Manamatu Herald. TUESDAY, APRIL 14, 1891. Mr Macarthur on Land.

Manawatu Herald, Volume III, 14 April 1891, Page 2

Manamatu Herald. TUESDAY, APRIL 14, 1891. Mr Macarthur on Land.

Much discussion is now going on about the decision come to by the Minister of Lands to force men, who desire land, to become tenants of the Crown. The Government papers applaud him, and are trying hard to persuade those wanting land, that this is the best position for them to take up. We may say, that looking at the matter from a financial view, the settler would consult his best interest in taking leasehold instead of striving after freehold land, but still we do not see that that is any reason why they should not be permitted to please themselves. The attempt to guide all our actions by Acts of Parliament must fail, and the developement of the country will be delayed so long as the Minister adheres to his present determination. What the Colony desires . is, to see the lands in the hands of men who will remove the bush and grow; stock in its place, and the late Governmeafcwisely admitted that amongst many men were many- minds, and they therefore offered the waste lands in as many forms of tenure as it was almost possible to conceive. Their action has been proved to be the right one, by the very large areas taken up, and satisfactorily settled during their term of office. Lately three Associations have been stopped, owing to the withdrawal of the right to purchase, and because Mr D. H. Macarthur has sympathised with the promoters, he has been singled out for attack by the Wanganui Herald. The objections raised to Mr Macarthur is that as Agent of the Feilding Corporation he has charged higher prices for his land than what he urges the government should do for theirs and that he is therefore an opponent of land settlement, and only interested in land speculation 1 The cases are a long way apart, as in the first nstance, the land in the Corporation block was first well roaded before Bale, which the government lands are not, ivud the pwitten to sentres

3f population is much nigher, than where land for special settlements can now be obtained. Mr Macarthur *s agent, had to do his best for his aompany, and the settlement of the block proves that he understood his work, and that he was able to show why it was advisable for the settler to pay him his price, to going further back. As this has been accomplished at the time the government were offering far better terms than the present Minister of Lands does, it goes to show, unless we are to write all those settlers on these quoted lands of the Corporation, as asses, that Mr Macarthur has conclusively proved his ability to settle men on land. . '■ Those who have had any experience of bush land know that the difficulties in settling that description of land is far greater than open land, and no man, without previous experience, should be permitted to have the administration of it. We are sure of this, that no man can speak so authoritatively and so well about bush settlement 3 as - Mr Macarthur, and we are' assured also that his statements will be made with the very best desire to see' men occupy such land on such terms that it will repay them to do. so. His dealings with the Corpora.tion lands afford the best instance of this fact. - He knew land Avas valueless without roads, and he therefore made roads, and charged their cost on the land. Let any settler determine which was cheapest, to buy land at £1 an acre without roads, and paying. £1 an acre in the long run to get them made, having for many years to suffer the grave inconveniences of being without them, or paying the £2 an acre at once and having the roads at once ?