JUNE 6.] THE NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE. 1755

29. Where it is provided or agreed that any matter 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.

(a.) If either party shall fail to appoint an arbitrator within twenty-one days after being requested in writing to do so by the other party, then the arbitrator appointed by the other party shall alone conduct the arbitration, and his decision shall be final and binding on both parties.

(b.) If the said arbitrators shall fail to agree upon the matter referred to them within twenty-eight days of the same having been so referred, then the matter so referred shall be decided by an umpire to be appointed by the said arbitrators, whose decision shall be final and binding on both parties.

(c.) Every such arbitration shall be carried on in the manner prescribed by “The Arbitration Act, 1890,” and be subject to such last-mentioned Act in the same manner as if the reference to such arbitration had been made by consent of parties under a deed.

(d.) Each party shall pay his or its costs of such reference, and any costs incidental to the appointment of an umpire shall be paid equally by the parties to the arbitration.

(e.) Such arbitrators or umpire shall have all the powers vested in Commissioners by “The Commissioners’ Powers Act, 1867,” as well as all the powers given to them by “The Arbitration Act, 1890.”

30. Before any appraiser enters into the consideration of any matters referred to him under the said Act, he shall, in the presence of a Justice of the Peace, make and subscribe a declaration as in the Form N in the regulations, or to the same effect and meaning.

Renewal of Leases.

31. Not sooner than one year and not later than three months before the end of the term for which the lease is granted, a valuation shall be made by arbitration, or in some other manner that may be agreed upon between the Board and the lessee, of the then value of the fee-simple of the lands then included in the lease, and also a valuation of all substantial improvements of a permanent character made by the lessee during the term and then in existence on the land then comprised in the lease.

The publishing of the valuations made as aforesaid may be effected by serving a copy of the same on the lessee and another copy on the Board; and thereafter, but not later than two months before the expiry of the term for which the lessee then holds the lands, the lessee shall elect, by notice in writing delivered to the Board, whether he will accept a fresh lease of the said lands for a further term of ten years from the expiration of the then term, at a rental equal to not less than five pounds per centum on the gross value of the lands after deducting therefrom the value of the substantial improvements of a permanent character as fixed respectively by the valuation.

32. If the lessee shall not elect to accept a renewal as above mentioned, or shall refuse or neglect to execute a lease within seven days after the same is tendered to him for the purpose, a lease of the said lands shall, not later than one month before the end of the term for which the terminating lease was granted, be put up to public competition by public tender for such term as the Board may consider fit, on the following terms and conditions:—

(a.) The upset rent shall be such rent as shall be fixed by the Board, not being a greater sum than that at which the lease was offered to the outgoing lessee under the last preceding clause.

(b.) The amount of such upset rent shall be stated in the advertisements calling for tenders; and it shall be a condition of tender that the tenderer shall, together with his tender, deposit the amount of one half-year’s rent, which shall be returned to him if he fails to obtain the lease.

(c.) If any person other than the outgoing lessee be declared the purchaser, he shall, within seven days after the day fixed for opening the tenders, pay over to the Board the amount of the value of the substantial improvements of a permanent character as fixed in manner provided by the last preceding clause.

(d.) When the day has arrived on which the terminating lease expires, or thereafter, if the Board shall have satisfied itself that the outgoing lessee has let the new lessee into quiet possession of the lands to be leased, and that none of the improvements on the lands which were thereon when the valuations mentioned in the last preceding clause were made have been destroyed or appreciably damaged, the Board shall pay over to the outgoing lessee the amount received by it from the incoming lessee as aforesaid.

(e.) If any of the improvements as mentioned in the preceding subclause have been destroyed or appreciably damaged, as in the said subclause referred to, then the value of the improvements so destroyed, or the cost of repairing such damage, shall be decided by the Board or some person appointed by it; and the amount so fixed, with the costs attending such decision, shall be deducted from the amount payable as aforesaid to the outgoing lessee, and, save the amount deducted for costs, shall be returned to the incoming lessee.

33. If such lease shall not be disposed of as above mentioned to some person other than the lessee, or if such person fails to execute the lease in triplicate within thirty days, or to pay the sum offered by him as aforesaid within thirty days, from the day on which the tenders were opened, then the lessee may again, within sixty days after the day fixed for the opening of the tenders, elect in manner aforesaid whether he will accept a fresh lease as aforesaid; and if he does not elect to accept the same, or refuses or neglects to execute such lease within seven days after the same is tendered to him for the purpose, then he may continue as lessee of the said land from year to year, so long as he shall pay the rent reserved by his lease and observe and perform the covenants and conditions contained in the same or in this Act, or until the Board shall succeed in finding a purchaser of the new lease, unless, prior to the finding of such purchaser by the Board, he shall elect to accept a new lease for the said further period of ten years as aforesaid.

34. The Board, in selling a renewed lease to a purchaser, may make provision that the right to take possession under such new lease shall always commence on the 1st day of January or of July in any year.

35. All the provisions of the foregoing rules and regulations (except the provisions as to cultivation) as regards the tenders for sale, form, and conditions of first leases made under the said Act, and otherwise howsoever as regards such leases, shall, mutatis mutandis, apply to the sale, form, and conditions of the new or renewed leases above mentioned, and to the lessees thereunder, and otherwise howsoever, except as herein is otherwise expressly provided.

Notwithstanding anything in the foregoing regulations contained, the Board reserves to itself the right to refuse to accept the highest or any tender.

Form K.

STATUTORY DECLARATION TO ACCOMPANY APPLICATION FROM PERSON DESIROUS TO BECOME PURCHASER, TRANSFEREE, OR SUB-LESSEE OF A LEASE.

In the matter of “The Maori Lands Administration Act, 1900,” and its amendments; and in the matter of a proposed lease of the land known as , containing acres, to , of .

I, , of , do solemnly and sincerely declare—

1. That I am of the age of seventeen years and upwards.

2. That I am the person or one of the persons jointly applying for the lease of the above-mentioned land.

3. That I am acquiring the land solely for my own use and benefit, or for the exclusive use and benefit of myself and co-purchaser or co-lessee—namely, —and not directly or indirectly for the use or benefit of any other person or persons whomsoever.

4. That I do not hold or own, either in severalty or jointly with any other person or persons at the date of making this declaration, any land within the colony, except the land set forth in the Schedule hereto.

5. That, including the land now applied for, but exclusive of leases of Maori land held by me at the date of the passing of “The Maori Lands Administration Act, 1900” (20th October, 1900), I am not the holder or owner, directly or indirectly, either by myself or jointly with any other person, of any land anywhere in the colony exceeding in the whole 2,000 acres of freehold land, inclusive of not more than 640 acres of first-class land.

And I make this solemn declaration conscientiously believing the same to be true, and by virtue of an Act of the General Assembly of New Zealand intituled “The Justices of the Peace Act, 1882.”

(Signature.)

Declared at , this day of , 190 , before me— , a Justice of the Peace in and for the Colony of New Zealand.

FORM OF LEASE.

This deed, made the day of , 190 , between the District Maori Land Board, in the Colony of New Zealand (which said Board, with its successors and assigns, is hereinafter termed “the lessor”) of the one part, and , of , in the Land District of , in the said colony, (hereinafter, with executors,