VPRS 13380 Register of Applications, Benalla, Other Sections Land Acts 1884, 1890, 1891, 1898 and 1901 (Occupation Branch)

This series was created by the Benalla District Office' at the Occupation Branch of the Department of Crown Lands and Survey (VA 538). It is duplicated by Register of Applications, Other Sections Land Acts 1884, 1890, 1891, 1898 and 1901 (Benalla District Survey Office) (VPRS13381) which is the register created by the District Survey Office in Benalla.Sections of an Act that were less common were often recorded together in the one register. This was the case with a number of sections of the Land Act 1884. These sections remained in consolidations of the Land Act (1890 and 1901), but with a change in the section number. Other lesser sections were added and also entered in the same register from subsequent acts such as the Land Act 1891, Land Act 1898 and the Wattles Act 1890.Section 65 of the Land Act 1884 provided for the annual licensing of auriferous (gold bearing) lands. Areas licensed were to be of no more than 20 acres with only one license being allowed for each individual. There was to be no sale of these lands. This section was amended by Section 90 of the Land Act 1898 providing for the appraisal of these lands. If the value of the land was appraised to be more than the rent already paid on them, the subsequent rental was to be no more than two shillings and sixpence per annum with no annual license fee.Section 67 of the Land Act 1884 allowed for the annual licensing of no more than 1000 acres for grazing on auriferous lands. This was allowed to continue for five years and with the right to mine the land remaining. Under Section 91 of the Land Act 1898, this term was extended to 21 years and the right to fence the land extended to licensees with the land able to be treated as rateable property.The Land Act 1890 Amendment of 1891, in Section 22 (later Section 106 of the Land Act 1901), provided for worked out auriferous lands to be proclaimed and licensed for occupation. No individual could occupy more than five acres for a period not exceeding seven years. Rent was to be no less than one shilling per acre and the land was to be used for such purposes as residence, place of business or for use as an orchard, vineyard or garden. After seven years, a Crown grant could be applied for with payment of not less than one pound per acre with previously paid rentals being used to defray the purchase price.Section 93 and Section 91 of the Land Act 1884 (subsequently Section 99, Land Act 1890 and Section 145, Land Act 1901) provided for the licensing or leasing of Crown lands for a multitude of purposes such as rural businesses, the removal of raw materials and other purposes none of which were to be agricultural or grazing. Licenses were renewable annually at a fee to be set. Leases under the 1884 Act for these purposes were to be of no more than three acres at an annual rental of five pounds. Holders of licenses under Section 99 of the Land Act 1890, who had buildings such as residences, a buttery an inn or store and the like, were also allowed, by Section 113, Land Act 1898 to apply for the exclusive right to purchase after possession for five years and the making of substantial improvements. Credit was given for rent already paid in determining the purchase price.Section 119, Land Act 1884 provided for the issuing of grazing licenses for Crown lands not otherwise held. This provision continued as Section 123, Land Act 1890 and Section 187, Land Act 1901.Section 147 of the Land Act 1901 allowed the licensing of bee-keeping establishments of not more than one acre for one year on any Crown land including that held under an agricultural license or lease or a grazing lease.The Land Act 1890 in Section 85 allowed the leasing of up to one hundred and sixty acres of reclaimed and drained swamp lands for a period of up to twenty-one years with the covenant that all waterways and drainage channels on the land were to be maintained. In Section 103, Land Act 1898 this was extended to include the choices of a perpetual lease or to be leased under conditional purchase lease. Rents were to be determined by the value set upon the land by the Board of Land and Works. Conditions were the maintenance of drainage arrangements and the making of substantial and permanent improvements to the value of ten shillings per acre during the first three years of the currency of any lease or from the date of sale. There was no requirement for residence on the land.The Wattles Act was passed to encourage the commercial exploitation of certain acacia species. Under Section 10, Wattles Act 1890 a lessee under Section 32 of the Land Act 1884 could cancel that lease and obtain a lease for the cultivation of wattle trees.When an application to select Crown land was received by the Department it would be registered in a register of applications. The contents of registers of applications were arranged alphabetically and application numbers were allocated consecutively in blocks for each letter of the alphabet.In an attempt to try and rationalise the way the Department managed Crown land, the Occupation Branch was established in 1874 under the influence of H Byron Moore, Assistant Surveyor General. The Occupation Branch was to deal with all matters relating to the occupation of Crown land.The State was divided into fifteen Land Districts, these being Ararat, Ballarat, Beechworth, Benalla, Castlemaine and Dunolly, Echuca, Geelong Warrnambool and Camperdown, Hamilton, Horsham, Melbourne, Sale and Bairnsdale, Sandhurst (Bendigo), Seymour and St Arnaud. Each District was represented at the Occupation Branch in Melbourne by a 'District Land Office'.Each District Land Office consisted of a double table or desk at which both a clerk and draughtsman sat. Everything in the way of files, maps and plans were at convenient reach. The same officers dealt with the sale of Crown land from its 'inception to its disposition'. The District Offices' staff consisted essentially of a clerical officer and a draughtsman who dealt solely with that Land District. It was their business to know the District and to deal with all land business related to it. By 1877 each District Land Office, consisted of a District Officer, a rental clerk, a draughtsman and several general clerks.After the establishment of the Occupation Branch in 1874 and the division of the State into Land Districts, applications were registered by District. Each 'District Land Office' created and maintained their own series of registers of applications. Any new applications received by the Department after 1874 were registered in separate District registers with applications numbers that were allocated from the number one onwards. The same application number could be allocated for selections in different Districts. For example, the application number 1021/65 could exist in both the Ballarat and Bendigo Land Districts. It is the District name plus the accompanying file number that is the unique identifier.Applicants completed an application form at District Survey Offices. Most Land Districts had a District Survey Office. The District Surveyor would enter the applicants' details in a register of applications kept at the District Survey Office. The register of applications allocated a number to each applicant. The application number was written on the application to select and subsequently became their land selection file number if their application was approved.The District Surveyor would enter into the register of applications the application number, the date the application was received, the applicants' name, occupation and parish, the allotment number and size (acres, roods and perches) applied for. The application was then forwarded to the appropriate District Land Office at the Occupation Branch in Melbourne. It was then entered in a duplicate register of applications there against the same application number. The District Surveyor also forwarded a tracing of the allotment applied for.The location of the allotment applied for was immediately charted on a working plan in pencil. The tracing was then sent to the Department of Mines and Water Supply (VA 2720) for a report on any mining objections. If there were no mining objections the application would be heard before a Local Land Board. Local Land Boards were made up of representatives from the local community and the Department of Crown Lands and Survey (VA 538). The Boards would hear from all applicants for an allotment and would decide who was to be granted the licence or lease. The schedule documenting the decisions of the Local Land Board was forwarded to the appropriate District Land Office at the Occupation Branch and the decision was entered into the register of applications.The Board of Land and Works (VA 744), the statutory authority for the management of Crown land, would give final approval for land selection, acting on the recommendation of the Local Land Board. The decision of the Board of Lands and Works (VA 744) was then recorded in the register of applications. The registers also record the date of the licence or lease issued and any subsequent action in relation to that file. The selectors granted each allotment would then be recorded on the working plan by the District Land Office draughtsman at the Occupation Branch. The tracing of the allotment was then sent to the Crown Land Bailiff responsible for that Land District.Registers of applications control selection and occupation files. If an application to select Crown land was successful, the application number would become the file number. For example, if an application to select under Section 42 of the Land Act 1884 was registered as application number 324 then the selection or occupation file number would be 324/42.The application number remained the selection file number for a particular piece of land if all terms and conditions were met and the selection resulted in a Crown Grant. However, often the original selector did not end up owning the land. Many selectors forfeited or abandoned their licence or lease. If this were the case then the land was re-opened up for selection. Any new applicants were registered in a register of applications under a new application number. The original applicants file would be attached to the new selectors file. The new file number was annotated in the register against the original selectors' entry.Even if the same selector applied for a licence on land he had previously forfeited, a new application number would be allocated and the file would have a new selection file number.VPRS 13380 / P1 was previously registered as units 21, 228 and 37 of VPRS 458 /P Application Registers, Land Act Unknown.

