The Native Lands.

Kawhia Settler and Raglan Advertiser, Volume IV, Issue 365, 26 June 1908, Page 2

The Native Lands.

QUESTION OF SETTLEMENT. AN ANOMALOUS POSITION. When the Premier visited Kawhia last week he w»? accompanied by reporters from tho Herald and Star, and daring their stay here the opportunity wes taken of impressing BCmn fncts relative to tbe native laud question upon them with lhe idea of bavin 3 the same made uee of in their colnmne. The Herald that information thus:

“During his recent tour of the King Cov itry the P.lme Minister was perhaps more impressed by the great d'fficulty that confronts the Government in its effort to settle the native land trouble than by anything else. Ai nearly every town visited tbe same story was told by Urge deputations about the impossibility of obtaining land that is native owned, and he was besought to try aud open up some of of these locked areas. As he told tho Her’lo representative who was through the country with him, the matter would require to be dealt with, and he was satisfied that it could be accom-pl‘-hed without doing an injustice to the natives, wir'e relieving European residents from what was becoming in a jme instances an intolerable nuisance. Tbe most anomalous state of affairs in this connection is to be found at Kawhia, but owing to Sir Joseph Ward’s unavoidably late arrival at the little teipurt on the west coast the large deputation that had been arranged to b*ing the matter under hie notice were unable to do so. The Kawhia Harbour is about 88 miles round from bead to head, and the whole of a wide belt of varying depth round the coastline is native land of fine quality. The natives do not use it. and the white men cannot. Tbe native land is the pick of ths district. The Moerangi, Taumata‘otara, and Taharoa blocks contain respectively 45,000, 11,500 and 16,000 rgivs of native land, and the total area of native land in the Kawhia County alone amounts to over 100,000 acres. All this is practically lying useless, and it is almost impossible for a whi 0 settler to get a legal title to a block. Tbe land available for settlement lies away from the coast and to reach it from the harbour the aforesaid belt of native land, between five and six miles in width, and in a rough state, has to traversed. The white settlers have had to pay rates for the making and upkeep of the) roads through, and it speaks well for the indomitable pluck and perseverance of the New Zealand pioneer that he has attempted the task of wresting alivingfrom primeval nature’s stronghold when he has to first overcome these disheartening obstacles. If he could get on to the splendid land round the coast, where his produce pould be easily conveyed to the waterway, there seems little reason to doubt that Kawhia would soon become one of the most flourishing producing centres of the North Island. At the present time it is simply stagnating for tbe reason stated. If the land was thrown open for settlement, it would be eagerly s napped up, and an era of prosperity would follow in quick course. The Kawhia Harbour is one erf ths best on the west coast, and at ordinary high tide has 28ft of water on the bar, there is no difficulty about steamers getting in and out. The Kawhia residents say that tbe more progressive natives of the district would be glad to lease their land if they could, and the residents are anxious that the Royal Commission far Native Lands should bold a sitting in the district at the earliest possible date. There is an impression among the people that tbe Commission is not going to sit at Kawhia, and if tbe impression is a correct one it seemj a pity. It is to be hoped that the Government will see its way clear to send tbe Commission to Kawhia, in order that something may be speedily dune to remove the incubus that is keeping back a district that has been amply endowed by nature with every requisite for civilised progress.”