For each land district there shall be a Board of Commissioners, to be called “The Land Board of [Name of land district]”; and the said Board shall consist of the Commissioner of Crown Lands of the district (hereinafter called “the Chief Commissioner”), and of not less than two nor more than five other Commissioners, all of whom shall be appointed and be removable from time to time by warrant under the hand of the Governor.

The several Boards existing in the respective land districts on the first day of January, one thousand eight hundred and seventy-eight, are hereby constituted the Land Boards for the same districts respectively under this Act, and the members of such Boards, who shall be in office on the aforesaid first day of January, are hereby appointed members of the said Board under this Act: Provided that where any existing Board shall consist of fewer members than five, exclusive of the Chief Commissioner, the Governor may appoint members to such Board so as to bring up the number of such members to the aforesaid number. Every member of a Land Board shall, subject to the provisions herein contained, remain and continue in office for the term of two years from the date of appointment, but no longer.

Any member may be reappointed as a member of any Land Board.

Every Commissioner shall take the following oath of office before a Judge of the Supreme Court:—

If any Commissioner shall, by writing addressed to the Chief Commissioner resign his office, or die, or become of unsound mind, or be adjudicated a bankrupt or insolvent, or take the benefit of or be brought under the operation of any Act relating to bankruptcy or insolvent debtors, or be convicted of felony or any infamous crime, or be absent without sufficient cause from three successive ordinary sittings of the Board without the leave of the Board, or otherwise become incapacitated to act as Commissioner, his seat at the Board shall be thereby vacated.

The Chief Commissioner shall forthwith notify every vacancy to the Governor as it occurs, who shall appoint such duly qualified person as he shall think fit to supply such vacancy.

Every Land Board constituted under the provisions of this Act shall have all the duties, powers, and authorities in every respect which are conferred upon Land Boards by this Act.

Every Land Board shall be deemed to be duly constituted, and may enter into office and proceed to the despatch of business when a sufficient number of Commissioners to form a quorum have been appointed.

No Chief Commissioner or Commissioner of any Land Board shall be personally liable in any action, suit, or other proceeding, except for his own act and deed, nor shall be be liable for anything done by him in the execution of his office, except in cases where he shall be guilty of wilful neglect or default.

Out of any moneys that may from time to time be appropriated to that purpose by the General Assembly, there shall be paid to every Commissioner of any Land Board (other than the Chief Commissioner), for his attendance at the meetings of the Board, a sum not exceeding one pound sterling for every such attendance, and also a sum for travelling expenses actually incurred.

Provided that any Commissioner who shall receive any payment or travelling expenses shall not be disqualified from a seat in the General Assembly, nor become liable to any penalty under any Disqualification Act for the time being in force.

The Governor, by Proclamation in the Gazette, may from time to time establish and define, abolish, alter, or reconstitute local districts for the sale or disposal of land, and in like manner from time to time may appoint Land Officers or other persons for conducting sales of land in such local districts, and for receiving applications for the sale, letting, disposal, or occupation of Crown lands, and for generally carrying into effect the provisions of this Act.

Any local district may overlap the boundaries of any land district, and embrace within its limits portions of different land districts.

In the conduct of business by each Land Board the following provisions shall have effect:—

The Board shall sit at such Land Office within the district as the Governor shall appoint (which shall be called “the Principal Land Office”), at certain times to be determined by the Board and approved of by the Governor, and published in the Gazette. And the Board may adjourn from time to time.

Special meetings of the Board may be held, of which not less than twenty-four hours’ notice in writing shall have been given to each member of the Board by the Chief Commissioner or by any two Commissioners.

The Commissioner of Crown Lands, when present, shall preside at every meeting of the Board as Chairman of the Board ex officio, and shall have an original as well as a casting vote in all questions coming before the Board.

In the absence of the Chief Commissioner, then some member selected by those present at any meeting shall preside thereat, and the person so presiding shall at such meeting have all the powers of the Chief Commissioner.

All questions coming before the Board shall be decided by a majority of the votes of the Commissioners present thereat.

At all meetings of the Board three Commissioners shall form a quorum; and such meetings shall be open to the public, except the Board deems it necessary for the purpose of deliberation to require strangers to withdraw.

All business connected with the sale, letting, disposal, and occupation of Crown lands shall be transacted by the Board.

All the routine business relating to the sale, letting, disposal, and occupation of Crown lands shall be transacted by the Chief Commissioner, subject to such instructions as may be given by the Board.

Every dispute and difference relating or incident to the sale, letting, disposal, and occupation of Crown lands, or to the interpretation or meaning of any enactment relating to or in connection with Crown lands, or to any matter or thing done under any such enactment, shall be heard and determined by the Board. And for the purposes of any such hearing every Land Board shall have all the powers of a Board or Commissioners appointed by the Governor in Council under “The Commissioners Powers Act, 1867.”

The decision of the Board on all matters to be by it heard and determined shall, subject to the provisions of this Act relating to Land Board appeals, be final and conclusive.

The Board shall keep a record of all its proceedings, in which shall be entered a full and particular account of all business transacted by it, and a minute of the opinion of the members of the said Board in cases where they differ and in which any member wishes his opinion to be recorded, which record shall be open to the inspection of any person at all reasonable hours, on payment of a fee of two shillings and sixpence for each inspection.

