THE NEW LAND BILL.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXII, Issue 5147, 21 September 1877, Page 6

THE NEW LAND BILL.

We \ have before us the Bill introduced by the Hon. Mr. Beid to'regulate the sale or other disposal of the Crown lauds of the colony, which fit is proposed shall come into operation on the; Ist December next. It repeals sundry Acts and Ordinances passed since 1858 (saving existing rights, &c.) enumerated in a schedule appended to the Bill. It is divided into eight parts—the Ist relating to Land Boards ; 2nd, to sales and auctions ; 3rd, to land on deferred payments ; 4th, to timber and other licenses ; 5 th, to forests ; 6th, to lands held for pastoral purposes ; 7th, to reserves ; and Bth, to miscellaneous provisions. The Minister of Lands is to have charge of the administration of the Act, and ten land districts are to be constituted, viz., Auckland, Taranaki, Hawke’s Bay, Wellington, Nelson, Marlborough, Canterbury, Otago, Southland, and Westland, for each of which districts there are to be a Commissioner of Crown Lands ; and one or more receivers of land revenue. The commissioner is'tp be ex officio a member and chairman of the Land Board of the district to which he . has.been appointed, and the remainder of the Board is to be composed of not. less than two nor more than five; other persons, who are to be appointed and .to . be removable from time to time' by warrant Under the hand of the Governor.; The members of the Land Board, other than the Chief Commissioner, are.to receive a sum! not. exceeding £1 for. every attend-ance-at meetings,. and: also the amount of travelling expenses actually incurred. Any member of - the . Board not receiving payment is;'not tb be disqualified from holding a seat in ■the .Assembly... fi hS’Governor:may establish ■local, .districts; and i land i offices 1 for generally carrying into effect .the provisiohs of the Act. Bales fire laid:dowu -for .the conduct of ;business. i All records arc to be open to inspection ’.on payment of a fee of ; 2s. 6d. Provision is made, fpr the .rehearing of. oases on the appli-. cation Of persons feeling themselves aggrieved, and forfippealsith the Supreme Court in cases; stated, i Claims for, compensation are to be 1 determined in the manner provided by the Public WorkslAct, and provision is made f6r reference' to arbitration. Crown lands iai-e divided! into three classes, viz., town, suburban, and. rural lands. Town lands are not to;be sold at less than £2O per acre, and suburban at not less than £3 per acre. A ll surveys, as far as practicable, are to be of rectangular form, and

whan, fronting on a- road,-river,- or lake, or sea to be of ]a ; depth not less than twice the length of the frontage. ■ .The Board is to give notice of the time land plade at which any auction of land is intended (to be held, in which notice the allotments .vyhichare to be offered for .sale, orlease and, the upset price of them are to bo specified,, and published in the Gazette ,. or, a newspaper published in the district, hot; more than three morithsinpr less .than one month before such auction shall take place. ’ , . . Every person, says, the Act,' who shall directlyof i indirectly offer, or propose to accept, money or other valuable consideration for abstaining from bidding; or competing as a purchaser, and whether or not the land be actually put up for sale, shall he deemed guilty of. misdemeanor, and liable to not exceeding twelve months’ imprisonment, or a fine of £2OO. ■The; actual receipt of money shall subject the recipient to not exceeding two years’ imprisonment, or a fine of £SOO. Extorted money is made recoverable.

The Governor, by proclamation in the Gazette, may from time to time set apart out of any town, suburban,-or rural lands, such blocks or allotments of land as he shalb think fit, and set the same aside for sale on deferred payments, and in such proclamation may fix a day on which the land shall be open for application, and he may : also, in : like manner set apartjor sale on deferred payments such blocks ■or allotments as may be recommended by any laud: board, and may also from time to time alter, amend, or revoke any -such proclamation. ,

No person shall be entitled to select land in more than one class, and the maximum area to be held by any one, selector shall not exceed on the whole of town, suburban, or rural land one allotment.’ No allotment of suburban land shall exceed 20 acres, or of rural land 320 acres. The price.per acre shall be, where land is open for selection and sate for cash, then such cash price and. one-half thereto added ; or where land is required to be put up at auction,; then the highest price bid for such land, and the land in such case is to be put up to auction at the upset price ami one-half added /thereto. -Any person of eighteen years of age or upwards may become a selector; but no person having assigned his interest shall be allowed to make any new selection.

