CLOSE SETTLEMENT

Evening Post, Volume CIX, Issue 41, 18 February 1930, Page 6

CLOSE SETTLEMENT

h GOVERNMENT'S POLICY

MI4IINEBY IN MOTION

/^STANCE TO SETTLERS

■;_,, "'I am confident that in the near ; ; iiittire a much larger number of settlers

wi»tibe/busily: engaged in agricultural anu, pasto'ral;pursuits than at present,'? said the Hon. George 'Forbes, Minister for Lands, to a "Post" representative^ "By the .'passing (in November ■ last) of important legislation, which gave the GoVorhment the necessary authority to prodeed with, its promised policy of providing suitable lands for that purpose, and granting financial aesistanco to settlers, it ia now—and only, now—able to give effect to its proposals. All the necessary machinery under the Act is now in" motion. Advisory and Land Purchase Boards are now functioning.. : Suitable lands are being, and will con-tinue-to be, made available for closer settlement —in both the North and South Islands. The nacessary authority .for finance (up S> £5,000,000) has been given. Assistance will bo given -settlers taking up unimproved sections tin.'the shape of advances as improvements are affected; nnd, generally, special facilities will be aSordod them, so" that success may Be achieved. Surely this proves that, the Government is sincere in connection with its important land settlement proposals." With these words, the Hon. George Forbes prefaced the interview, in which the land-policy, of the Government was outhne'd siu detai'.,-and interesting and t instructive information given as to r what had already been accomplished during its short period of.office, and « jjaiticularly what had beeu done since " the passing of the Government's Land Laws Amendment Act in November pi last year. The Minister gave details of 11)9 activities of . tho Government — through the Advisory Boards, Land 1 Purchase Board, and responsible officers of tho Lands Department—in the j 1 mattor of preparing large areas of un? occupied Crown lands for settlement, pui chasing suitable land for the purposes of closer settlement; and .arranging important experimental develop--1 ment work on areas in both Islands so as to bring the land closer to a state of productivity than it is at present, i with the object of assuring success when the areas aret'opened for selection.

"The legislation passed last Noveini bei," continued Mr. Forbes, ','will, I am confident, have a very important , beaiing on the future prosperity of Isew Zealand, for it will enable many • men and their families who are at present unable to take up unimproved

land through lack of necessary capital, ■; to do so; it will give a great impetus to closer settlement, and-will add' to the national wealth by making - productive 1 land that is at present unoccupied; it

will materially increase the number of 4 l : small farmers, who are a most valu- ,, able asset to any country; it will help to provide homes and^ a livelihood for those who are prepared to work hard, ■who are determined,, capable, and " thnfty, and who are, also prepared to

exercise self-denial 'until theyr have firmly ' established" themselves in the ranks of the primary producers of the Dominion. That there are many eager and anxious to get this opportunity is evident, and the Government is now— "■ *and only now,:for thelegislative author- *> ity was only, granted:;laat;.-, November, \ three short months ago—in a position tto give intending settlers that oppor- \' tunity for which they have waited' so * long. 'The Advisory Committees appointed under the Act consist of thoroughly practical men, and- they, acting 'in conjunction with the responsible ofu- ; ocrs of the Lands Department and the Land Development Board,, have lost no i I'time in getting to work. There has been considerable, activity during the * past few mouths,'for there was much to do. Undue- haste in such an import- ( ant matter as land settlement spells disaster. There must be .safeguards so that the interests of the taxpayers as a whole ■ will be protected, Wo have had one example, of what dire results , followed the popular clamour in con- , nection with soldier settlement. UNDER NEW CONDITIONS. ' " Under the new conditions of laud settlement, which we are now introduei ing to the intending settler, a commencement willbe made with a number of .Crown sections which are now open foi selection. Lack of the necessary finance has, of course, been one of the i puncipal obstacles to the ■ success of many men who would have made good , settlers—they simply couldn't carry on. To such men advances will now be available to an amount up to 90--per cent, of 1 potential. improvements — fencing, draining,, grassing, etc.I—-the1 —-the- maximum amount to be advanced in any one case , being £1250. , These advances will bo made in the shape of progress payments as the work of effecting improvements proceeds. The Government Tea- < liscd that to put intending settlers without means on some areas of rough Crown lands would be only courting • failure for the- reason that the land would take timo and a considerable amount of money before it could be } brought to, profit. The same argument would apply with-equal force to deterio- • lated lands which have gone ba«k to second growth. With this sort of land | successful—and permanent —settlement would bo difficult. Tho only, method previously available was to cut it up ' jnd offer it on. the usual conditions, i mth the half-yearly rent payable, in i achance, and the chances of a settler i without capital winning through would be doubtful." • ' Attention was also; drawn to the fact that any Crown tenant now occupying land which could be considered as coin- ' ing under the designation of "unimproved" could apply to the Land Development Board for advances to enable improvements being effected. Such applications would be fully ex- ' amined and tho board would, upon reports, decide the applicants' eligibility. Obviously existing mortgages might prphi bit any advance. , . " Under;'the- new'conditions the Government.is now giving close attention to possible development of large (and, of (oursc, suitable) blocks of Crown Jinds w;hich, witli preliminary work in (he shape of roading, grassing,-fencing, -ii d buildings being directly undertaken by (hc:,:iLands Department, would bo nia*» available for cutting up into suitable a,reas for settlement. In cases such sis these the advisory committees already :set up under the. Act o£ last session.will report as to suitable areas and the, best methods to be adopted, so that, "these" lands'wili meet the requirements of those desirous of taking up such lands. In this connection no leports have yet been received from the advisory boards with the exception of m area of 2500 acres in the Botorua district, in close proximity •to the G uthrie Estate, but inspections are being made o* many other areas which, if the rtjjorts arf. favoursC'e, will Le treated in a similar manner, viz., portion will be jyloiiqteid £wA ssrwn la *2aBS, h\A"mngs it.w' xenciil, and an aj ea brought' into a condition which will enable intending settlors to go on •■he land with a reasonable chance of getting an almost immediate return as soon as jt is stocked. Full and careful investigations must, of course, be made Ly the advisory committee's and officers of Lands Department and Department of Agriculture as to access, water supply, and many, eikjr nwential details.

