THE GUMFIELDS' COMMISSION.

Wairoa Bell, Volume V, Issue 206, 14 July 1893, Page 8

THE GUMFIELDS' COMMISSION.

A sitting of the Commission was held in Auckland oil Friday last when Charles M. Best, varnishmaker of Avondale, said that before he left England the use of Kauri gum was extending- as the article was increasing in favour, The only advantage of Manilla was its finer colour. Kauri gum had little to fear from the competition of other gums, as it was preferred by those who made varnish as well as by those who used it.. Varnish to the value of £15,000 was annually consumed in New Zealand. John Lundon said there was a great deal of gum in the live forests up North, both on the trees and in the ground. At Hcrekino many settlers had thrown up their holdings to engage in gumdigging. He considered licenses should only be given 1o married persons who should be given land in the vicinity of gum forests, and he recommended settlements at Hukerunui, Omakotu, Maunganui Bluff and Hokianga. The 14,000 acres of land granted to the Kaihu Railway Company for the construction of the railway would now, he believed, be bought back by the Government at a reasonable figure. The Austrians would be only too glad to settle on this land. It could be bought for £1 an acre. Mr Firth asked what was the cause of the neglect of the North, though it was the richest part of the colony in natural products ? Mr Lundon replied that it was because the people had no political influence. The Commission should ask for £500,000 (they might get half that) for the construction of roads and works North of Auckland, There were about 0,000 gumdiggers on the fields up North. About half of these were old men.