LAND SETTLEMENT.

Press, Volume LXVI, Issue 20091, 21 November 1930, Page 10

LAND SETTLEMENT.

ANOTHER BLOCK PURCHASED. .'VES33 ASSOCIATIOK TELEOBAM.) WELLINGTON. November 20. The purchase by the Government of portion of Mr John MacLennan's "Rylands" property, two and a half miles from Waipukurau, was announced by the Minister for Agriculture on behalf of the Minister for Lands to-day. The area, 1244 acres, was acquired under the Lapd for Settlement Act, and it is the Governments intention to carry out closer settlement upon it as soon as possible. No statement was made concerning the price. Comprising good flats and slightly rolling country, the area is all ploughable. It is served by a good metal road and is suitable for subdivision into four farms. The Minister said the survey of the block would be procedeed with at an early date, and it was expected that the subdivisions would he offered for selection by ba"ot in February. The completion of this purchase brings the total area bought by the present Government for closer settlement since it assumed office to 65,894 acres at a cost of about £670,000. Dp to last September a total of 182 new settlers had been placed on the land. The Lands Department has recently been engaged putting into effect the scheme for the extension of group settlement, which authorisation was contained in this year's Act Suitable areas for the prosecution of this work are being investigated. Cabinet recently authorised £34,000 for developmental work on several large blocks of Crown land upon which settlers are to be placed or on which they are already installed.