THE TRAQUAIR HUNDRED.

Evening Star, Issue 3324, 15 October 1873, Page 2

THE TRAQUAIR HUNDRED.

To the Editor. Sir, —Few I think will be disposed to cavil at your leader of Saturday, referring to the very sharp practice of Mr Sband, in applying to the Waste Land Board at its last meeting for a large quantity of land in the Traquair Hundred. Of course, if Mr Shand were not a member of the Executive, neither I nor any other person would have any right to object to his action or to his sharpness in getting information as to the passing of the Validation Act previous to any one else; but Ids position as a member of the Executive makes, to my mind, a very great difference indeed. How stands the case? Mr Shand gets information which tells him that certain land which for a very long time past has been locked up from the public, is now open for sale. Instead of saying to his colleagues, “This land can now be sold; let ns at once notify the public of the fact and open it for sale, so that persons requiring land for settlement may apply for ithe says to himeelf, we may assume, “ I want this land ; few, if any, have the knowledge I have, and I will at once apply for it, and thus prevent anyone else from getting it or it being submitted to public competition ” Legally, no doubt, Mr Shand has done no wrong ; but morally, from the position he occupied, I think he has. He has shown, at any rate, that he is not that friend of the people and settlement that he would have us believe. It must not be forgotten, in the consideration of this subject, that Mr Shand is a member of an Executive which profes- es to hold liberal views on the land question, aud has a strong desire to settle people on the lands, and that he himself has often most loudly proclaimed that he is always most desirous to give effect to these views. lam afraid, however, sir, that as our friend Mr Shand is waxing wealthy he is also waxing conservative, andthat his views upon the laud question are gradually changing. Then, as to the Waste Land Board, had it not been for the vigilance of the thief Commissioner and his strong determination to see the public protected, no doubt the application would have been granted. And whilst on this subject I was somewhat surprised to see Mr Bastings voting as he did ; seeing that Mr Shand was his colleague, it would, to say the least, have been more prudent on his part to voted against the sale. People will talk, and some may say had it not been as it was the voting would have been different.— 1 am, &c., Settler, Dunedin, October 15,