CROMWELL’S COMPLAINTS.

Evening Star, Issue 20132, 23 March 1929, Page 12

CROMWELL’S COMPLAINTS.

Thu Central Otago tour a pears to bo a favourite one with Ministers of the Crown, particularly those from the North Island. Mr Veitch is going over the trail lately followed by some of his colleagues, and ho has said tho usual things about the great possibilities of tho district and the evident faith of the residents therein. But if the possibilities are so evident to the stranger, there should he the less call for comment on local faith in them. Yet the people of Central Otago, particularly tho landless and the small landholder, have need for the exercise of faith. They complain that, because of maladministration, resources cither remain undeveloped or arc concentrated in the hands of a select few.

The outstanding feature of the deputations to the Minister yesterday was tho amount of denunciation launched. Particularly was this the case at Cromwell. The two favourite targets were the Otago Land Board and the Cromwell Development Company. Concerning the Land Board’s vagaries we have had occasion to comment more than once. Mr Bodkin, who before becoming member for tho district has had fairly close professional relations with tho body concerned, gave instances of what ho called “ the hoard’s anomalous and. to him, totally inexplicable conduct.” It may ho said that, originally biased against any disturbance with vested interests, tho board has been subservient to ’Wellington, and aggravated the dissatisfaction of unsuccessful applicants for land in the district in which they were horn and bred. There is renewed hope now tram the substitution of the former Minister of Lands by Mr Forbes, but it has been made plain that an indifferent administration of unsuitable laws will have to he remedied by the Minister before there can ho any lasting improvement Private enterprise is often urged as a remedy for State inertia. But Cromwell’s experience of the experiment has not been encouraging. The Eipponvalo settlers have repeatedly asked the Government to relieve tho Cromwell Development Company of its responsibilities. The request was rather guardedly investigated and reported on by the Central Otago Irrigation Committee last year. Tho committee took up rather a peculiar attitude, possibly because this particular branch of inquiry had been belatedly superimposed on already heavy enough tasks. It reported that “ it was not concerned with any alleged past failure on the part of the Cromwell Development Company to carry out any conditions implied in the agreement with tho settlers.” Jt practically ignored the fact that there were also conditions as between the’ Government and tho company, and that it was by virtue of undertaking such conditions that the company secured vital rights from tho Government. Tho way in

which the committee viewed the matter was “on purely business lines. 1 ’ ]]y inspection the committee was impressed with the deterioration evident in most of the orchards, out of which some of the settlers had palled out their fruit trees. On this backward-moving concern tlio committee calculated that the Government would make a loss of £3IG a year if it closed with the Cromwell Development Company’s offer to sell out for £-1,000. The recommendation was therefore that the Government should stand aloof, and that the remaining settlors and the company should confer and by negotiation adjust the liability both with regard to arrears, land, and water, in order to stabilise the whole position and prevent further loss of capital. Counsel of perfection no doubt this was, and as usual in eases where this is offered the result has been nil. Mr Voiteh suggested the bringing in of the Roaring Meg water a.s a solution, but the Public Works officials practically dismiss this, after preliminary expenditure of over £3,000, in the curt phrase “ development would he costly.” There is another and much less expensive way of giving Pipponvale, including its higher slopes, the adequate water supply which.it was promised and lias never had. The development of Cromwell lias hung fire. At a relatively small outlay the Government could alter ail that and more than recoup itself indirectly from the progress the district would indubitably make.