The Sun.
London, England, 1850-04-23 00:00:00

head of the Colonial-office differed from him on the sub'
ject. Under these circumstances was it desirable to Elf'
legate to that assembly the management of the Wore
lands in the colonise? In the first place, it was more
than probable that assembly would not meet,- for thsre
was no inducement; but supposing it did, the interests
of the colonies would cause a difference. Stjutn
Australia, for instance, was satisfied with the present
stew of things as regarded the waste labels. Van Die;
moo's Lend was every day incteasing in population. 0"
becoming less and less waste. New South Wales wei
u purely pastural country, where five or six acres wee:
required to feed one sheep. The upset price of the Lind
was originally Sc. an acre, but the Colonial office bad
raised it to 11. What was the consevence?
In 1837 ... 360;000 acres were sold.
1838 ••• 315,000
99
1839 ..• ...' 285,000 „
1840 ••• . . 159,000
ft
1843 ••. 4,000 a
1844 ... 4,000 99
1845 ... ... 7,000 99
1846 7,000
But the population in 1837 was only 85,000, while in
1846 it was 196,000, or more than double. Tee oe!
wua referred to the Colonial Commi-sioners sittieg iu
Birdcage walk, but they agreed that the price of thelto4
was not high enough, and sent out instructions °f-
cordingly to the colony. This being the case, how w°tla
~b
the matter stand in the federative assembly, ,
would be composed of twelve members from New Sou ;b
Wales, four from Victoria, five from Van Diems's
Land, and Adelaide four? The majority would be non.
stantly in Sydney, and there could be no doubt that they
would make the price of all other land equal to that i°
New South Wales. lie (Mr. B. Denison) though!, 6:
there was at present no less than half the land fajta °.
the colonies devoted to emigration, a portion of the re'.
maiuder should be applied to the use of the lahourieg
poor. Thee() was now a large Chinese emigration in,s°
the Australian colonies, whose labour as Shepherds 00111
be had equally good and much cheaper thtsa Bugg%
labourers. Ile was of opinion that the control of the
waste lands in each colony should be left to the
tures of the respective colonies. This was the amend-
ment of which he had given notice, and which ho
sub-
mitted to the Committee.
Lord J. RUSSELL said the view which the Gofer:
ment was disposed to take of this question was WI;
The colony of Western Australia was founded with the
best intentions by Sir G. Murray, but it never made any
progress owing to the large grants of land that had been
given to the first settlers, and the impediments offered
cut'
tivation these means to the construction of roads and the ell`,
tivation of the country. These evils were brought be
fore the public by Mr. Wakefield, and in 1831 Lord
Grey, then Under-Secretary for the Colonies, pro Poss
to Lord Ripou, then Colonial Secretary, to sell the lan
at ss. per acre. After this it was raised to 12sa 1113 d
subsequently to V. In 1842, after much discussion,
some inquiry by a Select Commit[{ e of the House,
passed through Parliament (5 and 6 Viet.), by which
was decided that the price of land was no longer to
decided by the Colonial-office, and that a uniform *3l;
tern of disposing of waste lands should be followed. That
Act also reduced the power of licensing for pasture t3,si
year's duration; audit provided that the proceeds of eaei,
sale should be divisible lido two parts, one of whie-
should be applied to the public service of the respective
colonies, and the other to the promotion of emigratil
from the United Kingdom. In the present Bill it
deemed requisite to adhere to the uniformity principle!
1842; because if each colony was to•have a separate
tern of disposal and no uniformity of price, the I,d9it's;
tare of one colony mi4lit consider that another ce'°"-
where land should be cheaper was holding out temPe
tions to emigrants, which would he a great evil.
(Lord J. Russell) believed that the Congress of art
United States always decided the price of lauds. '-
efts plain, therefore, that the preposition of his 'II °''
Friend wits an objectionable one. But, upon censele';
ation, he believed, also, that there were valid objseticea,
to a federal legislature having power over the
lands in colonies; and believing, also, that it' Was 6°,
likely, it constituted, it'would come seen into operatl",l
he was of opinloa that the best course to pursue vv°°'d
be to, omit the provision for a federal legislature, sui
leave the whole qurstion of waste lands as it existe`o
under the Bill of 1842. He, therefore, should pn°P°?,a
that no introduction of the subject should take place
the clause.
Mr. DIVBTT agreed with his Hon. Friend and the
Noble Lord as to toe uselessness of a federal teghilatute.:
The colonies of South Australia did not desire to be (IL,.
ridden by Sydney, which would be the resialt „t
clause as it stood. He thought that the heat thing ti.,
,uld be done for the colonies and for the country vllO
to leave lead as it stood under the Bill of 1842.
was convinced that if the principles of that Act we"'
adhered to there would be an additional emigration
South Australia every year. The system of sellinbr
land at a minimum price of 1/. per acre was the best
that could be adopted. There could be no doubt luato
the bast and most popular plan in the colonies was
adhere to the present system. In a colonial paper the
conduct of the Colonial Commissioners had been 730
pugned, but this, from his own personal observation
was enabled to contradict. Ile had always noticed ill
these gentlemen the best disposition to do equal and .
justice between the colonies and the emigrant labourto,
population. The Hon. Member hero read an extra°,
from the South Australian Gazette and Alining Jouinba;
to which be had referred. With the exception of 11
abuse of the Commi tsious, W.-ash ho had already oath,
was totally undeserved, the views laid down in 1.
paper in question were those which he had reason 4.0
believe were generally entertained. He wished to apt
aa
with respect to the squatters generally, but ho woo'
wish to state some of the featurosof the system of sclueti
Sorge of the squatters held enormous tracts of
land. The number of land licences was 2,347, but
among those who had .them were 465 persona who bald
as follows:-
298 held
73 „
33 „
14 19
14 „ .......