本系列由皇家土地与测量部（VA 538）占用处的贝纳拉地区办公室创建。该系列由《1884、1890、1891、1898及1901年土地法案其他条款申请寄存器》（贝纳拉地区测量办公室）（VPRS13381）复制，该寄存器由贝纳拉地区测量办公室创建。

法案中较不常见的条款通常会集中记录在同一寄存器中。1884年《土地法案》的多个条款便是如此，这些条款在1890年和1901年的《土地法案》合并版本中得以保留，但条款编号有所变更。后续法案（如1891年《土地法案》、1898年《土地法案》及1890年《金合欢法案》）中的其他次要条款也被增补并录入同一寄存器。

1884年《土地法案》第65条规定了含金土地（auriferous）的年度许可制度：许可区域不得超过20英亩，每人仅可持有一份许可，且此类土地不得出售。该条款经1898年《土地法案》第90条修订，新增土地评估条款——若土地评估价值高于已支付租金，则后续年租金不得超过2先令6便士，且无需缴纳年度许可费。

1884年《土地法案》第67条允许对含金土地发放年度放牧许可，面积不超过1000英亩，许可期限为5年，且保留采矿权。1898年《土地法案》第91条将许可期限延长至21年，并赋予被许可人围栏权，同时该土地可被视为应纳税财产。

