Mr Bryce on West Coast Affairs.

Patea Mail, Volume VI, Issue 536, 22 June 1880, Page 3

Mr Bryce on West Coast Affairs.

SERIOUS ACCUSATIONS. The Hon. the Native Minister, who was received with loud applause, moved the second reading of the Native Lands Court Bill. He said the object of the Bill was to simplify the question of the sale of native lands. Of the various Bills which would be brought in, each would be found to deal with different branches of the subject. The Native Lands Court Bill, now before the other House, dealt with the question of the ascertainment of title. The present Bill had nothing to do with that subject. The Government had introduced a 13111 which swept away all other Bills on the subject. Those Bills were eight in all. The Bill now before that House could very well bo considered by itself. It must be admitted that the course which had been followed hitherto had not been a satisfactory one, but they had always gone on the assumption that in their dealings with the native lauds they must do so under the Treaty of Waitangi, in which the Queen reserved to the natives all the land which they might possess. PREVIOUS FAILURES. This question of the purchase of native lands had for years been felt to be a critical one, and no Government seemed to care to deal with it. There was no doubt that the Native Lands Bill shipwrecked the Atkinson Government, which brought it in. That Bill, however, indicated unmistakeabl}' in what direction the House and the country wished legislation to go in regard to native lands. The Atkinson Government then went out of office, and the Grey Government came in. That Government came in to improve the character 1 of our legislation with regard to the sale

of native lands and the management of native affairs. But he had no hesitation in saying they failed in hoth. Although a Native Lands Bill was promised by the Government, it was not brought in until a few days before the Government went out of office. The usual course, however, was not adopted, and the Bill was not distributed. And if the Grey Government had remained in office he believed they would have dropped the Bill. Of late the native land purchase system had attained a magnitude hitherto undreamed of. He almost despaired of making the House understand the terrible character of the system that had been pursued in reference to the purchase of the native land. He should, however, try to do so, and convince the House that the present system must not continue. The advance system had been the great feature in iheir way of purchasing land. The Government had gut into the most objectionable method of making these advances. He referred to the system of giving orders on storekeepers, He referred to £II,OOO which had passed through the hands of one agent alone at Tauranga. IE a Maori got an order upon the storekeeper ho was asked to sign a blank voucher. It was then put away in a portfolio. The agent got the money from Wellington, and then be went to the portfolio, got the vouchers, and filled them up with sums that wore necessary to make the amounts balance.

CHEATING THE NATIVES. It frequently happened that members of a tribe who had not consented to the sale of their land would find themselves put down as having absolutely received moneys on account. They had committed iniquities, but had not got the reward for it. And could they expect that reward now ? When tiiesc vouchers were presented was it to ho supposed that the Maoris would not dispute them ? They had all their troubles before them when they came to settle up, and he was quite sme that the Government stood to lose a very largo sum of money. The Land Purchase Fund had been a convenient fund to draw from. A good many charg.-s had been put down to Patetere—for expenses incurred at the Thames, in the Waikato, and even in Wellington. But he would tell them something more about Patetere, which seemed to he a sort of receptacle for doubtful payments. The block was about £250,000 acres in extent. In 1872 a company in Auckland sought to obtain this land from the Maoris, In 1873 they succeeded in obtaining a document which they called a lease from certain Maoris in the Waikato. At that time there were some nine blocks in all. They were going on with the surveying when the murder of Sullivan took place, which stopped their proceedings They then negotiated with the Government for the sale of the lease, which the Government ultimately purchased, giving the Government £3600 for the lease, which contracted for the payment to the Maoris of £907 a year as rent. Since then Patetere had boon regarded as a sort of thing against which doubtful payments could always bo charged. The purchase by the Government was made in 1873. On account of this land there had been paid from time to time the sum of £II,OOO altogether. WEST COAST MISMANAGEMENT. SERIOUS ACCUSATIONS. He would now refer to the West Coast, but would not detain the House long. In justice to this part of New Zealand, however, he did not think the system of blank vouchers obtained there. A little crowd of speculators had gathered on the West Coast, who bid against the Government agents until the land went up to three times its value. Then another thing happened. The Government agent had to rely on the Maoris for the areas of land, and they were generally very much overestimated. For instance, an area of 70,000 acres on examination dwindled down to 7000, and in some instances the amount of the advances absolutely came to more than the full value of the land. The speaker described how the Government agents transacted their business. The land purchase agent was now in business with his son, and a good many of the advances made by the agent had been made out of their store, in the shape of buggies, harness, and other things. This was a most reprehensible way of doing business. Any money advanced upon land was under the present system mainly advanced by a single individual. He would now refer to the question of compensation which was made of the Land Purchase Fund to natives who were supposed to have interest in the confiscated lands. The payments to the chief were made in secret, and sometimes they were directed not to pass their own names, but to sign fictitious ones, in order that the vouchers should pass. The Hon. the Native Minister described a native meet*

ing at Waitara,at winch £IOOO was wanted, The agent, however, applied for the money as though it were wanted at Hawera. How did he account for it ? He get three men, who did not own any land on the Waimate Plains, to sign the certificates, and lie himself certified that it was strictly correct. Not a penny of that £IOOO went to either of the three Maoris in question, but was all spent at the Waitara meeting. The account sent down, and which would be laid on the table, on the subject of some of these advances, was the moat extraordinary which the House was ever likely to see. A CLEAN SWEEP. If what he had stated was correct, it was quite time that the present system was swept away. He did not know what effect his remarks had upon the House, but his expectations would not be fulfilled if they had not made up their minds that that system must be swept away. (Hear, hear.) Then the next question was to find a remedy. He maintained that the proper cure would be the system of preemptive right, but at the same time ho was afraid that was impossible. Some people in the colony thought free trade was the proper cure, but that was not his idea. Then what remained ? He thought what remained was indicated in the Bill of which he had proposed the second reading. He admitted at once that objection could be found to any Bill that might be submitted. It had been said that the best remedy in this matter would be to secure the highest price for the natives. He did not think that, but believed in a fair price and the settlement of the country. (Hear, hear.) His own opinion was that the Bill now before the House would secure this. He maintained that the present land system was good for the settlement. It was quite true that the natives might not avail themselves of the provisions of the Bill, but it could not be denied that the Bill would be a great advantage to them, and they could not fail to see it. The Bill would afford the Maoris an opportunity if they wished it of selling their land, but would absolutely take away from them the pressure and persecution under which they labored at the present time. (Hear, bear.) He believed the plan embodied in the Bill was the most feasible which could be brought before the House. The Hon. the Native Minister then proceeded to explain the provisions of the Bill.