VPRS 13206 Register of Applications, Bairnsdale, Section 47 Land Act 1869 (Bairnsdale District Survey Office)

VPRS 13206/P1 Register of Applications, Bairnsdale, Section 47 Land Act 1869 Bairnsdale District Survey Office) was created by the District Survey Office at Bairnsdale. It is duplicated by Register of Applications, Bairnsdale Section 47 Land Act 1869 (Occupation Branch) (VPRS 13192/P1) which is the register created by the 'Bairnsdale District Office' at the Occupation Branch.VPRS 13206/P1 was previously registered as Unit 92 of VPRS 451/P Applications Registers Land Act 1869.The introduction of the Land Act 1869 saw all Crown land, not previously occupied in Victoria opened up for selection. Provisions were made in section 42 of the Land Act 1865 for selection before survey. Prior to this time surveys were conducted on all Crown land before it was made available. The provision of free selection before survey was carried to the 1869 Act. The aim of the legislation was to encourage settlement on lands that would be most advantageous to the colony. The Act also provided for the leasing and licensing of land for other than agricultural and pastoral purposes.Section 47 of the Land Act 1869 allowed, as did Section 53 of the Land Act 1862, for a license to be granted for the use of Crown lands not under lease or license under Part II of the 1869 Act. Uses were for the extraction of raw materials such as timber and stone, the processing of rural products in such facilities as brick kilns, to occupy fishermen's' residences, to erect pumps and collect ballast and for any other purpose for which land might be leased under Section 45 of the Act. Clause 7 allowed the depasturing of animals on land not forming part of any run or common.From the start of 1873, the occupation of any Crown land for pastoral purposes was not to be authorized under the usual pastoral license, but by the use of this 7th clause of Section 47. This change indicated a preference for not giving a prolonged tenure for this purpose and for not selling the country involved as new runs. The use of this clause was advocated as it conceded no privileges with respect to length of tenure or occupation.The additional advantages provided to selectors as a result of the Land Act 1869 resulted in an exceptional number of applications to select Crown land. By 1873 the Department of Crown Lands and Survey (VA 538) was experiencing many problems in managing applications. Public complaints were at an all time high. The complaints ranged from extraordinarily long delays in application processing, applications being approved for more than one person on the same allotment and long delays in replying to correspondence.When an application to select Crown land was received by the Department it would be registered in a register of applications. Prior to 1874 and the establishment of the Occupation Branch all applications made under sections of the Land Act 1869 were recorded in the same series of registers irrespective of location. The contents of registers of applications were arranged alphabetically and application numbers were allocated consecutively in blocks for each letter of the alphabet.Separate registers of applications were usually created for each section of the Land Act under which individuals could apply to select land. For example, all applications received under section 47 of the Land Act 1869 were recorded in the same register. Sections of an Act that were less common were often recorded in the one register.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 1021/49 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 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 position 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 issue 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.The new registers of applications were arranged by Land District and by section of Land Act applications were received under. For example, all applications received under section 47 of the Land Act 1869 for the Ballarat Land District were recorded in the same series of registers. Sections of an Act that were less common were often recorded in the one District register.

VPRS 13206/P1《申请登记簿》（贝恩斯代尔，1869年《土地法》（Land Act 1869）第47条，贝恩斯代尔地区测量办事处）由贝恩斯代尔地区测量办事处编制。该登记簿与VPRS 13192/P1《申请登记簿》（贝恩斯代尔第47条1869年《土地法》（土地占用事务科））内容重复，后者由“贝恩斯代尔地区办事处（土地占用事务科）”编制。VPRS 13206/P1此前曾登记为VPRS 451/P《1869年土地法申请登记簿》第92单元。

1869年《土地法》的颁布，使维多利亚州此前未被占用的全部王室土地（Crown land）开放供认购。1865年《土地法》第42条已规定测量前可进行土地认购，在此之前，所有王室土地均需先完成测量方可开放使用。1869年法案保留了测量前自由认购的条款，其立法目的在于鼓励在对殖民地最具经济效益的土地上开展定居活动。该法案同时规定了非农业、牧业用途的土地租赁与许可制度。

1869年《土地法》第47条与1862年《土地法》第53条类似，允许为未纳入1869年法案第二部分租赁或许可范围的王室土地申请使用许可。许可用途涵盖：开采木材、石材等原材料，在砖窑等设施中加工农牧产品，为渔民提供住所，架设水泵、收集压载物，以及其他可依据该法案第45条租赁土地的用途。第7款允许在不属于任何牧场或公共用地的土地上放牧牲畜。

