1856 - Fitton, Edward. New Zealand: its Present Condition, Prospects and Resources - CHAPTER XIV. PRICE OF WASTE LANDS IN NEW ZEALAND.

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CHAPTER XIV.

NO topic in Colonial affairs has undergone more discussion than the price at which the unoccupied waste land in a colony should be sold.

Each of the several settlements of New Zealand was subjected, at the time of its foundation, to a variously graduated scale of prices, for the town, the suburban, and the rural lands, within the projected boundaries of the settlement; and each method has, after a time, been altered or modified, to meet the amended opinions formed by practical experience.

In the preceding part of this book, I have endeavoured to impress upon the reader, that in almost all cases, the colonist recently arrived in any part of New Zealand will consult his own interest better--both as to convenience in position, and also in the expenditure incurred in making his land speedily available--by purchasing from private owners, land well situated, and with the advantages of easy access, and neighbourhood, even at a considerable premium on the original cost; rather than by buying and endeavouring to reclaim portions of land

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which have hitherto never been occupied, and which may be bought from the Government at the fixed standard of 10s. an acre.

At the present time the price of all waste land is 10s an acre, subject to certain modifications in particular districts, and in cases where land is declared by the Government Commissioners not he worth 10s. an acre, owing to its distance from a town, or other disadvantages, it is sold by auction at an upset price of 5s. per acre.

A fair average price of land sold by private owners, who purchased some years ago; and have perhaps improved their sections by cultivation, and drainage; or by more passively waiting, until the influx of population, and the formation of roads, &c. has increased the value of property in the district--would vary from £3. to £5. and occasionally as high as even £10. or £20. an acre. 1 As a proof that these higher prices do not prevent the labouring colonist from becoming a purchaser of land, it will probably be found, on inquiry, that the greater proportion of the landowners in any part of New Zealand who began their career as working men, have paid

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as much as £5. an acre for their land. The farms of which such men now are the sole owners were probably purchased by yearly instalments; or, taken at a valuation, after a few years occupation on lease, from original purchasers who bought sections of from 50 to 500 acres, previous to the reduction of the price of waste land to its present standard.

Having said thus much, in order to shew that it is not always economical, to purchase a tract of land at a low price, and to bring it into cultivation by gradual yearly improvement; I must leave the selection of his locality, and the actual purchase of his land to the colonist's own judgment, AFTER his arrival in New Zealand. I will now proceed to explain the local regulations, at the present time in force, respecting the sale of land by the various provincial Governments in the colony.

A person buying land in New Zealand at the present day, will probably be surprised to hear, that his purchase money, instead of being entirely paid in to the Colonial Treasury, is, in part, appropriated to the liquidation of the debts of the New Zealand Company.

Without entering into minute details, I will here very briefly allude to the past transactions

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affecting the sale of rural lands in New Zealand, and their bearing upon the present state of the land question.

Such an inquiry will also throw some light, upon the causes, owing to which some of the settlements have hitherto been restricted within limits far too narrow for the full development of the resources at the command of the colonists. 2

The brief history of the various systems, which for the last fourteen years have obtained for buying and selling the lands of the natives of New Zealand, is as follows: On the first advent of the New Zealand Company's agent in 1839, he bought from the natives, nearly the whole southern half of the North Island, and a considerable portion of the Middle Island, for what was deemed by both parties, an equivalent in English merchandise. The agent, however, was ignorant of, or overlooked, one essential point of his bargain, viz. that, by native law and custom, the lands so purchased must be occupied, in order to render the sale valid. He had presented to them, a regular Deed of bargain and sale to sign, and they had signed it--but under their own ideas of what constituted the actual transfer of the property in the land.

The Company had the deed to shew for the purchase

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of the lands, but, as they had not formally taken possession by occupation, the Governor on his arrival, set aside as invalid the Company's deeds, and also the deeds of Missionaries, and traders, who had made similar purchases.

Thereupon the rule was established, that the right of pre-emption from the natives was vested in the Queen alone; and a treaty to this effect was concluded with a portion, but not the whole number, of the natives.

Some misunderstanding's on the part of the natives, with respect to this treaty, into which it is not here necessary to inquire, gave rise to a war between the Europeans and the natives; and, on the termination of the war, the Government gave permission to the natives to sell their lands as they pleased. Soon after this, the governor, Captain Fitz-Roy, was recalled. On the recall of Governor Fitz-Roy, his successor, Sir George Grey, set about repairing his predecessor's blunders.