There shall be kept in the Principal Land Office, in a convenient form for reference, every letter, application, report, and communication received at the office, and copies of those written therefrom, also every order made by the Board and by the Chief Commissioner, and a convenient index shall be made thereto, all of which shall be open to inspection by any person at all reasonable times, on payment of a fee of two shillings and sixpence for each inspection.

All rents, fees, assessments, purchase moneys, and moneys paid by way of deposit, and other sums of money payable under the provisions of this Act shall be paid to the Receiver of Land Revenue for the time being, unless herein otherwise provided.

It shall be lawful for every Board at its discretion to charge and receive, for the decision of any disputed question which it is authorized to determine, a fee not exceeding five pounds, to be paid by the party against whom its decision shall be made, to be recovered in a summary way, and the Board may require such fee to be deposited by each party before entering on the question; and the fee deposited by the party in whose favour the decision shall be made shall be forthwith returned to him.

Whenever the Board is authorized to grant a license or lease, the same may be in such form as the Board shall in each case approve, subject to the provisions of this Act, and shall, after such approval, be signed by the Commissioner of Crown Lands by and on behalf of the Board, and shall be as valid and effectual if so signed as if signed by all the members of the Board.

There shall be paid in respect of any particular lease, license, or other instrument, or of any transfer thereof respectively, such fee as the Board with the assent of the Governor may appoint; and the Board may require a deposit to be made of the amount of such fee at the time application is made for any of such instruments as aforesaid, or at any time thereafter, and the Board may at any time refuse to proceed in any transaction if such deposit, when required, is not made.

Any renewal of a lease or license may be effected by writing on the lease or license a memorandum of the terms, conditions, and covenants to which such new lease or license is subject, and signing the said memorandum in the manner herein required in the case of an original lease or license.

No application whatsoever for the sale, letting, disposal, or other occupation of Crown lands shall be a valid and legal application unless such application shall have been made at a duly established Land Office within the land district, during the hours when such office is open to the public for the transaction of business.

All applications for land shall be in writing, or partly in writing or partly in print, and may be made at any Land Office within the land district, or within any local district which comprises the whole or part of the land applied for.

Any application may, at the option of the applicant, where no special provision exists to the contrary, be enclosed in a sealed cover, which shall not be opened till after the office hours on the day it is made.

Where any application for land is made at a Land Office within any local district, the officer receiving such application shall note the day and hour at which such application is made, and shall without delay transmit such application, together with a note of the time when the same was received by him, to the Board of the land district wherein the land applied for is situate, and the said Board shall deal with such application as an application made to the Board itself at the time at which it was made at the office in the local district.

The Board shall not entertain any application for the purchase of Crown lands situate within gold fields, alienated under license or lease for pastoral purposes, although such application is accompanied by the written consent of the pastoral licensee or lessee, unless evidence is first furnished by the applicant that the exact locality, area, and boundaries have been accurately described in an advertisement inserted for three consecutive weeks in any newspaper published or circulating in the district in which the lands so applied for are situate.

In any case where at any time heretofore a license has been granted to hold land on any system subject to the fulfilment of certain terms or conditions, the Land Board shall be the sole judges whether such conditions have been complied with, and shall have all the powers and authorities conferred upon any body or person by the Act under which any such license was granted, and shall proceed in the manner indicated in that behalf by such Act, notwithstanding its repeal, to enforce the fulfilment of the conditions of any such license, or to obtain possession of any land, improvements, or money forfeited for breach of such conditions.

Any Land Board may, at any time within thirty days after the making of any decision by it on any matter on which it is empowered to decide, grant, on the application of any person aggrieved by such decision, a rehearing of the case decided by it if it shall think that justice requires it, and on such rehearing may reverse, alter, modify, or confirm the previous decision in the same case.

If any person consider himself aggrieved by any decision of the said Board, such person may appeal to the Supreme Court, provided that such person shall within thirty days after the giving of such decision give notice of such appeal to the Board, and also to such persons, if any, as shall have appeared before the Board as opponents of the case or claim or application of such person, and also give security to be approved of by the Registrar of the Court for the costs of the appeal; and after hearing the parties the Court shall give its decision, and cause the same to be certified in writing by the Registrar or Deputy Registrar of the Court to the Board, and the Board shall be bound to follow such decision, and shall reverse, alter, modify, or confirm their decision in accordance therewith, and the Court may make such order as to payment of costs to either party as to it shall seem meet. And for following such decision no action or suit or any other proceeding by any process of any Court shall lie against the said Board or any Commissioner.

Such appeal shall be in the form of a case agreed on by such Board and the appellant, and if they cannot agree upon the case to be stated then such appeal shall not be in the form of a case, but the Court shall hear such appeal, and may receive evidence either orally or by affidavit, and it shall be lawful for the Court, if to the Court it shall seem fit, instead of deciding any matter of fact in dispute upon affidavits or personal examination by it of witnesses, to order any such question of fact to be found and determined by a jury, and to settle an issue or issues for that purpose.

