved, or at anv time during the term, upon payment of the difference between the amount of rent and foes actually paid and the entire sum of one pound five shillings for each a re. the lessee or his representative shall bo enti le ! to a grant in fee of the laud leased, and every such grant shall be subject to such covenant, conditions, exceptions, an I reservations a» the B)ard may direct s provided that, in the case of the death of the liscnsee or his assigns during the currency of such license, it shall not be obligatory on ;ha executors or administrators of such licensee or his assigns to • comply with the said conditions of occupation. '* 55. "No person shall become the licensee, either in his own name or in tVm name or names of any other person or persons, of more than two bun Ire 1 a res of laud under this Act as aforesaid. No license shall he issued to anv person who shall be the owner of a pre-emptive right;

and no person shall become the licensae of any allotment who is an infant under eighteen years of age, or who is a married woman, not having obtained a decree of judicial separation, or who is in respect of the allotment for which a license has been applied, or in respect of any part thereof, or the applicant’s interest therein, ortho usufruct thereof ; and all land applied for under this Act shall be so applied for bona fide for the use and benefit of the applicant in his own proper person, and not as the agent, or servant, or trustee of any other parson : provided that if any person shall, in violation of any of the provisions hereof, •become the licensee of an allot-, meat, the B >ard shall declare the license of any such allotment to be forfeited. OPINION OP THK PROVINCIAL SOLICITOR, Ordered on the motion of Mr Kinross, May 11, and laid upon the table by the Provincial Solicitor, May 29, 1874. I am of an opinion that the licensee of an allotment, under the system of deferred payments, must, under sub-section 5, of section 54- | of “ The Otago Waste Lands Act, 1873,” reside personally »n his allotment. The whole scope and intention of the Act, in my opinion, clearly shows this; but even were any doubt to be raised regarding the meaning of ’the words . “ personally occupy.” the last provision of sub-section 5, by providing that on the death of .the licensee, or his assigns, during the currency of the license, it- shall • not be obligatory on the executors, or administrators of such licensee, or his assigns to comply with the condition of occupation, clearly implies that so long as the li-eiisee lives per-onal occupation must: bo "complied with. Sxotrr, Provincial Solicitor. •“ —Yours, &c. t A Rjui>»2.

("The question, or rather questions, raised bv our correspondent ire lilHcult of solution, and appertain rather to the lawyer than the editor ; but if in the future we are able to throw any light upon the subject, we shall do so with pleasure.— £d. W'. S’.]