C—l.

Note. —Excluding freeholds under deferred payment and perpetual lease and conversions, the new transactions are reduced to 316, the area selected to 64,215 acres and 25 perches, and annual rental payable £3,343 Is. 7d. Cash Lands. —Under this system there were nine purchasers of rural lands, for an area of 2,313 acres 3 roods 21 perches, of which 1,000 acres was cut out of a forfeited small grazing-run, No. 55, Kaiwhata district, and put up for sale to enable certain Natives to obtain the freehold. Two other sections, in the Makuri and South-east Wairarapa districts respectively, aggregating over 1,100 acres, were purchased on the cash system in preference to settlement conditions; and the remaining six selections were of small areas, mostly made with the object of perfecting boundaries of present holdings, &c. The town and suburban selections comprised, with two exceptions, sections in the Pohangina Township, in the Wanganui Harbour Board Endowment Block. Deferred-payment Lands. —There now remain only seventy-five selectors, occupying 17,498 acres and 19 perches, the yearly instalments of which amount to £4,376 ss. 7d. Twenty-six holdings, of an area of 4,489 acres 3 roods 32 perches, were made freehold during the year ; as against twentyeight last year, of an area of 6,342 acres and 11 perches. Only one holding was forfeited, the area being 590 acres. Three persons were in arrear with their payments, to the extent of £38 os. 9d. Perpetual-lease Lands. —Under this heading there were nineteen selections during the year, of an area of 9,105 acres 2 roods 28 perches, representing an annual rental of £435 Bs. Bd. These, with one exception, were Makuri-Puketoi sections previously surrendered with others in terms of section 159 of "The Land Act, 1892," and sections 156, &c, of " The Land Act, 1885." The other selection was made in terms of section 114 of "The Land Act, 1892," which permits a selector under the Land Acts to select additional contiguous land on the system under which he at the time is occupying. There are at the present time 390 selectors on the books, holding an area of 156,041 acres 2 roods 25 perches, the annual rental being £7,889 ss. lid.; seventy-three freehold titles, comprising an area of 34,741 acres 2 roods 26 perches, and a capital value of £31,523 2s. 6d., were acquired during the year. Compared with last year, this shows a decrease of sixteen titles in number, but an increase of 6,778 acres in area. The decrease in number is due doubtless to the greatly-reduced number of selectors under this system. It is satisfactory to record that there were no forfeitures during the year. The arrears amounted to £539 10s. 4d., owing by twenty-eight selectors. _ Occupation with Right of Purchase. — Under this system seventy-two selections were made during the year, representing an area of 20,392 acres 1 rood 28 perches, producing an annual rental of £1,183 15s. Bd. As these figures show a falling-off of about one-half as compared with last year, it is necessary to explain that the decrease is attributed to the reduced area offered for sale, and the general inaccessibility and remoteness of the lands from railways and markets.

* Bent. t Interest.

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9

Transactions during the Year. Area under Lease at 31st March, 1897. Class of Selection. Bevenue received during the Year. Number. Area. Number. Area. Lease in perpetuity Conversion to lease in perpetuity Village settlement— Deferred payment Perpetual lease 79 A. E. P. 21,200 2 16 268 78,041 B. P. 1 1 £ s. d. 2,070 10 9 9 3,101 0 32 8 6 20 46 0 28 0 1 32 6 4 9 7 10 f *580 3 10 I +71 2 0 Lease in perpetuity 21 260 1 13 256 4,476 1 7 Conversions to village settlement, lease in perpetuity 16 213 2 23 Village - homestead special settlement 2 29 2 19 139 1,698 0 29 j *395 12 11 1 +279 7 11 3,693 10 1 Special settlement, deferred payment Special settlement, deferred payment made freehold ... Farm homestead, perpetual lease ... Farm homestead, lease in perpetuity Improved farm ... Small grazing-run Pastoral leases ... Miscellaneous leases Other sources 76 47 14 7,685 2 39 9,238 2 15 1,219 3 36 150 7 574 25 76 22 45 14,884 1,400 2 26 0 0 51 13 6 4,972 11 9 185 9 0 1,899 19 10 247 2 2 654 15 1 3,280 0 9 106,537 2,246 74,134 40,791 1,976 0 9 3 36 1 22 0 0 1 10 13 413 3 16 Total 516 114,447 1 17 2,362 589,801 2 28 71,612 7 6