FROM HELENSVILLE TO WAIROA.

Auckland Star, Volume XVIII, Issue 203, 31 August 1887, Page 7

FROM HELENSVILLE TO WAIROA.

[FBOHTHE "NEW ZEALAND FARMER."

TORT ALBERT.

Pott Albert, the senior settlement of the Nonconformists, will this year celebrate its twenty-fifth anniversary — its silver wed-%-in the Jubilee year of the Sovereign *fter whose Consort it was named. As it Ms ont, they can also celebrate the driest that has been known for a quarter of a century. I n order to provide a place Proper for such celebrations, a commodious K o,^ll^, just been finished, vice the «» public hall, voted too small for the reEf ntS $ the disfcricfc- Thi *> with the H ere<: tum £oinS on, does not look "Repression, though no one confesses to SthV- rt?n e< Like fche Frenchman HOT^ TTerr. People think it is Kmehingtohve through such hard times £_*S^ he "topple of t^ To- &__£* and the s*WKht together 5?W$ B^o of the settlers to take 52? fife* when theytake »pthe n m ;jimake a raid>on the gumfields mm^2r m°f«_ the Tweeddale served nn ft- nau"hfc but the SP«^ was ever a"?± r dl"ner,- T^ settlers, howon y h v T TS choice and gumdiggers 4^E! SSlty °r "Po« occasion, of Snmli-^ 1* Sea^ DS' tbe vagabondage OmSl Wr ,d be thrown asidl &3E:feteniefc wifch- None of spec& gg Lf d tbe/ ayour bestowed upon f6ll to their lob when "»5535 a l™ Zealand > bub rat»er Zr nd n° befcfcer clai* of •SeSS to t, he colony- To We^ er' depression exists B^V £in l 6S' ? fc Beems <lulte enioy themselves here onedancS ,Lv ei;y.one rides and every mor^ommon than "■"at is anil? y ? lhs t0 a dance. A be followed by a Bdaa4aEnm d meefciu^ allowed by *» bounds of n,;,° 8# Ifc ls qui te within 11 v ** we shall b >' a dance! ISS? meetl?Sto followed no Her c_*M_ iVe" ard to riding, it is and a4St l;? Cl roßPectable to'walk, a^dock a 7t" r ?r r m. two miles re«"d „«"» Srte '"X blm" "P. «»a Tt- Potato, i,, an thß Primitive tiphnlibjT lu! I< "ot done ,veil ■ tlip 3_P"ttanlyZ! ththesetter. The mr ' the remainder being

borne by the sled-runners in front. No weighb is pub upon bhe necks of tho oxen or horses, and tho upward strain of the traces in draught lightens the pressure on bhe runners, as does the backward leaning o*f bhe load going up-hill. In descents, a dray would bear upon the team, and involve some degree of bucking, whereas, in the catamaran, bhe forward tilt of the load and the slackening of bhe braces pub an increased pressure on the runners, which act in some sort as a brake.

MB WYATT'S FARM.

Just over the border line of Albertland, in the North Hoteo districb, is the farm of Mr Wyatt, upon which success in farming has been obtained under circumstances certainly not favourable, by a union of industry and agricultural skill. The holding lies on a slope running back to the wooded ranges found along bhe Hoteo Valley. The ground, most of which was at first covered with ti-tree scrub, was of moderate to poor qualiby, stiff in texture, and with plenty of fall for drainage. A tongue of the heavy bush comes, a little valley in the middle of the farm, and an excellent, unfailing stream issues from it. In this sheltered valley, near the point of bush land, now cleared, is the homestead. This bush land, grubbed up and under the plough, is pretty level; with regard to its fertility, Mr Wyatt declares there is none better. Below the house, along the course of the stream, is a stretch of good level land, enclosed with a close and healthy hawthorn hedge, and on either side the ground rises in slopes devoted to sheep pasture, fenced in with substantial wire fence. Notwithstanding the season, the grass was holding on pretty well, especially when one considers what the land originally was, and the chief interest for the New Zealand farmer lies in the treatment which Mr Wyatt has adopted to bring the present state of things about. The soil, chie6y composed of a stiff, wet clay, was hard to work, and sour at the outset. The sand that makes the loam 3 friable was absent, nor was its place taken by any large amount of vegetable mould. In the first place the land was ploughed and drained to sweeten and dry it. Much of the upturned clay was burnt and strewn abroad, thus assisting to sweeten the land, and supplying a substitute for the absent silt. Mr Wyatt's experience, as an old ' Gloucestershire farmer, of paring and burning would come in hero. The mixing of the burnt ballast gave a warmer character to the soil, rendering it more penetrable by the sun and air, more tractable to the plough, and more permeable for moisture. Thus freedom of cultivation was obtained, and both by increaseclevaporationanddiainage, surplusage of water got rid of. Twenty acres per year were thus treated. Only here and there in the poorest spots was any bonedust applied, and when the land was laid down in grass, and sheep placed on it, where any place threatened to become bare the flocks were folded there for a time that their manure might bi ing it round. Tho level land near the stream, between the house and the road, is used for cultivation, and the sheep are regularly hurdled over it after ploughing to maintain its fertility. The Italians have a proverb, " Sheep are the best dung-cart," and by folding, Mr Wyatt secures both the liquid and the solid manure, an even distribution of the same, while the trampling serves to break down the clods and to exterminate insects. Like many farmers, Mr Wyatt has an aversion for purchased and

artificial fertilizers, and considering the price of labour, the cost of transportation, and low prices, he prefers raising beef, mutton, and wool to growing crops. The sheep, we should say in conclusion, were gentle, in good condition, and are prizewinners ab local exhibitions.

