MAEREWHENUA.

Mount Ida Chronicle, Volume VIII, Issue 434, 9 August 1877, Page 3

MAEREWHENUA.

; (From our" own correspondent.) , . .■■.-.■■. ■ ■■■• ; -'3"uly'26th; ". A;public 'meeting; was'' held hebe> _on Friday (Mr.;T'. Smifh'ih.the chair) into .cepsideratiori. the . necessity of representing..',to., the. Waste Lands Board the great injury that would be done to the mining interest if the reof'Riih No. 92 was sold, the township being situated upon ii?,\ and as i.'considerable ..portion, iif.it is : believed to contain payable Mr. Hoberts;"spo.te.very. v str6ngly..against. the sale of tueland, ,but-said-he. would. ,be agreeable .that .. .it ; should •be .-leased.-in small with promoting settlement.; He thought the-, agricultural lease system the best, so long: as the mining;interest was preserved!- 'Mr. M'Call was in favor of-the land "being cut up for set- ; tlement in moderate-sized iblocks, arid to : be leased-for long periods, with the right reserved to mine on , the land. Mr. = M'Caim thought the best way was to < keep the goldfield as a goldfield, Mj. R. Cook was of the same opinion. Mr. Neale, ; Chairman of therMiners'Association, was ': in'favor of cutting-.up the land into mode-rate-sized blocks. '-He was of opinion that much: of the'se waste lands might be converted into smiling homesteads, and ; did-not believe in the dbg-in-tlie-manger ; style. He- believed;it was, to -the interest. of the goldfield-arid country..at. large that the land should be settled upon. So long as the right to .mine was reserved, he did not know what more, was wanted. Mr. Prater was glad to bear them advocating the settlement of people oh "the land on the goldfield. He had long*con-, tended that it was to'the interest, of the goldfield-that land should be thrown open junder the agricultural lease system, and : he thought thatthe land so thrown open should; be selected by the Miuers'Association. Committee. But what he would now advise them to do was to urge upon the General Government the advisability" of selling the whole of the land on this jgoldfield, reserving the right to mine on 'the lands after they are sold. Of course ithis would require an Act of. Parliament, but he contended this was'the true interest of the goldfield, and; said the, water races vtduld then" be of more value i bin fever.. The goldfield would thenibe'firmly established. .All the agricultural land would be cultivated; pastoral; agricultural and ■ mining pursuits might be' blended together in such a-way as would be a benefit to the whole Colony..- Auriferous lands, would be avoided, by theintending settler, as he would know, the consequence attendant upon taking up land of this, nature. He was anxious that" ihe auriferous-' -land' should- be - reserved, but he was also anxious to give'parties the chaiice/6f. taking up lahd-on the goldfield who felt inclined"to do so: I understood Mr. Roberts to say he was favorable to Mr. Prater's' views, provided an Act was passed, but he doubted whether the Legislature would pass an Act. Mr. Neale was also ; inr favor of Mr. Frater making a motion to that effect. Mr. Botting favored the land being sold, provided the right to mine was reserved. Mr. Prater would have'liked to have seen a memorial drawn, up and a delegate despatched to Wellington at once, urging the General Government to make a, reser- *' vation over any land sold on this gold-; field,', or within, a certain radius of the township of Livingstone. He was sorry Mr. Farquharson was not at the meeting, as he represented the largest interest on the field, and 'he'w'oul'd'have liked to r have heard his "views before moving in the matter.' Mr. Roberts moved—-" That '% petition be drawn up for presentation to the Waste Lands. Board against the .sale, of any land on Run No. 92, without first reserving the right, of- .-free.- entry : for mining.". This was seconded and carried. A resolution, was also, pro posed—" That a: subrCoinuiittee be appointed- to draw up the and appoint two of its number as delegates to lay the viewsof the meeting before the Waste Lands'' .Board." Mr; Frater moved : an amendment, and opposed the delegates being sent to Dune'dih, but would be quite agreeable for them to send ope of their number to Wellington. The motion was carried by a majority of one. A vote of thanks was passed to the Chairman, and the meeting terminated. Political matters are anxiously looked forward to. , We are glad to learn that Sir George Grey is in good health, and takes up so;important a part in the affairs of the Opposition. The County system stinks in the r people's nostrils here. They are disgusted, and its best friends have dropped to it, and some are honest enough .to adm't that it is.a real sell. Sepura-

tion is the order of the clay. It is only a 'matter of time. It is well known that the Ministry are at loggerheads on several matters of policy, and' that before the session-is over some of their own number will be found favoring the opposite benches. Ifourmomberfightswit.il the same untiring ,w. I as he did last session against corrupt measures we 'will have good reason to be proud.