before any expenditure in tho direction indicated can bo recommended, and tbis of necessity Requires time. But the fact that these boards are already functioning, although they woro only set upsinco the passing of the. Act in November, suroly proves that the Gov--1 eminent is losing no time, and that there has been no unreasonable delay— as some of our Eeform critics would have the peoplo believe —on its part in carrying out its policy and its promise made before the election that it would put into operation 4 vigorou/j land settlement scheme, anft that it would offer exceptional facilities for closer settlement."

Mr. Forbes. stressed the point that the "long suit. of the Government policy would.be to havo the undeveloped lands handled by tho individual settler himself per medium of advances by the Land Development Board. Much oS tho Crown land was potted in small areas throughout the Dominion, and did not readily lend itself to mass development. These lands would be surveyed into approved areas and then roads constructed'through same. Such work would absorb •unemployed men. It was recognised that a man getting upon his holding at once meant taking him aiid his family out of the town and thathe would be better engaged at breaking in his Own land' than taking up occasional employment. The regulations governing advances would in all probability be published next week. SECTIONS BY BALLOT. "Certainly, I am in favour of the ballot system in connection with land settlement; wb.-.fc fairer method could be adopted? There may be more'suitable settlers'than the'-one "successful in the ballot, but it would be unfair to discriminate. To bar any but the experienced would .be. to prevent many deserving men, who are keen on settling on the laud, from realising what may have been their life Js ambition. Why, I myself became a settler through the land settlement scheme of the Liberal Government. I was one of those success£«l :.inJthe". first ballot of the Cheviot Estate, which was purchased and subdivided for closer settlement through tho advocacy of the lato Sir John M'Kenzie, who was Minister1 of Lands in the Seddon Governmfent. Yes, and lam there still. . . . And well I. remember thes protests made throughout New Zealand by the same section which is now .-. endeavouring to raise the same «ld familiar cry. Experience apparently has. taught them, nothing; they are just as react tionary Jo-day as they were in the years long past. Their opposition must bo a 1 political inheritance —it certainly seems to be handed down from generation to generation.. ■ . ACQUISITION OF LARGE ESTATES. ' ""The Government certainly possesses the power to acquire, under the compulsory clauses of the Land for Settlements Act, large estates which it is deemed /.desirable in .the. interests of the community. ..to secure for the purposes ■of 'closer.'settlement. But, while it is necessary that the Government should possess that power, there is no intention .to..- abuse - it.- The present method of purchase by amicable arrangement, if I may term it such, is so far working quite satisfactorily, and as that policy is proving a sound one, it will be continued. A satisfactory number of estates —sufficient to keep the inspectors and valuers very fully engaged—are being offered to the Government, and as long as oilers come in freely it will be unnecessary to invoke the compulsory clauses of the Act. I have .no . hesitation in saying that if in tfie .;puHjia; iWerestr-^that is, the interests of the people—it became absolutely necessary for the Government to put'info ""'"'operation the" compulsoryclauses <k the Act, it would not hesitate, to do-so. But it would only do ■$t>; .as/a" l|Eß.t resortTrwheniall. t'other 'methods"-<& acquisition had failed. No individual interest must stand In the way of the interests of the people of New Zealand as a whole) or to the progress- of the country. 