DUMMYISM.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume XI, Issue 3631, 6 October 1890, Page 2

DUMMYISM.

; T&o lato Oommlssion. Wo take the following from I lie Official report Mr W. W." M'Cardle, member of the Wellington Land . Board, examined, said!—l bare read a leader in the Palriatua Star, also an extract from a newspaper containing a letter Bigned by Mr Howlett. Well, in explanation, I will inform you of the facta of the case: My daughter applied for a section of 'land about twelve • months ago j she was tli'en just past nineteon years of ago. Since that , time she became engaged to bo married, and, owing to the fact that her intended, now her husband, »was a property-owner, and did not wish to have anything to do with the land, she parted with her intorost. Particulars were sent down to Mr Marchanfc with the application. I never interviewed Mr Marchanfc or any member of the Land Board with reference to the transfer, Mr Merchant brought it up in the usual way, stating he had no .objections to offer to the transfer, Tho transfer was agreed to by the Board, on the voices, 4s a member of the Land Board I took no part in the transfer, neither hav.e I any interest whatever nor did I ever havo' any interest, in the section, The facts as stated in the report by Mr Marchant aro correct, I might say that Mr Black, the editor of the Pahiatua.; paper, ' stated to me that his reason-for

Hitting in the article was that people hereunder the impression that my laughter hud been favoured in getting . i transfer as compared with other applicants. I have explained in my etter to him that this was not bo. Some time ago a very stringent rulo was passed by the Land Board in urder to prevent, as far as possible, Jummyism, One of the conditions imposed by tho Board .was that, unless a person made a declaration that he was leaving the district, his transfer was not agreed to. ' I may say that all along I have been opposed to this course, because it induced, a great number of people to' make declarations which were not exactly true. A few meetings ago tho Board resolved that in future every application should be considered on its merits, and if they were satisfied that a bettor class of settler was found in the new applicant than the present one who was parting with his interests, that would be the principal condition on which to agree tothe transfer, and this course ■ has been followed, This courso might bavo a tendency to indues •• speculative applications in the first instance in the hope that transfers might be allowed afterwards. I do not believe that a great deal of this sort of tbing has been going on ; there may have been a little. In the bush districts there are a great many drawbacks to settlement; tho men very often find that thoy have talton up thcland without sufficient capital to carry out the improvements rnd occupy the land. You must in theso cases either transfer their interest or sacrifice- the money they havo put into tho land. With rofercnco to tho question of dummyism and false declarations, I am very strongly of opinion that the ballot system is a mistako, Neither do I believe in tbe auction Bystem, But I understand there is a system in vogue in Victoria where the applicant has to appear before a Commission and make what statement he may think properThen from tho applicants the Commiefiioners usually select tho man they • think most suitablo. Of course this has its objections, as every system has, though it is said to work very well. A . gentleman who is well awave of the way in which the Act is worked in Victoria has,informed me that it bad done a great deal towards stopping dummvism, as there is a searching inquiry into the choracter of overy man's application, I think thoro may be a fow oases in tho Forty-mile Bush that might be looked upon as partly dummy cases, but I do not think there are many, ,[Mr James Daniel Ollmie, examined: —'Tl\e Chairman; What are you ?—I am a district surveyor. I havo been latelysurveying in tho Puketoi district. I hare surveyed theso blocks referred to by Mr Marchant, Would you be kind enough to tell us anything you know about this question that will help this Committee in its inquiries'/"-I really know vory little about it, It is understood that people wishing a section have sent in anumbefof applications to enhanco their chances of getting that iavourite section.