But the natives had observed the high prices demanded by the New Zealand Company for the lands they sold to the colonists in their settlement, and-- without inquiring into the expenditure of the Company upon the improvement of the country with the funds arising from land sales--they refused to sell their own waste lands except at the most extortionate prices.

They looked only at the price land brought when resold by the Europeans, after the formation of organized settlements; and thus, one of the first effects of the high price system was, to put a stop to the sale of native lands at all, and with it, any thing like the progress of which the country was capable. In New Plymouth, the second of the Company's settlements,

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in the order of its foundation, the inhabitants have only very recently procured sufficient land to cultivate. The same thing has occurred at Wellington, the first settlement formed in New Zealand. An agricultural district, suitable to the wants of the population, having only been obtained from the natives during the last two years, after fourteen years of comparative inaction, when the capabilities of the country are taken into consideration.

At length, Sir George Grey, having succeeded in inducing the natives to part with some portions of their territories, reduced the price of all waste lands not under local regulations, to 10s., or for inferior land, 5s. an acre.

In the meanwhile the New Zealand Company had become involved to the amount of £250,000. and an Act of Parliament was passed, the practical effect of which is, that the liabilities of the Company are to be paid off out of the revenue arising from the sale of lands in the colony, so that, at the present time, a large portion of the revenue, arising in each province by the sale of lands within its jurisdiction, is appropriated to the payment of the debts of a trading company, instead of contributing to the advantage of the colonists of the country. 3

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These details have possibly little interest for most emigrants, whose chief anxiety on going

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to any part of New Zealand is, to know upon what terms they may expect to purchase land on

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their arrival. I will, therefore, at once proceed to quote the latest regulations on the subject.

I have already mentioned that the fixed Government price of wasteland in New Zealand is either 10s. an acre; or, in sales by auction, the upset price is fixed at 5s. an acre.

There are, however, certain districts attached to each province, over the sale of which the Council for that province have especial jurisdiction. I have endeavoured in this chapter to give a summary of the latest information which has reached England respecting the arrangement made for the sale of lands in each province.

In Auckland, at the opening of the second session of the Provincial Council, some regulations for the sale of land within the province were laid before the Council for approval. These regulations have probably already passed into law. It will be sufficient in this place to mention only their principal features.

AUCKLAND.

The waste land of the Crown in the Province of Auckland will be divided into five classes, consisting of town, suburban, rural, special occupation land, and general country lands.

Copies of the regulations will probably soon

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be forwarded to England, and may be seen at the offices I have mentioned, viz. Mr. Young's New Zealand Colonist Rooms, and Messrs. Willis's in Crosby Square. I will therefore refer the reader to the document itself for information relating to the other four classes, and will here notice particularly the "Special occupation land" scheme, which is the most novel and distinctive feature of the plan.

"It is proposed that in every district of the province which shall be declared open for settlement, at least one-third--not inferior to the average of the district in any of the advantages which invest land with value, shall be set apart for "special occupation," or as working settlers' land, to be sold at the fixed price of 10s. an acre, only to persons intending bona fide to occupy and improve the same. Under the direction of the Waste land Board [the establishment of which forms another marked feature in the proposed regulations] any of the blocks into which this land is to be divided, may be either declared to be open on a fixed day for sale in New Zealand, or reserved for sale in the United Kingdom, or other places out of New Zealand; and a land order giving a right of selection of not less than forty nor more than 500 acres of such block, may be obtained on the payment of 1s. per acre as deposit. The right of selection thus acquired must be exercised within limited times from the date of the land order, viz. two months, if the order be issued by the Board in Auckland, six months if it be issued by an agent of the Board in the Australian colonies, and twelve months if it be issued

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by such an agent in England, or elsewhere; an arrangement made to prevent the locking up of the land for an indefinite period. The selection having been made, the person may immediately enter on the occupation of the land on a lease for four years at the yearly rent of one shilling per acre, the shilling per acre which he has paid in deposit being counted as payment for the first year. At the end of the term of four years, the conditions of the agreement having been meantime fulfilled by the occupant, he shall be entitled to obtain a crown grant in fee simple of the land, without the competition of an auction sale on completing the payment of 10s an acre.