'sAFEaTJARPING PUBLIC INTERESTS. • '-..■; ..•,-■"An,d:.let me say just here," continued'Mr.--'Forbes, "that the present methods of acquiring land, for closer'settlement are such as to fully safeguard the public interests. A most careful and scrutinising inspection of the land which it is sought to acquire ia niade by experienced officers of the Land Purchase Board and other responsible officers of the Lands Department and .Valuation.. Department. The Land Purchase' Board has left no stone unturned, no opportunity has been, lost, and no effort has been spared in its endeavours to procure:for-the benefit of the people suitable properties, so that those desirous of taking up land can do so under the advantageous terms and conditions offered by the Government. Before the purchase of a. property has been decided upon three separate valuations are made for. the Government, and if the price at which the property is offered, or can be secured, is within raasonable measure ofthe valuation determined on by the Land Purchase Board, an amicable and satisfactory settlement. is usually arrived at. A fair price is offered, and only a /air price ia paid, ior the land; and £ ;have the reassuring statement from the Lands.Department that on no occasion has a property been purchased for more than the price previously de determined ■by the Land Purchase Board. If tho price at which a particular property, suitable for closer settlement, is offered to the Government is deemed exorbitant, or is such that the success of settlement on that land would be jeopardised by tho rents the tenants would have to pay to meet interest charges upon tho expenditure, the Land Purchase Board proceeds 20 further with the negotiations, and turns its attention to other areaß where the price is deemed more satisfactory^ and where the settlers would have a greater chance.of success. Every possible precaution is taken to safeguard tho interests of the intending settler, and no better proof of this is to be-found than in the fact that tho Government •has never paid more than its own valuation fpr the" purchase of land for settlement purposes. THE WILDEN ESTATE PURCHASE. Questioned regarding the "Wilden Estate purchase, the Minister explained that in his opinion the property was eminently suitable for settlement purposes' and, was one of the finest of its kind offered to'tbe Government. Situated near,; He.riot,; South iOtago,' it contained 15,174 acres freehold and 8890 acres held under pastoral lease. The tot ' area.'was therefore 24,064 acres, of.. agricultural and-pastoral land, and this would be subdivided for closer settlement purposes into about fourteen suitable areas. : He was confident that tbo number of applications would prove the wisdom of tho Government's action in acquiring. It was not, as evidently some critics erroneously assumed, all pastoral land—rthere was some splendid agricultural land included in the estate, and in every respect it waa most suitable for subdivision.

'fit is amusing—l will not flatter the writers, by saying their criticisms are cither interesting or instructive, for they, indicate..an,astonishing ignorance of tho faots—to read some of the comments, of .the Press (BeJt'orin, naturally) on this purchase. lam seriously aeked what it is hoped to achieve by this proposed subdivision. To this I need scarcely reply except to say the Government hopes to place fourtoen settlers on the land where bofpre there was only one. One editorial, proceeds: '^Apparently it is-assumed that subdivision'is v. good thing in itself, and therefore needs no justification., J3ut is that a sound assumption?' the writer asks, and then goes-on to say: 'In every other branch of Jirtfduction and industry the trend is toward lavger units.' Pursue this argument to its logical i«qiMuc% Mid the*

