SMALL FARM SETTLEMENTS.

Daily Telegraph (Napier), Issue 4169, 1 December 1884, Page 3

SMALL FARM SETTLEMENTS.

Wellington, This day.

It is understood that the new regulations regarding the small farm settlements toferred to by Mr Ballance in his speech at Wanganui are to the following effect:— Any association of persons of not less than twenty-fivo who may bo desirous of settling on Crown dands adjacent, to each other, may arrango' with the Government for a block of land on certain conditions. Any llock of 'land to be selected under the regulations shall, contain not less than 1,000 acres nor more than 10,000 acres, and it will be surveyed into areas of not more than 100 acres or thereabouts. * Such portions of land as may be 'required for the purposes of the colony, or for education,., recreation, br other public purposes,' arid as 3liall be" ap-' proved by the Minister, Avill not be open for,selection. The : price of the la'ii'd.l-inay be such as may bo arranged : between the Ministeiv arid the Association, payable as follows—One tenth of the prico'" of,'.'th_ whole block shall be paid by the secretary, prior to allotment of sections. This will be in satisfaction of the two first half-yearly instalments to be reckoned ,as due from the next Ist day of January or July following. Payments shall be made by each purchaser six months hi advan_e,at the rate -of ongtwentieth of the price oft tho land, until the ■whole price has been paid. One-third of

the price of the land will from time to time, as paid to the Government, be repaid to the 'local body of the district or.to the association for expenditure on roads in or.-leading to the block. Eacfrpnrchaser.shall be entitled to a Crown grant of the land selected by him upon proof to the satisfaction of the Minister that such purchaser hasbeen continuously in residential occupation of the land : sele'ctecl'by him, -either, personally or by a registered substitute, for the period of six years, and' has;' fulfilled.- .all conditions. Each purchasor shall within two years from the dato of his purchase bring into cultiva : tion not less, than one-tenth of. the land purchased by him; within four years from the date of his purchase he shall bring into cultivation -.not ..less than one-fifth .of the land purchased by him; and within six years, in. addition tor,the cultivation of one-fifth of theland, he shall have put substantial improvements of a permanent character on the land to the value of £1 for every acre of such land. Should any purchaser be compelled to leave the district previous to his being entitled to his Crown grant and before completing, the re-' quisite term of occupation, it shall be competent for the Minister to permit such purchaser to transfer his right,- title, and interest in the land selected to another bona Jde settler, who shall be deemed to occupy the position of the original.occupant; provided always that no purchaser, shall bo allowed to hold more than 100 acres. No person who is a holder of land on deferred payments, or who has acquired any freehold under that system, or who is a holder of any land on perpetual lease, and no person who is an owner of a preemptive right, or owner in fee of more than 320 acres of land in all in New Zealand, and no person who has made an arrangement or agreement to permit "any one save his son or daughter to acquire by purchase or otherwise an allotment in respect of which his application is mado, shall be entitled to become a purchaser.