MR LINNEL'S FARM,

The shortest way with dissenters and others travelling from Port Albert to Kaiwaka is to cross the Oruawharo to the native side, and keep to the track along the ridge dividing thab river from the Otainatea. By this road we proceeded to Mr Linnet's farm where one of Dunwoodie's Faugh-a-Ballagh scrub-cutters had been at work. At the time of our visit the machine was idle, but Mr Linnel kindly showed the machine and detailed his experience of its working. Much of the land was covered with ti-tree averag ing fifteen feet high, and ho had first bought a side-cutter as the machine most fit for dealing with such growth. We %vere taken over the land cleared by the machine and were certainly surprised at the work done by it. The implement consists of a pair of carrying wheels, dray size, and furnished with grips to prevent slipping. The wheels are keyed upon a shaft that, by means of mitre gear, drives a vertical shaft carrying at its lower extremity a horizontal, knifebearing disc, thab revolves at a short distance above the ground. The knives are made in segments bolted on to the rim of the disc, and the edge of eoch segment is like a " lightning hayknife ;'; hence, when all the knives are"on the disc, tho latter resembles a circular saw with very large and strong teeth. A three-foot cub is taken, and three good horses, or, in extreme cases, four were required to operate the machine. Stumps of two and a-hal? to three inches through were not infrequent ; the largest stump wc saw was of oval shape, five inches one way by three the other. This had been cut right through and the tree itself sent whirling away without any jar to the machine. Where the rushes were thick they at times clogged the machine, but the hindrance was not material. Working half a day with three horses an aero and a-half of such growth as described was cleared, as much as a man could fell in a week with the slasher. The stumps were left with a square end so thab stock running on such a clearing would stand loss chance of beingstaked. In cutting the shorter scrub and the second growth upon his land, Mi- Linnel has a back-cutter that takes a cut of four feet four inches, and clears a larger acreage with the same hor.se power. The saving effected by the use of suet a machine will recommend it to settlers and bush-contrac-tors, and we can now better realise what the effect of the scythe-armed chariots of the ancient Britons must have been upon the shins and ankles of the Roman legionaries. LIMESTONE SAND. We crossed the Otamatea near the ostrich farm, three miles above Batley. The birds were being fed upon cut raupo, and were beginning to lay. A guinea each was asked for the eggs. (Epicures desiring a novelty in omelettes, please take notice.) Between the Otamatea and the Pahi, on the Colbeck property, the land is what is known as limestone land, a substratum of that, mineral being present. Patches of heavy bush are found amongst the td-tree light bush that is the principal growth, In which considerable clearing has been UMtde. Th<*

dry weather, assisted by the crickets, had greatly injured the pasture, and in many cases fresh seeding would have to be resorted to. The ground was cracked open, gaping with the drought; the creeks were dried up in several instances ; of one settler it was said that he had lost a hundred sheep through want of feed and water. All over the limestone lands the drought had been keenly felt, and in this respect such lands compared badly with the heavy bush. Otherwise the light bush is more easily cleared, the undulations of the surface are gentle .and favour cultivation, and the soil is generally considered good, if not excellent. In many cases the soil is dark, probably from an admixture of humus. In winter, when soaked with rain, it is heavy, soapy, and absorbent, while in summer weather ib is apb bo bake to hardness. Caught between these extremes, in spring and early summer, it works Avell enough. To improve its condition, as well as to remove the reproach levelled from heavy bush districts that limestone lands soon run out, tho use of caustic lime should be resorted to. With plenty of limestone at hand, and of ti-tree for fuel, the sebbler may easily procure this for himself. A helpful mawill soon run up a rough and ready kiln of sods, and as clean lime for building is nob his object, the mixing of wood ashes with the lime is no detriment, but rather, from the potash in them, of decided manurial benefit. The inert humus in the soil would be rendered soluble plant food by the notion of the lime upon ib, and the land would become more open and yield heavier crops. On the clay subsoil lime has a sweetening action, and this should be borne in mind when d proportion of the stiffer subsoil is brought, up for- mixture with the dark surface soil. The clay will make the surface soil more retentive of moisture in midsummer, and so less liable to crack open and bake hard. Turned up thinly and by degrees incorporated, with all sourness removed by the lime, the clay will improve the limestone farm, (.-specially for the growth of cereals. Where the second growth is not too high, it could be ploughedunder as green manure, likea clover ley, and in this case, too, lime would have a beneficial action, hastening the decomposition of the vegetation turned in. Somethino- in this direction ought to be done, for to see clearings going back under tho usurping dominion of the tia-tree, as seen here, is lamentable. PAPAROA. We were ferried over the Pahi at the township, thanks to the good offices of a youn" settler—there is no regular forry-and proceeded to Paparoa forthwith, distant five miles, or one mile less than heretofore, by bhe opening of a new route. At Paparoa, for the first time on our journey, we saw green hillsides. "As green as crass " is proverbial, but the paddocks we had passed by hitherto were of tho colourof hay Here, on the heavy bush land, the Brass held and kept its hue ; there was plenty of feed in the pastures and of waterin the brooks. Paparoa is- a genuine heavy bush settlement, on the southern verge ot that great extent of forest that stretches northward to Whangarei and farther and westward to the Wairoa On the first map of the district the land was described as undulating. It does undulate, and pretty severely. Chaos and Creation must have had a hard fight of ili just bore, and the ground is torn