"Parties not in the colony may make purchases from the agents appointed by the Government, and their passage money to the colony will be accounted for as part payment in the following proportions; if a cabin passenger, one half of the sum actually expended for himself and family; intermediate, or steerage passengers, as follows: from Europe for every adult £20.--for every child not above fourteen years, £12.--every child not exceeding seven, £8.--and from any of the Australian colonies, every adult, £8.--every child not above fourteen years, £5.--and every child not exceeding seven years, £3.

"Separate provisions are laid down adapted to the circumstances of emigrants from India, not a few of whom, there is reason to believe, will be happy to avail themselves of such facilities for settling in a country the climate of which, apart from all other inducements, must commend it pre-eminently to their choice. And yet further provisions are proposed to meet the case of military settlers, by which the benefits of the regula-

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tions will be extended, not only to naval and military officers, but throughout the several descending gradations of rank in either service, so as to include private soldiers, marines, and seamen."

WELLINGTON.

The latest accounts which have reached England from Wellington, do not afford any information, beyond what is contained in the following resolution passed at the last meeting of the Provincial Council of Wellington.

"In the opinion of this House, it is essential that the whole administration of the waste lands of this province should be placed upon a distinct and permanent footing at the earliest possible date, and that such terms of purchase and pasturage with respect to such lands as shall be most in accordance with the wants and wishes of the majority of the settlers should be established; and that, pending the consideration and adjustment of this question it is desirable that steps should be taken whereby individuals requiring bond fide occupation of rural and suburban lands should at once be permitted to occupy the same on payment of a deposit of 5s. an acre, and to give an obligation for the bona fide occupation and cultivation of said lands to such an extent as may be hereafter fixed, and to fulfil whatever terms may be ultimately determined on before they receive a title to such lands. That a stop be put to the sale of all bush lands in every place where there is any considerable extent of open land available for occupation and cultivation, with only a small extent of bush in

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the neighbourhood, and that in no case shall more than one-tenth part of any land sold be bush land, until suitable and permanent arrangements are made for the proper disposal of bush lands. That in reference to pasturage regulations, this House is of opinion that the present holders of runs within the province for a term of years should not be disturbed in their occupation of such runs. That a respectful address be transmitted to his Honour the Superintendent requesting that he may be pleased to adopt such measures as shall carry the foregoing resolution into effect.

ARCHIBALD ANDERSON, Speaker.

NELSON.

THE colonists of Nelson do not appear to have passed Resolutions in any way modifying the prices fixed by the General Council, viz.: 10s. per acre for average rural lands, and 5s. per acre as the upset auction price of lands in the less available districts.

NEW PLYMOUTH.

A very lengthy code of Regulations for the sale of land in the province of New Plymouth, has been laid before the present Session of the Provincial Council for their approbation. The most interesting of which to the English reader are the following:

The first regulation declares all regulations hitherto in force to be entirely repealed.

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The third and following declare, that so soon as the native title shall be extinguished in any district, and the district open for the occupation of settlers, due notice shall be forwarded to the Superintendent, and thereupon such district shall be properly surveyed and laid out into sections of rural land and town sites.

The 29th declares, that after any new district has been surveyed and laid out for sale, the holders of unsatisfied land orders of the New Zealand Company, or of scrip issued in liquidation of claims upon the New Zealand Company, shall be entitled, at any time previous to the first January, 1857, to select allotments in any rural district, according to their respective order of choice, before such land is declared open for sale under these regulations.

The 36th and following declare, that rural land and town land shall be sold by auction alone. The upset price of rural land to be 10s. an acre. The upset price of town land to be such a price as shall be fixed upon by the Superintendent when a township is laid out.

The following regulations are especially framed for the encouragement of the immigration of labouring people to New Plymouth.

ALLOWANCE TO IMMIGRANTS.

47. Intermediate or steerage passengers of the classes hereinafter defined arriving in the province after the 31st day of December, 1854, from Europe, North America, Australia, or Van Diemen's Land shall be allowed to select and purchase lands, at auctions under these regulations, at half the selling price, to an amount not exceeding the amount hereinafter specified.

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48. The classes entitled to allowance under the preceding classes, and the amount to which lands shall be purchasable by them at half price as aforesaid, shall be respectively as follows:--

Note.--The age and description are in every case referable to the time of arrival.

Provided that immigrants from Australia or Van Diemen's Land, shall be entitled to purchase to one half the above amount, and no more.

