(No,47.) 187 5. TASMANIA. HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY. VA LU A '11·1 0 N O F P R O P E RT Y. ' REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONERS. · Laid upon the Table by the Attorney-General, and 01·dered by the House to be printed, August 10, 1875. PROGRESS REPORT of the Commissioners .appointed to enqy,iPe into andreport'on the Annual Value of Property in the various Districts of the Colony in accorll,a'llce with the provisions of the Property Valuation Acts now in force. - Hobart Town, ,27t!J, July, 1875. Srn, . HAVING completed our inspection of the Thirteen Districts _epumerated below, :viz. Glenorchy, Westbury, Oatlands, New Norfolk, Longford, Brighton, Hamilton, Evandale, Green Ponds, Fingal, Campbell Town, Deloraine, Ross, we have the honor to submit to you the following Report thereon. )Ve have end'eavoU:red as much as possible to condense this Report by classing together those districts possessing the same distinctive characters. Most of the districts unite to a -large extent the pastoral and agricultt1ral ch;ip~cter; indeed, none are wholly agTicultural, the feeding of stock being almost inseparable from agricultural pursuits. As a general ru_le, w_e fi:pd that the annual :value, as 'shown by the Assessment Rolls at present · in existence, has not been uniformly fixed, as required by the Property Valuation Acts, 21 st Victoria, No. 19, Sec. 10, and 34th Victoria, No. 9, Sec. 2. · We have therefore compiled Valuation Rolls for the different districts on the basis of the annual rent which a tenant .might reasonably be expee:ted to .pay for each property, which we append hereto. We find discrepancies in most.of the rolls, to be accounted for. partly by the improvem1mts effected in the different properties since the former rolls were made, differing considerably in extent and productive value; partly by the right of appeal having been exercised by one occupier, while probably his neighbour, assessed at a proportionate value, has not exercised that right. As a rule, most of the properties in the small townships are rated at -their foll annual value~in some cases above ; many of the large properties are rated below their _annual value ; while the lands recently taken up in the backwoods, when unim_proved, have been placed at too hig'h a rental. We have endeavored to value the properties on one general system throughout all the districts we have visited, taking into consideration the quality and capabilities of the soil for cultivation, or the growth of grass ; the nearness to market, and the facilities of communication thei:ewit_9- ; the ,i;tate of the roads; the supply of water, whether for irrigation or the use of stock; and the number of sheep and cattle that the grazing land will carry, whether as store or for fattening. We have visited, with few .exceptions, most of the land in the thirteen districts whi_ch we now ::il'epprt upon. In all the districts we have visited, with the exception of Campbell Town and Ross, th_ere are ;So~e.small holdings occupied by what may be called peasant proprietors. Some of these holdings were taken up many years ago, but the principal part have been taken up by selectors under the 24th -Section of the Waste Lands Act. :These:sel~ction.s.are generally ·situated at so~e ,con~iderable distance froni the principal roads in' the districts,-and-in the valleys high up in the hills; consequently the.communication therewith is by bush tra,cks ·oLthe :worst description, -making the expense -and -labour of taking their produce to market .. considerable. IV Some of these selections have been abandol).ed in consequence, in some eases, of unwise selections; and in others, having been taken principally for the sake of the timber, when that was exhausted they were of no further use to the selectors. In all these cases the scrub has again covered the land, and the buildings have become ruins. In the majority of cases considerable improvements have been made, land roughly cleared and fenC'ed, and rough huts and other buildings erected, the amount of improvements generally depending on the length of time the selectors have been living on the land. In a few cases the original rough buildings have been replaced by comfortable cottages, and the land more thoroughly cleared. ln nearly all cases the labour necessary to bring the holdings into their present state has tasked to the utmost the energy and determination of the selectors. The Districts of Glenorchy and New Norfolk may, to a certain extent, be classed together, p_ossessing·in a great degree the same features and same management. The ·valley of the Derwent runs through the two districts. Agriculture, where the land is fitted, is carried on extensively; a large area of land is under hop culture, am! large orchards abound. In valuing the hop grounds, we have taken into consideration the presence, or absence, of the necessary