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And I make this solemn declaration conscientiously believing the same to be true, and by virtue of an Act of the General Assembly of New Zealand intituled " The Justices of the Peace Act, 1882." [Signature.] Declared at , this day of , 190 , before me, , a Justice of the Peace in and for the Colony of New Zealand.

C. Declaration to be made on applying for Cash Land under Part 111. of " The Land Act, 1892." I, , of , ,do solemnly and sincerely declare— 1. That lam of the age of twenty-one years and upivards. 2. That I am the person who, subject to the provisions of "The Land Act, 1892," am applying for the purchase of the above-mentioned land solely for my own use and benefit, and not directly or indirectly for the use or benefit of any other person or persons whomsoever. 3. That, including the land now applied for, I am not the holder, directly or indirectly, either by myself or jointly with any other person, of any land anywhere in the colony exceeding in the whole 2,000 acres of land, inclusive of not more than 640 acres of first-class land. And I make this solemn declaration conscientiously believing the same to be true, and by virtue of an Act of the General Assembly of New Zealand intituled " The Justices of the Peace Act, 1882." [Signature.] Declared at , this , day of , 190 , before me, , a Justice of the Peace in and for the Colony of New Zealand. D. Certificate of Occupation to Purchaser of Land. Whereas , of , , has purchased for cash the land delineated on the plan or sketch in the margin hereof, and has duly paid for the same : Now know all men that, in pursuance of the powers vested in me as Commissioner of Crown Lands, I hereby authorise and empower the said , his heirs or assigns, at any time after the date hereof, to enter upon all that Allotment numbered , Block , District, delineated as aforesaid, and to hold and enjoy the same for his and their absolute use and benefit, subject, nevertheless, to the right of the Land Board to be satisfied that the purchaser has put upon the said land substantial improvements of a character to the value of twenty shillings per acre if firstclass land, or ten shillings per acre if second-class land. Dated at , this day of , 190 . Commissioner of Crown Lands.

HAWKE'S BAY. Report from E. C. Gold Smith, Esq., Commissioner of Crown Lands, Hawke's Bay. Department of Lands and Survey, Sik,— District Office, Napier, 14th July, 1903. I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your circular of the 9th instant, with copy of the Eight Hon. the Premier's letter attached. The question to be solved is a very difficult one, and will have to be considered under two headings—viz., " land for settlements," and the settlement of ordinary Crown lands under the " optional" and other systems —for it is only on land for settlements that a deposit is now required, so that it is only under that system that the advantage of capital comes in, a person with capital being able to put in a number of friends, as mentioned in the Right Hon. the Premier's letter, to the disadvantage of the bond fide settler of small means. Generally, except where the land is situated near a town where a settler can obtain employment, and the estate is cut up into small sections, this class of settlement is not suitable for a man without means or of small means; he should rather go into the back country, where the land is cheaper, and where by his own labour he can make a home for himself, the advantages being cheap land, timber for building, &c, for all of which he has to pay on improved lands, on lands under Land for Settlements Act. The way to stop speculation, in my opinion, is by regulating transfers and enforcing strict residence, and giving Land Boards full power to reject applications which on the face of them show that they are a speculation. Under the present Act the sections can be transferred after five years, and before (on good reasons being given) on the recommendation of the Land Board and the approval of the Hon. the Minister of Lands. Five years is not sufficient, and should be extended to, say, ten years, if it is thought necessary to have any period. It might be better to have no right of transfer at any fixed period, a selector only being allowed to transfer on showing sufficient reason for so doing, and that no profit was made by the transaction.