80

A.—4

tionate to the portion of the year extending from the expiration of twelve months from date of application up to the 31st of the following March, on which day the annual payments are due thereafter A limit is fixed at 5,120 acres, which may be held by one purchaser, including all his selections. Under the Act of 1868 an area of 10,880 acres were allowed to be selected. " Homestead selections," involving actual personal residence, are also provided for at 2s. 6d. per acre. In the case of auction sales, 20 per cent, is paid on the sale, and the balance within thirty days. The survey fee is fixed on a scale proportionate to the area. The fees on Crown grants, and the fees of the Real Property Office, "Land Assurance Fund," &c, are paid in the Land Office. There are thirty-five land districts, in each of which there is a Land Agent and a Commissioner of Crown Lands. Where districts have been proclaimed open for selection, extending over pastoral runs, half the run has been opened for selection, and a ten years' lease of the other half has been given to the pastoral tenant. This was the policy of the Act of 1868, now repealed, and was applied to the Settled districts. There is no such provision in the existing law, except in the so-called railway reserves, in •which- only half the runs are permitted to be resumed at any time. With few exceptions the land revenue is paid to the Land Agents, but the first year's payment on selected lands is held in deposit by the Commissioner, until the selection is confirmed or rejected at the next sitting of the Land Court, if the selection is not confirmed, the money is returned to the depositor. The pastoral rents are paid to the Treasury direct. If occasionally paid to the Land Agent, they are immediately transmitted to the Treasury, where the accounts of the runholders are kept. Moneys payable to the Land Agent are sometimes, with the permission of the head officer, but not otherwise, paid into the Treasury direct. The Land Agent pays his collections daily into the local Bank, and remits the money by cheque to the Treasury, at Brisbane. He can operate upon his official account for the payment of certain necessary refunds, but the account is, before the payment, recouped by a cheque from the Treasury, so that the Land Fund is paid in gross into the Public Account. The money is transferred to the Treasury weekly, and in some cases monthly. The whole accounts of the land revenue, except for the pastoral rents, are kept in the Land Office, no accounts being kept in either the Treasury or Audit, There are about 12,000 accounts of conditional selections, which are kept in thirty-five ledgers, one for each district, each selection being entered in the order of date. The book shows the name of the the selector, the consecutive number of the selection, the locality, class of land, and the payment made in each year for ten years—a column being provided for each year These selections are numbered, and are entered on the application being made. If the selection is refused, the account is closed. An index to these ledgers is kept in a separate volume. A second register is also kept under the name of each selector severally, which shows the total amount of land held by each under all selections, in order to prevent the area of land held being in excess of the legal limit. A printed list is prepared early in the month of February every year, and published in a supplement to the Gazette, in which the names of all the selectors are arranged in alphabetical order, with columns showing the year of tenancy for which rent is to be paid, and the number, area, and annual rental of each selection. This return takes from a month to six weeks to prepare every year A copy is sent to the Treasury, and also to the Land Agents. The Treasury, on receipt of the returns from the various Land Agents, rules out the names of those who have paid, and returns the list to the Land Office.