buildings required for preparing the hops for market. This will account for the difference in value placed upon some of the grounds. vVith the exception of the narrow valley through which the Derwent flows, the land in these districts is principally composed of high and barren ranges, almost valueless for grazing or agriculture. Many small lots of land have been taken up in· the Mount "\Vellington range, between Hobart Town and New Norfolk, principally by selectors under the 24th Sec. of 34 Viet., No. 10, Waste Lands Act, 1870. There are also some lots taken up on the opposite side of the Derwent amongst the hills. The land here is not very good, but the fine timber upon it must (if utilised) soon pay the first cost of clearing. £ s. d. Glenorclty.-Total value of properties as shown by the Assessment Roll for 1873, excluding the Crown land, is ....••......•..... 8383 JO 0 As shown by the annexed Roll ........•................ 9340 7 0 ·--- --- Increase ......... ~ ...• • •• • • • • • • • • • • • • • · • • • £956 17 0 ===::::,..= New Norfollt.-Total value of properties as shown by the Assessment Roll for 1873, excluding the <":rown land, is ...•..... ; ... 13,48-'i 0 0 As shown by the annexed Roll, is . • . • . ........... 14,880 5 0 Increase .......•.•.......... ; . • . • . .. £ [395 5 0 ---- ----- --·-- The District of Hamilton is a pastoral one, very little cultivation being carried on compared to its extent. There is some cultivation around the- Township of Hamilton, but the labour of clearing the stones from the land must prevent tillage ever extending. A very large proportion is in the hands of a few proprietors. and the land is used solely for grazing and fattening stock. Some of the finest grazing· lands in the Colony are situated around Hamilton and the Ouse Bridge, consisting of uplands lightly timbered, thickly g-rassed, and g·e11erally well watered. The lands in the Marlborough Country are of a different description, consisting· of heavily timbered hills, with extensive marshes between. There are some elevated plains, covered with dead trees, many still standing; the land is good and thickly grassed. These plains form the best portions of this country, and, were it not for the drawback of the climate, might be classed with some of the best lands of the Low Country, but, owing to the cold, few sheep are pastured thereon during the winter. Many of the hills are steep, stony, with little grass,, and almost valueless. A few selectors have taken up lands in the district, but the land occupied by them is generally poor in quality and of limited extent. £ s. d. Hamilton.-Assessment Roll, l 874 • • • • • . • . • . • . • . • . • • • • • • 22,626 19 0 Annexed Roll ·••..•.......••••..•.••• ·• . • • • . • • • . • . • • • 25,598 0. 0 Increase ••...•...••••. : . • . • •.• • • . • • • . • • • . £297 J ·1 0 ·--·-· V FINGAL. This district is principally occupied by graziers and dairy farmers. The marshes are 'some of them of the richest description, furnishing a large portion of the fat cattle for the Hobart Town market. The principal part of the cheese that finds its way into Hobart Town is made in this district .. 'l'he 11ills are for the most part rocky and barren, especially near the coast. There are a few small spots in the vicinity of Falmouth and George's Bay, marshes, very limited in their area, that may .be considered of first-rate quality. The land in the valley of the South Esk and Break O'Day Rivers, an<l that between Avoca and St. Mary's Pass, may be looked upon as the best in the district, and let at a much higher rate than any district we have hitherto visited ; but, owing to the goodness of the soil and constant moisture, the rents are readily paid, and the tenants doing well. The blocks of land that have been taken up in this district by selectors and sm~ll occupiers, among whom are many Germans, have, in many cases, had much labour expended upon them. In some cases the land has been laid down to English gras~, which grows luxuriantly, so that in many of the lots there is a good and permanent pasture. The mining localities of the Black Boy and J\fangana are almost useless for any other purpose, most of the land being of the poorest description. There are some fair sheep runs in the district­ open plains, lightly timbered ; these are held by large proprietors, each one occupying thousands of acres. Very little land is cultivated in this district. · · £ s. d. Fingal.-Assessment Roll, 1874 . • . • . 25,660 0 0 Annexed ltoll . • . • . • . • . • • • . • . 28,855 8 0 Increase . • . • • • • • . • . • . • . • • • • • • • • • • • • £3195 8 0 DELORAINE AND WESTBURY. These districts, possessing the same features and character of soil, may be classed together. In them agriculture and grazing are combined. Some of the richest grass lands in the Colony, and also some of the :finest agricultural lands, are comprised within their area.