The Board may, either at the instance of a party or of their own motion, in any case of doubt upon a question of law, submit a case thereon in writing to a Judge or Judges of the Supreme Court, who, after hearing the parties or their counsel, or without, as to such Judge or Judges shall seem fit, shall certify his or their opinion thereon in writing to the Board, and the Board shall be guided by such opinion. And for following such opinion no action or suit or any other proceeding by any process of any Court shall lie against the said Board or any Commissioner.

The Judges of the Supreme Court, or any two or more of them, may, from time to time, make general rules for regulating the practice and proceedings on such appeals, and on the hearing and deciding questions stated under the last foregoing section of this Act, which rules shall be as valid as if included in this Act.

Nothing in the foregoing provisions of this Act relating to appeals shall authorize or permit an appeal from the decision of any Land Board upon any question affecting the title of the Crown to any lands.

All claims for compensation in respect of any matters arising under this Act, or for value of improvements or other matters, shall, unless otherwise specially provided, be settled in the manner provided in Part III. of “The Public Works Act, 1876;” and for this purpose the said Part III. shall be deemed to be incorporated with this Act.

Where it is provided or agreed that any matter arising under this Act shall be referred to arbitration, then such reference, unless herein otherwise provided, shall be to one or more arbitrators appointed by the parties on each side respectively and an umpire to be appointed by such arbitrators; and every such arbitration shall be carried on in the manner provided by “The Supreme Court Practice and Procedure Amendment Act, 1866,” and be subject to the said Act in the same manner as if such reference had been a reference made by consent of parties under a deed.

From and after the first day of May, one thousand eight hundred and eighty, the rent to be paid by every licensee in respect of a run held under the provisions of any Waste Lands Acts or Regulations heretofore in force within the Land District of Canterbury shall be determined according to the value of the run; such rent shall not be more than two shillings nor less than ninepence for every head of sheep, and not more than ten shillings nor less than four shillings for every head of cattle which such run shall be determined by the Board to be capable of carrying.

The Board shall, not later than the first day of November, one thousand eight hundred and seventy-eight, determine the grazing capability of each run held under license in the Canterbury Land District, and shall within the maximum and minimum hereinbefore prescribed, according to the value of the run, decide the rate to be paid on the stock depastured thereon, and shall cause to be inserted in the Gazette a notice of the amount of rent to be paid in respect of each run in such district, and unless appealed against, as hereinafter provided, the amount therein mentioned shall be binding and conclusive upon the occupier.

In no case shall a run be determined to be capable of carrying a smaller number of stock than the number which was depastured thereon in the year one thousand eight hundred and seventy-six, according to the returns of cattle and sheep respectively furnished in that year for the purpose of striking a rate thereon, under the provisions of the Acts or Ordinances then respectively in force in that behalf, unless the grazing capabilities of such run shall since the date of such return have been diminished in consequence of a portion of such run having been sold or leased, licensed, or reserved, or from some other such cause, and, if so diminished, a proportionate reduction may be made according to the quantity of land by which such run has been diminished.

If the Minister shall be dissatisfied with the amount of the rent fixed by the Board as aforesaid, he may, in manner hereinafter provided, appeal against such determination; and, if the occupier of any run shall be dissatisfied with any such determination, he may in like manner appeal therefrom, on making a deposit of fifty pounds to the Receiver of Land Revenue as a security to the said Board for any cost incurred in connection with such appeal.

The Minister or the occupier may, at any time within three months after the first publication in the Gazette of such notice, cause a summons to be taken out, returnable before a Judge of the Supreme Court in Chambers, to show cause why, on one or more of the grounds hereinafter mentioned, and which shall be specified in the summons, an appeal should not be allowed against such determination; and if, on the hearing of such summons, it shall appear by affidavit or oral testimony, or both, to the said Judge that the said determination was fraudulent or erroneous or unjust, the Judge shall make an order, without costs, that such determination may be appealed against by the Minister or the occupier.

The party in whose favour any such order shall be made may, within one month after the making thereof, give notice to the other party of the intention to appeal against such determination, and in such notice name the person appointed by such party to decide the said appeal; and the other party shall within seven days from the service of such notice appoint another arbitrator, and the two arbitrators shall appoint a third arbitrator; or if they refuse or neglect to do so within fourteen days, or if the party on whom such last-mentioned notice has been served neglect or refuse within the time before mentioned to appoint an arbitrator, a Judge of the Supreme Court may and shall, on the application of the party in whose favour the order has been made, appoint an arbitrator, to act with the arbitrator or arbitrators previously appointed in the matter of the said appeal, and the arbitrators so appointed shall, after having inspected the run, hear and receive evidence, in a place to which the public shall be admitted, and the decision shall be given within two months after the service of such notice.

Such arbitrators shall have all the powers which by any Act now in force can be exercised by any arbitrator appointed by a rule of Court, including the power of examining witnesses upon oath.

Every such arbitrator shall, previously to entering upon his duties, take and subscribe before a Justice of the Peace an oath that he will well and faithfully discharge his duty as an arbitrator, and do right in the matter of the arbitration submitted to him to all persons without fear or favour, affection or ill-will.

