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land boom with corresponding peak sales in the Ashburton region. Almost all the ‘waste land’ on the Ashburton plains, except the very poorest, was bought during this year—on the upper plains between the branches of the Ashburton River and skirting the South Hinds River, in the south a strip along the western side of the railway line (mostly taken up by speculators) and in the south east, much of the land on the Coldstream run. The poor land left to be disposed of in 1889 and 1890 lay on parts of the Westerfield, Lagmhor, Cracroft and Maronan runs.

It is impossible to make any worth-while estimate of the amount of land acquired by agents and speculators. But the sort of profits they must have secured, if they were wise or fortunate enough to resell before the boom burst, can be gauged from the prices obtained at the sale of the freehold sections on the Wakanui and Ashburton runs. During the years 1876-8 Moore disposed of 5000 acres at £12 an acre and over, the whole bringing in £88,000. In 1878 H. T. Winter, already mentioned as manager of Ashburton run, obtained up to £124 an acre for land close to the township. The 2000 acres with sheep, which he had valued at £14,000 in 1875 fetched £80,000 at the sales. This might be regarded as an ample return to Sir Thomas Tancred and his clerical partner for their investment.

In 1876 while the Canterbury land boom was still rising to a climax, one of the principal events in New Zealand political history took place. The provinces were abolished and counties created. Sir Julius Vogel, who had been responsible for the development policy which led to the land boom, also made the decision which caused this revolution in local government. He thought that the counties should be large so that their councils could retain many of the functions of the provincial councils. Most of Canterbury’s leaders wished to divide the whole province into two counties but at a meeting to discuss impending changes Ashburton’s representatives stood out for a county for themselves. They did so principally because much more land was being sold there than elsewhere and they wished to secure a full share of the revenue to use on making roads for themselves. They calculated that £25,000 was owing to them. The people of North Canterbury,