King Country Chronicle Wednesday, August 27th, 1913 NATIVE LAND SETTLEMENT.

King Country Chronicle, Volume VII, Issue 597, 27 August 1913, Page 4

King Country Chronicle Wednesday, August 27th, 1913 NATIVE LAND SETTLEMENT.

The native land question has been before the public so long that it may be questioned if anything new remains to be said about it. It has for years been the Aunt Sally of the public, and the bogey of the politician, with the natural result thai an immense amount of misconception was circulated concerning what had been and what was being done concerning the native landß. It cannot be denied that the legislature of (he Dominion has been awkwardly placed in respect to native lands ever since the famous treaty of Waitangi was enacted. The fact that native-owned land cannot be taken by the Government without the owners' consent no matter how desirable it may be to settle the land constitutes a barrier to comprehensive action as far as acquiring the land for settlement is concerned. Every Government that has been brought into existence in the Dominion has been faced with the same position, and has been forced to adopt the attitude taken up by Mr Herries. The present Minister for Native Affairs declares.bimself willing and anxious to purchase all the native blucks which the owners may be willing to sell, but as far as taking land crnpulsorily is concerned he does not hesitate to proclaim that he is power-, less. This being the position with respect to [comprehensive action it is obvious that the utmost attention skould be paid to the matters of detail which surround the general question. During very recent years considerable improvements have been effected and if the recommendations of the Counties Conference, which sat last week at Wellington, be followed, a further progressive step will have been taken. It is widely recognised that in opening the native lands for private settlement without attaching conditions in respect to roading the Government of the day paved the way for a most undesirable position, and that position is fast reaching a climax in this district. A significant reference was recently made by the Prime Minister in respect'to the Pakaumanu Crown block [near Puketutu the roading of the block having been delayed owing to the of having to take the access roads through native-owned lands which had been acquired by Europeans. It is to be hoped many more difficulties of similar nature will be me* with if they will have the effect of impressing the Prime Minister with the necessity for comprehensive action in respect to roading nativeowned lands which have been acquired by Europeans. The national welfare is so inseparably associated with the roading question that it is more than strange a thoroughly comprehensive scheme has not been adopted and initiated by the Government irrespective of tenure or title. AWAKINO COUNTY. ♦—■ The recently - formed Awakino County Council lost no time in getting into working order, and loan proposals £or metalling purposes are already passed by the council. The wisdom of this course will commend itself to all who have any knowledge of backblocks requirements, and Jit is to be hoped the example of the settlers j at the l.orthern end of the district will be widely followed. A definite limit to the borrowing powers of any one loeal body was set some time ago, but that this amount can be exceeded by b:\rkblock counties wlurein settlement is progressing there is little doubt. The Government is keenly alive to the necessity of i'Sfisting settlement in new ciist ids anci it ia safe to assert no move necessitous county, in respect

to roarit=. th;ui Awakino o.xista in the

Dominion. The into operation oj' (ho Conn!• in;■• A«-i in Awakino and the e , .. ; (; , .bii: : iiiii;'. of a working counojl alien;? a channel for direct

communication wi'i'n the Government, and instead of iiuiividu;.!!-: requiring to

i;iaKe r< i'l'i'-.'-i-ii! :',i in;.- to. (ho various department.':- cone. ■vo.i:i;r t!u; district roijiiiivnientr- (be combined voice of

the district is carried to heaqduartera through the constitutional channel. In this manner also the hand of the member for the district is strengthened and the needs of the county are kept prominently before the responsible officials and Ministers. Whatever the future may hold for the Awakino County ; whether the merging of the district in to the adojoining counties or the perpetuation of a separate county h adopted, there can be no doubt the fact of making the county operative has been a decided step in the progress of the district. The future will reveal much to those who are charged with the public work of the district. As the responsibilities and activities of the local body become widened it may be necessary to reconsider the decision to exist as an individual county, but in the meantime there is ample opportunity for the county to do good work in the interests of settlers who have long been denied even the elementary requirements associated with b»ck block settlement.