Subject to the provisions of section ninety-eight, such arbitrators, or a majority of them, shall determine the amount of rent to be paid in respect of the run according to its grazing capabilities, and shall have power to fix the rent at a higher or lower amount than that fixed by the Board; and the amount so determined shall be the rent to be paid in respect thereof.

The arbitrators shall award that the unsuccessful party shall pay to the other party the reasonable costs attending such appeal, and also the costs of the arbitrators; but such last-mentioned costs shall not exceed the sum of three pounds for every day occupied by each arbitrator in going to and returning from the run, and in inspecting the same and examining witnesses; and in no case shall the costs to be paid to the arbitrators exceed thirty pounds.

If the amount of rent determined by the arbitrators shall be less than that determined by the said Board by one-tenth only, the party appealing shall not be entitled to recover any costs from the said Board.

If the rent as fixed by the Board be not reduced, it shall apply the deposit to be paid as aforesaid towards satisfaction of the costs incurred.

If, before the making of such determination as aforesaid, any arbitrator die, or refuse or become incapable to act, the party or Judge by whom such arbitrator was appointed, as the case may be, shall appoint another in his stead; and, if such party fail to do so for the space of fourteen days after notice from the other party in that behalf, such other party may appoint an arbitrator in his stead; and every arbitrator so appointed shall have the same powers and authorities as were vested in the arbitrator in whose stead such’ appointment shall have been made.

If on proper representation the Board shall have reason to believe that the amount originally determined as the rent to be paid in respect of any run or runs was fixed at too low an amount, it shall be lawful for the said Board, at any time within twelve months after such determination, to increase the amount of such rent: Provided always that notice of the fact of such increase having been made shall within one month thereafter be inserted in the Gazette, and that a copy of such notice be posted to the occupier of such run in a letter addressed to him at such run.

Such occupier may appeal against the determination of the Board in making such increase; and such appeal shall be decided in the same manner, and such decision shall have the same consequences, in all respects as is hereinbefore provided with regard to an appeal from the original determination of the Board as to the amount of rent to be paid.

Every holder of a depasturing license whose rent has been determined as hereinbefore provided, who shall on or before the first day of May, one thousand eight hundred and eighty, pay the first year’s rent in advance, and in other respects comply with the provisions of this Act, shall be entitled from thenceforth to hold his run as from the first day of May, one thousand eight hundred and eighty, until the first day of May, one thousand eight hundred and ninety, subject to the provisions of this Act, and thereafter the depasturing license and all rights (if any) created thereunder shall absolutely cease and determine.

If any holder of a depasturing license shall at any time fail or neglect to pay the rent due in respect thereof, or shall fail to pay the rent which may be determined by the Board or by arbitrators as hereinbefore provided, the Commissioner of Crown Lands shall declare such license to be forfeited, and the run shall then be dealt with as provided by this Act in respect to unlicensed or forfeited runs.

All rights of pre-emption heretofore granted in the Land District of Canterbury shall, on and after the first day of May, one thousand eight hundred and eighty, absolutely cease and determine.

If the holder of any depasturing license shall have erected or made, or shall hereafter erect or make, any building, fencing, enclosure, or other improvement on Crown lands included within his license but not included in any pre-emptive right, and such land shall be purchased by any other person than such holder, he shall be entitled to remove such building, fencing, enclosure, or other improvement within three months from the date of his receiving a written notice of such purchase from the Board.

Before the expiration of any license or lease for depasturing purposes now in force, the Board shall, with the approval of the Governor, determine whether it is expedient to lease again for depasturing purposes the whole or any part of the lands held under such license or lease; or whether such lands, either as to the whole or as to any part thereof, as the case may be, are required for sale as rural lands under Part II. of this Act, or for sale and settlement on deferred payments under Part III. of this Act.

If it be determined that such lands, either as to the whole or as to any part thereof, as the case may be, are so required, then the Board shall, at any time not later than twelve months before the expiration of the license or lease, cause a notice of such resolution to be served on the licensee or lessee, or to be left at his last or last-known place of abode, or with some person resident upon the lands comprised in such license or lease.

If it be determined that such lands, either as to the whole or part thereof, as the case may be, shall again be let for depasturing purposes, then a new lease of the whole or of such part, as the case may be, shall, subject to the provisions relating to leases of pastoral lands contained herein, be sold by auction at least twelve months before the expiration of the then existing license or lease.

When it shall have been determined as hereinbefore provided that the whole or portion of any run held under lease shall be again let for depasturing purposes, the Board shall cause such run, or such portion thereof as it may have determined to let, to be exposed to auction at least twelve months before the expiration of the then existing lease, and the sale shall be on the express condition that the purchaser, not being the actual lessee, shall, before being let into possession, pay to the Receiver of Land Revenue valuation for the improvements made on the run, such valuation to be fixed and determined as next hereinafter provided; and such auction shall be conducted in all other respects in the same manner as herein provided for auctions of runs.

In the event of the then lessee not having become the purchaser, the Board shall, at least one month before the expiration of any such lease, appoint an appraiser to value all improvements, consisting of necessary buildings, and of plantations, fences, and ditches for draining made on the lands, the license of which has been sold at auction as last aforesaid: Provided the amount of such valuation to be paid as aforesaid shall in no case exceed three times the amount of the average annual rent paid under the expiring lease during the term thereof.

