C —No. 1.

But it was further objected, that the conditions under which the Act r authorized the sales had not been complied with in all cases, and that they were therefore illegal. In the first place, the period of seven years was alleged not to hare elapsed : with respect to many of these lands, from the date of their being first opened for : selection and sale. On inquiry, the Commissioners found that the principal ground for this opinion was the fact that a former Superintendent (the Hon. Major Richardson), in conjunction with the Waste Lands Board, had, in exercise of the power given to them by the 18th section of the Waste Lands Regulations of 1856, "to refuse to grant the application of any person for any land, if it shall appear to the said Board that the sale of such land would be injurious to the public interests," adopted the policy and practice of withholding from sale all lands within Hundreds until, by distinct resolution, they should declare them open for selection and sale, and of notifying their being so open by express words upon the authorized plan of the Hundred or district in the Survey Office. Maps, bearing such a notification on the face of them, signed by the Superintendent, were produced, the notifications being dated much less than seven years previous to the sale of the lands under the Act of 1866. It was contended that these lands had not been open for sale and selection for seven years. In answer it was maintained that the Proclamation constituting a block of land a Hundred was essentially a declaration that it was open from that date for selection and sale; and that in every instance of a sale of 10s. land, such a Proclamation had been made more than seven years previously to the sale. This is proved by a return attached to the evidence of Mr. Thomson, Crown Lands : Commissioner. Now it is undeniable that land in a Hundred had always, under all Land Regulations, been open for sale, although not on account of its being in a Hundred. In the Regulations for the Colony, of March, 1853, a distinction is made as to the mode of sale within and outside of Hundreds, and the sale of land within is therefore expressly mentioned. In the Regulations of Otago, of 1856, no such express mention is made: but as there is no exception of Hundreds, and none was ever intended, the general regulations for sale included them. But, after almost all the Province had been taken up under Depasturing Licenses, and indefeasible possession had been given of the leased lands by the prohibition by "The Land Sales and Leases Ordinance, 1856," of the sale of any part of them, except such as should be declared into a Hundred, then the declaration of a Hundred over a run became tantamount to a declaration that it was open for sale. The ordinary regulations for sale then became immediately applicable to such land, the restriction of the Ordinance being removed. It was then, with reason, contended that the declaration of the Hundreds, with respect to those 10s. lands, was actually throwing them open for selection and sale. But how can it be maintained that they had " remained thus open the full period of seven years " (the words of the Act), when a Superintendent and the Waste Lands Board had actually, during a considerable portion of the seven years, withheld them from sale? It is argued that the withholding from sale was in itself illegal, and an assumption by the then Superintendent of a power not given by the Regulations of 1856. But this appears to be at least very doubtful, when the very general character of the words of the 18th section, above quoted, is taken into consideration. To the Commissioners it appears that the Act had not been complied with. A further objection to the legality of these sales was, that the sanction of the Council, required by the Act, should have been given by an Ordinance, and that a mere resolution was insufficient. But as the Legislature probably was unwilling to impose the delay upon sales which would have attended an Ordinance requiring to each case the Governor's assent; and as, moreover, if an Ordinance had been contemplated it would have been easy to say so in the Act in so many words, instead of the general ones actually used—" the sanction of the Superintendent and Provincial Council "■—the Commissioners considered this objection not of importance. 2

Their legality.

Period of seven years.

Evidence, No. 81.

Sanction of Council.

5

LANDS OP OTAGO.