Mr. David Moore, under the heavy temptation of 6,000 pounds, he took the
warrantable liberty of a slight nominal alteration to Moorefield, while
at the same time he erased the poor old cottage for something more
accordant with great golden Victoria.

In this case I had a rather striking illustration of the old
land-transfer and other law costs incubus from which my late friend Sir
R.R. Torrens has so effectually relieved these colonies; and that, too,
as I believe, owing to the multiplied transactions, without any real
detriment to our many legal friends. Pounds were pounds in those
economy-needing times, and as the Savings Bank had, after a thorough
overhaul, accepted the title before giving its loan, I declared myself
perfectly satisfied to proceed at once to the conveyance. But no, that
was impossible. The courtesies, the practice, the established rights, in
short, of ancient custom required all to be done over again, in attested
copies of title, draughts of title as to defects for counsel's opinion,
and so on, even if all the paper and verbiage were to go straight to the
waste-basket; and thus a not over convenient bill of about 70 pounds was
rolled up. But I must at the same time bear in mind that this heavy drag
applied to all landed property, restricting business in it and reducing
its value. Had Torrens's Act been then in action, I could not possibly,
with the resulting higher value of land, have secured my bargain at the
fifty pounds, probably not even at fifty plus the seventy.


THE EARLY SQUATTING TIMES.

"Our life, exempt from public haunt,
Finds tongues in trees, books in the running brooks,
Sermons in stones, and good in everything."