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1908. NEW ZEALAND.

NATIVE LANDS AND NATIVE-LAND TENURE: INTERIM REPORT OF NATIVE LAND COMMISSION, ON NATIVE LANDS IN THE COUNTIES OF WHANGAREI, HOKIANGA, BAY OF ISLANDS, WHANGAROA, AND MANGONUI.

Presented to both Houses of the General Assembly by Command of His Excellency.

Native Land Commission, Rotorua, 10th June, 1908. To His Excellency the Governor. May it please Your Excellency,— . n ~ , We have the honour to submit for your consideration a report upon Native lands in the following counties north of Auckland : Whangarei Hokianga Bay of Islands, Whangaroa, Mangonui. The Commission held sittings at the following places during the months of March and April .Whangarei Russell Kawakawa, Kaikohe, Whangaroa, Mangonui, Waima, Kohukohu Pakanae, Opononi, Ngarongotea, Ahipara. At each place the Maori owners attended in large numbers and readily brought their blocks before us Wherever the title permitted and the owners were present we were able to deal with the lands. In the case of some of the larger blocks in the Hokianga and Bay of Islands Counties we were compelled to override the wishes of the owners, in the interests of settlement the reserves asked for being in our opinion too large and clearly beyond the resources and capacity of the owners to utilise cw^i We reserve for the end of the report remarks of a general nature, Special matters are referred to in connection with each county. 1. Whangarei County. The total area of Native lands in this county for which titles have been issued is, so far as we can ascertain, 52,707 acres 3 roods 28 perches The area of papatupu land is estimated at 5,500 acres There were at the last census 960 Maoris in this county. A considerable number of them chiefly members of the Nehua family, are engaged in farming and some are dairying. We note that there is a lack of system in the conduct of farming operations, due no doubt to inexperience and want of proper instruction. We recommend that out of the area-58,207 acres 3 roods 28 perches-15 674 acres and 19 perches be reserved and set apart for Maori occupation under Part II of "The Native Land Settlement Act, 1907," and 13,098 acres 1 rood 26 perches be set apart for sale and leasing under Part lof the said Act The lands for sale and leasing are scheduled so as to show how the owners wish them to be disposed of Inclusive of papatupu lands the area of land per head owned by the

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