THE CHATHAM ISLANDS.

Akaroa Mail and Banks Peninsula Advertiser, Volume LIII, Issue 2769, 24 April 1903, Page 3

THE CHATHAM ISLANDS.

Mr Geo. LaurensoD, member for Lyttel* boa, sends us the following interesting account of his recent trip to the Chathan c :— 41 It is rather a remarkable fact, but it ii a fact nevertheless, that very few people know much aboul fchis extremely interesting JD§ap of islands. Yet nbey li» just two aye' steam away from Lyltelton, being lome 470 miles due esut of that Lying in tho same hti.ude uj Canterbury, they have neither our extremes of heat or cold, bltng aa free frjtn uor !, wc3tcr3 a* they are from frosts. Their area is almost exactly thut of the Couuty of Akarca, being 239,920 acres. The population consists of 418 per •one, of whom 207 are European and 211 are Maories.

The Chatham Islands have lmd a romantic history during the past century- Inflamed byaccoun's from returned Maori whale" as to the prolific abundance of all the food up , plite which go to make a Maori s life w rth firing, a large party of pities Maori arriors from Tarnniki hired a Bri'ieh brig in the early 30's, and en board of this vessel thy; made a rapid voyage to the Ohathams. Landing, these fi cc savages made short and bloody work vstith the ab>rigin;\h or Mortories. These unfortuatee, unaccustomed t) war, and living in the midst of peace and plenty, never even ntiempud resistance The consequence was a savage saturnalia, which, e\ea at this distance of time, appals thw listener. All adult maba were ruthlessly ■laughtered. It is aaid that over 100 dead bodies were laid out on the beach at Waitangi at one time in preparation for the cannabaiistic feast. Tmh was the fate of the Win. The women and childien were all enelaved, whild all lands were forfeited to the ooDCiutrora. Many years nf erwards, a Commission fro . the mainland set trie • u>- ,- viving Morioriej at liberty, an<l set apart reaerves for their use. L,at&r on, Te Kooti and his followers were banished to the Chat hitns, and pl*ced there under a guard of troop 3. Watching their opportunity, these prisoners overpowered their warders and leizod tin ' Riflem»D, schooner, then lying at the islands. In h;r thsy croaied over to tlfe mainland, limrliug on tho east coast of the North laUnd. The Poverty Bay mai•aore, with all i's attendant horrors follewed Sinca then the his'.ory of the ielaade has been uneventful. Without either County Council or Road Board, roads in the Ohathaiis are unknown luxuries. Everyone rides, in fact, one half of the population appear to livj on horse bask. Until a few years ag > wool, and only mpo\, with the exception of a few horses, 'Rrmed almost all ihe export of the islandc But in the past three o: four years 14,000 sheep annually have been < ::p>rted. Now bollocks are beginning to be exported also, pd i n a few yeora pie; 9 wil be a large source of wealth. Fungu', whiuh gtosvs in larga qumtitiea, ia al o bs'.Dg cut j.way. Altogether there is every iodicition that within the next few yea ; tL ■ Cuatham Islands will m»ke big stride*. After allowing for the taot that there is a large quantity of poor

peaty land in ibe i->laud-, the visitor is struok by the almost phenomenal cheap•Besa of land. Pitt Island, which lies about) 8 miles off the main island, contains ■ome 15,000 acres. This laod may be equal

led, it) ia certainly not surpassed for quality

by »ny land on Bauka Peninsula. Yet the %nc'e&red portions can still be bought at a good deal under £2 per acre. When cleared and graeaed, this land for stock, more especially oab'le, simply canuot be beaten. On the main island land i 9 procurable at equally cheap rites. The reason for these low rites for land is a'mut *lt'>geUiT!r the lack of frequent communication with the central markets. At pre 3 3n% the " l'oroa," a well appointed steamer, 200 Lone burden, makes a trip from Lyttelton to the Islandb once every two months, except during the mooths of January, February, Marc.i, and Apiil, •when eheVuni what are called the " sheep tripe, '' and so enables the Ulacders to have jjommunioation with the outside worW once fa, week for these months. With an mr ased ' copulation and a growth in her expo) , the •"Ohft'hams would hive a weekly steam • ti whole year round, and reduced fre'gh: • would follow. Tne Government have tw good teachur* oq the main island, and one on Pitt IsUnJ, I' '■ in addition to these a ♦medical m»n is . uired. and this is a necessity« Icannot conclude this brief article without referring c-6 one untouched mine of wealth which the island possesses, Its fisheries are "simply wonderful. Tnree days before our arrival two bjats went out about half a mile f.om the wharf at WakaDgi, and af r an abstnee of a few hours returned willi Id 7 bapuka, besides blue cod, teraki, etc. At nlace after place where the steamer stopped to land her cargo, Mr T. E. Taylor A and myte'f put the lhe* over and # pulled up blu- cod weighing up to 71bs each fti fast aa the • neg coold touch bottom Wβ

were shown reefs where, we u< re assuiet , , baft's could fill t: em.elves with trumpeter (which Buller dtclres to be the finest fl-»' vtured fish which swima the eea) within ihiee hours. '1 he lagoons o'i the island simply swarm with «els sxud flounders. Altogether, whin once thc-e sources of weal h are taken in hsnd h will be rioubf ful if the income from Ihe sea will not *xceed that from the l-.td.

The hospitality of the islanders is proverbial, so 1 need not dwell on that. 1 would jUJt conolude with one word Before paj • ing a fancy price for land Lere, have a look at the Chathatm ; that ip, if you are not afraid of a certain amount of isolation."