TE ARO FORESHORE.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 5360, 1 June 1878, Page 3

TE ARO FORESHORE.

The Te Aro foreshore question is one of such general interest at present, and moreover is a matter as ,to which there is so great a divergence of opinion, that it is highly desirable that the ratepayers should be placed iu possession of all available information upon the subject. Toglean any fact! as to the actual state of the title one has to dive into the ancient history of the colony; hence it is extremely difficult to light upon any written statementsbearing upon tho question. This must be an apology for the scant details now submitted to the readers of tho Times as a first instalment; but perhaps the perusal of it may cause those who are in the possession of any old letters or other documents to furnish them, to this office, so that they may be published. The ancient history of this city is but modern after all, for tho'selection of tho first acres was nude on the 2Sth July, 1840. It will to many be but repeating a familiar tale to say that lots were drawn in London for the right to select town acres, aud the actual choice was made in Wellington on the above date by the buyers or their agents. This mode of taking up the ground has an important bearing upon the whole question, as will be seen readily by those who inquire carefully into the title.’ When the time arrived for selecting the acres it was found that those at the head of the bay did not contain the full measure of land, and that to give the proper area it would be necessary to go 100 ft., more or less, beyond high-water mark. The question was put to the principal agent of tho New Zealand Company, as to whether the persons selec'ing there would be entitled to the water frontage, and a distinct promise was made that they would have a right to that privilege. This of course gave an increased value to sections 205 to 225, and that it was justly appreciated was evident when. the first choice was made. Mr. Duncan Dunbar, the celebrated shipowner, Was the fortunate proprietor who had the right to the pick of all the acres in the city of Wellington—what would it .ha worth in 1878 ?—and his representative, the late Mr. Hunter, took an acre in the centre of the old To Aro pa. The next selections were made right aud left of this, indeed out of 22 early selections 21 , were made at the bead of the bay. Since that dato the owners of the laud then acquired have had unmolested access to the harbor, and old resi- - dents remember the days when the loading aud discharging of vessels were carried on at the Te Aro end of the harbor, at wharves then owned by Messrs. Rhodes, Ridgeway,Guy ton and Earp, Bethnneand Hunter, \V. Waring Taylor, and others, who had erected jetties opposite their respective properties..’ These wharves were sanctioned by the Government of that time, and an informant states that they were gazetted as legal landing quays, the owners being allowed to charge wharfage on goods lauded and shipped at them. A short search has not led to the discovery of such a notice, but there is no doubt that there is somewhere in the archives of the colony an official declaration of the facts stated. Perhaps. a , reader, of the Times may be able to lay hi! hand upon it, and will forward a copy. Information as to the following transaction would be acceptable :—When the Government reclaimed a part of Willis-street, the owner of section 205 had land given to him as compensation for the loss of his water frontage, and that ground is now occupied by Messrs. Barber’s shop, at the corner of Old Custom House-street and Willis-street. In those days the beach was at the door of the present Times office, and the reclaimed laud was commenced at section 205. This looks very like a recognition by the Government of the right of the holders of property abutting on the To Aro beach to water frontage. In those early days surveying in Port Nicholson does not apper to have been an exact art, for selectors along the To Arp beach found that to get their acres they would have to go below high-watermark, aud the grants were issued giving a title to so many feet of water. This is quite clear, for the lines of the plans show it. Various reasons were given, or apologies offered, for presenting cer.tuiu proprietors with a number of square feet of water instead of land, aud one was that it would be more generally advantageous if Manners-street were placed closer to the beach than was at first intended. Possibly that is the correct way iu which to account for this novel kind of land and water sale.

Old Custom House-street passes through some of the sections referred to, and it would seem that undisturbed usage has' made it a public highway ; but this street stops at Lombard - street, for although the road continues it is not a public thoroughfare legally speaking, all rights having been reserved by the annual locking of a gate in bar of unrestrained traffic. No doubt it will be iu the interests of property holders to widen the street where it exists, and to prolong it. To do.both it will be necessary to surrender land, and in the continuation a width pf 40ft. to 66ft. will have to be given up. Should the street be the latter width, the ground parted with will just equal the width, of the belt of 66ft, which it is proposed to give, out of the land to be reclaimed, to owners of harbor frontages. This is au element iu the arrangement which may not have occurred to some persons, bat anyone of business tact can see that the principle of give and take would be pretty equally applied. " The belt, 66ft. iu width, will contain 4 acres, which will be handed, by way of compensation, to the owners of 20 acres. Some people value what they term the “gift” at £40,000. On the other hand the property owners allege that the “gift” should be taken at the cost of the'reclamation, and not at the value of the land. The expense of reclaiming this portion will probably not exceed £ISOO or_£2ooo, because it is iu the shallow water. The proposition is to reclaim some 70 acre, and out of that the property holders would receive four in compensation. In the old days, when Captain Eitzroy was Governor, he was interviewed touching the Te Aro water frontage, and the following report of a deputation appears in the New Zealand Gazette and' Wellington Spectator of Saturday, the 24th February, 1844: WATER MONTAGE. ' " 1 “A deputation of gentlemen interested.in the water frontage at Te Aro had a long interview on Thursday last with his Excellency on this and other subjects. ', - “The nature of the claim was stated, and his Excellency took the opportunity of explaining tho ground upon which ; aTight to one: hundred feet above high-water mark had, in recent times, been asserted in the colonies. The object was not to prevent persons building or doing otherwise, as might be deemed . fit, with ’ land the stated distance above • highwater mark, but iu case Government should ou any occasion, at any spot .or spots, require such piece or pieces of land, this reserved right might be : asserted upon payment of a fair value for the land required, This had become necessary on account of-the monopoly prices which had been asked ; that the right would never be asserted but in oases of necessity, and the mode in which it would be asserted would not be attended with any depreciation of private property. Consequently where no appointed rood intervened, persons might feel safe in appropriating property down to tho edge: of high water. This was the first time we had heard a reason' for the right to 100 feet above highwater mark which has beea recently asserted in the colonies ; and as a moans of preventing extortion there is no possible objection to the right being asserted ; nor can tho Tight, on the gr'oundsupon which jt is he too geqe'p rally made public. " “ IVjth respect to the claims to laud- be-, low high-water mark , and the privilege of carrying out wharves, it was stated as a general principle, that all below high-, water mark was the property of , her Majesty, but it was atknowledgecl that there were peculiarities in our claim, and that., they ought to receive attention. His Excellency promised before leaving to. inform the deputation the extent to which ha felt he could meet their wishes, and that after ho had consulted the learned authorities, he would state. the exact position of all parties, and tho course it might be wise to pursue. The whole subject was carefully and kindly discussed,, and wo are convinced tho claimants will be supported.to the fullest extent to which his Excellency considers ho is warranted in maintaining: their requests," : 1 Tho Governor’s final reply-would bo a desk-: able document to have, and if anyone can state where it is to be found the news would be gladly received, as indeed would anything tending to throw additional light on this question. ■ ■ . ■ ■■ i (Tale continued.)