The Gisborne Standard AND COOK: COUNTY GAZETTE. Published every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday Morning. Thursday, June 26, 1890. THE WHANGARA CASE.

Gisborne Standard and Cook County Gazette, Volume IV, Issue 472, 26 June 1890, Page 2

The Gisborne Standard AND COOK: COUNTY GAZETTE. Published every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday Morning.

Thursday, June 26, 1890. THE WHANGARA CASE.

Be just and fear not • Let all the ends thou aim’st at be thy country’s, Thy God's, and truth’s.

The arrangements in this case have now got to such a stage that we think we may safely congratulate the parties concerned on the prospect of an early and final settlement being arrived at. Apart from the satisfaction which this should be to the parties directly concerned, by the cessation of ligation and the removal of further anxiety, it will be a great blessing to the district. It will likely pave the way to many future settlements of the kind, and result in a clearing up process which will be not merely of great benefit to the East Coast district, but to other parts of the colony which are directly bound up in confused native land titles. The counsel engaged in the case, Mr W. L. Rees for the natives, and Mr H. J. Finn for the applicant (Mr Seymour) are entitled to great credit for the way they have set about the work of bringing matters to an amicable settlement. It follows as a matter of course that the case would never have got so much mixed up in litigation if the clients on either side

had not felt they had justification for what was done, and the outcome naturally was that every step taken led things into a deeper mass of confusion than was the case with the preceding step. Were this to go on the expenses must eventually amount to more than the value of the land. Happily all that can be done within a short period has been done to bring about a settlement, and there is little reason to doubt that the natives will unanimously approve of the action taken after they have discussed it according to their custom. There is no doubt that Messrs Rees and Finn have done all they can towards that end, and in expressing our admiration of their work we are also tendering the gratitude of the public, because while we feel that the clients cannot be losers by such a course we know that the district must be a great gainer. That gain certainly is not perceptible at the present moment, but it\ery soon will be when Messrs Rees and Finn have had an opportunity of clearly proving how competent men can promote pros - perity by tact and good sense.