On the receipt of any sum of money paid on any valuation made as aforesaid, the Receiver of Land Revenue shall, on application being made to him in that behalf, pay over to the person who at the expiration of the old lease was the lessee or transferee and holder of such lease the amount received for such valuation: Provided always that no lessee shall have any claim for valuation or compensation for or on account of any improvements either against the Crown or the Board.

All pastoral leases or licenses in the Districts of Otago and Southland, terminating between the first day of July in any year and the month of March in the next succeeding year, shall be held to terminate in the last-named month of March, and the lessee or licensee, whose term of occupation has become extended by virtue of this provision, shall be liable for and shall pay in advance a proportionate amount of rent for the period during which his lease or license may be so extended.

Subject to the provisions hereinbefore contained in respect of runs within the Land Districts of Canterbury and Otago respectively, and to any rights subsisting under any enactment repealed hereby,—

All Crown lands which at the time of the passing of this Act shall be occupied for pastoral purposes by virtue of any lease, license, or other authority may, on the determination or surrender of any such lease or license, if the Governor in Council shall see fit, be exposed to auction in runs of such extent as he shall approve.

All unoccupied Crown lands, and all Crown lands the license for which may be forfeited or surrendered, may in like manner be exposed to auction as aforesaid.

No larger extent of such land than will be sufficient, according to the estimate of the Board, to carry all the year round five thousand sheep or one thousand head of cattle shall be offered at auction in one lot under the provisions of this Act.

Before any run shall be exposed at auction, the Board shall determine the upset amount of rent at which the same will be put up at auction, and notify the same by advertisement, and notice of such auction shall be given in the same manner in all respects as herein enacted with regard to town and suburban lands about to be sold by auction.

The license shall be for such term not exceeding ten years as the Board shall fix, subject to be determined at any time in manner next hereinafter provided, if the Governor shall be of opinion that the land therein comprised, or any part thereof, is required for sale as agricultural or pastoral land.

It shall be lawful for the Governor at any time and from time to time to cause to be given to the licensee twelve months’ notice in writing that the whole or any part of the land comprised in any such license is so required, and at the expiration of such notice the license in respect of the land then specified shall determine and be void.

If part of the land only comprised in any license is affected by any such notice, it shall be lawful for the licensee at any time, either before or after the expiration of such twelve months’ notice as aforesaid, on giving not less than six months’ notice of his intention to do so, to surrender his license as to the whole or part of the land therein comprised but not affected by such first-mentioned notice.

No licensee shall be entitled to any compensation in consequence of his license being determined as aforesaid as to the whole or any part of the land therein comprised.

Provided always that in the Land District of Otago such licensee shall be entitled to compensation in respect of improvements on land, as mentioned and determined in amount in section one hundred and sixteen of this Act, the license of which shall be so determined, if, having been the occupant of such land before the expiration of the old lease, be has received no compensation for improvements made by him during the currency of the old lease, or if he has paid to the Receiver of Land Revenue valuation for such improvements under the provisions of clause one hundred and fifteen of this Act, or of “The Otago Waste Lands Act, 1872.”

The person who shall pay the highest sum by way of annual rent for any such run shall be entitled to receive a license to occupy the same for pastoral purposes, provided he shall pay the first year’s rent in advance at the time of such auction; and in default of such payment the run shall be forthwith again put up to auction.

Every license of a run purchased at auction as aforesaid shall, if the run is held under license at the time of sale, hear date on the next first day of March following the determination of such license, and in respect of lands not held under license shall bear date on the next first day of March following the date of such auction: Provided always that the purchaser of the license shall pay, over and above the first year’s rent required to be paid in advance, and at the same time as such rent is paid, a further sum equal to the amount of rent that shall be payable in respect of the run described in such license for the whole period that may intervene between the date of the auction and the date of the license.

If there be no bidder at such auction, the Board may reduce the amount of the rent; and the run shall be again exposed to auction, after notice of the same shall have been given in manner hereinbefore provided, and so on from time to time until the license of the said run shall be sold.

A pasturage license shall entitle the holder thereof to the exclusive right of pasturage over the lands specified therein, but shall give no right to the soil or timber or minerals, and shall immediately determine over any land which may be proclaimed a hundred, or which may be licensed, leased, purchased, granted, or reserved under this or any other Act. Such roads and rights-of-way as the Governor or the Board may deem necessary may at any time be taken through any run without compensation.

The interest in a run held under any license which may be issued hereunder to occupy for pastoral purposes shall be deemed to be a chattel interest for all purposes.

Such interest may be transferred in writing attested by a Justice, either indorsed upon the license or on a separate document; and the person to whom such interest shall be transferred shall be entitled, upon payment of a fee of ten pounds, to receive a license to occupy for pastoral purposes: Provided that the person making such transfer shall be liable for the instalment of rent which shall become due next after such transfer.

Every transfer of the interest in a run held under a license to occupy for pastoral purposes shall be registered at the office of the land district; and until such registration has been made as aforesaid the said transfer shall have no effect or operation, and no interest, either at law or in equity, shall be transferred thereby.

