The Reccarton Coach Goes By--

II "The Coal-Track" Left Behind

(Specially written for "The Press" by E. M. LOVELL-SMITH.)

' On our left are the beginnings of a village, two or three scattered cottages of the little hamlet of Peerswick, surrounded by what appears to be a large common. Three or four poplars of noble presence break the hedge-line of gorse skirting the roadside. This land was part of the 100acre farm of Edward Jerningham Wakefield, who named it after hi? racing stallion, The Peer. A passenger, waiting by the fingerpost at the corner of the churchyard, brings our coach to a standstill, and, as he climbs on board, one remarks that the finger or arm ; pointing the road we have come, bears the sign "To Harewood," the ; original name for Oxford Bush being ! Harewood Forest. . A quiet man in the corner behind us volunteers the statement that there are three Harewood roads in Canterbury: one at Papanui, another at Rangiora, and the third, the one 1 on which we had travelled. This, 'last-named, crosses the Waimakariri about four miles up the road and j stretches on through Eyreton to Oxjford; At the present time, it is rellerred to as The Coal-track, or the

West Coast road, and branches cff at Yaldhurst. The first name refers to the time when all the coal was brought this way by drays and waggons from the Malvern Hills (Sheffield); and, a year or two before, travellers for the West Coast passed along this road in Cobb and Company's five-horsed stage-coach, leaving Wagner's Clarendon Hotel at six in the morning, twice a week.

Hanson's Store

Our attention is drawn to the blacksmith's shop on our left, newly erected by James Blyth who, with a nephew to help him, mends the farm implements and tools for the district. The cottage adjoining, with its attic windows, was until recently occupied by Mr Reuben Cook and his family. It was built in the fifties, and Charles Bourn lived there then. On the opposite side of the road stands the large two-storey gabled house, "The Greys," surrounded by a thorn hedge and trees. It was built by Mr William Slater, the solicitor, in the late sixties; and the large gum tree, opposite the blacksmith's shop corner, was grown from

a seed planted by Mrs John Vickery, inhabiting a sod cottage on the section occupied by the stable and coach-house. It is interesting to note that Mrs Vickefy's husband dug the first grave opened in the Riccarton churchyard, when the body of George Emelius Owen, a clergyman's son, was interred there early in 1857. As our Jehu guides his team in towards Hanson's store, standing on the corner of the lane next to "The Greys," one catches sight of the gateways and housetops where live some of Canterbury's elite: Colonel George Packe and his lady, noted for her piety and good works; Mr George Lilly Mellish, the Magistrate; the Rev. Charles Turrell, who keeps a boys' school at "Midmont" at the end of the lane; and others. The store, which is also the post office for the district, was opened by Sword and Hanson in 1869, and as we pull up, «iuhn Edward Hanson, a bluff and hearty Yorkshireman with fair hair and beard, greets us and hands the mail-bag to Mr Lewis. Host of the Bush Inn Some business is transacted with a passenger, and we are off again. Waimairi road, a long lane on our left, separating the Ham estate from Wakefield's farm, has a deep ditch running alongside, and in the cutting of this, the finding of big timber leads one to suppose that formerly a forest existed on this part of the plains. On the edge of one of the intersecting streams down this road there stood a generation ago, William Savill's cider-mill, but it has now disappeared; and our attention is turned to the Bush Inn, which we are approaching. In the yard we see a horse patiently at work all alone, attached to Jhe end of a long pole pivoted at the centre on a cogged horizontal wheel, which turns a round shaft

Here are brought vividly to life the sights and personalities of a journey through Riccarton in the seventies when Charles Lewis, "in a light check suit and gaiters and a light grey bell-topper," drove his shining scarlet and yellow coach from the "Horse and Jockey" inn, where now is Coach Corner. Many more notabilities and characters of the early days appear as the reader travels on towards C hristchurch with the writer as a conversational guide.

piercing the wall of a shed at rightangles. It is cutting chaff inside the shed, and the apparatus is known as a "horse-power" or "horse-gear." It is strange to see the horse going round and round without a driver, but no doubt an occasional word or thump, from someone inside the chaff-house, is responsible for the horse's continued progress.

As our coach pulls up at the door of the inn, mine host, Mr W. C. Webb, a typical English innkeeper, bids us a cheery "good morning," and supplies a glass of ale to a passenger. He had come out to New Zealand, in charge of a racehorse for Mr Watts-Russell; but the trials of the voyage had proved too much for the poor animal, which died before reaching land. Finding, like Othello, his occupation gone, Webb built the inn, and later combined with it horse-training and racing. Once more we are off at a rattling good pace, and we observe across the fields the trees and house at Ilam, where Mr John Charles WattsRussell had lived his New Zealand life, for a quarter of a century, dying in April, 1875. His widow, who had been a Miss Bradshaw, and was noted for her kindness and generosity, afterwards married Mr A. R. Creyke, her husband's friend.

