The Patea Mail. (Published Wednesdays and Saturdays) Saturday, October 19, 1878.

Patea Mail, Volume IV, Issue 366, 19 October 1878, Page 2

The Patea Mail. (Published Wednesdays and Saturdays) Saturday, October 19, 1878.

The Report presented to the Assembly by Secretary of the Grown Lands Department fur the year ending June. 1878, shows that since the foundation of the Colony up to the COdi of June last, 13 million acres of land have been sold, or otherwise disposed of, thetotal cash received being £ 10,450,228. The total area of land open for selection on the same date, was 14,892,486 acres, and there was also a further area for disposal of 19,876,847 acres, but presently •withheld by Land Boards, or held under Tease. And there is the native territory and lands sold by Natives to Europeans, of about 16,500,000 acres. The total area of the Colony being over 04 million acres.. Louring the past y>.ar there have been sold; —Town lnnds.467 acres, omitting fractions, to 989 purchasers ; suburban : 2,023 acres to 174 purchasers ; rural : 828,330 acres to 5,501 purchasers ; for which cash has been received to the amount of £1,450,251 5.s 9d, and scrip representing £27,288 18s od. In the North Island, the absolute sales of lands during the past year have been : town lands, 108 acres to 224 purchasers ; suburban, 621 acres to 45 purchasers ; jura), 136,963 acres to 841 purchasers ; fo* which cash to the amount of £121,910 10s 6d, and scrip representing £24,836 2s 4d, has been received. On the deferred payment system there have been during the twelve mouths, 1,656 applications made, and 405 approved, covering a total area of 60,240 acres. In Taranaki, 70 j applications have taken up 7,193 acres.

Tile Commissioner at Tamnaki points out that this is less than 131 apphcalions. and 11,‘ill acres, the business of the previous year, and the falling off he. says ■“ tfl to be attributed to the extremely high terms imposed on licenses, under ‘ Ihe Land Act, 1877.’ These terms, though perhaps not pressing too heavily on occupiers of open land, are yet all hut prohibitory to intending settlers in fon st districts,” in proof of which he reports that no section whc-lly covered with bush, had been taken up under the hand Act of 1877. Alter referring to the successful application of the deferred payment system in Otago and Southland, tnc report says, “ In the system as now in force, toe Government just take the same position with regard to the Crown Lands that large proprietors do when they sub-divide their estates, and as an inducement to buyers, offer to receive payment by instalments. The system lias been largely availed of by pushing laboring men and by small settlers from the early settled districts, win have sent, forth their sons ant! daughters, and in some instances have sold out, and gone themselves to have a fresh start with more scope. In this way a very superior class of settlers have spread over and occupied the country, beneficially to themselves and it. No other system that has been tried has so effectually secured tl.ij desirable result.”