Untitled

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume XXIV, Issue 9662, 3 November 1882, Page 3

South AtjsteawAn , Lands. —A correspondent to the " Age," and who claims to have the best mean* of information at hand, thus describes land manipulation in South Australia: —"The present Government of. South Australia since assuming office hare allowed the whole of ,the surveyed, lands in the Northern Territory, being the unsold hundreds of the original survey, containing about 200,000 acres," to be taken up by Adelaide rings, formed for the purpose, at 7s 6d per acre, and immediately this had been done, suspend«dthe existing Act and brought in another raising the price of any blocks that may remain of the survey to 12s 6d per acre, and withdrawing from the operation of any Land Act all other lands in the territory. By this it is sought to compel any'settlers who require land to purchase from- the companies who have secured the land. As the law now standß, no person can get land in the territory, and for 30. miles round the two townships of Palmerston and Southport, the land has been alienated to foreign holders, the only exceptions being perbnps 50 of the worst of the 320-acre blocks (original survey), which arc located here and there about the swamps Eighty thousand acres were given away two years ago to eighteen members of Parliament and others, on the condition that 10s per nere should be expended on improvements when the Crown grant should issue; 400 acres only of this hind has been occupied on the Douglas Peninsula. While this wholesale alienation of the land was going on, several settlers who applied under the Act >fqr:the survey of 30 to 50-acre'blocks, wore refused the land under various pleas. The surveyed line for a railway to Pine Creek passed through some of the iinsold blocks, and a late'ring in Adelaide, haying infomiation of this, secured them all at 7s 6d por acre, under the nose of the Minister, who is said to be interested with them in the purchase."