The Hawaiian gazette., 1905-01-13
REPORT OF
LAND COURT

Judge L. Il. weaver OF the court Oh
Land Registration, the first to fill that
position, has made a report to the Hon.
w. Il. Frear, chief Justice of the Ter
ritory. Judge Weaver was appointed
by Governor Dole on July 81. 1908, and
was advised by the Governor and
council that the expense appropria-
ton for the court was available for the
expenses of a visit by him to the Court
of Land Registration at Boston, to
prepare himself for the organization
of the court. The trip was made and
a complete set of books and blanks
Ut released, but the Auditor refused to
pay any bill contracted during the six
months ending December 81, 1908, and
the account of travelling expenses and
procurement of records Is still unpaid
The court opened for business on
October 10, 1903. From then to Janu-
airy /, 1904, six applications were made,
one for city lot in Honolulu valued at
$4,000 and five for new sugar plan
tations on Maui with an area of about
5000 acres assessed at IS an acre
From Jan. 1, 1904, to Jan. l, 1905, rs
applications were made, % of which
described town or city lots and coun-
try lands. The former included the
town site of Wahiawa. The country
lands include 5304 acres of hui land
at Holualoa, Kona, to which there are
about 400 conYeyances to abstract
There are also lands on Maui and Oa-
hu. THE land act in its present form"
Judge Weaver says, sis not well adapt
ed to the registry of title in hui lands
and some remedial legislation for that
purpose in needed apart from the land
act During 1904, thirteen applica-
tions We're completely disposed of, and
the remainder are in various stages of
disposition.
| The thirty-four applications made de-
scribe 10,2SS acres of country land as
sessed at $4,000, and 72,5OS square feet
of town property assessed at s296,00O.
making a total of s336.OOO as the as
sessed value of realty.
| Judge Weaver gives the very favor
able comparison of the Hawaiian with
the Massachusetts court, for the first
year of each, which has already been
published in the Advertiser. He shows
the land cases in the Firs Circuit
Court for 1904 as being twenty-eight
in number, with seven verdicts render
ed and twenty-one cases unfinished.
comparing the record with thirty-four
petitions in the lard court. with de-
crees rendered in thirteen cases and
TO appeals taken. Thirty-two surveys
and maps have been examined or cor
rected and approved.
THE system of land registration"
Judge Weaver says, has proved its
efficiency in two cardinal points: First
| 1t has shown to the owners prompt
ly the defects in their sur
veys and saved them from trouble
hereafter, and, second, it has cleared
the title Of minor defects promptly by
a proceeding in rem. notably in remov-
ing clouds on title by reason of unre-
leased mortgages or defective execu-
tion of conveyances."
Again, he says: '"rhe fact that the
certificate insures title to the land has
caused owners of small homes to re-
sort to the court as an insurance a
gainst future litigation, 1t has caused
sreculators in land to acquire an in
sured title that they may use it as
a quick asset; II has caused corpora.
tions to find serious errors in their sur
veys in time to correct the mistake!
and avoid future damage"
Judge Weaver recommends to tn,
Chief Justice certain amendments t,
the law.