SOUTHLAND LAND BILL.

Southland Times, Issue 1788, 2 September 1873, Page 3

SOUTHLAND LAND BILL.

A Bill intitutled an Act to amend tho Law relating to the eale, letting, and occupation of (he Waste Lands of tbe Crown, within that part of the Province of Otsigo formerly included in | the Province of Southland. Whereas it is expedient to reduce the price of land, and to provide for the sale of portions thereof upon deferred payments, in that- part of the Province of Otago which was formerly included within the boundaries of the late Province of Southland : Be it therefore enacted by the General Assembly of New Zealand in Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follow!" : — 1. The Short Title of this Act Bhall be "The Otngo Waste Lands Act, 1873." 2. It shall be lawful for the Superintendent to cause all the "waste lands of the Crown within the said district, and not included within any hundreds now existing, to be classified as rural Id nd and pastoral land respectively, and such c assifi cation be made by Commissioners appointeil for that purpose by the Superintendent and of such C< mmisnioners the Chief Sur- \ eyor of the district shall be one, and such Consmi.-sioners shall, within six months from the d te of their appointment, furnish to the Superintendent a description of the boundaries of the land so classified by them as agricultural land and as pastoral land respectively, which description shall be published in the Otago Provincia Government Gazette, and after such publicatio n the land therein described shall for the purposes of this Act be deemed to be agricultural land or pastoral land in ac cordanre with such description. 3. From and after the date of the publication of the aforesaid description of agricultural land and pastoral land in the Otago .Provincial Government Gazette, the price of agricultural land within the aforesaid district shall be forty shillings per acre, and the price of pastoral land within the aforesaid district shall be twenty shillings per acre, 'and the price of land within the hundreds now existing within tho said district shall be, except aa hereinafter provided twenty shillings per acre : Provided always, (hat if at any time tiie Superintendent and the Provincial Council of Otago shall recommend the Governor to raise such price, then it shall be lawful for the Governor in Council, if he Bhall see fit, .to raise such price over the whole or any part of the said district in accordance with such recommendation. ] 4. It shall be lawful for the Superintendent of Otago temporarily, and pending the meeting nest ensuing of the Provincial Council, to set I aside and reserve from sale such blocks of laDd within the said district as he shall see fit : Provided that such temporary reservation shall be null and void after the termination of the session next ensuing of the Provincial Council. 5. It shall be lawful for the Superintendent, with the advice and consent of the Provincial ] Council, to SPt aside lands within the now existing hundreds in the said district for sale on deferred payments, such lands to be sold and dealt with in terms of and subject to the conditions and provisions embodied in sections fortyseren to Bixty-four inclusive of "The Otago Waste Lands Act, 1872 :" Provided that whenever in the said sections of " The Otago Waste Lands Act, 1872," the following words are used, they shall bear the meanings hereinafter severally assigned to them, that is to say : — The words " District Officer" shall mean the Commissioner of Crown Lands for that part of the Province formerly included in the boundaries of the late Proviuce of Southland ; and the words " Waste Lands Board" shall mean the Waste Lands Board for the part of the Province of Otago forme) ly included in the boundaries of the Province of Southland, being the Waste Lands Board appointed under the provisions of " The Southland Waste Lands Act, 1865."

6. The laws regulating the sale letting and occupation of the waste lands of the Crown within the district aforesaid in force at the time of the passing of " The Otago and Southland Reuniou Act, 1870," shall continue to be in force in so far as they are not repugnant to the provisions of this Act.