1826
THE NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE.
[No. 63

hearts. Messages of sincere sympathy and condolence were forwarded by the Prime Minister on behalf of the people of New Zealand through my predecessor to His Most Gracious Majesty King George the Fifth and the Royal family, to which a grateful and appreciative reply was received through the Secretary of State for the Colonies.

On the death of his revered father His Majesty assumed the throne as King George the Fifth, and the people of this Dominion most loyally acclaimed the reign of the new King; and his accession was fittingly proclaimed at the threshold of Parliament Buildings. In every city and in almost every borough and county throughout the Dominion similar functions took place.

I feel sure that this Dominion, which has already progressed so rapidly, has a still greater future before it, and it will ever during my term of office be my duty and my pleasure to assist in giving effect to the will of the people, and to the promotion of their highest aspirations and ideals.

I regret to announce to you that during the recess death has removed the Hon. Richard Harman Jeffares Reeves, the Hon. Francis Trask, and the Hon. James Holmes from the Legislative Council, and Mr. Frederick Ehrenfried Baume, K.C., from the House of Representatives, whose loss was in each case universally lamented throughout the Dominion.

It gives me special pleasure at this, the commencement of my term of office, to be able to congratulate you upon the splendid recovery this Dominion has made from the recent financial depression which affected it in common with the rest of the world.

It is gratifying to recognise the continued and marked improvement which is evinced in both the public finances and the industries of the Dominion, and probably it is fair to say that New Zealand is now in as sound and prosperous a condition as she has been at any time during her history. In this connection it is interesting to notice that the value of our products for last year exceeds that of the previous twelve months by a sum of upwards of six millions sterling.

During the last twelve months the alienation and settlement of Crown lands and of all lands purchased from Native owners, and also from European owners under the Land for Settlements Act, have continued with more than usual energy. The great and increasing demand for land by bona fide small settlers is conclusive proof of the need of the closer land-settlement policy of this Dominion, and of the necessity for procuring by every resource within the powers of Government the necessary land to reasonably satisfy this increasing demand. The purchase of Native lands for European settlement has been carried on with as much expedition as possible, and as far as the financial limits fixed by law permitted. It is gratifying to know that the Native owners throughout New Zealand who have surplus land for disposal are evincing a spirit of friendly co-operation with the new Maori Land Boards and with other statutory agents in making these surplus lands available for European settlement, while on the areas retained for their own use and occupation the settlement of the Maori owners is proceeding more vigorously than at any previous period in the history of the Maori race.

The Native Land Act, which came into force on the 31st March last, made radical and important changes in the pre-existing Native-land law, and although the Act has been in operation barely three months the results so far promise that what was expected on the passing of that important statute in the direction of facilitating and expediting the direct acquisition of surplus Native land by European settlers will be realised.

It has been found desirable for the sake of both the public and commercial interests of this Dominion to promote communication with Australia and some of the South Pacific islands by means of wireless telegraphy, and arrangements have been made to achieve this end.

The necessity for improving communication with backblock settlement in this country is increasingly recognised, and during the last twelve months very large sums have been spent in improving and forming road communication with the settlers on the more remote lands, which have been in recent years settled in small areas.