自1873年起，任何用于牧业目的的王室土地占用不再通过常规牧业许可授权，而是适用第47条第7款。这一调整体现了政策倾向：不为此类用途提供长期使用权，也不将相关土地划定为新牧场进行出售。采用该条款的初衷在于，其未就使用权期限或占用权限赋予任何额外特权。

1869年法案为土地认购者带来的额外利好，使王室土地认购申请数量激增。至1873年，王室土地与测量部（VA 538）在申请管理工作中面临诸多困境，公众投诉达到顶峰：投诉内容包括申请处理周期过长、同一块地块被批准给多名申请人，以及回复公务函件耗时过久。

当王室土地认购申请提交至该部后，会被登记入申请登记簿。1874年土地占用事务科成立之前，所有依据1869年《土地法》条款提交的申请，无论申请地块位于哪个行政区，均统一录入同一套登记簿。申请登记簿按申请人姓名字母顺序排序，申请编号按字母表的每个字母段连续分配。通常会为每一项可用于土地认购的法案条款单独设立申请登记簿，例如，所有依据1869年《土地法》第47条提交的申请均被录入同一登记簿；而使用频率较低的法案条款，则通常合并录入同一登记簿。

1874年，在助理测量总长H·拜伦·摩尔（H Byron Moore）的推动下，土地占用事务科正式成立，负责统筹处理所有与王室土地占用相关的事务。该州被划分为15个土地行政区：阿拉拉特、巴拉瑞特、比奇沃斯、贝纳拉、卡斯顿梅因与邓诺利、伊丘卡、吉隆-瓦南布尔与坎珀当、汉密尔顿、霍舍姆、墨尔本、塞尔与贝恩斯代尔、桑德赫斯特（本迪戈）、西摩与圣阿尔诺。每个行政区在墨尔本的土地占用事务科均设有对应的“地区土地办事处”。

每个地区土地办事处配备双人办公桌/工作台，办事员与绘图员在此协同办公，文件、地图与规划图均置于随手可取之处。同一批官员负责处理对应行政区王室土地从立项到最终处置的全流程业务。地区办事处的初始人员配置为一名办事员与一名绘图员，专门负责该土地行政区的相关事务，他们需熟悉本辖区情况并处理所有土地相关业务。至1877年，每个地区土地办事处的人员已扩充至地区官员、租赁文员、绘图员及多名普通办事员。

1874年土地占用事务科成立且全州划分为土地行政区后，土地认购申请开始按行政区进行分类登记。每个“地区土地办事处”自行创建并维护专属的申请登记簿系列。1874年后部门收到的所有新申请，均录入对应行政区的单独登记簿，申请编号从1开始依次分配。不同行政区可重复使用相同的申请编号，例如巴拉瑞特与本迪戈土地行政区均可存在申请编号1021/49，唯有行政区名称搭配附带的档案编号才是唯一标识符。

申请人需在地区测量办事处填写认购申请表。大多数土地行政区均设有地区测量办事处，地区测量员会将申请人信息录入保存在办事处的申请登记簿，并为每位申请人分配专属编号。该申请编号会标注在认购申请表上，若申请获批，则此编号将成为其后续档案编号。

地区测量员需在申请登记簿中登记以下信息：申请编号、申请接收日期、申请人姓名、职业与地籍教区、申请地块编号与面积（英亩、路得与平方杆）。随后申请表将被转发至墨尔本土地占用事务科对应的地区土地办事处，并在该处的副本申请登记簿中以相同的申请编号进行登记。地区测量员还需随附申请地块的地籍描图。

申请地块的位置会立即用铅笔标注在工作规划图上。随后地籍描图将被送至矿业与供水部（VA 2720），以获取是否存在采矿异议的专业报告。若无采矿异议，申请将提交至地方土地委员会进行听证。地方土地委员会由当地社区代表与王室土地与测量部（VA 538）的代表组成，委员会会听取所有地块申请人的陈述，并决定向哪位申请人发放许可或租赁权。记录地方土地委员会决议的清单将被转发至墨尔本土地占用事务科对应的地区土地办事处，决议内容将被录入申请登记簿。

土地与工程委员会（VA 744）作为管理王室土地的法定机构，将依据地方土地委员会的推荐做出土地认购的最终批准。土地与工程委员会的决议也会被录入申请登记簿。登记簿还会记录许可证发放日期以及该档案后续的所有相关动作。获批认购地块的申请人信息将由土地占用事务科的地区土地办事处绘图员标注在工作规划图上。申请地块的地籍描图随后将被送至负责对应土地行政区的王室土地法警手中。

1874年后新建的申请登记簿按土地行政区与申请所依据的法案条款进行分类归档。例如，所有依据1869年《土地法》第47条提交的巴拉瑞特土地行政区申请均被录入同一套登记簿；而使用频率较低的法案条款，则通常合并录入同一行政区登记簿。