The early development of the Patea-Waverley district: a study of the problems of settling confiscated land

Abstract

The Patea-Waverley district for the most part consists of comparatively high-quality agricultural lands, on which its economy has been entirely dependent. This thesis attempts to examine the effect of government policy and practice on the opening up and the creation of conditions, favourable for the profitable utilisation of this land. The intention has been to see a period of New Zealand's history from a parochial rather than a general point of view; to see how the confiscation policy affected the settlement of a particular area. Consequently, native rights and the functioning of government tend to be considered from the settlers' angle, rather than from general principles. Policy and events have necessarily been assessed by the criteria of prosperity and material progress rather than of moral values.