49. No claim for allowance under Clause 47 shall be admitted until the claimant with his wife, or the claimant being a female, the claimant herself, shall have resided twelve calendar months in the province, nor shall any money previously expended in the purchase of land be returned.

50. Allowances under clause 47 shall not be made to any person whose passage money, or the passage monies of whose wife or children shall have been paid by the

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Provincial Government, unless and until such passage money be repaid.

Military Settlers.

58. Non-commissioned and warrant officers in Her Majesty's Army and Navy, and also soldiers, marines, and sailors discharged from Her Majesty's service with good-conduct certificates, whether discharged in the colony or elsewhere, and arriving in the province after the 31st day of December, 1854, shall, being qualified by marriage and residence in the province with their wives, after discharge, be entitled to the like allowance under clause 47 as steerage passengers arriving from Europe or North America.

The above regulations to come into operation from the 1st day of March, 1855.

OTAGO.

The land regulations laid before the last session of the Otago Provincial Council for their approval, are noticed as follows:--

"The following land regulations, are proposed by the Superintendent.

"The price to be fixed at 10s. per acre, subject to auction sales, within the neighbourhood of towns and villages, with conditions compelling an annual outlay for four years at the rate of 20s. per acre, the grants to be withheld until the conditions are complied with. The expenditure of £4. per acre at any time short of four years to entitle the person to an immediate grant.

"Purchasers to be free of the cost of surveys. Roads

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and immigration to be provided for by Ordinance, [i. e. taxation.]

"The land department (sales and depasturage licences) to be administered by a Board of not less than three commissioners. Land to be given free to immigrants to the extent of passage money.

"No lands to be sold, until proclaimed as open for sale."

New Zealand Spectator, January 3, 1855.

CANTERBURY.

Much prejudice has been excited against the original scheme of the Canterbury settlement, on account of the high price of £3. an acre which was until very recently charged for all lands within the boundaries of the province. Although few persons who have really examined into the progress of the colony, have been at all disheartened at, or disapproved of, its career from the time of its origin as a Colony up to the present time; yet so general is the impression at home that the "high price principle" in the sale of lands has proved a failure, that I think it worth while once more to allude to the subject.

I shall quote a few sentences from a speech delivered in December, 1854, in the Provincial Council of Canterbury by one of the members-- Mr. Hall--for the purpose of shewing that even at the present time, the idea is not abandoned,

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that a high price of land in some parts of New Zealand, will be rather a boon than a disadvantage to the labouring settler, or to the colonist of limited means.

To shew that the fear of the monopolization of land at a low price by speculators seeking investment for a large capital is not without foundation, Mr. Hall mentions that in the province of Wellington between March, 1853, and January, 1854, 54,000 acres were sold. In Nelson 98,000 acres had passed into private hands, and in Canterbury itself, since the price had been reduced, 50,000 acres had been sold at 10s. an acre. He proceeds to say, "That the original price of £3. an acre (the price of the land in Canterbury) without in any degree checking the progress of beneficial occupation, or impeding the progress of real colonists, has effectually prevented gambling and speculation in land, and secured for the colonists a blessed ignorance of the numerous evils which in most other settlements have resulted from the proceedings principally on the part of absentees."

In proposing to continue the high price, he observes, "By the existing arrangements of the allotment of the revenue of New Zealand after one-fourth of the land fund has been paid to

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the New Zealand Company, a large proportion of the remainder goes towards defraying the expenses of the general Government, and the purchase of land from the natives in the North Island." In order, therefore, that Canterbury, by selling its land at a higher rate per acre, may not be compelled to contribute a larger proportion to these purposes than the other settlements which only charge 10s. an acre for their lands, he proposes to charge at the same rate as other provinces, viz. 10s. an acre for the land; but, to prevent speculative purchases of large tracts, he proposes in addition to levy a rate of 10s. per acre per year for five years after purchase. This additional 10s. a year to be expended solely on immigration and public works within the province. The virtual effect of this arrangement to the purchaser would be that the land will cost him £3. an acre which he may pay by instalments in six years at 10s. an acre.

And with a view of encouraging the immigration of persons who are in a position to pay for their own passage to Canterbury, it is proposed to refund to them in land scrip, receivable at any sale of Government land within the province, the cost of their passages according to a scale declared in the regulations.