Every license issued under the authority of this Part of this Act shall contain the following conditions:—

A condition for the payment of the rent at the times herein mentioned;

A condition that if the licensee, or any person claiming an interest through or under the licensee in the run for which the license has been issued, shall make or cause to be made any agreement or contract, or shall give or cause to be given or taken any negotiable security, for the purpose of defeating or evading the provisions of or shall in any way whatsoever directly or indirectly commit or be privy to a fraud upon this Act, the license shall be liable to be forfeited and revoked in manner hereinafter provided:

And every license shall contain such other conditions and provisions, not inconsistent with the provisions of this Act, as the Board shall approve of and shall direct to be inserted therein.

If at any time while any such license is in force it shall be shown to the satisfaction of the Board that any condition of such license has been violated, the Board may forfeit and revoke such license, and may dispose of the run to which such license applied as if such license had never been issued; and such licensee, and his executors, administrators, and assigns, shall be taken to have forfeited all right, title, and interest under such license, and to be, as against the the Crown or the Board, or any person claiming under the Crown or the Board, a mere trespasser or mere trespassers; and the production of a copy of the Gazette containing a notice, purporting to be signed by the Commissioner of Crown Lands, of the forfeiture and revocation of any such license, shall be evidence that such license has been lawfully forfeited and revoked.

The licensee of any run may with the sanction of the Board, and upon payment of a fee of ten pounds for every subdivision, divide such run, and the Board shall determine the amount of rent to be paid in respect of each subdivision of the original run, so that the rent to be paid for the whole of such subdivisions shall not be less than the rent paid for the run when undivided.

And the Board shall issue licenses authorizing the occupation for pastoral purposes of each run into which the original run shall have been so divided, at the rent so determined by the Board as last aforesaid: Provided always that no pre-emptive right to purchase or lease shall be exercised after such subdivision.

If the area of any run shall be diminished by reason of any portion thereof being proclaimed a hundred, licensed, leased, purchased, granted, or reserved, the license of the run shall be revoked to the extent that the same shall thereby be diminished, and the rent to be paid in future in respect of such run shall be reduced to an amount proportionate to the area over which the license has been so revoked.

It shall be lawful for the Board to permit the original holder of a pastoral license issued under this Act to apply for and purchase in one block, and at such price as the Board may determine (not being less than the upset price of land in the district), an allotment of land not exceeding three hundred and twenty acres on which to erect buildings, yards, or such other improvements as may be necessary for working the run: Provided that any licensee who has at any time heretofore purchased or become the owner of a pre-emptive right in such run shall not be entitled to purchase hereunder.

The Board may refuse to receive any such application for any land supposed to be auriferous, or to contain any mineral or metal, or which in the opinion of the Board may be required for the site of a town or ferry or for any reserve or public purpose; and such application if received shall be surveyed in all respects in conformity with the regulations as to roads and frontages in force in the land district.

Notwithstanding that the Board may have received such an application, it shall be lawful for the Board after the survey of the land has been made, if to the Board it shall seem fit, to refuse to grant the application either as to the whole or as to part of the land applied for, and to return the moneys (if any) paid on account of purchase-money or surveys, or such part thereof as has been paid on account of the portion of land the application for which shall not be granted.

The rent payable in respect of any run shall, except as is hereinbefore provided in respect of the first year’s rent, be paid in equal parts, half-yearly in advance, on the first day of March and the first day of September in each year.

The rent may be recovered in like manner as any rent is or shall be recoverable by law, and, in case the same shall be levied by distress, an order of the Commissioner of Crown Lands shall be a sufficient warrant and authority to distrain, any law or enactment to the contrary notwithstanding.

If the occupier of any run shall not pay the rent within fourteen days after it shall become due, he shall be liable to a penalty of one pound for every day that such rent shall be in arrear after the day when it became due, to be added to the amount of the rent due: Provided always that, in case of the death of the lessee before the rent becomes due, the time of payment may be extended by the Board to three months.

If such rent and penalty be not paid within one month after such rent became due, the said Board shall cause to be inserted in the Gazette a notice to the occupier of such run that the same is liable to forfeiture; and if such rent, together with the full amount of the penalty, be not paid within three months after the date of such insertion, the Commissioner of Crown Lands shall forthwith declare such run forfeited, and after any such declaration the interest of such occupier in such run shall cease and determine.

When any difference exists or shall arise between the occupiers of adjoining runs as to the common boundary thereof, the Board may, by an order in writing, direct that the same shall be ascertained by some competent person to be appointed in such order, and by two other persons, one to be appointed by each of the said occupiers, and such three arbitrators or any two of them shall make their award in writing of and concerning the premises on or before the day named for that purpose in such order, or on or before such further day as the Board shall by writing indorsed on the same order appoint, and such award shall be transmitted to and deposited in the office of the Board, and shall be binding and conclusive on Her Majesty and the said occupiers respectively, and the cost of such arbitration shall be borne by the said occupiers in such manner or proportions as the said arbitrators shall direct.

It shall be lawful for the arbitrators who may determine the boundary as aforesaid to mark on the ground such boundary, and such boundary so marked shall be held to be the boundary of such runs. And it shall be lawful for the said arbitrators, or any authorized officer chosen by the Board, to certify, by his or their signature duly attached to any plan representing such boundary, the accuracy of such representation, and such plan shall thenceforth become and be legal evidence of such boundary.