The Act provides that the selector shall, within six months after the issue of the license, personally reside on the, land,, 'and.! shall continue so to reside in the case of town or suburban land for a period of four years, and in the case of ruralJand for a period of six years from: the issue of the license ; but the Board may give permission dispensing with personal residence for the first two years if the land is rural land wholly or mostly covered with bush. Personal residence may also be dispensed with where selectors intermarry. At the expiration of the term of any license, or on payment of the price of the land previously, the selector is to be entitled to a Crown grant. Licenses to hold land may be issued on the following terms: —License to ■ endure for fifteen years; license fees to be payable half-yearly in . advance ; deposit to count for half-yearis license fees; personal residence imperative, except for a. term, of eighteen months; after ten years, if the conditions are fulfilled, the selector may obtain his grant.

Occupation licenses for cutting timber, .flax, and other purposes may be granted., The Governor, on the recommendation of the Lands Board of any district, may declare forests and appoint conservators, and by-laws may be made by the Governor, applicable to forests generally, or to one or more in particular. Land in unsurveyed districts may be applied for, and permission given to the'applicant to survey such land at his own expense. Pastoral land in the Wellington Provincial District may be purchased at a fixed price of 7s. 6d. per acre at any time, either before or, after survey, in quantities of not less than 640 acres. With reference to land held for pastoral purposes in regard' to runs in Canterbury from and after May 1, J.BBO, the rent for runs is to be assessed in proportion to their carrying capacity. The Board,, not later than November 1, 1878, shall determine the, grazing capacities of all runs held under license in the Canterbury District, and gazette the same. In no case shall a run be assessed to carry less than it did in 1876. If either the Minister of Lands or the occupier of the run be dissatisfied with the amount of rent fixed by the Board, he may appeal against such decision by application to a -Judge of the 1 Supreme Court to be allowed to appeal, and if it shall appear to the said Judge that the assessment was fraudulent, or erroneous, or unjust, the Judge shall make an order without costs that such assessment may be appealed against by the Minister or the occupier on the lease. The matter of appeal shall be- referred to arbitrators, who shall fix the rent of the run, and may award costs of appeal. The Board may increase the amount of rent at any time within twelve nouths after the same has been fixed, if they think the rent too low ; occupiers to have the right of appeal as above. Every holder of a depasturing license who shall, before March 1, 1880, pay the first year’s rent in advance, and in other respects comply with the provisions of this Act, shall be entitled to hold his run as from May 1,1880, to May 1,1890, subject to the provisions of this Act, and thereafter the depasturing license and all rights (if any) created thereunder shall absolutely cease. Licenses may be forfeited on failure to pay rent. All rights 'of pre-emption to cease on May 1, 1880. In regard to runs within Otago, before the termination of any lease for depasturing purposes now in force, the-Board shall, with the approval of the Governor, determine whether the land will be again let for depasturing purposes ; and if it be resolved that a lease of the whole!or any part shall not be granted, the Board; may within twelve months before the expiration of the lease notify the occupier in event of it being resolved tore lease the whole or any-part of the land, such lease shall be sold by auction at least twelve months before the expiration of the existing lease. The sale of leases shall be on the express condition that the purchaser, not being the actual lessee, shall before being let into possession pay to the Receiver of Land Revenue valuation for improvements on the run, provided the amount of such valuation shall in no case exceed three times the amount of the average annual rent paid under the expiring lease during the term thereof, the amount paid therefor to be handed to the late occupants. No claim for improvements is to be made against the Crown or Board.

Power is given to the Governor to make reserves, temporarily in the first instance, and afterwards permanently. Reserves for the purposes of endowment are to be sanctioned by Parliament. Public reserves may be leased, but no lease is'to be granted before a survey has been made at the expense of the applicant. Lands leased may be taken for roads. Land discharged from reservation may be sold after thirty days’ notice. Lands within mining districts not held under license or lease; may be dealt with in the same manner as Crown lands of the same class, and in certain cases of unsold lands the value of improvements is to be added to the upset ’price. Licenses' oyer mineral lands may be cancelled, compensation in certain oases being given to the owner. Leases of mineral lands outside goldfields may be granted by the Boards. ■ The powers of the Governor in respect to water-races may be exercised by the Board outside of mining districts. The Governor may make regulations for the management of reserves and domains. The Governor's powers may he delegated.