SALE OF THE OTAGO RUNS.

South Canterbury Times, Issue 2787, 28 February 1882, Page 3

SALE OF THE OTAGO RUNS.

(Pee Press Association.) Dunedin, Feb. 27. The sale of Otago runs began to day at Watson’s Hotel, but in consequence of the large attendance the proceedings had to be adjourned to* the Garrison Hall, in which there were probably a thousand persons when the sale began, about six hundred remained present on an average during the day. The auctioneer, Mr R. B. Martin, started to sell shortly after eleven o’clock, and an adjournment was made for the day at six o’clock, by which time 101 runs out of the total of 170 had been disposed of. Only two were passed in, no bid being received, and only some three or four went at the upset. Generally the bidding was spirited, the bids being in the main in £5 and £lO. Once, out of sheer prmnsiiy, a bid h r bound the auctioneer do.ui to the conditions. in. 'iking him take XI bid:-., and about half-an-hourwas wasted over <vnr> run, and when ho secured it the audience hissed. The contest generally lay between a couple or three bidders, and in some cases where from an upset of £290 or £3OO, a price of £BOO or £IOOO was reached, the pluck of the contesttants evoked great applause. The rental which the 63 runs as at present divided

brings in is about £24,500. The total rental obtained to-day for 101 out of the 170 sub-divided runs is within a thousand or so of £40,000. It was estimated that if a fourth over the upset were obtained all round, the total would be about £43,000, so that judging from to-day’ sale, instead of one fourth more being obtained, quite double the upset price will be nearer the mark. The highest rental for any single run sold to-day is £IO6O, and the upset price in that case was £3OO, the buyer being the previous occupant, Mr F. O. Fulton. In another case Connell and Moody paid £920 for one of which the upset price was £260, in this case the former lessee losing the run. In another case £490 was obtained for a run of which the upset price was only £75. but taken allround the average was about double the upset price. Generally the former lessees repurchased, but in several instances new owners secured lots, although the great majority of these were persons who have been formerly interested in runs. In only one case so far —and that in the case of the first run offered —did what might be termed a country settler purchase. Indeed the bidding was principally confined to the runholding class, but in some of the runs to-morrow more competition may be expected from outsiders, that is, from persons who reside in the neighborhood. Another fact probably worth mentioning is that so far as could be ascertained there were were no Australian bidders. therefore, the sale has been a decided success, at anyrate from the point of view of the Government, who will have a largely increased rental.

[By Telegraph.] THIS DAY. At the sale of the runs to-day very high prices were realised, most lots averaging an increase of 80 per cent on the upset rentals. Dalgetty and Co., were the principal purchasers.