THE SOUTHLAND LEASES AND THE FREEHOLD

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXVII, Issue 8349, 8 February 1913, Page 5

THE SOUTHLAND LEASES AND THE FREEHOLD

(WR BRIGHTON INTENDS TO SUE THE CROWN PUBLIC ESTATE SACRIFICED BY “REFORM ” Light is now shining through the darkness which has hjmg over the lights of Mr Brighton, of Southland, though he may have to go to the courts before tho Government will allow him what they have laid down by law should bo his for tho asking, 'the matter in question is, of course, tho toal deposits on Mr Brighton’s Icase-in-perpetuity sections, tho tenure of Which ho now seeks to convert to freohold. It is necessary to recapitulate the circumstances. About three weeks ago New Zealand was startled by a report from Invercargill that a holder of a ioaso-m-per-potuityhad, under the Band Act of lUia, acquired tho freehold of 173 acres of land known to bo coal-bearing, and estimated to bo worth over £I3,ODD for the trifling sum of £47. Almost before tho public had recovered its breath after this amazing announcement, this lucky individual, Mr Gavin Brighton, applied for tho freehold of two other coal-bearing leaseholds. Ihe latter applications were, no doubt, in view of tho popular indignation that had been aroused, held over by the Southland Land Board. The indignation was, of course, not against Mr Brighton, who has asked for nothing but what h© is strictly entitled to, but against tho Land Act and tho Government that passed it. For everybody knows that in the 1907 Land Act tho Ward Government expressly provided for payment of coal values on conversion of l.i.p. selections into freeholds. That provision was iust as expressly repealed by the Massey Government in its legislation last session providing for purchase of the fee simple at original instead of current value. MB MASSEY’S ATTITUDE. Everybody naturally turned to tho head of tho Government for information—for some assurance that tho public estate was not being so recklessly sacrificed as the facts of the case suggested. Mr Massey, however, was hard to draw. At a Banquet at Hastings he said he was getting an official report. On returning to Wellington the Prime Minister was waited upon by a “New Zealand Times” reporter again and again, but never would Mr Massey say one word more than that a report was in preparation, and in the meantime the > “Times” could have enough rope to hang itself with, or words to that effect. The Prime Minister was a little—only a little—more communicative to the oars of tho faithful and sympathetic, saying that while he was not a lawyer ho was satisfied everything would turn out all right, that the Crown’s interest in coal was reserved, that in any case the State could resume the land, and that, anyhow, ho was vastly amused. CEOWN LAW OPFIOEBS’ OPINION. All this time Mr Brighton has been waiting for his title deeds, and the publio anxiety has been growing. AH this time, too, tho Crown Law Office has been busily searching the statute book for some paragraphs that would show Mr Brighton’s rights to lie in the surface value only of tho land in question. The opinion of tho Crown Law Office has been submitted to tho Government. For some reason so far unexplained it has not been published, but Mr Massey says the following is its -affect: ■ ... “ The report draws a distinction between two kinds of lease-in-perpetuity. A lease-iu-porpotuity granted under section 121 of the Land Act of 1892 {since embodied in tho Consolidated Land Act of 1908) reserves the minerals and the right to enter and take them 4o tho Crown. This is the section under which the Southland land in question was leased. The lease itself contains tho following covenant; “ ‘ Tho lessee shall have no right to any mineral, mineral oil, gas, metal, coal, or valuable stone under the surface of the land hereby demised, the surface only of tho said land being demised and leased to the lessee, and the right to ingress, egress, and regress reserved to all persona lawfully engaged in working the said minerals, mineral oil, gas, metal, coal, or stone, is hereby reserved/ “ The Land Laws Amendment Act of last session, the report states, gives the right to the tenant to acquire r the foesimple of the land comprised in hia lease.’ The lease, according to the covenant, includes only tho surface and nothing below tho surface. “Tho report of_ the Crown Law {/ffico concludes with these words: ‘I think that the lessee is entitled to buy from the Crown,_ and the Crown is Bound to sell to him, the fee-simple of the land comprised in ' his lease. As minerals are not port of the land comprised in his lease, but are expressly reserved to tho Crown, he is not entitled to purchase the minerals. When ho becomes the purchaser of the land comprised in the lease, he does not become tho purchaser of tho minerals.’ ”