1891年《1890年土地法案修正案》第22条（后为1901年《土地法案》第106条）规定，已开采完毕的含金土地可被公告并发放占用许可：每人占用面积不得超过5英亩，期限不超过7年，年租金不低于每英亩1先令，土地用途限于居住、商业场所或果园、葡萄园、菜园。7年后，申请人可申请皇家授予，需支付每英亩不低于1英镑的费用，此前支付的租金可抵扣购地款。

1884年《土地法案》第93条及第91条（后为1890年《土地法案》第99条、1901年《土地法案》第145条）允许对皇家土地发放许可或租赁，用于农村商业、原材料开采等非农业/放牧用途：许可每年可再生，费用另行设定；1884年法案下的租赁面积不得超过3英亩，年租金5英镑。1898年《土地法案》第113条规定，1890年《土地法案》第99条下的被许可人若拥有住宅、奶厂、旅馆或商店等建筑，可在占有5年并完成实质性改良后申请独家购买权，已支付租金可抵扣购地款。

1884年《土地法案》第119条规定对未被占用的皇家土地发放放牧许可，该条款延续至1890年《土地法案》第123条及1901年《土地法案》第187条。

1901年《土地法案》第147条允许对包括农业许可/租赁或放牧租赁土地在内的任何皇家土地发放养蜂场许可，面积不超过1英亩，期限1年。

1890年《土地法案》第85条允许租赁最多160英亩的复垦及排水沼泽地，期限最长21年，承租人需维护土地上的所有水道及排水渠道。1898年《土地法案》第103条将租赁类型扩展为永久租赁或有条件购买租赁，租金由土地与工程委员会确定，条件包括维护排水设施、在租赁首3年或出售日起每英亩完成价值10先令的实质性永久改良，且无需在土地上居住。

《金合欢法案》旨在鼓励特定金合欢属植物的商业开发。1890年《金合欢法案》第10条规定，1884年《土地法案》第32条下的承租人可取消原租赁，转而获得金合欢树种植租赁权。

当部门收到皇家土地选择申请时，会将其登记在申请寄存器中。申请寄存器内容按字母顺序排列，申请编号按字母区块连续分配。

为优化皇家土地管理方式，1874年在助理测量总监H·拜伦·摩尔的推动下成立了占用处，负责处理所有与皇家土地占用相关的事务。

该州被划分为15个土地区：阿拉拉特、巴拉瑞特、比奇沃思、贝纳拉、卡斯尔梅恩与杜诺利、埃丘卡、吉朗-沃南布尔与坎珀当、汉密尔顿、霍舍姆、墨尔本、塞尔与拜恩斯代尔、桑德赫斯特（本迪戈）、西摩及圣阿诺德。每个地区在墨尔本占用处均设有“地区土地办公室”。

每个地区土地办公室创建并维护各自的申请寄存器系列。1874年后收到的新申请均在各地区独立寄存器中登记，编号从1开始连续分配。不同地区的申请可能使用相同编号（例如1021/65可能同时存在于巴拉瑞特和本迪戈区），唯一标识符由地区名称加文件编号构成。

申请人需在地区测量办公室填写申请表。地区测量师会将申请人详情录入本地申请寄存器并分配编号，该编号会写在选择申请表上，若获批则成为土地选择文件编号。

申请地块的位置会立即用铅笔标注在工作图上，描图随后送至矿产与供水部（VA2720）获取采矿异议报告。若无异议，申请将提交地方土地委员会审议——该委员会由当地社区代表及皇家土地与测量部（VA538）代表组成，负责听取所有申请人陈述并决定许可/租赁授予对象。委员会决议明细表会转发至占用处相应地区土地办公室并录入申请寄存器。

皇家土地与工程委员会（VA744）作为法定管理机构，会根据地方土地委员会的建议给出最终批准，决议随后录入申请寄存器，寄存器还会记录许可/租赁发放日期及后续行动。占用处地区土地办公室的绘图员会将获批地块的选择人信息记录在工作图上，描图则发送给负责该区的皇家土地法警。

申请寄存器管控选择及占用文件。若申请获批，申请编号将成为文件编号（例如1884年法案第42条下的申请编号324对应文件编号324/42）。

若地块选择满足所有条款并获得皇家授予，申请编号将保留为文件编号。但原选择人常未能最终拥有土地：许多人放弃或丧失许可/租赁权，此时土地重新开放选择。新申请人会获得新编号，原文件附于新文件后，新编号标注在原选择人条目旁。即使同一选择人申请其曾放弃的土地，也需重新分配编号并生成新文件。

VPRS13380/P1此前登记为VPRS458/P《未知土地法案申请寄存器》的第21、228及37单元。