WEST COAST LEASES.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LII, Issue 39, 11 March 1909, Page 4

WEST COAST LEASES.

SALE OF RENEWAL, LEASES.

The liist renewals of leases under the We-t Coa-t (Settlement Reserves Act, IWI. were >o!d by auction by the New Zeaia.ul Uian and Mercantile Agency Co.. at tin ir yard-, at Opuuake, on Monday. The lauds oiured were in occupation of Mt--r- Tinkler and D. O'Sulli'vaii, ami were situated between, the Waiaiia ami Jla.igahume livers, and adjacent in the .Main South road, The form of arbitration to assess capital value and value i,t improvements had been duly gone through, Mr. Geo. W. Rogers acting f.,i the lessees, ami Mr. 'John Hcslop for we Public Trustee. The first lot offered was 7.5 acres, frontrag the Waiteika road, and at present occupied by Mr. D. O'Sullivan. The upset fixed was £22 18s (Id, or slightlyj oyer tfe per acre, and it was weighted •witli £275 IBs (Id for improvements. The bidding went along spiritedly until £43, or equal to lis (id per acre was reached, at which price it was knocked Idown to .Mr. O'Sullivan, the preseut lessee. Lot 2, containing !W'/ 2 acres, at an upset rental oi £32, or about lis (kl an acre, and weighted with £32 10s for improvements, was the next lot offered. The .bidding for this lot went at a hurricane rate, until. £l)2, or ISs (id

per acre, wa-s. reached, when it fell to] tho native owner, who naturally was in a position to outbid all competitors, as the rent was merely a transference of the money from one pocket to the other, less the commission to be paid the l'ublic Trustee for administration. Lot S contained 235 acres, at an upset rental of £l)3 !)s Ud, or about 7s 111 per acre, and weighted with £B2B 14s (id for improvements. An "intelligent Yankee," some yeans ago, in writing about a gale in Canterbury, said nearly ever}' building in a small town was shifted more or less by it, except the church, and he afterwards found that the church had a heavy mortgage on it, so he concluded that there was nothing like a mortgage to withstand a gale. f:i like manner, it good weight, in the shape of improvements, putts a damper on bidding, as the auctioneer, with all ,liis persuasive eloquence, could not extract an advance on the upset, at which it was knocked down to the present lessee.—Times.