Manawatu Standard (PUBLISHED DAILY.) The Oldest Daily Newspaper on the West Coast. FRIDAY, DECEMBER 5, 1884. LAND SETTLEMENT.

Manawatu Standard, Volume IX, Issue 6, 5 December 1884, Page 2

Manawatu Standard (PUBLISHED DAILY.) The Oldest Daily Newspaper on the West Coast. FRIDAY, DECEMBER 5, 1884. LAND SETTLEMENT.

# ■ 'TkE ide&bf encoufagiiig AssoGia'tions to -be- inaugurated, for the, pur-; chasb of land ;from the Governnient,, maty be a new ope, but the actual Associations themselves are no QOFelty. 3V e . &!f e^y liaye several at the present time, m the"Seventymile Bush, and more particularly m the neigbovhood of WoodviUe. The system has one good feature], which will be of considerable benefit to those who wish to settle m any pariicuiar locality. If a' sufficient number of men decide m ifavbr of any one district or block, dnd that Jatud is .not m the market, it will be {feasible £>? fhpm fo bai|4 "ffige^sy and cause it to be made available for their uses. This cannot be done under the present laws', 1 and, never mind how many are willing j fo buy land m any one locality, if ; ,\t js not offered for sale by the are yam pne^. l})e s.tep whiph the Hon. Minigjier for Landg is majciflg is certainly one m the right $*??= tion. People who pesjfje m the large centres may think, and possibly they do, thftt settlement is. encouraged m the bush districts. But <isa

mutter of fiict they are much mistaken. Never were so few inducements given to men to take up land as those which the Government, especially during the past few years, have afforded to the colonial public. The Atkinson-Government was especially neglectful of the interests. of this important part of the country and their mode of working retarded rather than aided . settlement. But things are now assuming a more promising look, and we hope to see the new facilities which this Ministry are about to offer largely availed of. Under the new laws; any patty ■■ of men will have it m their poiver to make their homes in—any^pQrtiion of the country. "Tftis is a veryjadftiirable concession on the parti of any Government to make, but atjthe same time there is -no xeason 4hy such liberties should be, withhtld. It may be urged that the. test blocks [ will be siezed first, and those diat are not so good will remain injthe hands of the Government. But the same difficulty has. to be contended with, even: if the ', Government have the selling of all ihe land, for, if j the soil is absolutely unfit for sei tie- ! men t no one will take it up vi der •=! . any/ condition; whereas, if it is fairly good the demand for it will no ; be wanting. This is shewn by the actual experience of the ; past, (and ."tha't : should' be accepted^as'a fairly rdliabic guide for jiliq future^ I'^ere is orle point ! libivevei 1 ! in- Mr 'B; Ai^- f lance's theories of land settlement, which is rather tinged with the; old prejudices that 1 were shewn m (Mr Roll estops administration. . . It is! that of cutting' up thife land .into! too small blocics. . The otherwise litieral concessions which are to be embodied m the,, hew land laws, are considerably inarrejdr;by the, limit of each holdingbeingfixed at 100 ai;res. ! There are men no > doubt, ! who! can make sufficient income to live lipoh off '1 00 acres; but there are iriany more who have a little capital to embarks and who. would makej excellent settlers, that would (not cjram of entering^ a farming life uipori so very small a" scale, and yetj the , latter are the class of men that the colony wishes to see proprietors of its soil.. Of all othersV they make the best farmers, having the capital to put the land to its fullest use; It is unfortunate therefore that the|Goverhmeht should make enactments that particularly shut these men 'out. The fault lies m limiting holdings to 100 acres. Extend the are to 320 aeries, if the land is good and handy to main roads or railways; 6V to, 640 acres m event of the country being broken and having difficulties of acbess, and, we believe, the present Government 1 "will have done nipre for tie bush; and, indirectly, the colony,than they could possibly concei vewithout havinghad apracticalexperience of the demand which exists for that class of land, and the very, , inadequate supply that there is t& meet it. r . • ;