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The Pamphlet Collection of Sir Robert Stout: Volume 77

Flaxbourne Settlement, Marlborough

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Flaxbourne Settlement, Marlborough.

This settlement, which comprises portion of the well-known Flaxbourne Estate, recently acquired from Sir George and the Messrs. Clifford under "The Land for Settlements Consolidation Act, 1900," is situated on the sea-coast of Marlborough, and extends for ten miles north from the Ure River to within five miles of Cape Campbell; it adjoins the thriving Starborough and Blind River Settlements. The northern portion is five miles and a half distant by road from the Town of Seddon, the present terminus of the Main Trunk Picton-Waipara Railway, and 115 miles from Culverden, the terminus of the railway from Christchurch. The route for the continuation of the railway has been laid off through Flaxbourne, entering the property at a point just twenty-two miles from Blenheim. The Main South Road also traverses the settlement from north to south, from which easy access to all the small grazing-runs and farms will be obtainable when the new roads have been formed. The boat-landing at the mouth of the Flaxbourne River, about three miles distant from the proposed township which is being laid off, and fifty miles from Wellington wharf, provides for landing or shipping goods and produce by coastal steamer in fine weather. At Picton, Home ships load in the harbour, and there are meat-freezing works there also.

Flaxbourne Settlement lies at an altitude rising from sea-level to about 1850 ft., and varies considerably in contour and quality. The settlement generally comprises hilly and undulating country, with flats and valleys, as delineated on the plan and specified in the descriptions published with this pamphlet. It has the reputation of being very healthy sheep-country page 6 and, where cultivation is possible, grows good crops of barley, oats, and roots. Detailed descriptions of the soil and character of each section and small grazing-run will be found on pages 17 to 40 of this pamphlet.

The coastal range consists chiefly of limestone formation. The inland hills are clayey, with outcrops of sandstone and volcanic tuff. The downs consist of clay, as a rule, overlying papa; and the lower lands are of fluviatile formation. The climate is dry and healthy; the mean temperature in summer is about 60°F., and in winter 43°F. There are occasional snow-falls in winter, but the snow does not remain long on the ground. The mean rainfall for twelve years is about 42 in. on one hundred days a year. Periods of dry weather are sometimes experienced.

With the exception of about 3,500 acres which have been cultivated and are now mostly in English grasses or clover, and a few hundred acres which have been surface-sown, the country generally is in its native state; the vegetation is mainly tussock and other native grasses, with some flax, &c., in the gullies and swamps; but there are areas of fern on some of the hills, with scrub and bush in the immediate vicinity of some of the creeks on the hilly country, as to which see the detailed descriptions. The country generally is well adapted for grazing and breeding sheep, and the percentage of lambing and the wool-clip have been in the past very good. A few head of cattle can be de-pastured on those farms and small grazing-runs which contain valleys and swamps, or where the flats have been laid down in English grasses. Formerly rabbits were numerous on the property, but they are now reduced to almost a negligable quantity owing to the excellent management of the late proprietors, who met the difficulty by wire-netted fences and poisoning. Of recent years it has only cost £60 to £70 per annum over the whole property to keep down the rabbits.

The area to be opened for application at present contains 44,087 acres, which has been subdivided into page 7 sixty-four allotments, varying in area from 5 to 906 acres, and eighteen small grazing-runs, varying in area from 1,041 to 2,943 acres.

The farms are for disposal on lease in perpetuity (999 years); and the small grazing-runs are for lease for terms of twenty-one years, with right of renewal for further periods of twenty-one years.

A township has also been laid off on the settlement, and the allotments therein will be offered to the public at an early date.

Each farm and small grazing-run has a good home-stead-site and a sufficient area of agricultural land to enable the land to be worked in the most profitable manner.

The boundaries of the farms and small grazing-runs in many cases have been made coterminous with existing fences.

The Main Kaikoura Road has been deviated through Sections 9 and 10, Block IX., Sections 1, Block XI., and Small Grazing-runs 171, 172, 173, 174, and 175; and the public shall have the free right of travelling over the road now in use until the new deviation is formed.

On the homestead allotment (Small Grazing-run No. 178) there is a one-story dwellinghouse, containing fifteen rooms, detached room, bachelors' quarters, wool-shed, stables, harness-room, store-room, groom's room, blacksmith's shop, slaughterhouse, and two small huts; all valued at £775.

There are other buildings on the settlement, particulars of which are given in the detailed descriptions of the sections and small grazing-runs. These buildings will become the properties of the tenants by payment of the half-yearly instalments set out in the Schedule on pages 15 and 16 of this pamphlet for seven or fourteen years; or, should they prefer to do so, they may, with the consent of the Minister of Lands and the Land Board, at any time, but in not less than seven years, pay the whole or any less page 8 number of their future instalments, under a duly proportionate rebate of interest.

The Flaxbourne, Needles, and Tachall's river-beds are the property of the Crown. Tenants of the allotments through which these rivers flow will be permitted to depasture their stock thereon without payment of rent, on condition that they keep the river-beds free of rabbits.

A man will be available at the Flaxbourne homestead to show intending selectors over the land and point out the boundaries of the sections and small grazing-runs.

