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1908. NEW ZEALAND.

NATIVE LANDS AND NATIVE-LAND TENURE: INTERIM REPORT OF NATIVE LAND COMMISSION, ON NATIVE LANDS IN THE COUNTIES OF WAITEMATA, RODNEY, OTAMATEA, AND HOBSON.

Presented to both Houses of the General Assembly by Command of His Excellency.

Native Land Commission, Auckland, 6th April, 1908. To His Excellency the Governor. May it please Your Excellency,— We have the honour to submit for your consideration the following report on Native lands in the counties of Waitemata, Rodney, Otamatea, and Hobson. This commences a series of reports'dealing with lands in the North of Auckland, comprising the Tokerau Maori Land District, which is coterminous with the Northern Maori Electoral District. Roughly speaking, the owners of lands in Waitemata, Rodney, and Otamatea Counties and of one-half of the Native lands in Hobson County, belong to the NgatiWhatua Tribe, once a numerous and a powerful people, but now much reduced in numbers, and living in scattered kaingas. The Maori population of the four counties according to the last census was 1,610, of which probably 1,200 belong to the Ngati-Whatua. The following is a summary of the lands included in the schedules to this report: —

Totals. a. r. p. Waitemata 19,797 iO|3B Rodney 15,481 1 39 Otamatea (including purchased land) .. .. .. 37,101 039 Hobson „ „ 65,888 0 36 138,268 0 32 In Otamatea County the area under negotiation for lease is very considerable. We are assured that the owners will reserve a large area from lease for their own occupation. We think that the area of 5,034 acres recommended above is not sufficient, but until the negotiations are completed by the partition of interests as between lessors and non-sellers the further areas to be reserved cannot be ascertained, even approximately.

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County. Leased or under Negotiation for Lease. Reserved for Maori i Iccupation. Available for Settlement. j Not dealt with. Waitemata Rodney Otamatea Hoteon Purchased land— Otamatea .. Hobson A. R. P. 6,652 3 3 2,527 0 0 30,573 2 0 18,541 2 21 A. R. P. 2,681 2 9 10,346 2 11 5,034 1 39 13,484 0 11 9,344 2,012 412 27,805 R. P. 2 2 3 28 0 0 0 0 A. R. P. 1,118 1 24 595 0 0 420 0 0 5,531 3 4 661 1 0 525 3 0 525 3 0 Total 58,294 3 24 32,733 2 30 39,574 1 30 7,665 0 28