AUCKLAND NOTES.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 508, 15 May 1909, Page 15

AUCKLAND NOTES.

[BI TBLEQDArH. —SrECIAt, CORttBSrONDBJTT.) ' ,■■■■■■„ Auckland, May 1.3. I •Mr. W. H. I'. Uarber, cx-M.P. for Sew-i ■town,'. thus explains his recent utterances I as'to concreto houses: "My information was | obtained from a' report toi the. Commissioner furnished' by' Mr; 'W. Templo, architect in charge of tho erection of workers' dwellings throughout ; tho : Dominion.''. Mr. Templo stated as follows:?— I 'The. same housos, it built with solid Oin. l ; or reinforced 6in; concrete ;6utside wallsj'instead .of wood, at the | present, price of; timber .(viz., the list issuod l on October .1 , ■ 1908), I am confident would only coat; 1 about £6 extra -for, a four-roomed houso, and, considering tho extra life of tho I house, tho- greatly i educed cost of mainten-1 ance, and also the greatly reduced, insurance -premium, together with the; comfort of a moro even .temperature,- it-must be admitted; to be preferablo to wood, antf .especially as timber nor 'is so unreliable. in quality.'" The (financial, system relating to technical education was referred to at yesterday ? meeting of tho' Auckland Education, Board by tho Director :of Technical Education • (Mr. ■ Georgo George) as.being on a most unsatis-, 1 factory basis., ! Tho income, ho said, was en-i tircly dependent upon, tho capitation grant,; and when"; a -falling-olf in tho . at,tendance .of .istudents,' - the Departmental funds; \vere -seriously ', aifected. Last winter, for instance, there; was- a falling-off of £300 in,the grant. Again, the capitation 'grant was i tho r same for: fourth, year students as for' first, although tho country derived ' more benefit from -the' former.. These'matters. aro to be submitted to' the conference to bo held shortlyat . Wellington. ,; : v • During his reccnt'trip abroad, Mr. Archibald .Clarlc,; of;' Auckland, who. has just returned aftir a year's ■ absence, was particularly; struck"'.-'by/-the/facilities for land settlement offered by the Canadian Government in contrast ,to. the-system that obtains- m Wow,. Zealand, i . '.'in. Canada,", says Mr. ly^ r l?^^^'fhe: l Government:, ..oifers.-i'Jand; to rMipmesteaderV.in; areas;- of 160 acres ';'; each. '.They give tho freehold 'atMe oiid : of Jthree years, _a,ud the total fee chargcd is 10 dollars.; i'hoso taking up tho lands "have to ..orcct . a .slnall, house, vand effectvi a given amount of ( improvements,-' such ,as , fencing, and laying a cortaiii; area in grass. - Hundreds, of .thousands- Of- peoplo; aro;.floclsing into the country, • both; from • Europe ■ and America;; I was ,iery. much • imoressed with Uiiada. . Last year .was a record' ono as to the: output, ( and when I; was there in the spnog . (June' and July)/ thero ; was; every' mdicatiori in the,'enormous crops of wheat and oats that it would, be a record. - I could, not, help' observing . .the facilities'; 1 given -to eettlers :,there, and, contrasting,; them ; with this. Dominion, where we have such a vast area of, unoccupied land in tho hands of the Government,, and particularly in the .hands. of;_the ; Natives. ;; Whilst, , like' other; old colonists, 1 do not want to ; sce nny injustice aone- to . the .Natives,-.1;, certainly 'think, tlie i.timp. lias .'arrived;,for.,'some, method to- bo •adopted these, . lands; for. settlement. 1. have , two "taken up. land •in Canada, and- whert'T spoke to them ,;of .returning-- to.. .New' Zealand, which ..it ,;wasthoir, .original -'intention; to .'do, 'they said 'that from, what; they. could learn of the state :,of: attain here, ..-they , had - better.' pros- , pects for ; the . immediate . future in : ,Ciinada. binco that tinio both my sons have taken un further holdings under- purchase " -; ~