Who Owns The Bed Of Wanganui River?

Chronicle (Levin), 27 May 1949, Page 4

Who Owns The Bed Of Wanganui River?

Press Assodation)

(Per

WELLINGTON, May 26. Maori claims to the ownership of the Wanganui River and its bed, which reached judicial deliber'ation 11 years ago, en.tered a ney stage today in the Supreme Court, Wellington. This time it was the Crown wlxieh, as plaintilf, is seeldng a wri1! of certiorari to remove into the Supreme Court, .iudgments by the Na|;ive Land Court so that they coulcl be quashed. Added interest to the ease was the appearanee as leading counsel for the Crown of the AttorneyGeneral, Mr. H. G. R. Mason, K.C. With him was Mr. R. E. Harding. Defendartts in the aetion were the Chief Judge of the Maori Land Court and Titi Tihu, of Taumarunui, representatives of the Maoris. They were represented by Mr, F. C. Spratt and Mr. B. N Vielcerman. The "statement of claim said that the bed of the river was included in . the boundaries of the land purchased oi taken and proclaimed as scenie reserves, It complained of an interim 'judgment by tlic Native Land Court that, at the time of the . Treaty of Waitangi, the bed of the Wanganui River was held by the Maoris under their customs and usage. The "other judgment referred To was That of the Native Appellate - Court which dismissed the Crown appeal against the first decision. The v Crown allegedithat neither the Maori Land Court nor Maori Appellate Court now had any jurisdietion to investigate the title to the bed and so aaoved for. Ihe writ. The Crown, sought, by the granting of the writ, to. prohibit the Maori Land Court from proceeding further on an applieation for the investigation of the title- to the bed. ^ Legal argument heflrd before Mr. Justice Hay today, eentred mainly in the Crown contention that under the Coal Mines Act, the beds of all navigable rivers were vested in the Crown. The hearing will be continued tomorrow.