THE Evening Star. PUBLISHED DAILY AT FOUR O'CLOCK P.M. Resurrexi. FRIDAY, MAY 3, 1878.

Thames Star, Volume VIII, Issue 2875, 3 May 1878, Page 2

THE Evening Star. PUBLISHED DAILY AT FOUR O'CLOCK P.M. Resurrexi. FRIDAY, MAY 3, 1878.

Thk New Zealand Herald iiad an article in yesterday's issue on the mining laws of the Colony, in which special reference was made to the exceptional circumstances; of the Thames. Our contemporary remarks': *'The Thames, it will be recollected, was opened under peculiar circumstances. It was, in factj only on the sufferance of the natives that diggers were permitted tQ land there at all, end then only on the condition that each man should pay £1 for a miner's right—the money, to go to the native owners. This condition still exists in a modified form, but the revenue from miners' rights is still native revenue, the money which, under ordinary circum-

Btances, would be available for the necessary purposes of the district, for making and extending roads, or, if^need te, of subsiding individual or concerted prospeoting efforts, is, owing to.this agreement, entirely diverted from what slforild be its legitimate purpose. But there is another phaie in which this peculiarity of the Thames Goldfields has made itself disagreeably felt. To every request for the reduction of the miners' rights fees the answer was that it could' -not be granted; that the miners'^ rights fees belonged to the natives, and until the freehold of the goldfields was obtained, no redaction couW be made; The payment of,-* miner's r,ight feo, al- i though it is a direct tax upon industry, might, be_ tolerated in the same..manner as the existing gold dutyisi provided the revenue thence accruing was available for the purposes of thel district in which it was raised, but it becomes a most intolerable imposition when it is diverted to the pockets of thei'natives. How this can be ' remedied,: however, we confess we do not at present very clearly see." The natives >jriUj .jwniat);in.'V'theiF-:< jdemattd ifoir their. " pound of flesh," and the acquisition of the freehold of the'property appears as far off tOS ever.'' , T^e mayyobserve,: that if our contemporary would lend the weight, of his influence an urging the Government to acquire the freehold of the gpldfield, and such were successfully carried out» some of the exceptional circumstances which militate against-the mining industry would %be 'removed^ Thes'Hoh.i the Native ■ Minister, when he was last amongst us, said he did not know any. reason why. the freehold of the goldfield should not be acquired, except, that it would not do to put? too; much work oh MrPreece's shoulders at one' tihiei' anji; the completion of purchases at Ohinemuri was deemed the,,more argent work. As we hive before sßemarked,'; we^ believe the present timrwould be very, favorable. fqr,carryiDij putthisibusinesii ?Alarg©area of'the fieldjisluq^cupied, and the income derived therefrom by]tlS6#gttv^ownfirg is trifling, so that they would be more likely to sell now than at a time when the revenue was considerable. The land is comparatively worthless for agricultural purposes, but if it Were in the hands of the Govern-' 1 ment, and could be dealt with under the, agriculturi^leaarag re§iila'tibn|,' some selectipn».T|r,ould. ando^btedly be taken up, and a new source of revenue, as well as :anladcliiional inidiisiry.Ve^eTeloped.--v.'Wjev trust that ther Government .will not lose sight of this matter of acquiring the free* hold of the goldfield part of the Hauraki feniflsula. ';»■?!■'' T'T.?.';-' '"'I '■/■''- *•■■*'■