WASTE LAND BOARD.

Evening Star, Issue 3325, 16 October 1873, Page 2

WASTE LAND BOARD.

The usual weekly meeting of the Board was held to-day. Present:—The Chief Commissioner and Messrs Bastings, Butterworth, Clark, Beid, and Strode. Mr Fraser, for Mr J. NeJsoii, applied for ; authority to prospect for coal o« ihfi Jiapiti reseryc. Tlip Bond had no objections. Messrs Gjllies and street, for Mr Gilroy, applied that .section 14, block Kaitaugata, should be offered for sale, stating fcQat applicant would form a towing-path. Referred to Hanger to report on. Messrs Gillies and Street, for the Tokomairiro Coal Company, applied for a rehearing of their case, on the ground of the rent tixed being excessive. Mr Gillies stated that additional evidence had been found, likely to influence the Board. Mr Hutchinson, of Snag Point, had in J«G? a twenty-one years' lease granted him, *'ud this was a similar case. The applicants, moreover, had ex? pended a large sum of money in making a road to the land, and in other improvements, whi'e Mr Hutchinson had received a grant of LI,GOO to make a road from one part of his property to another. Also, a portion of the applicants' reserve had been leased at 10s per acre to a coal-miner formerly in applicants' employment. After considerable discussion, during which the members of the Board generally expressed their sense of the unfairness showed towards the present applicants, it was decided that a lease of 395 acres be granted for twenty-one years at L3O per annum; the maximum price of the coal at the pit's mouth to be 10s per ton ; and applicants to guarantee to raise tons per annum. Mr Wheeler applied for the Board's decision on the applications of Joseph Tamblyn for block 2, Teviot; John Tamblyn, for section 36, do. ; James Tamblyn for section 37, do. ; and the Wesleyan Church, for section 31), do. The Banger reported no objection, except to the last application, that section being auriferous.—The Chief Commissioner was inclined to refuse all the applications, on the ground that the whole of the land was auriferous.'—Messrs (.lark and Strode were in favor of granting them, there being no objection, which were advertised to be lodged with the Hoard to-day. It waa decided to refer the whole question to Warden Simpson to report as to the auriferous nature of the ground. Mr Alexander Leek applied for section 337, Port Chalmers, at upset price. To wait periodical sale, and the attention of the Government to be called to the application. Mr John Hurley wrote requesting a reduction in the pi \i.' (LI:!) of the section on Mr M -Loan's run, on which his cottage stauds. Refused. Messrs F. Hull and Co. appliod for a lease of fifty acres of land for antimony mining in block 2, Bannockburn. Granted under clause 101 of the Act, at LI per annum,

Messrs Peter and David Grant applied to purchase sections 2 and 3, block 10, Maungatua ; 5 and 6, block 9, do. ; and 4, block 10, do.—part of Traquair Hundred. Refus. d, Mr William Williams applied for a waterrace near Clyde, Granted, subject to the conditions prescribed by the Di trict Land Officer. Messrs Connell.and Moodie, for Mr William Creswick, applied for a lease of about 100 acres of bush reserve, Tuapeka Gorge. Kef erred to the Warden to report on. Messrs Connell and Moodie, for the New Zedand Meat Preserving Company, applied to purchase the reserve at the mouth of the creek in block 3, Oamaru. To be put up at auction at L 3 3s per aero, upset price. Mr J. H. Harris appeared, instructed by Mr Sba';d, to state that no authentic copy of the Validation Act was at the disposal of the Board at the time of bis application for Und in the Traquair Hundred, f hat Mr iShand, seeing that his action had been found fault with in some of the public papers on account of his position, was willing to withdraw his application, on condition that no other application be received from others in the meantime. It would bo dangerous for him to do so unless that were agreed upon, when he was willing to compete at auction with and be in the same position as any other applicant.—The Chief Commissioner thought Mr Shand’a action justifiable as long as he did not bring his voice to bear on the subject in bis official capacity.—Mr Harris’s statement was noted.

This concluded the business, and Mr Ba tings called the attention of the Chief Commissioner to the question of advertising intended land sales, it appeared that the Executive did not receive information as to these sales, the advertisements not being forwa ded to the Under Secretary, Mr Willis, before insertion in the papers.—The Chuf Commissioner understood that the Under Secretary did receive the advertisements, but finding, on inquiry, that they were forwarded to Mr Logan, sepretary to the Superintendent, instead, arranged that in future they should be sent to Mr Willis, as Mr Bastings desired, and the Executive could then detormiue in what papers to insert them.