3 Of
4 „
2 „ ... 400,000 „
1 „
2 „
and 2 „
(Hear.) The gentleman who furnished that statenleoll
asked what inducement had these men to purchase I:sa
at any price? It was to their interest to keep laud re
thinly populated as possible, and to get labour w'' to
they could get it at the cheapest. He was not goblgthe
object to this system as far as it went, as he believeo co
prosperity of the colony had been in the first inir'lthe
mainly promoted by these parties; but he thong-toe
price of land ought not to oome from those parties. fi
oc..eration of Lard Stanley's Bill had been most beneed
mai. The number of acres sold in a few years araooo,lo%
to 201,444, and the amount realised was 250,8731 e betles
at the rate of 255. 7d. per acre. So advantsgeoo9
be
this system, that capitalists had been attracted t 0
colony, and the best results had followed. It could l
be expected that affairs should always go on so /ewas
well; but his firm conviction was, if the se stet°, on
continued to be carried out, that not only the often.
but the neighbouring region, would be equally bene"
It was most satisfactory to hear the Noble Lards sr ems
as it would be found the safest way, under ail cireo
stances, to adhere to the Act of 1842. ' cord
Mr. ROEBUCK did not agree with the Noble —,is
in thinking that a demand for a general assembly erica
unlikely to be made. With reference to the bound4lba
of colonies, they ought to b'; perfectly definits--; be
limits ought not to be over large, but they alight 4t,
well defined. When these limits should have been
Government would have cleared the way to a Pr°l3lo.
system cf management for the land fund. If the calf
nits had the hope and expectation of a general assso,ll;',
left to them, he was satisfied the colonies would rapt de
expand and grow up. But it was essential to define 'tss
limits of each colony. There should be no dispute th
to boundary between Victoria Colony and New S°6it
Wales. It was one of his quarrels with this Bill that a
made no provision for determining the boundary 06
limits of each colony. If this was done, it would Luto
be ascertained how much of the land belonged to the
local legislature, and how much was the apPant4;
of the poor, rather the labouring people of Grej%
Britain. All the land within certain limits was
,"
be considered the property of the colonists—all wits
out the limits the property of Great Britain. He a510...':
the Noble Lord to look at the question as a states's:l%
In planting colonies, let Government get rid' of the
of a subject dominion—let Government consider a CO
ot
lony as an enlargement of this island—an extension
England. This /would be acting up to the spirit of
age. Give to each colony the area if they would, busAg
give the eglonists the full control over that area•
the lands Zutside of this area, until there was a geoe.'o
,
assembly, were to be considered as under the dorninly,
and as belonging to England, for the use of the poPO.,
And why did he advise this? Because it was not 110
likely Government would create more colonies, and re..
an indefinite limit were left to the boundaries of the p.
sent colonies, the circumstance would ultimately leactle'r,
serious disputes and quarrels. Government, now,e rth
had hitherto never taken this trouble with our 10,
Atnetican colonies, nor with our Australian e0!°,,1300
and now there was almost a quarrel between Vies"'
and New South Wales about a question of boundary.:
—(Hear, hear.) The reason why he wished 136rfi:so
meat to draw the line of the colonies was, boa"
he was not going to give up to ten or tWes. StifY
or two hundred thousand colonists, who Isisa d
~
happen to be settled on the land, all the control A
advantage of the whole of the land, which might o%to
through a very wide circumference. He would else Sta
ou
tend the system of limitation and definition to bad
Africa. In our colonies in America we no longer two
the power to dispute the point. He saw no precatlito
taken in this Bill to prevent the same things which is
occurred in our American colonies from eceurrilobto
our Australian colonies. He counselled the food.
Lord, when he could get light so easily, not to go '
long into darkness. d
001
Mr. AGLIONBY said, as the Noble Lord dtto
intend to make any alteration in the disposal Of ?of
lands, he should' not have troubled the House wit,,unew
remarks, hai it not been for the Hon. and Learneu,a
tleman's speech, Much of that Hon. and Learned Ailivoy.
her's argument he agreed with, but there was a f"
in some parts of it, which he wished to point of
considered the suggestion for defining colonial litol,""%, of
an admirable and valuable sugeestion, and worttlxv.
adoption. The next point of the Hon. and Learned', :to
bet had reference to the disposal of the waste lands. ds
Hon. anti Learned Gentleman wished the outsickht_a't'be
should belong to this country, and the lands insidetbia
boundary to the local legislature. He did not s!''ia
was a necessary conclusion to the- premises cf the twits
Member. He did rot tea why the lands inside the It
of the colony should belong to the colonistr, any iuiea
than the lands outside of too limits, lie was of °l3i'aor
that colonists had 'no right to dispose of or cialt°
right over the waste lands of colonies which they per

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