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Whether this arrangement has yet become the law of land sales in Canterbury cannot be ascertained until the end of the second session of the Provincial Council now in progress; but in the meantime, it may be taken for granted that the price of land within the boundaries of the province, is £3. an acre payable as above mentioned; and beyond the boundaries, 10s. an acre. The average price of land to be sold by private parties in Canterbury varies between £2. 10s. and £7 an acre. The vendor at the lower prices sells at a sacrifice on the cost price, his land being probably of bad quality, or inconveniently situated. Occasionally in exceptional cases small lots are sold considerably above the higher price. But probably the fairer average would be to take £4. an acre as the selling price of any large tracts of land in the market for sale by private owners; £3. an acre for land hitherto unsold by Government within the boundaries, and 10s an acre for land beyond the boundaries of the Canterbury block.

COMPARISON BETWEEN NEW ZEALAND AND OTHER COLONIES.

In concluding this chapter on the price of land in New Zealand, it may be interesting to

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some readers who have resolved to emigrate, but have been in doubt as to what colony to select for their future home, to know the opinion of practical colonists as to the comparative merits of New Zealand, the American settlements, and the lands of Australia at the present time.

Mr. Frederick Young's New Zealand circular observes:

"There is no doubt that the land in New Zealand is at least equal if not superior in fertility to that of any other of our colonies, or of the United States, and that it has better markets for its produce, whilst in other respects it possesses advantages, rendering it superior to them all. For instance, in New Zealand the winter is mild, and is scarcely distinguishable from the other seasons, instead of being a long six months of frost and snow, as in Canada or the United States. There are no beasts of prey, no Cobra de Capellas or poisonous snakes, no murderous Caffres as at the Cape or Natal, and there are no droughts or devastating bush fires, such as occur in the Australian colonies. In New Zealand, too, convictism has not spread its moral blight as in Van Diemen's Land or New South Wales, for convicts have never been sent to New Zealand."

The following is a portion of a letter written by an East Indian, who had gone to Australia, with the intention of ending his days there. It is dated, "Melbourne, January, 1855." After

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describing the vast crowds, and the immense stores of merchandise, which arrived in Australia from Great Britain, during the previous year, the writer continues:--

"Our city and suburbs have arisen as if by magic, and now building is at a complete stand. The vast quantities of materials that were required for building purposes still come in, but they are no longer required. Tradesmen are obliged to descend to the work of a common labourer, and of the thousands of labouring men now in Melbourne, a large majority cannot get three days' work in the week. The land is completely locked. It is out of the power of the poor man to purchase at any reasonable rate. Within the last two months, upwards of 2000 have left Melbourne for New Zealand. The New Zealand Government have passed an act, which came into operation on the 1st inst., under which the waste land is sold at from 5s. to 10s. an acre, allowing a bona, fide settler five quarters to pay it in. This draws off our population, and will continue to do so for some time to come.

"House rent has fallen from 50 to 60 per cent. within the last six months; the failure of from 200 to 300 houses has contributed towards this. Everywhere you go, you see the shop windows decorated with 'selling off,' 'this shop to let,' 'retiring from business,' and so on. Stores, to my own knowledge, which let last year at £3000. per annum, are this year let for £760. Shops which let for £15. a week, are now let for £5., and hundreds are tenantless.

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"The digging population is not now what it used to be. Diggers are now hard-fisted in more senses of the word than one. They do not squander their money as they used to do, and strive hard to have the actual necessities of life at as low a rate as possible. The few who make money start off with it to secure a home in some other part of the world; very few settle down here. I have conversed with gentlemen who have travelled through South Australia, Victoria, New South Wales, Van Diemen's Land, and New Zealand. All agree that New Zealand is by far the best place to settle in. As far as my own experience goes, I agree with them. I applied to this Government for 20,000 acres of land for people whom I wished to settle down upon it. I was kindly offered a special survey, but then the land must be put up to public auction, and, I believe, would not then be knocked down under 30s. an acre. Thus, I should have to pay 10 per cent., say £3000., upon the fall of the hammer, and £27,000 in thirty days! This shut me out. I applied to the Surveyor-General of New Zealand, and he offers 20,000 acres at 10s. an acre, and five years to pay it in; meantime, a rent of 6d. per annum per acre. New Zealand supplies Melbourne with potatoes, corn, &c., and can always undersell a Victoria farmer."

