SUPREME COURT.

Evening Star, Issue 3853, 30 June 1875, Page 3

SUPREME COURT.

IN BANCO. Wednesday, June 80. • (Before Mr Justice Johnston.) The Southland Waste Lands Act, 1865. Amendment Acts ’67 and 73, and J. Mob’. BISON and Othbbs.— This was a case for the opinion of the Court.—Mr Smith and Mr Stout appeared for the Southland Waste Land Board; Mr Haggitt and Mr Macassey for J. M., G. M., and H. B. Morrison. * * Aft fi r preliminary objections urged on behalf of the Board as to the appearance in Court of the Morrisons, and their right to be heard, on which point his Honor was of opinion that they had a. right to be heard if the Board had such' a right, Mr Smith read , the case, the particulars of which are as follows:—On July "9, 1873, the Govemor-in-Council raised the pace of rural land in Southland from 20s to 60s per acre. After, this the Superintendent of Otago appointed three commissioners to classify the lands hot contained within Hundreds, distinguishing agricultural from other land and to forward to him returns of such classifiesjjfon. On this being done the Superintendent (on fW llr l 874) proclamation containing the results and setting apart certain land as open for sale under the deferred payment system. Part of this land was on run 159, of i Morrisons had a lease dated March 1, 1866, and extending to February 11, 1881. They held , the lease as ruuholders and sheepfarmers, and there was no reason why they should not be entitled to 'depasture stock on tiie run. Parties named Finlayson applied on August 19, 1874, for 760 acres of land, situated within the limits of run 159, on deferred payments, and interim certificates were issued to them. The Southland Waste Land Board, however, refused to issue licenses to them to occupy these sections until the opinion of a Judge of the Supreme Court was obtained in the matter. The questions to be answered were;—(L) Is the proclamation of the Superintendent, dated July 11,1874, and setting apart certain land as Open for sale on deferred paymenta, valid, (2.) Are any lands situated within the limits of run 169 legally liable to be set aside as saleable on deferred payments, Mcordmg tosections 47 to 64, inclusive, of the southland Waste Lands Act Amendment Act, 1873 ? (3.) Are such lands legally liable to be sold under the provisions of the same sections ef the said Act? Mr Macassey said that, as the Morrisons’ iQase of the run was for a term of over fourteen years from 1866 to 1881—it came under the provisions of the Southland Waste Lands Act of 1865, and no portion of it could be set apart for sale under deferred payments, nor could the rights of the pastoral tenant be interfered with. Mr Macassey argued at great length in support or Ms view of the case, and, with regard to the first of the questions, submitted that it mnstbe answered in the negative, as the Superintendent coulduot have been intended by the Colonial Legislature to have power to cause to be thrown open, at 20s per acre, land previously raised to the value of 60s per acre. The second question should be answered in the negative, for the great reason that otherwise it would follow that the Legislature would have ascribed to it the away of land from the pastoral tenants, without compensation,' which was contrary to the spirit of the Southland Waste Lands Act.. The third question, which only differed from the second in that it referred to the Superintendent’s power to cause “to he sold” instead of “to be set aside” lands on deferred payments, should also be answered in the negative. Mr Haggitt followed on the same siJe. [Left sitting.]