COAL-BEARING LANDS

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIV, Issue 289, 3 June 1912, Page 4

COAL-BEARING LANDS

A QI'ESTIOX OF TENURE. When Parliament decreed that Crown tenants should liave the option of converting their leases into the freehold tenure, it apparently did not fully takei stock of those settlers whose holdings, were subject to mining rights. Wheii| certain blocks of land in the Taranaki land district were opened up for seleci tion, many of the sections showed out-\ crops of coal, and the leases of the sett tiers taking up these holdings were ac-; eordingly endorsed to the effect that the) lessees had no power to open up minesi on their selections, the State reserving the right to itself. Later on came aii| amendment of the Land Act, making it) optional for holders of leases-in-perpetui ity to buy the freehold of their selec-i tions. Among those who sought to takq advantage of this enactment was one Bennio, a lessee of a section on which there were outcrops of coal. The Com-) missioner for Crown Lands deferred hia| application, holding that the amending Act did not possibly apply to on which mining reservations had been| placed. The court to which the point was referred, however, found in faror o| the lessee. So far, very few thus situated have taken advantage ol this decision. One of those Who con-j verted their holdings was a lessee Barnett, in the Waitewhena Valley, his and the adjoining land is reported ta 'be rich in coal. The same seam that has ben found on Barnott'sp roperty it said to crop out at Tangarakau, soma twenty miles away. Some of the coal there is reported to be similar in Quality) to Taupiri coal. The coal on another] property in the district in which Ben* nett's section lies is credited with being similar to Mokau coal. Other holderq of the leases in question are apparently also desirous of testing the value of th« coal seams on their lands, for at th« last meeting of the Taranaki Land Board the ranger reported that two seleetorq were opening up a coal mine on seetioq 8, block 5, Aria. The Board decided to draw the attention of the lessees to th« fact that they hadl no right to commil waste by opening up mines on their lease* holds. It also decided to refer tha matter to the Lands Department advice.

Incidentally, it is interesting to not* that for many settlers, who are fortunate to lease sections having ing strata, the possibilities of a coal strike hold no terrors. When the coali cellar needs replenishing, the farmell wends his way to a likely spot, and with' apade, pickaxe and bucket is soon in possession of the requisite fuel.