When the area of any run has not been ascertained with sufficient accuracy, the Board may cause such run to be surveyed for the purpose of ascertaining its area, and in consideration of the expense of such survey may charge to the licensee of such run a sum not exceeding thirty pounds, and the sum so charged shall be taken to form a part of the rent payable during that year in respect of such run, and may be recovered in the same manner as such rent is recoverable.

No occupier of land for pastoral purposes shall be entitled to any compensation by reason of this Act being hereafter repealed or altered.

Notwithstanding anything herein contained, every traveller may, while be is travelling, depasture for any period not exceeding twenty-four hours his cattle and sheep, unless the same be affected with any contagious or infectious disease, upon any unsold Crown lands within one quarter of a mile on either side of any road or track commonly used as a thoroughfare, or, though not previously so used, leading to any Crown lands on which persons are actually engaged in mining for gold or in other industrial pursuits, and to which no road has been proclaimed.

Every person intending to drive cattle or sheep across the run of any other person, and not keeping such cattle or sheep entirely upon the road or track laid out or commonly used by the public, shall, before entering upon such run, give or deliver at the residence of the occupier or manager residing on such run twelve hours’ notice of his intention so to drive such cattle or sheep, and shall by such notice state from whence be has brought the same and whither be is driving them, and the point at which he purposes to enter the run; and all cattle shall be driven every day a distance of not less than ten miles, and all sheep shall be driven every day a distance of not less than six miles, in the direction of the place mentioned in the notice as the place to which it is intended to drive such cattle or sheep respectively; and any person who shall offend against any of the provisions of this section, unless prevented by some cause which shall appear satisfactory to the Magistrate, shall, on conviction before any Magistrate, forfeit and pay for every such offence a sum not exceeding twenty pounds.

The Governor, by Proclamation, may from time to time declare any Crown lands within any mining district, not held under license or lease at the date of such Proclamation, or over which the license or lease has been cancelled, to be open for sale or selection in sections of such size and form and on such date as he may determine; and any lands so proclaimed may thereafter be sold at a like price and subject to the like terms and conditions, or as near thereto as may be, as Crown lands of the same class not within a mining district. And the Governor may from time to time alter, amend, or revoke any such Proclamation.

Before any such Crown land is offered for sale or selection the Board shall determine whether any watercourse running through or bounding the same will, in their opinion, be thereafter probably required for the purpose of discharging therein tailings, mining debris, or waste water; and if in the opinion of the said Board such watercourse will be so required the same shall be duly notified accordingly, and a right shall be reserved to the Governor in the Crown grant to issue to holders of miners’ rights or mining leases licenses to use such watercourse for any such purpose without liability to pay compensation therefor.

Whenever improvements have been made on any section the value of which should in the opinion of the Land Board be secured to the occupant of such section, it shall be lawful for the Board, on its recommendation to that effect having been approved in such case by the Governor, to add to the upset price of such section the value of such improvements, to be ascertained in such manner as shall be decided by the Board, with such approval as aforesaid, in which case, should the occupant become the purchaser, it shall not be necessary for him to pay the value so ascertained; but the same shall be allowed to him as if paid, and if any other person become the purchaser the amount of such value shall be paid over to the occupant by the Receiver of Land Revenue.

When any mineral, metal, or valuable stone has been or shall be discovered on any Crown lands held under license or lease for pastoral or agricultural purposes, it shall be lawful for the Governor at any time to cancel the license or lease over any such lands, and over such areas adjacent thereto as may from time to time be required for the proper working of the mines or for granting access thereto.

The lessee or licensee, in case be is entitled to compensation under the provisions of any Act hereby repealed, shall be entitled to have the same assessed in manner provided by Part III. of “The Public Works Act, 1876,” but such compensation shall not exceed what he is entitled to under any enactment by this Act repealed.

No lessee or licensee, holding a lease or license for pastoral or agricultural purposes granted under this Act, shall be entitled to any compensation in respect of any land whereof the lease or license is cancelled as hereinbefore provided.

All powers of the Governor to grant mineral leases or licenses of land containing or supposed to contain minerals other than gold, under the provisions of any Act relating to mining, may, in respect of Crown lands outside of mining districts, but subject to the conditions contained in such Mining Acts respectively, be exercised by any Land Board.

All powers of the Governor to grant licenses for the construction of water-races, and for the diversion of water, under the provisions of any Act relating to mining, may, subject to the conditions in such Acts contained, be exercised by any Land Board in respect of any lands outside of mining districts.

The Crown shall have the right to take all necessary roads through any unsurveyed rural or pastoral lands after any sale or other disposal thereof, at any time previous to the survey of the same, without paying compensation for the land taken for any such roads. But after any rural or pastoral lands have been surveyed and sold, the right of taking necessary roads through any such lands may only be exercised within five years after survey of the said lands, and on the payment by the Crown for any land taken for such roads of an amount equal to twice the amount paid by the original purchaser from the Crown for the land so taken.

