MAORI FARMERS.

Auckland Star, Volume LXIII, Issue 72, 26 March 1932, Page 7

MAORI FARMERS.

BIG DEVELOPMENT SCHEME. VALLEY NEAR MT. HORAHORA DAIRY FARMS IN THE MAKING. (By C.A.J.R.) The valley at the foot of Horahora Mountain presents to-day a very different picture from the one the Arawa scouts saw as they watched from- the table top the advance of visiting warriors as they trekked through the dense, wild growth along the river towards the foot of Haparangi, that purple-shaded and lovely mount standing opposite Horahora.

To-day the descendants of the old-time warriors are engaged in a different fight. Right in the valley they are at work, rapidly converting this hitherto waste land into dairy farms. It is an object lesson to the interested traveller who is fortunate enough to visit the block and able to understand the tremendous amount of work on hand. Thousands of acres of new land has been consolidated and grassed, and hundreds of dairy cows, at this moment being carefully reared, will he within the year producing butterfat, that most important of New Zealand products. Thoroughness Everywhere. Native surveyors have set out the roadways, boundary lines and subdivisions. Native engineers supervised the bridge building and road formation, and native contractors have built the fences, splitting the posts from their own bush. I have never inspected better fences. The stout totara posts are efficiently "footed" and "stayed," and the wires are so well "battened" that they twang with an oven note to the hand that feels for a slack wire. There are cultivated flats, grass and clover fields, potato crops, and at the camps and homes garden patches for domestic supply. "Several crops of turnips and swedes show promise, large herds of bullocks grow lean as they are forced to crush out the roughage and help to consolidate the land for the surface sowing. Later they grow fat again as they are moved on to the grass land. Heifers are on good feed, and look well; sheep also in large flocks are fattening rapidly on the rich grasses. Experienced native women look to the cattle beasts, while shepherds, mostly from the East Coast, attend to the sheep. Complete Organisation. Everywhere the organisation is complete. The first block we inspected was Peka, lying in a valley and stretching up to low and easy hills, on which is seen a team of young Maori contractors at work with slashers in the manuka, while on the flat below a tractor is busy ploughing alongside a draining gang. At tho camp women have washing out and the smoke from the wide chimney of the cookhouse gives the idea, that food is being prepared. A pakeha supervisor with whom I travelled greets his gang with a pleasant "Kia Ora," and the native foreman replies with: "Good day, Bill." A brief talk about the work in hand and away we go to the next block, up a new road to the right into strong fern and bushland to Parekarangi. Here gangs are splitting fencing timber by contract, others carting by contract, fencers and drainers, all busy. It was here that I saw the first party of women, middle-aged and young, out clearing tho countryside of ragwort, visible this time of the year by its bright yellow flower. Happy and contented they seemed, independent too, with a knowledge of useful work well done. Here the greeting was the same. "Kia Ora" from my friend, and "Good day, Bill" in reply. Twenty or More Farms. From Parekarangi we go on to Horahora, and are invited to "kai" at Ruhi's fine cottage. The farms, some twenty or more, are at the foot of Horahora Mountain. The grey-white cliffs stand out bare and cool from the green bush patches on the steep sides, making a fine sight, and for ever reminding those who know of many historic tales. This table-topped mountain retains much natural bush, and native birds abound above, while the wild pig and deer wander through below. Much could be said of the work of these Maori settlers, of their high hopes for the future, of the great and efficient work of the foremen and supervisors, and while some have the marks of serious problems marked by new lines about the eyes and mouth, there are others for ever lighthearted. One farmer (to commemorate the pessimistic forecast of a disgruntled pakeha, who said, "Wait a bit and you'll see this scheme fail") has printed ever so neatly on his front gate, "Taihoa." Ploughing Swamp Lands. Our final interview at Horahora with Tupara Kingi, the clever East Coast fencer and shearer, whose farm, garden and lawn are a credit, we go on to Tikitere to see large gangs at work on 300 acres of ploughed land, many acres of rich swamp land bordering . beautiful Lake Rotoiti being cleared and grassed. The foreman here is another Coaster with a pakeha name, and he has succeeded in transforming this barren country into good-looking lea land, and he has installed a water supply by lifting the water from under a cliff right up to the topmost point of his farm, and what water —clear and pure! Comfortable cottages, good implements and careful supervision are. creating around Rotorua something new and useful. The scheme is assured of success.