FLAX REWARDS.

(From the New Zealand Gazette, Jan. 15, 1863.)

Colonial Secretary’s Office,
Auckland, 13th Jan., 1863.

THE attention of the public is called to the notice (now re-published) issued in the New Zealand Gazette, of the 14th Sept., 1861, No. 41, offering rewards, on certain conditions, for the discovery of efficient means for rendering the Flax and other fibrous plants of New Zealand available as articles of export, and the following extract from a letter just received by Government, relating to this subject, from a gentleman engaged in flax spinning at Leeds, is published for general information.

“The Flax could be made very serviceable and of immense value to our manufacturers here, in the present state of the flax market, as we are now paying £10 to £20 per ton more for all kinds of flaxes than we were doing last year.”

Alfred Domett.

Notice referred to.

NEW ZEALAND FLAX.

£4000 REWARD.

Colonial Secretary’s Office,
Auckland, 13th Sept., 1861.

The Government of New Zealand is prepared, subject to the undermentioned conditions, to give rewards to the amount of £4000 for the discovery of efficient means for rendering the Flax, and other fibrous plants of New Zealand, available as articles of export, viz.:—

£2000

To the person who shall, by some process of his own invention, first produce from the Phormium Tenax, or other fibrous plant indigenous to New Zealand, forty tons of Merchandise.

£1000

To any person, other than the person entitled to the first reward, who shall, by some process of his own invention, next produce from the Phormium Tenax, or other fibrous plant indigenous to New Zealand, forty tons of Merchandise.

£1000

Viz.:—£200 to any person, not exceeding five in all, other than those entitled to the first and second rewards, who shall, by any process, whether of his own invention or not, produce from the Phormium Tenax, or other fibrous plant indigenous to New Zealand, twenty tons of Merchandise.

Every claim for the above rewards must be preferred before the 1st January, 1864.

The Merchandise must be saleable as an article of Export from the Colony of New Zealand, and have been produced at a cost not exceeding 75 per cent. of its value at the Port of entry from which it is exported; and the process used must be fully made known, with a view to the discovery being at once made available to the public.

His Excellency the Governor of New Zealand will, from time to time, appoint Commissions to consist of not less than three persons, to act at such places as circumstances may require, and each claim for reward will be referred to such Commission as may be considered the most convenient for its proper investigation. The acts of the majority will be deemed the acts of the Commission.

Each Commission shall be at liberty to adopt such means as it may deem most fit for determining the value and cost of production of the Merchandise, for ascertaining the process employed, and for fully investigating in all respects and reporting upon the validity of any claim.

Every competitor wishing to have flax inspected must apply to the Collector of Customs at the nearest Port, who shall forthwith give notice to the Commissioners acting for the particular locality, who shall forthwith appoint some convenient time and place for the inspection, and communicate the same in writing to the competitor. Any competitor may exhibit to the Commissioners any quantity of flax not less than five tons at a time.

For each quantity inspected and approved by the Commissioners they shall give the competitor a certificate, signed by a majority of them, a duplicate of which must be forthwith deposited at the Collector’s Office, at the nearest Custom House.

When the total quantity shall have been inspected by instalments and more than one certificate is given to a claimant, then each certificate after the first shall state in words the quantity already passed and approved on behalf of the same competitor. Whenever the quantity approved of on behalf of any one competitor amounts to forty tons, the Commissioners shall certify in words, at length, the date on which the full quantity was passed, and the name of the competitor, which certificate they shall immediately deposit with the Colonial