F.—No. II

No. 27. WALTER GEAY, R.N. The Committee direct me to report that the case of the Petitioner, who is an old naval officer on the Retired List, and who prays for a grant of land under the Auckland Waste Lands Act, appears to be one of great hardship ; but the Committee are of opinion that it ought not to be entertained by the Legislature unless recommended by the Provincial Council of Auckland. J. Ceaceoft Wilson, C.8., 10th August, 1866. Chairman. No. 28. H. T. KEMP. The Petitioner states that he has been in Government employ since the foundation of the Colony in various offices, but principally in the Native Department, and that on 15th May, 1865, his office in the Native Land Purchase Department was done away with by proclamation ; that he applied for the office of Judge under the Native Lands Act, and having failed in obtaining that appointment, he subsequently begged the Government to give him some employment or a pension under " The Civil Service Amendment Act, 1861," commencing from the 15th May, 1865. The Committee have ascertained that the Petitioner is not entitled to a pension under the Civil Service Superannuation Act of 1858, because he is not incapacitated from further work " by age, bad health, or other infirmity," and because he has not " served continuously for upwards of thirty years," and that he is not entitled to a pension under the Civil Service Amendment Act of 1861, because he is not fifty years of age. The Minister for the Native Department having indorsed the Petition with the word " recommended" the Committee direct me to report that they are of opinion that the case of the Petitioner is a hard case—at the same time they are well aware that a general reduction in the number of public servants is, or ought to be going on, that consequently many persons must be placed in the same painful position as the Petitioner, and they therefore abstain from proposing either a fixed sum as compensation or an annual sum (for fear lest such a course might be deemed a precedent) in lieu of a retiring allowance. They have reason to believe that many persons whose appointments have been done away with, and who have not by any means such strong claims on the Government as the petitioner, have been appointed to situations of emolument, and they would suggest that the Petitioner's claim would be best met in a similar manner, he receiving until such an appointment is given him an allowance of £100 per annum. J. Ceaceoft Wilson, C.8., 22nd August, 1866. ' Chairman. No. 29. JAMES HAMLIN. The Committee direct me to report as follows : —The Petitioner states that his father, the Eev. James Hamlin, purchased from certain Natives a few days after the issuing of the proclamation of the Governor in 1840, two hundred acres of land more or less, situated to the west of the Manukau Harbour; that the purchase was made in ignorance of the proclamation ; that the claim was consequently never submitted to the Commissioners appointed for inquiry into the titles of land purchased from the Natives ; that the Petitioner's father and his family remained in possession until the end of 1865, when Mr. Turton, acting on the part of the Government, awarded the said land to some Natives not being the original proprietors, and he prays for the favorable consideration of the Legislature. The Committee direct me to report that the Petition has not been recommended by the Government either previously or subsequently to its being presented; that tho Petitioner has by his own showing not applied to tho Government either for compensation or for re-possession of the land ; and that his applying to the Legislature is premature. J. Ceaceoft Wilson, C.8., 29th August, 1866. Chairman. No. 30. T. E. HACKET. The Petitioner prays that arbitrators may be appointed under clauses 11, 12, and 13 of" The Gold Fields Act, 1862," to afford him redress in a matter at issue between the Commissioner of Crown Lands for the Province of Nelson and himself, relative to the now issuing on the part of the former to the latter, of a license to occupy a run. The Committee direct me to report that the provisions of " The Gold Fields Act, 1862," clause 10 and the following clauses apply to actual licensees of runs, and not to expectant applicants for licenses, and that they are of opinion that the Legislature ought not until the real question at issue, viz.: whether the Petitioner is entitled to a license or not, has been decided by a Court of competent jurisdiction, interfere in the matter. J. Ceaceoft Wilson, C.8., Chairman. No. 31. ANDEEW THOMPSON. Tho Petition is nothing more or less than a complaint of breach of faith on the part of tho Superintendent of Otago, regarding promises alleged to have been made so far back as 1861, in that certain public buildings, such as Court House, Post Office, &c., have been built on the borders of the town of Hawkesbury; and that the violation of the pledge given him is injurious to certain sections of land

7

ON PUBLIC PETITIONS.