Possession of the farms and small grazing-runs will be given on the day of ballot.

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Directions to Applicants for Farms and Small Grazing-Runs in Flaxbourne Settlement.

Applications for leases will be received up to 4 p.m. on Thursday, the 22nd June, 1905, at the District Lands and Survey Office, Blenheim. Forms of application, terms and conditions of lease in perpetuity and small grazing-runs, also pamphlets and maps, may be obtained at the above-named office and at the Land Offices throughout the colony, or they will be sent by post on application.

1.Sections not applied for on the 22nd June, 1905, will be open for application after the 26th June, 1905, at the District Lands and Survey Office, Blenheim.
2.The allotments comprised in Flaxbourne Settlement have been classified and grouped as Ordinary Farms and Small Grazing-runs. The Ordinary Farms have been subdivided into Subdivisions 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9; and the Small Grazing-runs have been subdivided into Subdivisions 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, and 15, as shown on pages 14, 15, and 16 of this pamphlet.
3.The Farms are for lease for 999 years. The Small Grazing runs are for lease for twenty-one years, with the right of renewal at a yearly rental equal to 5 per cent, on the then unimproved value for further periods of twenty-one years.
4.An applicant cannot apply in more than one group, nor in more than one subdivision of a group.
5.Applications must be made for the whole of the allotments in the subdivision applied for, but an applicant may indicate his choice of any one allotment on the application form.
6.No person shall be allowed to acquire or hold more than one allotment. Each section or small grazing-run is an allotment, excepting in the cases of Small Grazing-run 181 and Section 1A, Block IX., Cape Campbell Survey District, which together form one allotment, and Small Grazing-run 182 and Section 8, Block VI., Cape Campbell Survey District, which together form one allotment.
7.No person is eligible to apply for an allotment who since the 8th November, 1904, has been successful in any land ballot and who afterwards disposes of his section, until after the expiration of one year from the date of the disposal, unless under special circumstances and with the permission of the Land Board.
8.Applications must be accompanied by a deposit of the half-year's rent of one of the allotments in the subdivision applied for, and £1 1s. lease fee.
9.Applications for Ordinary Farms cannot be entertained from any person who already holds or has any interest in other lands over 1,000 acres in area, including the land applied for, or who has property of the full value of three times the land applied for if under 100 acres, or twice the value if under 500 acres, or one and a half times if over 500 acres.page 10
10.No person who has an interest in lands which, with the area applied for, exceeds 5,000 acres, or who has property of the net value of one and a half times the capital value of the land applied for, can be an applicant for the Small Grazing-runs.
11.The maximum area which a married woman shall be capable of applying for or holding shall not exceed 320 acres of first-class land or 1,000 acres of second-class land, irrespective, however, of any land that her husband may be entitled to acquire or may hold: Provided that this special limitation shall not apply in the case of a married woman who is separated from her husband under decree of judicial separation, or is the holder of a protection order, nor shall it operate to prevent a married woman from becoming a lessee under a will or by virtue of an intestacy.
12.Married women who forward their applications through the post are requested to give the full name and address of their husbands opposite the word "Occupation" on the application form.
13.Applicants will have to appear personally at the Land Board meeting at the District Lands and Survey Office, Blenheim, on the 23rd and 24th June, 1905, at 11 a.m., to answer any questions the Land Board may put; but if any applicant so desires he may be examined by the Land Board of the district in which he is then resident, and it shall be the duty of such Land Board to make inquiry as to the applicant's bona fides and suitability. In the event of any applicant being approved by such Land Board, a certificate shall forthwith be issued to him, which shall entitle him to take part in the ballot without further examination by the Land Board by which the land is being disposed of.
14.Applicants who are landless shall have preference over those who are not, and the decision of the Land Board as to who of the applicants are landless and who are not shall be final and conclusive.
15.An applicant shall be deemed to be landless unless at the time of his application he already holds, under any tenure, such area of land as, in the opinion of the Land Board, is sufficient for the maintenance of himself and his family. In the case of the husband or wife, if either of them is not landless, neither of them shall be deemed to be landless.
16.If the applicant is successful in obtaining an allotment, his deposit, or a sufficient part thereof, shall be retained and applied in payment of the half-year's rent or of the half-year's rent and sinking fund in respect of such allotment, or of the interest only, as the case may be; the residue, if any, shall be returned to him, and he shall forthwith complete the payment of the first half-year's rent, or rent and sinking fund, if the deposit is insufficient.
17.If there are fewer applicants than there are allotments in a subdivision, then each applicant shall have the option of taking the allotment mentioned in his application, provided he is the only applicant therefor; but when two or more applicants indicate their choice for the same allotment, then the Board may, by consent of page 11 the parties, adjust the applications; but if the applicants cannot agree to such an adjustment, then a ballot shall be taken.