Do you ((now of tbeso cases your* self MVoll, I have heard it in general conversation in my camp amongst the applicants, It lias been done, Is that for sections whioh are taken up on pin'clmso or other systems ? Perpetual lease or deferred payment. Are they bush ssctions ?—All bush —yes. Two blocks which I havo surveyed have been much sought after—namely, the l'iraumca-Makuri and tha Makuri-Pukotoi Blocks, inasmuch as for a single section in one case there were 100 applicants, All these applications would como in to the Land Office, Wellington ? —Yes, Otherwise, J suppose you know nothing, except what you hear people talking about?— Just hearsay. I only know of two instances on my block' oj people being in occupation of more tip their legal quantity. They may beyeally acting as agents (or other people. How long have these selections been taken up 1-Just about twelve • months, In October and August of last year the sales took place. Are any of them occupied!— They are nearly all occupied. They are nearly all residing on their sections ill my blocks, and very extensive clearing is going on. Out of one block of 27,000 acres, last year there were 5,000 acres cleared, and I believe about three-quartors of the. 2?,000 acros will bo cleared this year, Genuine settlement is going on there i—-Very much so. Mr Smith: It is close to Pahiatua 1 —About fifteen miles to centre of block, People have come in droves from all over the colony to this Puketoi country. Many from Diinedin atid Canterbury' '' ,|! Is it limestone!— Yes j ancj Sop papa, ' ' ' 1 ■ Wiiat was the pyice —lt was put up at £1 58, and the last block went up to fit 12s fid, and £1 Jss for the first-class sections, You have ha 4 potpo experience, Mr Olimie: can you. tell the Com* mittee if the present system of ap* plication is satisfactory—that iB to say, when persons are applying is it not a kind of speculation now as to i whether thoy get the section or not! —i (liisk it is very much in that position: it i 8 1 1 " 10 8 lottery. I have known people wuG haV'fl Hot f.ppli9'l because fliey have known it to be next to use|ess;' -}' f . u ' Thero"arb,'T suppose, numbers of disappointed • applicants at thtp

j Bales whou only one is ' Bucccsaful out ofn hundred, • I Bupposo that whs the ronson thoy duplicated their applications ? •To enhance their chances—Yes. , It is noil known in th'o district 1— flt is common report that pcoplo do : ' got other people to put ia applications '.to enhanco their chances. In a . groat raauy cases they have been relations. V . They do not caro to trust strangers i with tlicm if. they can help it?— | Do you think there was any ; speculation in tho matter—tlmt is to I. 'say, persons going in for this block, not witli tho intention of taking it up themselves, but to transfer it to others I—l think that has been very 1 general throughout tho who[o (lis- ' trict. 1 A gom}. deal of it I—Yes, , Thatw, speculation by means "of a I transfor ?—Yes, afterwards at increased prices, That is really what tho Committeo | is inqiMfc into; that I look upon j its dtimnjpi— whona man has no intention or improving, but intends to sell his chance to somebody else. There has been a ! good deal of that in tho district?— In the case of several seotiocs in my block peoplo have not intended to reside; if they could get a transfor - they preferred to sell it. As soon after as possible!-Yes, , as soon as they could got the transfer. Do you know if thero have been many transfers made in tlmo block 1 ; —The Wellington Land Board, and tho Commissioners in particular, 1 'know, strongly set their faces againsl transfers unless a person can show good grounds for it, But lately I have noticed there wen : a large number of transfers granted f thero did not scein to bo much troubli about them ?-No. You do not think tho law require] altering to prevent that kind of thin; ■ being possible?—l havo ofton thoujhl that the law should bo altered in tin direction of the Victorian system—toi instance, I have thought that tin Board should make inquiries as t< suitability/of applicants; and whet transfertjjfasked for, tho land ougli to roveimck direct to tho Govorn ment, and let them sell it over again The Chairman: The Crown wouli then get the benefit of the differenci in the price whatever it might be ?- Yes. Mr Eliodea: Aro most of Hies sections sold or transferred, do yo think, bofore the improvements ar made ?—Tho improvements aresubjec to the approval of tho Banger. I d think thoy have been done in all case; Are the improvements dono by th purchaser and not by the origins tenderer in many cases ?—By th purchaser, but I do not know for cei tain, Mr Thompson: Have most of th transfers taken place in cases of lan obtained direct from tho Governmen or within the limits of tho specii settlement associations ?—I thin more in the special settlement blooki as far as I havo observed j but I canm Bpoak with any certainty on that noin Havo you any idea that any of the; special settlement blocks liaro bee taken up largely for specul ition ?- Well, a numbor of peoplo in tho epecii settlements havo taken them up wit that objefc, I believo, Ido not kno —taking them as a body—if thoy hai .. dono so. I know of individual men ber3 of tljb associations who ha\ . takon it up as a speculation, Hon Mr .Richardson: As far as yc know, are you aware of anything ill tho same proportion of speculate acquisition of land direct from tl Government as there has been throug these special settlement associations i your district ?—I think thero has bet nearly as much. There has in my block Nearly as much in once case as i the other ?—I think so, 'Che sectioi have been much larger in my blocli and there has not been such a numb of applications in the same area, course,