WASTE LANDS BOARD.

Dunstan Times, Issue 786, 11 May 1877, Page 3

WASTE LANDS BOARD.

—o— At the usual mealing of the Board the following • business of interest was transacted Messrs Grant and ’M’Kellar applied for a rehearing of their application for a lease.— The Board saw no reason to alter its former decision. The following applications for agricultural leases were approve IJohn Crossan, section 25, block I, Teviot district; James Slater, section 15, block. IV., and section 1, block V., Waipori. Plans of surveys of pre-emptive right on Run —, section I, Block VII, and section I, block VIII, Mount Hydo District, were submitted for the Board’* approval,—The plans were approved. Bt-WEEKLT MEETINOS OT TKE BOARD. After the ordinary meeting of the Board last week, the following minute was recorded “Resolved that in consequence of the large inirease in the business coming before the Waste Lands Board, the Board is of opinion that it is absolutely necessary that it should sit for the deipatch of business two days in a week, namely Tuesday and Thursday, at eleven o’clock a. m , and it determine! accordingly. The (,'hief Commissioner to be requested to obtain the approval of His Excellency the Governor, in terms of section 2>>, sub section 1, * Waste Lands Administration Act, 1876.’ ” Mr Bastings now stated that he was dis posed to move that this minute be rescinded. So far as he was personally concerned it would preclude him from attending the meetings of the Board. At present he made great personal sacrifices i i order to do so. He apprehended that it was not conducive to the public interest that the membership ot the Board should be confined to gentlemen residing in Dunedin. He thought it was desirable to have men residing in the country as members ot the Board—men who posaesse 1 a knowledge of the country, and who could advise the Board so as to enable it to come to a proper decision. But if members had to come down to Dunedin twice a week, he thought, it probable that the constitution of the Board would be different twelve months hence. It woull be too great a tax to put on any man's time. He found that it was a considerable tax on his time to attend once a week. He left home at six in the morning, anil did not get home until nine at night. He certainly c 6 ild not do that twice a week. He would certainly move that the minute referred to be rescinded. Mr Clark said that motion could not be moved without notice. The Chief Commissioner said the mischief of it was that the resolution had gone up to Wellington, and it would bo in tho Gazette before they knew where they were, Mr Bastings dhl not think the resolution should have been passed without notice. He could not give two days a week to the Board. He would sit as long as they liked for one {day. He did not see why they could not get through in one day. In fact, a groat deal of the purely formal business need not come before them at all. 0 The following minute was recorded : " That the Board, at next sitting, reconsider resolution No. 18, of tho 25th ultimo, with the view of having decision with reference to the Board’s meeting two .lays in a week rescinded.