D.—6

14

But probably Mr. Stewart would not care for either the swamp or forest land, and there is no objection to leave both out. There would then remain au area of 7,852 acres of open land suitable for special settlement, of a value of £14,722 10s. James McKerrow, Surveyor-General. As the Rangiuru Block will, apparently, soon come into the hands of the Government, Mr. Smith had better report on it after his next visit to the district. — J M.

Enclosure 1 in No. 39 The Chief Surveyor, Auckland, to the Surveyor-General. Sir,— 24th December, 1879. Upon my return from Katikati and Te Aroha yesterday, I found your memorandum, instructing me to report on Te Puke Block, awaiting me. As I have ample information with respect to the character of the lands, &c., I did not deem it necessary to personally visit the locality The accompanying tracing shows the position of Te Puke and Rangiuru with respect to Tauranga and Maketu, the two ports by which access is obtained to this part of the country From this it will bo observed that Te Puke occupies a nearly central position between the two places, the proposed village site being distant by the future main road fourteenmiles from the former and nine miles from the latter. Tauranga will as a rule be the port generally used, as Maketuis only suitable for small vessels and steamers under favourable circumstances, though it has this great advantage that the Kaituna River, flowing into it, is navigable by small steamers up to Kauaua, in Rangiuru, and by its branch, the Waiari, for whaleboats to the village site at Kahikatea, or to the crossing of the main road. The Kaituna is further navigable by boats along the frontage of Rangiuru to Pakr.tore. In the absence of made roads this water communication is a matter of the greatest importance to a young settlement. 1 consider that Tc Puke affords one of the best sites for settlement now available in the Bay of Plenty The soil is good, access comparatively easy, the aspect a gradual slope facing the rising sun; shelter from the worst winds is afforded by the ranges (forest-clad) lying immediately southwest ward j whilst the climate is acknowledged to be the best in the North Island. I will now answer your queries seriatim as far as I can. 1 The nature of the soil is light vegetable mould. The middle portion of the block (Blocks 1., 11., V., VI., and part of IX.) is generally level or undulating, with many streams, running in deep gullies ; vegetation in the open, high fern and tutu; a little swamp here and there. The timbered portion of Block IX. is suitable for settlement, but more broken; whilst that portion of XII., Otaniwainuku, is too much cut up by precipitous gullies decending from Otaniwainuku to be available for anything but a timber reserve. That portion of Tc Puke which is within Blocks 111. and IV., Te Tumu, and part of Block 11., Makotu, is too swampy to be immediately available for settlement, although it is believed to be capable of drainage into the Kaituna River. 2. Present access is by water (Kaituua River) or by rough Native tracks from Tauranga and Maketu, available only for horses, with some difficulty When the Waste Lands Board were about to deal with this country in July last, I recommended that a sum of .£3,200 should be placed on the estimate for opening a proper bridle-track from Tauranga to the village site, following the line indicated on tracing, which presents no engineering difficulties whatever, and on which good grades within survey office limits would be obtained. It was also estimated at the time that the cost of making a cart-road would be about £1,600, exclusive of a viaduct over a branch of the Tauranga Harbour at Hairini. This road would form part of the future main road from Tauranga to Opotiki. 3. There are in Te Puke, approximately, 6,300 acres of swamp and sand-hill, valued at 10s. per acre; and 11,252 acres of agricultural open land, valued at £2 per acre; and 4,600 acres of forest, agricultural, and pastoral (after clearing), valued at £1 per acre; with a remainder (exclusive of two Native reserves) of 2,240 acres of broken forest land, suitable only for a timber reserve, at 15s. per acre. Mr. District Surveyor Goldsmith places exactly the same value on these lands as I do (a fact I learn by telegraph to-day), and, as he has a good general personal knowledge of the country, I think the above may be taken as a fair valuation. It is what I estimated the Government would receive for the lands if cut up and sold as was proposed. To recapitulate: 6,300 acres swamp, at 10s. per acre, £3,150; 11,252 acres open agricultural land, at £2 per acre, £22,504; 4,600 acres forest, at £1 per acre, £4,600; 2,240 acres forest, at 15s. per acre, £1,680; 1,581 acres Native reserve : total, 25,973 acres ; value of Te Puke, £31,934. 4. The present cash value of the block, if disposed of to one purchaser (after deducting timber, Native, and Village site of 400 acres), would be subject to some deductions for survey and other charges, which I estimate at 2s. Gd. per acre. It would then stand as follows : Total area, 25,973 acres ; less reserve, 4,221 acres : area for sale, 21,752 acres. Total value, as above, £31,934; less timber and village reserves, and less 2s. 6d per acre expenses, £5,199: £26,735. 5. Unquestionably there is a considerable demand for land, and especially for that under consideration, by settlers within the district. There is an association at Tauranga called, I