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The preamble of " The Native Lacd Act, 1873," which, with""The Na^ire Land Duties Act, 1873," is proposed to be repealed by " The Native Land Act, 1877," sets forth as follows:-—" Whereas it is highly deniable to establish a' system by which the Natives shall be enabled :at a less cost to have their surplus land surveyed, their titles thereto ascertained and recorded, and the transfer and dealings relating thereto facilitated: And whereas it is of the highest importance that a roll should be prepared of the Native lend throughout the Colony, showing as accurately as possible the extent and ownership thereof, with a view of assuringl to the Natives without any doubt whatever a sufficiency of their land for their support and maintenance, as also for the purpose of establishing endowments for their permanent general benefit from out of such land." "We assume that the preamble of the new Bill, when it becomes an Act will be similar in effect. At pre< sent we have to deal with a draft bill which proposes to repeal existing laws. As we understand the purport of Native Land Acts, divested of the legal phraseology of the above preamble they are intended to simplify the titles of the Native owners so as to enable them to dispose of the^r interests in the market, the same as Europeans can do. For this purpose Native Lands Courts were established, for the purpose of the investigation of title by gentlemen experienced in English law and well versed in Maori manners and customs and hereditary rights, to ascertain the real owners of the land, substitute Crown Grant 3 for the tenure at present existing, and, as seems moct important, to individualise the title of the owners or claimants where there is more than one, so that one obstructive Native cannot prevent a w,bole tribe from dispos* ing of their land if they be so minded. Legislation to these ends has been often attempted and as often amended ; and the great evils which, have arisen m?y be chiefly attributed to the change in t?:o policy of different governments. At one time there was free trade in land between Europeans and Natives, and difficulties and complications arose. -Then direct purchase was inhibited, the Government'

'reserving to itself the sole right to traffic in Native lauds. Then with another change in the political kaicidesco'pe a partial return was in ace io free trade in land, an exception being made with regard to ceriaiu districts. The provisions of these several Acts have been more or less rendered obsolete by the Government recognising rights acquired illegally—in open defiance of the Jaw; and the operation of the several Native Land Acts has bc:^ as unsatisfactory to the Natives as i:

the general public, certain indiuidufi.s possessed of influence and capital being allowed to acquire large tracts of land, while hundreds of would be settlers, possessing no influence and bu'c small capital, have been unable to pui-chase land either from the Government or from the Native owners. Any new legislation, therefore, it is contended, should be an improvement on the old. The evils which have grown up in the ti'Tip.j gone ':j sh'uld be avoided as far as pc&M^e : we propose o r.aalyse the iii: ::i. .S'll rad compa c ifc with the Act of 16/8 sco how far this end is likely to be p, abeJ. It requces, perhaps, some amount of technical knowledge to do this thoroughly m.l intelligibly. We do not pretend to a^y special qualifications for the work, but we shall endeavor to do it in such a way as to impart to our readers some idea of what the Bill now before us proposes, and leave them judge for themselves as to the probability of its being ultimately beneficial. As this cannot be done ia the limits of one article, we shall defer further remarks till another occasion.

Permanent link to this item
Hononga pūmau ki tēnei tūemi

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/THS18770620.2.9

Bibliographic details
Ngā taipitopito pukapuka

Thames Star, Volume VII, Issue 2636, 20 June 1877, Page 2

Word count
Tapeke kupu
648

Untitled Thames Star, Volume VII, Issue 2636, 20 June 1877, Page 2

Untitled Thames Star, Volume VII, Issue 2636, 20 June 1877, Page 2

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