18.If there are more approved applicants in a subdivision than there are allotments available, the Land Board shall, by ballot, reduce the number of such applicants to the number of allotments available. A second ballot shall then be taken in each such subdivision as follows: The name of each candidate shall be placed separately in one box, and the number of each allotment shall be placed separately in another box, and lots shall be drawn from both boxes simultaneously; and the allotment whose number is so drawn shall go to the applicant whose name is simultaneously drawn, and he shall be deemed to be the successful applicant for that allotment. The first ballot for allotments for which there are more than one applicant on the 22nd June, 1905, will be held on Monday, the 26th June, 1905, at 10 a.m., at the District Lands and Survey Office, Blenheim.
19.There shall not be any right to withdraw any application, or right to claim a refund of any deposit: Provided, however, that the Board may, in its discretion, on application, permit the refund of any deposit on being satisfied that the application was genuine and made in good faith, and that the grounds of withdrawal are bonâ fide and not contrary to the spirit of the Regulations.
20.Every applicant who obtains an allotment shall, from the date of the lease, reside continuously thereon.
21.The lessee shall not transfer the land comprised in his lease within the period of five years from the date of such lease: Provided that a transfer of the lease may be made with the sanction of the Land Board and the Minister of Lands on the death of the lessee, or on the happening of any extraordinary event which, in the opinion of the Land Board, renders a transfer necessary or expedient.
22.The whole of the fencing and other improvements, as enumerated in the detailed descriptions of sections and small grazing runs published herein, are included in the prices of the allotments, excepting the buildings on Section 3, Block VII., Cape Campbell Survey District, and Small Grazing-runs 177 and 178; and the values given in the detailed descriptions on pages 27, 33, and 36 are only for future guidance in ascertaining if the conditions of the lease, which require certain improvements to be made by the tenant, are fulfilled.
23.The successful applicants for Section 3, Block VII., Cape Campbell Survey District, and Small Grazing-runs 177 and 178, shall insure the buildings erected on these allotments to their full insurable value.
24.The buildings on Section 3, Block VII., and Small Grazing runs 177 and 178, will become the property of the tenants by their paying the half-yearly installments set out in the Schedule on pages 15 and 16 for seven or fourteen years as the case may be.page 12
25.The right is reserved to the Crown or to its delegated authority to lay off, cut, and construct drains and water-races over any of the land disposed of, without compensation; the rentals of the allotments to be reduced in proportion to the area taken when the right has been exercised.
26.The tenant is not authorised to cut down the plantations on his leasehold without the consent of the Commissioner of Crown Lands in writing, and it is a condition of the lease that trees equal in number to those cut shall be planted the following season.
27.The lessee shall, whenever necessary, but not less than once a year during the term of his lease, properly clean and clear from weeds, and shall at all times during the said term keep open, all creeks, drains, ditches, and watercourses upon the land, and the Commissioner of Crown Lands (hereinafter called "the Commissioner") or any Crown Lands Ranger of the land district shall have the power at any time to enter upon and make through the land any drain that he deems necessary, without payment of any compensation to the lessee.
28.In the event of the lessee at any time failing to comply with any of the conditions hereinbefore mentioned relating to the trimming of live fences and stubbing gorse, broom, and sweetbriar, or other noxious weeds, and to the cleaning, clearing from weeds, and keeping open all creeks, drains, ditches, and watercourses, it shall be lawful for the Commissioner to have such work done, and to recover the cost of the same from the lessee in the same manner as rent.
29.The lessee shall pay all rates, taxes, and assessments levied on or payable in respect of the land during the term of his lease.
30.In any case where the channel of any creek, or natural or artificial water-race or watercourse, runs on more allotments than one, then each lessee on whose land any part of such channel runs shall have the right to the reasonable use and enjoyment of a reasonable proportion of the water that would flow in such channel if it were not stopped or diverted by any other lessee; and, for the purpose of securing such right as between the respective lessees, it is here declared that no lessee on whose land any portion of such channel runs shall at any time alter such portion, or stop or divert the water flowing thereon, save to such extent as the Commissioner deems reasonable, and the decision of the Commissioner shall be final and conclusive.
31.Copies of the Regulations issued under the Land for Settlements Act may be had on application to any Land Office, or they will be forwarded by post to any address.
32.Intending applicants should read these Regulations carefully, and also make themselves acquainted with the questions formulated on pages 10 and 16 of the said Regulations, to which they must give written answers, and declare to.page 13
33.Selectors are reminded that the terms as to payment of rent, &c., in advance, and fulfilment of conditions as to improvement and residence, will be strictly enforced.
34.Deposits sent by post must be by marked cheque, draft, or post-office order, and no bank-notes, gold, or coin should be sent by post.
35.All cheques must be marked by the bank on which they are drawn as good for at least ten days after the date of the ballot, and no cheque will be accepted as a deposit unless so marked.
36.If the deposit is made by post-office order, care should be taken to have the order made payable to the Receiver of Land Revenue at the money-order office nearest to where the applicant liven.
37.Successful applicants can take possession on the day of ballot.
38.Detailed descriptions of sections and small grazing-runs will be found on pages 17 to 40.
39.Schedules of sections, small grazing-runs, with areas and half-yearly rentals will be found on pages 14, 15, and 16.
40.For large-scale map of Flaxbourne Settlement, see Marlborough Land District Poster-map No. 181.