NEW ZEALAND: GENERAL

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XXXI, Issue 16, 16 April 1903, Page 19

NEW ZEALAND: GENERAL

It is stated that the Government has agreed to pay £.242,000 for the Levels estate, which has an area of 38,000 acres. Possession is to be given on March 31 next. s

The Mayor of Timaru, in the course of a speech some days ago, remarked that he did not believe there was another district of the same size under the English flag that could compare with South Canterbury in productiveness, and he doubted if, in any other part of the world, a population of 30,000 produced as much as* was obtained in that fertile district.

At present 600 co-operative workmen are employed on the North Island Trunk Railway, on the left bank of the Wanganui river, and work is being pushed on vigorously. Last week a start was made with the erection of the railway bridge over the Wanganui river at Taumaranui. The work will take at least two years to complete.

The railway traffic to and from Dunedin during the Easter holidays was very heavy, and it is satisfactory to know and complimentary to the department that the large numbers who took advantage of the line weather to travel by rail were conveyed to and from their destinations without a single hitch or accident of any kind. This speaks well for the ofheers of the department, who had their hands very full in coping with the press of work during the holidays.

With very gieat regret (says the ' Inangahua Times ' of April 7) we have to report that Dean Rol land's health is in no way impioved, on tho contrary it was found necessaiy to remove him to the hospital yesterday afternoon lor the purpose ol having an operation performed. Doctois Conlon and Scott held a consultation on Wednesday last and decided that this course was absolutely necessary in older to save his life Both doctois are sanguine as to the result, although, of course, at Dean Rollanu's advanced age an operation of this kind is always attended with a certain amount of danger. The iev\ gentleman, however, bears up with characteristic lortitude under the trying ordeal, exhibiting in his whole demeanor that sublime resignation and implicit (onlidime in God, which have sustained him through 'ik- of many trials and vicissitudes. We who know Dean Rolland so "well have only to hope with earnestness andi sincerity that the operation may prove successful, and that he wav be spared for many jeans to come to discluuge his jv'ie.^tly ministrations

Speaking at Waimate last week the lion Hall-Jones referred to the marvellous change which had taken place m Cheviot since it was acquired by the Government. A comparison ol the position now. he said, with the \ osi"tion of the estate before it was acquired by the Government was an object lesson to all who diflered from the Government in their land settlement policy. To give an illusti ation : In 1R92, when the estate was acquired, the ownei had upon it 82.000 sheep and 53 head of dairy cov\s, and obtained 7ODO bushels o) oats from it Last ve.ir theie was 196,000 sheep, nearly (5000 dairy cows, and moie than 10 times the (inantity of grain grown at the time the estate was owned by the Robinsons.

Ihe lands acquired by the Government under the Land lor Settlement Act up to the end of September last (said Mr Seddon in his speech at Waunate last week) weie valued at £2,.">96.721 Canterbury's share was £97.") 714 and, with some estates boucht snue and tho pin chase of the Levels (£24 2,000). the amount was btought up to a million and a-quaiter Canterbury had tared well and rightly so There were few Crown lands in the province and the largest estates were drawing the sons and daimhteis of the settlers to the North Island ,>>• elsewheie Auckland had 2,513,000 acres of Crown 1 mds • Hawke's Bay 270,000 acres ; Tnranak.i, 557,000 acres' Wellington. ' 73-1. 000 acres; Nelson 8,351.000 acres • Marlborough, 1-12,000 acres ; Canterbury, 4876

acres ; Westland, 358,000 acres ; Otago, 1,723,000 acres; and Southland. 1,911,000 acres. It could not be said, then, that Canterbury had had more than its share of the public moneys, and the Government were not going to stop acquiring land for settlement in the province. AVhen land was required, and could be secured at a fair price, the Government would purchase it. As to the manner in which some of the owners of the large estates had undervalued the land, he would produce figures to pro\e his case. The land tax value of the Levels estate was a little over £2 per acre, and yet the Go\ eminent were paying £6 9s an acre for it.

One of the measures most adversely criticised at one time was the Advances to Settlers Act, and Mr. Scddon, in the course of a speech last week, showed how beneficial it has been to the people of the Colony. lie said that the number of applications received under that Act up to September 25, 1902, was 15,758, repiesenting a sum of £5,500,000. The number of applications authorised was 12,000. The number of advances authorised which were declined by the applicants was 1500. The amount of the applications granted came to £4,046,000, less £694,000, which was not taken up, leaving the amount authorised and accepted by applicants at £3,352,720. Up to the present no losses had Leen made, and for the three millions authorised the Government held good real estate security valued at over four and a half millions. It was said by the Opposition that the Government would lend money to their iriends, and that the taxpayers would have to make good large sums of money but, strange to say, those who rushed the Department and asked for the largest sums were those who had actually feared the Government were going to give the money 'to their iriends.

Speaking at Waimate on Thursday Mr. Seddon said he had to announce in connection with the Government Life Insurance Department, that the accounts for the past year had been audited. The bonus certificates amounted in the aggregate to £290,000, and the reversionary bonuses represented a cash divisible surplus of £167,900. At one time there was a doubt as to whether the Government should take up life, insurance, but the position of the Department to-day showed that it was a step in the right direction, and that the people of the Colony and benefited by what had been done. It was the same with the Accident Insurance Department. In spite of all that was said, good results had followed. Fremiums had been brought down, and the Department as a whole was working "satisfactorily Alter the outside companies had cut down the rates too low, thinking they were stronger than the Government and the people of New Zealand, they had come to the Government and asked them to reduce the premiums. Next session the Government would also introduce a Government Fire Insurance Bill, and press it on the representatives of the people. Noting the high charges of private companies in different districts, it behoved Parliament to give relief, and this relief could be granted with safety to the public funds, and with advantage to the people The Government had succeeded with the Life and Accident Departments, and why should they not satisfactorily work a Fiie Department? He had been thinking the matter o\er. and he had an idea of a new departure In reading of the bonuses granted under the life insurance scheme, he thought they might give bonuses to the fire insurers. Instead of the profits going to the Government, let them go to the insurers. The insurers would, doubtless, make' every effort to prevent fires, and by so doing they would earn a larger bonus. No doubt, adverse criticism would be showered on his devoted head, because the insurance companies were powerful in the country, and had powerful influence with the Tress He recognised, too, that he would not get the bill through without a fight, but he loved a fight.