THE AUCKLAND CONFISCATED LANDS.

Southland Times, Issue 584, 29 October 1866, Page 3

THE AUCKLAND CONFISCATED LANDS.

The colony will hear with, some sur prise that the arrangement between th( Government and the Superintendent o Auckland, by which the latter undertook carry out the Government scheme o military colonization in that Province, receiving all the confiscated land for its trouble, and a lonn of £100,000 in hand has fallen to the ground — all thai remains of the arrangement being the loan referred to. "We print below the announcement imde by Mr Whitaker, ir the House of Representatives, on the 28th ultimo, that he was unable to fulfil what he h;i d undertaken. it was a pity Mr "Whitaker did not make this fact known earlier in the session. A very onerous duty is thrown upon the Governi ment, one which seriously distnrbs their ■ plans of finance. We give the speech oi the Superintendent of Auckland, and the Colonial Treasurer's reply, as reported in the Independent : — Auckland Lo.o" Gfaraxtkk "Httl. On the question of the second reading of this Bill, Mr Whitaker said he would take the present opportunity of offering a word or two in explanation of the affairs of tbe Province to which he belonged, as during the sessioji, allusion had frequently been made to the proposed loan of £250,000, the £100.000 of which had been advanced to Auckland, and the confiscated lands that were handed over to the management of that Province. "With regard to the £100,000, he had had an opportunity of speaking on that subject before, and he trusted that the House knew perfectly the position in which the Province stood as far as that advance was concerned. Were it not that the session was so advanced, he might occupy more of their time than was his intention on the present occasion. He would now content himself with endeavoring to explain the position of affairs as concisely as he possibly could, and it would then be for the House to take whatever action they considered necessary. The House would recollect that in the session of 1865, resolutions were passed by which it was declared that it was expedient to hand over the management of the confiscated lands to the Province of Auckland for purposes of colonization on certain condi tions. The first of these conditions was that the Province should undertake certain liabilities attached to the confiscated lands, and that the proceeds derivable from them should cover those liabilities. The value of those lands was at that time a matter of the greatest uucertainty, and he must confess that the uncertainties were so great that it was with considerable diffidence that heundertook the management of the confiscated lands on behalf of the Province. It was estimated that the total value of the lands was £183,000 odd, and the liabilities estimated at £354,6i7. After taking over the management of the lands, the Provincial Government were very economical in their arrangements, and he undertook upon himself the responsibility and odium of having the claims for confiscation reinvestigatod. The inquiry was not yet finished, but when it should be, it would be found that a considerable saving had been effected. "Within the few months past, circumstances had arisen which had the effect of changing the aspect of things altogether, and it was now necessary that the whole matter should be re-considered. In the first place, looking at the necessity there was for the borrowing of money, of course the change that had taken place in reference to the money market was a serious drawback to going into the market to borrow, and this was the reason why the £100,000 could not be handed back to the General Government at the time originally intended. In the next place, a land revolution had occurred, and the value of these lands had decreased, and it was nscessary that something should be done at once. In his opinion land away from the town would continue to decrease in value from time to time, and it was for the House to say whether the Province of Auckland was in a position to carry on the management of the lands. The repayment of the £100,000 must be postponed, either until land enough was disposed of to enable them to pay it back, or uutil a fresh loan should be raised for the purpose of repaying the sum that had been advanced. He rould assure the House that in the event of the lands being handed over to the General Governmpnt, they would be returned to them in a better — at any rate, in as good a condition as that in which he had recehed them — and whether the Government should take the lands into their own hand or consent to a modification in the arrangements, he could assure the House that both himself and the Provincial authorities would render them erery assistance that lay in their power. As he said before, he did not seek to break any arrangements that he had entered into, for if the House should decide that the Province of Auckland should continue to have the management of the conficated lands, he was quite prepared to continue the responsibility. He would leave the matter entirely in the hands of the House. The Hon. W. Fitzherbert Said that the honorable member for Parnell had made a " clean breast " of the entire arrangement, but • regretted that they had not been stated to the House before the

present time. He admitted that miscalculations had been made before the arrangements with regard to the confiscated lands had been brought to a close, and eulogised the honorable member for Parnell for the candour he had exhibited in stating the matter to the House. Having heard that statement, and having before their eyes the altered aspect of affairs, what were they to do ? If they were to decline the original proposals ; if they were to decline going into the market for the raising of a quarter of a million of money, what were they to do ? For do something they must. They were almost brought down to a single alternative. There was the alternative of reconsidering at this stage of the Session the whole of their financial proposals The Government did not think they would be justified in doing so, but at the same time they were alive to the possibilifrv of their not being able to carry out its original proposals in their integrity during the twelve months' operation of the Appropriation Act. An honorable member had put a notice on the Paper, asking the House to agree in saying that the appropriations should not extend over twelve months. There was no necessity for this, for it was likely the Government would summon the Assembly before that date — perhaps in March next. In the meantime, the question was, what course did the Government propose de facto to meet those circumstances with which they suddenly found themselves surrounded. They had no alternative but to assume, with the hon. member for Parnell, the administration of these confiscated lands within the Province ©f Auckland ; and the Government agreed with the remarks of the hon. member, that for the benefit of the Province of Auckland, no less for the benefit of the colony, no time should be lost in bringing forward these lands for the sale (hear hear). In making this announcement, the Government did rely, and he was sure the colony relied, upon the active and cordial co-operation of the hon. member for Parnell. After all, he did not think that there was any cause for regret, although at first sight, the altered state of circumstances might give rise to disappointment. He concluded by moving — " That this Order of the Day be removed from the order paper." In reply to Mr D. Bell, the Hon. "W". Fitzhebbert said that the scope of his remarks was entirely confined to the confiscated lands in the Province of Auckland.