The Lake Wakatip Mail. Queenstown, Saturday, August 22, 1863.

Lake Wakatip Mail, Volume I, Issue 33, 22 August 1863, Page 4

The Lake Wakatip Mail. Queenstown, Saturday, August 22, 1863.

Any political action which tends to the permanent settlement of the population of a country, is one of progress; and, by parity of reasoning, the political action which keeps population migratory, is one of retrogression. We say retrogression, because we hold the belief that there is no such thing as cessation in social politics; and the Government which does not advance, must of necessity recede. There is nothing which has a greater tendency to settle a community than the opening up of its agricultural lands; and when a Government can do this with safety and profit, it is their undoubted duty and interest to do so. It is a matter of great speculation amongst all classes in this colony as to why there have not yet been taken any steps to dispose of the agricultural lands on the goldfields. We cannot say whether there is any land-jobbing in contemplation, but wc can say that the Dunedin triumvirate are unable to manage the business of this rising Province. When Major Richardson and his party were in power, we did see some signs of action, on a scale large enough to benefit the country, and evidences of ability which wanted only occasion to blow into able statesmanship. We see now the elements which can make this colony of consequence neglected, and the time passes in discussion of paltry matters, interesting only to those who take part in them, and having for their principal object certainly not the benefit of the Province. 44 Oh for the touch of a vanished hand, And the sound of a voice that is still." There are in the neighborhood of the Lake many hundreds of acres of land, rich in quality, inviting the labor of the husbandman; and there are in the neighborhood of the Lake many hundreds of men who are anxious to till these acres. There is surely something " rotten in the State" when we see the inhabitants of the goldfields paying famine prices for things which could be raised for small sums at their own doors. Mr. Rees, in this district, has of late, in two or three instances, granted letters to parties stating that he offers no objection to market gardeners squatting on certain parts of his run; and for this he deserves the thanks of the community. But this is not all that is wanted. The time is come when the countrv demands a full and final settlement of the land question. The man who takes up land must have some guarantee that he is not a mere tenant at will, liable to be turned off the land when he may have invested large sums in its improvement and settled his family Every acre that is rendered productive, is an addition to the wealth of the State, and the tiller has a claim upon us all. Whatever the intended policy of the Government may be upon this question, we have a right to demand that it be speedily announced. We have also a right to demand that it shall be one that will permit of small leaseholders eventually purchasing, and thus secure the immediate opening up and improvement of the lands We urge upon the Council the necessity of instantly taking action, and bringing the necessary pressure to bear upon the General Government, so that the present golden opportunity may not slip

away. If this is not done, we can see that occupiers and improvers will fill the lands before any legislation shall have taken place, and the probability of their removal will be found a more vexed question than would be a fair and equitable scheme as to their present settlement.