The Governor, by notice in the Gazette, may from time to time proclaim as a street or road, or as town or suburban lands, any portion or portions of Crown lands, and such town or suburban lands shall be sold by auction in the manner herein provided for the sale of town and suburban lands, and the lands upon which such street or road shall have been proclaimed shall be and be deemed to be thenceforward dedicated to the public.

When the course of any road has been or is hereafter altered or is about to be altered, if the owner of the land over which the road in its altered state passes or is intended to pass he willing to exchange such land or any part of it for the land traversed by such road in its former or its then present state, or for any part thereof, the Governor may, upon such terms as are mutually agreed on, accept such exchange, and may execute the proper grants or conveyances accordingly: And the Governor may do all things necessary in or towards the completion of any arrangement at any time heretofore made by competent authority in respect of the deviation of the course of any such road.

Before any appraiser enters into the consideration of any matters referred to him under this Act, he shall in the presence of a Justice make and subscribe the following declaration, that is to say,—

In cases in which there may be no convenient way of access to any portion of the Crown land, or in which any portion of Crown lands may be insufficient in area for public sale, or in which a portion of Crown land may lie between land already granted and a street or road which forms or should form the way of approach to such granted land, or in any other cases of a like kind, the Board may sell such lands to the holder or holders of adjacent lands without competition, and at a price to be determined by an appraiser to be appointed by the Board: Provided always that no such land shall be sold at a less price than two pounds an acre.

If any person be found in unauthorized occupation of any Crown lands, or shall knowingly and wilfully depasture, without authority in that behalf, any cattle or sheep on any such land, he shall be liable on conviction thereof to the penalties following, that is to say, for the first offence, a sum not exceeding five pounds; for the second offence after an interval of fourteen days from the date of the previous conviction, a sum not exceeding twenty pounds; and for any subsequent offence after a like interval, a sum not exceeding fifty pounds. But no proceedings to recover any such penalty may be taken except by some person authorized in that behalf by the Governor or the Board.

If any person shall wilfully obliterate, remove, or deface any boundary mark which may have been made or erected by or under the direction of any authorized surveyor, or by any officer of any Land Board, or of any arbitrator as to boundaries, he shall be guilty of a misdemeanour.

Notwithstanding anything in this Act contained, the Governor, if he shall think fit, may withdraw from sale, leasing, or licensing any land or allotment.

The Governor shall have power from time to time to make and alter or rescind rules and regulations for the care, protection, and management of all reserves and public domains not vested in or under the control of any local authority, and for the preservation of good order and decency therein, and all such rules and regulations shall be published in the Gazette, and shall be posted in some conspicuous place in every such domain and reserve; and every person offending against any such rule or regulation shall, on conviction before any Magistrate, forfeit and pay a penalty not exceeding five pounds for each offence; and every person who shall knowingly and wilfully offend against any such rule or regulation, and who shall not, after he shall have been warned by any Ranger of Crown Lands or any constable, desist from so offending, may be forthwith apprehended by such Ranger or constable and taken before some Magistrate, and shall on conviction forfeit and pay a penalty not exceeding ten pounds.

The Governor shall have power from time to time to make rules, regulations, and orders for the purposes hereinbefore mentioned, to alter or rescind such rules, regulations, and orders, to provide for the mode by which any land or allotment shall be surveyed and boundaries adjusted, for prescribing the form of and the conditions and mode of applying for licenses and leases to be issued under this Act, and the conditions upon which the same shall be issued, for imposing any reasonable charge for surveys or fee for any document issued under the authority of this Act, for providing for all proceedings, forms of leases, licenses, and other instruments, and for the execution of all other matters and things arising under and consistent with this Act and not herein expressly provided for, and for the more fully carrying out the objects and purposes and guarding against evasions and violations of this Act; and all such regulations shall be signed by the Minister, and upon being published in the Gazette shall be valid in law, as if the same were enacted in this Act, and shall be judicially noticed; and all such rules, regulations, and orders shall be laid before both Houses of the Assembly within fourteen days after the making thereof, if Parliament be then sitting, and, if Parliament be not then sitting, within fourteen days after the commencement of the next sitting of Parliament.

It shall be lawful for the Governor, under his hand and the Public Seal of the Colony, from time to time to delegate to such person or persons as the Governor may deem fit all or any of the powers vested in the Governor by this Act, except the powers conferred by sections twenty-four, forty-one, forty-eight, fifty-three, one hundred and twenty-one, one hundred and forty-four, one hundred and forty-eight, one hundred and fifty-four, one hundred and fifty-six, one hundred and sixty, one hundred and sixty-one, one hundred and sixty-two, one hundred and sixty-eight, one hundred and sixty-nine, and one hundred and seventy, subject or not to any limitations or restrictions as he may think fit, and in like manner to alter or revoke any such delegation.

No order or other proceeding made touching or concerning the matters contained in this Act, or touching or concerning the conviction of any offender or offenders against this Act, shall be quashed or vacated for want of form only, or be removed or removable by certiorari or any writ or process whatsoever into the Supreme Court.

Whenever in this Act any claim to compensation is directed to be determined under the provisions of Part III. of “The Public Works Act, 1876,” the respondent in any claim shall be the Minister of Lands.