up considerably in consequence. A Wairoa man's description of the Mongonui valley would apply to the most rugged parts of Paparoa: " The country stands on end, and thabush grows out of the sides." The broken nature of the country precludes much cultivation ; grass and fruit culture offer most to the settler. The soil is of first-class qualiby, being a friable loam, neibher dense nOr sandy, and throwing up plenty of feed from a thick sole of tun", in many cases over twenty years old. Most of the pasture is surf ace sown. The bulk of the old settlers are gathered together near the end of boat navigation, where the tidewater terminates and the bush land begins. Some progress has been made within the last year. A third store has been added bo bhe two already existing, all thiee doing a butcher trade; there is an Episcopalian church, likewise a Wesleyan chapel, and a capital school. Judging by results, good manners must be included in the curriculum, for the traveller is greeted, as in Wales, with a "good mornin_," and not with the bovine stare too often met with. Pvoadmaking would appear to be almost a mania ab Paparoa, for, in addition to the much-needed cornice detour immediately to the west of the post-office bridge, the new road to Pahi township, involving the erection of a long bridge over tidal water, the excavation of a deep cutting, and the building of a long fascined embankment over a mud flat, has been made at a cost of over £500 within the lasb twelvemonth. Higher up the river, at the homestead settlement, there is a constant influx of new comers, and, owing to their presence and custom, Saturday is an informal market day in what is becoming the village part of the settlement. Want of communication with Auckland, and divers unlucky shipwrecks, did much to cripple tho early settlers, but the good soil, hard work, and some luck in adjacent markets, ensured the prosperity of the place. The Matakohe gumfields' first put Paparoa on its legs by providing a market for produce, and when these were played out, the Wairoa sawmills rilled their place and made another mart for the sale of fat beef and mutton for which 'Paparoa is noted. Farms are nob offered for sale here, and large areas have been felled, burnt off, and pub under grass, without the logging that at one time was customary after the running fire. The Wairoa trade 'is nob quite so good as it once was, for settlers complain that it takes two or three beasts to fetch the price that one did, and attention is being turned more to the growth of wool. Cultivation, even for thenown use, has gone back among the settlers who plead guilty when charged with laziness in this respect. Cattle and sheep, wool and hides, fruit and grass seed are the principal things grown, partly because they are less difficult of transport, and partly because they require less labour. No one seems badly oft', the houses are large, well-painted outside and well furnished within, books and musical instruments included, and if the testimony of the neighbouring settlement is to be trusted, the Paparoans have the happy knack of turning the penny the right way. The valley in which the settlement lies is called the Verdant Valley ; the epithet by no means applies to the inhabitants. THE WAIROA IN THE FUTURE. From Paparoa to Matakohe is an easy five miles. The last flamed settlement is stauding still, and the poor land is blamed with this non-progress, Better

land is found in the northern portion of the Matakohe block, whence, also, kauri is being got out. From Matakohe to Toka Toka is almost twenty-one miles, through a good deal of barren country, improving as the Wairoa is approached, and picturesque withal. The Wairoa, the " Long Water," is the third largest in New Zealand and the busiest, flowing into the Kaipara Harbour. Toka Toka, the first sbeamboat landing and the Oldest township on the river, has been passed in the race by the up-river* township of Te Kopuru, Aratapu, and Dargaville, seats of the timber trade. There is abundance of kauri still on both sides of the river, and move up the Kaihu Valley, aud while there is a demand for timber and kauri to cut, bhe Wairoa will not suffer, but the time must come when the bushes will be exhausted; increased settlement will bring more flocks and herds, and the great swamps of the Lower Wairoa will proSuce their flax, New Zealand or other. Then the circular saw will be turned into a spinning machine, and the breaking-down saw become a power-loom, while linen and woollen facbories will take the place of the once famous saAvmills of the Wairoa.