Miss Lohse's School

On our right we get a distant view of Middleton Grange, the home of the Honourable Charles Christopher Bowen, the member for Kaiapoi in the House of Representatives, who in years to come will hold the office of Speaker of the Legislative Council and receive a knighthood. The house is set among trees of his own planting, and the whole makes a picture that delights the eye. The original portion, which is in front, was built by Mr Thomas Rowley in the early fifties, and has walls of cob three feet in thickness. This Mr Rowley married Miss Emily Mathias, a daughter of the Archdeacon, ana returned to England about the end of the fifties, when the property was taken over by Mr Bowen. The large two-storey square house which we are approaching, at the corner of the lane leading to Middleton Grange, was occupied for a time by the Rev. John Raven, of Woodend, North Canterbury, and his daughters also lived there for a time.

Down the lane and opposite the entrance gate to Middleton Grange stands the two-storey building that serves Miss Lohse as a school for young ladies. Here they are taught all the arts and refinements considered necessary for the finishing of a young lady's education; although it is whispered that when the daring experiment of granting a scholarship to a girl in the local primary school was made, the newcomer's 1 jficiency in arithmetic revealed a sad weakness in that department; and the system was immediately amended by the principal, Miss Lohse.

The Coachman's Story

On the other corner of the lane, facing Ham road, is Captain Loujs Clogstoun's house, a two-storey structure, which serves as town residence for the owner of Four Peaks Station, South Canterbury. Big of frame and tall of stature, Captain Clogstoun held a commission in the Punjab Cavalry, and a daughter of his is destined to make her mark as a water-colour painter at Home. As we drive past Ham road we are reminded that this is the new road giving access to Ham, for further down, the road known now as Clyde road was the original Ham road. It was the drive to Mr WattsRussell's lovely homestead, and turning off at the stream it skirted the

left bank of the Avon until it reached the house. The trees of Okeover catch the eye, and a glimpse of the house itself is obtained. Standing on the opposite bank of the Avon, it was built by Mr Creyke, who named it after his father's beautiful parish in England. It is now the home of Mr Henry Porcher Lance, whose first wife was sister to Mrs Creyke. Here our meditations are interrupted by Mr Lewis, our driver, who turns to us with a smile and says, "I must tell you, gentlemen, of my experience here a few weeks ago. As we passed the end of Ham road,. I noticed a passenger running for the coach, and whipping the horses round suddenly, found myself with the front wheels and forecarriage on the road, still holding the reins while the coach lay capsized close by. The kingbolt, which is loose, had come out when the wheels locked on the side of the body and forced it up. It is an American vehicle and has a short lock compared with the English coach. It was my first experience of the American coach, and I can assure you, gentlemen, I have been very careful ever since. Fortunately no one was hurt, but I did feel a fool. We righted the vehicle and put it together again."

A Hay-Waggon

On the right beyond the paddocks we see the picturesque cottage of Alfred H. Simpson, a son of the High street bookseller, and to the south-east of it the farmhouse known as Frost's farm. As our horses trot briskly along, we overtake the well-known figure of Josiah Kingdon, the hay and straw dealer, striding alongside his load of straw. A Cornishman, his stalwart frame, curly black beard and boldlymarked features betray the Phoenician origin of his race. He walks the seven and a half miles into town from Yaldhurst and rides in his dray on the return journey. A horse-brake approaches us, and the driver, Matt. Cowan, on his high seat, guides a pair consisting of a young colt and a strongly built "steady" mare. The leather framework, called a cradle, which is spread over the colt's back and fastened fore and aft, effectively prevents the "young un's" efforts to buck and kick.

Carleton's farmhouse on the left, was a part of the Ilam estate, and bears the name of Ilam Farm. The single-spanned dwelling on the right of the road with the gum-tree on the corner is typical of many which will in time disappear. The gable end, facing the road, has a window up above the verandah; and below it are French windows. The verandah goes round each side of the house. A shingled roof, white walls, and dark brown barge boards and window frames complete the picture. It is the home of Mr J. C. McDowall, of the New Zealand Trust and- Loan Company, and his hard square hat and elderly form are seen in the conveyance driving into town .in front of us. Little do we dream that the name will disappear and that McDowall's road will become Wharenui road in the years to come. "Of the Old School" Clyde road on our left, marks the division between the Ilam and the Riccarton estates, and near its junction with the Riccarton road a stream formerly crossed the latter, flowing into Shand's Swamp. The cutting of a deep drain on the lefthand side of the main road diverted the water, and the stream's bed was filled in. .

A smart-looking tandem approaches, and in the gig the wellknown sporting figure of Frank Egan salutes us as he passes on his journey south. We are approaching the tall trees at Avon Lodge, and notice a square cob house near the entrance. This was the first house to be erected. The tall figure of Mr Thomas J. W. Shand is seen seated in his buggy waiting for us to pass before driving out of his gateway. An old gentleman on horseback receives more than a passing glance. He wears a blue coat with silver buttons at the back, Bedford cord breeches and top boots; a black silk hat covers his head, and his Dundreary whiskers and hair carefully oiled and parted at the back, mark him as one of the old school.