In 1892 an attempt was also made to deal with the problem of the scarcity of available land in settled districts which was caused by the prevalence {97} of large estates. It was thought that the labourers employed upon them, and the sons of farmers who might wish to settle near their parents, should have an opportunity of acquiring land. The Government, accordingly, passed the first of a series of Land for Settlements Acts, which authorised the repurchase or exchange of lands and their subdivision for purposes of close settlement. Upon the recommendation of a Board of Land Purchase Commissioners, some of whom represent local interests, that a certain estate is suitable for settlement, and should be purchased at a certain price, the Government may enter into negotiations with the owner with a view to a voluntary transaction, and, upon his refusal, take the land compulsorily at a valuation fixed by a Compensation Court. Owners are so far safeguarded that they cannot be dispossessed of estates of less than 640 acres of first-class, or 2,000 acres of second-class land, that they can claim to retain the above area, and that they can require the Government to take the whole of their estates. The maximum annual expenditure was limited at first to L50,000, but has been raised to L250,000. At the end of March of last year twenty-eight estates, containing 87,000 acres, had been acquired, in one case compulsorily, and made available for settlement by surveys and the construction of roads at a total expenditure of nearly L390,000. Nineteen of these had already been subdivided into farms of various sizes, and were bringing in rentals amounting to {98} 4.76 per cent. upon the outlay which they had involved. The Land Purchase Inspector was able to report that the lands, which had been the object of eager competition, had, in most cases, been greatly improved and were in good condition, and he is likely to find even better results in the future, as the Amending Act of 1896 provided that applications for land should not be entertained unless the applicants were able to prove their ability properly to cultivate the soil and to fulfil the stipulations of the leases. This provision is of great importance, as much of the land has been cultivated by its former owners, and would deteriorate rapidly under incapable management. The Governments of South Australia, Queensland, and Western Australia have legislated in a similar direction, and that of New South Wales introduced a Bill which failed to become law. As far as New Zealand is concerned, which has conducted its operations on the largest scale, the system has not been sufficiently long in existence to enable an estimate to be formed of its probable financial results.