I.—4b.

man, chose to administer these reserves in accordance with your ideas as a man of business, and apart from " fads "?—Certainly. Hon. Mr. Ballance : In other words, Mr. Eeynolds preferred his own " fads " to the " fads " of the Minister of the day. 92. Mr. Fulton.] Mr. Ballance has pressed you, Mr. Eeynolds, upon the question whether as a Commissioner you thought your first duty was to promote settlement or to conserve the interests of your trust by acquiring a large revenue. Now, is it not a fact that it is the best interest of the trust to promote settlement ?—Yes, undoubtedly. 93. Would you not by that means secure bond fide settlers—men who would pay their way, and therefore men from whom you would more easily secure a revenue ?—There can be no question about that. If you overtax people, and endeavour to secure too large a rent from them, they will not take up the land, or, if they do, they will not be able to hold it. 94. Is it not the case that, recognizing the way in which the settlement and sale of land in 1856 were conducted, you feared that such a system as proposed by the late or present Minister oil Lands would also be taken advantage of by schemers ?—Yes, certainly. Honest men would be the losers. 95. Is it not a fact that a great many persons took up land in the past, intending to fulfil the conditions ?—Yes. 96. And that many took up land, never intending to fulfil the conditions ? —Yes. 97. And it is, you say, because you fear something of that sort that you oppose this perpetualleasing system ? —That is exactly what I intended by my reply. 98. Then you are asked why you departed from perpetuity. Have you not been obliged to depart from it by the clamour for settlement in the district ?—Yes. 99. That is the only reason you have parted with the leases ? —Yes. 100. What would you be willing to do—give lengthened leases with a valuation for improvements ?—Certainly, as regards pastoral lands; but the people will not have leaseholds for settlements. They want freeholds. 101. With regard to the high-school reserves, you are a member of the Board, and know the way in which the high-school endowments were administered ? —Yes. 102. Have there been any complaints about the administration of these endowments, except to obtain concessions ?—There have been no complaints, excepting that, as you say, the purchasers who have taken the perpetual leases are now clamouring to get the rents reduced, and wanting that the balance should be devoted to making roads on the block. 103. Mr. Cowan asked you about the proposal to expend ss. an acre on roads. As a matter of fact, at Wyndham, in Southland, have not the High School Board already devoted a considerable sum of money to that purpose ?—Yes ; I should say far more than ss. an acre on the sales. 104. Have they not also devoted some money to opening up lands in the Strath Taieri?—Yes. 105. Then, do you think the High School Board have done anything since to lose the confidence of the public as far as administration is concerned ?—Certainly not. I know that they are much more popular than the Minister of Lands, either past or present. Hon. Mr. Bolleston: That is a statement which ought not to be made. The Chairman : It is merely an expression of opinion. 106. Mr. Fulton.] Is not the only complaint from the Strath Taieri district, from persons who hold perpetual leases? —Yes; they are the only complaints we have had. 107. Are you aware that there is a motion now on the Order Paper of the House of Eepresentatives in connection with this matter? —I am not. I think I have heard of it. Ido not believe much can be done by it. It is about getting a reduction. 108. Then do you say that the interests of settlement would not be advanced by handing over the administration of these reserves to the Waste Lands Board, instead of retaining them in the hands of the bodies now administering them? —I am convinced of this : that it would be unwise to disturb the bodies administering the reserves. The trustees have gone to a vast deal of trouble, and have no remuneration. They are business men, and know what they are about. They are as well able to administer the trust as any Board. 109. Mr. Bruce.] I understand you to say that, as a matter of principle, you would prefer letting these reserves in perpetuity, in the interests of education, if you found it possible to do so ? —lt would be preferable, providing would-be settlers would bo content with leaseholds instead of freeholds. 110. Then you say there has been a very great clamour for settlement down there ?—Yes ; on freeholds and deferred payments. 111. Do you not think it would be possible for you to give leases on such terms as to make it advantageous for both of you ? Ido not speak as an advocate of the perpetual-leasing system, but I think this might be done in some instances ? —I do not think it would be for the interests of the trust and settlement if these lands were administered by the Waste Lands Board. 112. You have alluded to the treatment of the land by some of these tenants. Do you not think it would be possible to hedge them with restrictions, as in the case of dealing with private individuals, and make it impossible for them to adopt these courses, as in the Lowlands of Scotland for instance ? —Well, this is different from the Lowlands of Scotland. Somehow, they would get over any conditions you can put upon them here. 113. Does it not occur to you that in selling the lands and investing the money in mortgage you lose the unearned increment ? —-Well, Ido not know. I believe the land in the country districts will never be so high in value again as it was in 1880. 114. Do you not estimate that, as the country becomes more thickly populated, the lands will rise in value ? —No; because I think they have been at their highest. 115. Then you appear to think that, acting in the interests of the trust you hold, you would sell the lands and invest the proceeds in mortgages ?—Yes, as a rule; but we sell only certain

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