NATIVE LANDS COMMISSION

Gisborne Times, Volume XXVII, Issue 2472, 10 April 1909, Page 7

NATIVE LANDS COMMISSION

THE FINAL REPORT.

[Per Press Association.]

WELLINGTON, April 8. “The legislation on the Statute Book, though it urgently requires consolidation and slight amendment to harmonise conflicting details,, is sufficient to settle the Native lands of the North Island/’ declares the Native Land Commissioner, in the final report to the Government. “The Legislature,” It con tinues, “has armed various departments of the State and the Government with ample powers. What is required is prompt and efficient administration.” The report goes on to state the difficulties which surround the process of securing; partition orders from the Native Land Court, and points out that unless the State renders liberal assistance in advancing the cost of these preliminaries, and in providing the experts, the settlement of the large area covered by the Commission’s recommendations will be seriously delayed if the purpose of the Legislature is not ■defeated. There are 468,725 acres of papatupu land in tho North Island—land the titles to which have not been •'determined by a competent tribunal. “At this advanced stage of tho.’history of New Zealand,” the Commission states, “there should not lie any such thing as papatupu land. If the energies of the Native Land Court and the resources of the Native Department were directed more to these virgin districts. and less to the more settled portions of the North Island, settlement would extend more rapidly and with greater benefits to tho Dominion.” The report goes on to mention that business created by various “washing-

up Acts” hail disorganised sittings of ''the Native- * Land Courts more than usual, and cause lists were extremely 'congested with cases of succession. Un til regular eurcuits are established, it appears to the Commission that the work of these Courts cannot be properly and effectively organised. Judges would, in the Commission's opinion, ho relieved of much routine work (in which'is included the majority of succession claims) if the- registrar of the Court were appointed sole commissioners for the purpose of dealing with the succession ' cases, claims for adoption, .and-the like. The Native Land Court ■flench should be as far as possible re- , cruited from registrars of the Court, men who, -by their experience and training are familiar with the office. “At present.” comments the report, '■‘■'much of the Court work is behind hand, because of the inexperience of home of the judges, or of the necessities of travel, so that the only record for a month’s work of an important ordermay be a brief entry in the minute book.” The Commission estimates the amount of land owned by Maori people in the North Island to be 7,465,000 acres, while the area which came under the scope of its inquiry totalled 2,791.190 acres. At the outset it appeared to the Commission that the Wellington and Taranaki provinces (except upper Wanganui) and the -southern portion of Hawke’s Bay were most favorably situated with regard to the settlement of Native Lands, and that as the most valuable lands were efficiently occupied, these districts did not present the features of urgency possessed by the Auckland province, on which consequently tire most time and labor wore expended. In all 42 reports have been presented, the result of inquiries being as follows: Recommended" for general settlement, 696,620 acres; recommended ■for Maori occupation, 867,479; subject to special recoininieacLation, 477,137; grand total, 2,040,876 acres. In addition there arc 275,256 acres subject to timber agreements and other leases validated by Parliament which should be added to the total of lands recommended for European settlement. In advocating the consolidation of 60 different statutes containing the law in regard to Native Lands, the Commissioners’ report points out that at every stage of revision questions of policy await the decision of the Government and Parliament. “To deal with only one department, that concerned with the investigation of titles,,the rules in regard to succession and effect of wills and adoption need revision. In the cases of intestacy is the estate to go indiscriminately to the next of kin, or should there he an equitable distribution according to the value of inheritance and the number of successors ? We have known of a case where an interest of 20 acres, leased at an annual rental of 6d per acre, was awarded to 43 successors, from ivlioni the first year’s rent, the sum of 7s 6d, was deducted for the order and the swearing fee. As rears go on cases -of the kind must multiply, for tire movements of Maori people are bringing about an intermixture of tribes,'a widening of kinship, and therefore an extension of the area of search for the next of kin. A policy of individualisation or of consolidation of interests by exchanges, may be ignominiously defeated by conservative adherence to the present Native Land Court rule of succession/' The report suggests that consolidated measures would be valuable as an effort t-o take •’stock of the progress and training of Maoris to become industrious settlers, and in dealing with the remaining lands settlement of the Maoris should he the first consideration. Complaints in regard to the taxation of Native land were heard by the Commission, Natives stating that there were instances where the land tax absorbed more than the rent of the land leased. The Commission states that it appears if the interest of each individual Maori were assessed, and the usual exemptions allowed, most of the Maori land under lease would not be liable to land tax at all. A concession of one-half seemed to be no concession at all. It was a mistake to suppose that the present law gave, to the Maori any advantage over his European neighbors so far as lands under lease are concerned, and it should be remembered than more than onc-lialf of the Maori lands are now under lease. - As for local rating, the Commission is of opinion that the law as at present . administered does- not seem unfair, except in -rare cases. “The Maoris, ” states the report, “are realising more-and more that they must come under, the general local bodies under whose jurisdiction they reside, -and that in order to enable them to pay taxes thev must utilise their lands or alienate them te those capable of utilising the same. We are of opinionthat if the Legislature had m the past devoted more attention to making the Maori an efficient farmer and settler, the problem of local and general taxation would long ago have been-solved.