The following comparison between Canada and New Zealand, is from a letter written by a settler now resident in New Zealand, who had formerly been a colonist in Canada. It is

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dated, "Wellington, New Zealand," 28th of August, 1854:--

"I will take the supposed case of a farmer and his family, consisting of four, wishing to emigrate, and debating in his mind whether the backwoods of Canada, far west of the Union, or New Zealand, is to be his future home (now I ought to know something of this, having seen them all), of course he reads all the books he can lay his hands on, as to the pros and cons, and, of course, the most plausible catches him. He perhaps goes to Canada, and settles down in the midst of dense everlasting forest, makes a clearance, breaks his back and his heart, gets the "shakes" in the autumn, and is utterly miserable all winter. In the spring he returns to the axe, and eventually may become a successful member of society; but he has had a dreadful ordeal to go through. Now I will take Windsor Park in England, as a very fair sample of the plains and forests in the far West. Let the heavy clumps of trees in the park represent the everlasting forests, and the beautiful sloping glades, the prairies of the far West. Would any man in his senses take the clump of trees for his farm, where every tree would have to be felled, grubbed, and burnt, in preference to the sloping plain? We will take it for granted, then, that the open country is better than the wood. Now, our open country has these enormous advantages over the prairies of the far West; we have no "sickly season." Bilious and intermittent fevers go hand in hand with the new settlement in the Union; in Canada they are not so bad. With us, there

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is no such thing as fever, even in the worst positions. The cause, I think, is apparent, viz., that instead of the luxuriant green grasses of the West, we have the whole open country fern, rushes, flax, or evergreens. Consequently, there is no mass of decaying vegetation in the autumn, the sickly season of America. Now, in all parts of this country, the vegetation dies on the stem, nor do they fall to the ground at all during the autumn, but at various times through the winter and spring. The soil also is a dry sandy loam, 4 and there is a very great quantity of volcanic dust spread over by far the greater half of the country. We have also occasional gales of wind blowing from sea to sea. Doubtless all these things tend to health. We have also a far higher price for provisions than America has. True the passage out costs about one-third more than going to the West; but the extra price [obtained] for produce and labour will make that up in six months. In short, you see clearly, by this time, that I am hollow in favour of this place.
Adieu.--Yours truly, S. W.

STEAM COMMUNICATION.

There can be little doubt that, in the course of a very short time, the length of time occupied in the voyage between New Zealand and Great Britain will be very materially abridged. There is now constant communication by steam between Australia and New Zealand, and in each of the settlements a sum has been voted for

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promoting communication by steam, not only between the different provinces of New Zealand, but also, by arrangement with the fast sailing steamers plying to Australia, with the view of hastening the communication between Europe and the shores of New Zealand.

In January last, the Provincial Council of Auckland purchased a steamer, the "William Denny," to run regularly between Auckland and Australia. An arrangement has also very lately been entered into by the Superintendents of Nelson and Wellington to lay on another steamer to ply between those provinces and Sydney for the current year, and to raise a subsidy of £6000. The colonists of Canterbury have also held meetings for the furtherance of a similar project.

The following advertisement of the fares of a steamer, now plying between the different ports of New Zealand, is taken from a Nelson newspaper of last January.

STEAMER NELSON.

The undersigned having made arrangements with the various Provincial Governments to run Messrs. Willis and Co's. splendid new iron screw steamer, the 'Nelson,' 300 tons, Martin, master, between the settlements of New Zealand, beg to inform the public that

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the following scale of chief-cabin fares has been determined upon:

Spirits, wines, and beer not included, but which may be purchased on board.

Fore-cabin fares, one-third less.

The various ports will be visited with the least possible delay, and in regular order, with the exception of Otago, which will be visited every third trip. She will sail punctually to her advertised time on all occasions, weather permitting.

The 'Nelson' has been built expressly for the inter-colonial trade of New Zealand; is handsomely fitted;

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bedding is provided, and every convenience for the comfort of passengers.

For rates of freight, days of sailing, or other information, application is requested to be made to--

Messrs. Brown and Campbell . . Auckland.

Messrs. Bethune and Hunter . . Wellington

Mr. J. H. Le Cren......Victoria.

Messrs. James Macandrew and Co. Otago.

Or, Messrs. Lllewlyn, Nash, and Co. . New Plymouth.

ANDREW FELL AND CO.

Nelson, Jan. 17, 1855.