average thinker will be able to picture what New Zealand would be like in a few yoars under conditions evidently favoured by tho paper in question—a country of big squattors, with the small farmer sensibly seeking fresh fields and pastures new. It is t«is policy of land aggregation that tho Government strongly opposes, and is socking to break down. Will any member of the House, or any candidate seeking tho support of the electors of New Zealand dare to publicly advocate such a disastrous policy" I think Rot. His end would bo sudden —and painful. s.'hen again we are met with this astounding proposition in economies: Will the Wilden Estate (it is asked) be worked more economically by fourteen owners than by one* Will there be bor.f.or pasture and flock management? Will the 24,000 acres carry more stock and better stock? Will the fourteen settlers be stronger financially than the one to make improvements and to acquire plant and live stock? —in short, is the purchase justified as an economic proposition It is suggested, in the naiyest manner possible, that these questions are worth "examination. This is one point—the only one I regret to say— on which tho writer and I agree, and I sincerely hope that a closer study of the subject will bring enlightenment. ."It soeins tj have beeu forgotten," added Mr. Forbes, with a smile, "that in 1925 the Keforin Government resumed a pastoral run adjoining this same estate —52.000 acres of pastoral lease —and divided it into five runs. Of these, four were offered for closer settlement, the lessee, Mr. B. Acton Adams, being allowed to retain one pastoral run.1 Ido not remember any protests being then made by tho Eeform journals at the action of the Government; probably the argument would be the other way!" OTHER LANDS AVAILABLE. The Minister pointed out that other lands already purchased—including some fine dairying country—would be on the market very soon. He esplained that lands suitable for dairy farming could not be taken over during the flush of the season. It was _ necessary to wait until a seasonable time arrived beforo delivery could be taken. Some of the finest lands in New Zealand would shortly be available for settlement in addition to many thousands of acres of Crown lands which were being prepared. Mr. Forbes mentioned the Pakihi lands on the West Coast of the South Island, where interesting and important work of'development was being carried out. It was intended to take a portion of the lands and treat it so that it could hereafter be stocked and practical tests made under true farming conditions. If this treatment proved successful, many additional thousands of Crown lands would be available ■ for settlement. Likewise a large area at Te Kauwhata in the Auckland district was being developed. Here portion of the Government lands would be cleared, ploughed, and grassed and made ready for occupation. , "It will thus be seen that the Government has done and is doing all that is possible to pursue an active policy of land settlement, as promised by United candidates at the General Election in 1928," said Mr. Forbes. "Remembor also that in addition to all this the Government has met tho ordinary requirements of land settlement under the legislation on the Statute Book when it took office. That legislation, however/ was lacking in many essentials necessary to secure a moro speedy settlement of unoccupied Crown and other lands. The' selections of Crown lands for the past thirteen months— that is, up to 31st December, 1929— have-been as under:—Permanent holdings (by that I mean tenures, not less than\3s years, renewable leases, or de- £ erred paymerifc) ,'1299; of a, total area :of 344,314 -acres; .'.temporary tenures (one year up to five years) 583 holdings, of a total' area, of 76,550 acres. These, I may explain, include 172,796 acres of pastoral runs. Tho freeholds acquired from tho Crown during tho period stated totalled 330, and the purchase money paid tho Crown was £108,410."

Mr. Forbes remarked that the question of Crown tenants freehpldiug their ,leased lands was very, interesting. Probably every year some 300 Crown tenants exercised their statutory rights and converted leases to freehold. This fargely explained why the aggregate number of Crown tenants on the Department's books does not steadily grow. Those exercising their right leave, the Department's books completely. During the very short -period in which the present Government has been in office 800 estates have been offered and considered, 27 estates, representing an area of 50,000 acros, havo been purchased for closer settlement, and sub: divided into 125 sections, of which 42 subdivisions--have been offered and selected. The balanco will be offered as deliveries ara tak'en of estates purchased. PINANCE ONLY NOW AVAILABLE. "The provision -of additional facile ties for the settlement of the lands of New Zealand was one of the most important planks in the platform of- the present Government. We are at one on this question—vital to the progress and increased prosperity of tho Dominion. But Ido wish to stress the fact that the Act giving the Government the necessary authority to carry out its avowed policy, and providing the capital necessary for same,y was only passed last November—three months ago; that Christmas and New Year holidays followed almost immodi-. ately after; and that only one mouthy of tbo present year has elapsed. Yet," even in that short period, all the work necessary in launching a new and important scheme of land settlement has been completed, while the ordinary requirements of laiid settlement have been .fully met. I can assuro the people of New Zealand that,the Government is fully alive to its responsibilities in the matter of increasing settlement by offering every reasonable facility for intending settlers to secure suitable land, and'by increasing productivity, add to the general wealth of the country. Everything possible has been and will be done to achieve this result. A preliminary list of sections with respect to which liberal development advances may be made will appear in the course of a' few days, and further lists will be compiled as the recommendations come to hand from the Advisory Com : niittees which are now in'the field. Development work has already been commenced on important blocks, and the Land Development Board is now considering the selection of other suitable areas in different parts of the North Island for the same purpose.

"The Government has acted with promptitude, lias already given an earnest of what it will do, and it will not bo long before the people of New Zealand will have further practical illustrations of the great benefits that will follow the passing of one of the most important Land Laws .Amendment Acts ever placed on the Statute Book.

"Those who contend otherwise must either be blinded by party prejudice or are endeavouring to throw dust in the eyes of tho people with the deliberate intention of preventing them seeing with clear vision and appreciating to the full the very helpful and highly important land legislation which the Government has already succeeded1 in passing."