"ABBOTSFORD."

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1031, 21 January 1911, Page 17

"ABBOTSFORD."

"^HELGREAr- MfWl* EITM. lEsSsRS. W, H.l "'lt ft .fIATHBONE'S : ,pßopaiinr;' ■ ;:V « rafiwwsie mm., •■■: :

Hawko's Bay is remarkable ior the aumber and beauty of-its plan'tations.; $hey cover tho lands , in all .- directions, 1 and on undulating "country with liohift'steads aiwj residences,. villages and tWns dotted hero and there, ■they preseiit a most picturesque • appearance, at, marked contrast, by, the way, to thfl baro gorse-clad hills of Wellington, ( which - endanger ! the city - whenever tkcfre is a lengthened spell of dry weather./ It has been'remarked before thai toy Mr. Purvis. Russell must " be given'credit for the inauguration of /the plantations which. have • so. enriched tho cbuntrj) in. and around Waipuku- : .rail and Waiftawa, but great credit is also duetto the late Mr. \Villiam Rath--1 bone, of. "Abbotsford," Waipawa,' for ■ ! the very : complete manner-in which ho has beautified ihe district. "Abbotsford"! stands , upon 1 an eminence overlooking the town of Waipawa, ■ and'lir and'ardund a country of hills and' valleys",, .int which tho eye is particularly- struck'-Py. the splendid bunches, . of trees and..,growths in all .-directions. There' are ;iiy 'all (eighty acres of plantations ,on' "Abbotsford" estate, and, with; other plantations of a like.nature, 'jut -in by.jTesiden(jS who havo followed " in Mr..'Rathboiie'i footsteps, the Waipawa seems a-huge, lovely garden of ,'oaks, "elms, ashds, silver beeches, acacia', pines, andi willows, with here and thero the sma, ; H bluegum forests' ■which have marked the ■ homestead ana dwelling-house'of so'many early New . Zealand pioneers; It can-bo easily un-

derstood that the planting of these trees was a labour . of years. They ..were originally 1 put in to protect stock, .and for climatic purposes. Mr. Rathbone ' was a man of a very industrious nature, and ho grew and planted many of the blucgums and acacia trees liim- ■ self. Ho obtained thousands of suckers and placed them in pots, and then into especially constructed gardens,, from which tho trees• were'in time distributed in drays and sledges, and transplanted' over the run, a place of some . 7000 acres. Ono of. the spots so planted, ."Rabbit-Hill," is a landmark for .quite•thirty miles in and around Waipawa. Ths Plantation System. -'."'■'■ The system was to run rows of acacia and' bluegum as a protection to the English trees. They lined all the wafercourses and valley, and crept up over the loftiest spurs, and broke tho monotony of many a' landscape, which" previously had harboured'-thousands- of acres-of ugly-lookiiig fern. The plantation running from "Rabbit Hill" to the main road to Napier is qiiito two miles'in length, and fully two chains wide. "It is'probably the finest .of its kind.ill all Hawko's Bay. It is now about forty years since Mr. Rathbono planted his first tree, and now, wrtn the splendid, growths. which - may be seen in all directions, the wisdom of his labours ' is being recognised by his.. admiring townspeople.- ... • , • A Strenuous. Gareer., ' .'Mr. Rathb'one had for 'years a' somewhat''strenuous career. He was born

in England 011 April 26, 1832, tho son of a Birmingham merchant. After being educated he ivas brought up ill his lather's business, but becoming restless "in a restless time, ho left ■England in 1855 for New Zealand in the ship "ICgmont,". and landed at Tliranaki. lie saw .something of tho Native disturbances in Taranaki, went to Collingwood to the diggings, and then some six months later came on to Port Ahnriri, where for a time ho was in one of the stores. In 1859 he saw a business opening in the country, and, removing to Waipawa, started a . general store there,- tho first 'in the town. There were no roads in thoso .days to tho_ place, no railways, and only a rough track, and riding across tho To Auto swamp, the young man ] almost lost his . life in a bog. There. • wero. any number 1 of. Natives in the district, and these wero Mr. Rathbone's principal customers. Ho used to . sell stores right to the foot of tho Ruafcine ranges, and away out on the coast to Bicck Head, and tho .volume of business was at times very large. There wero' also several Native pas .in and about the;, district, and altogether Air. Ratlibbiie did a very good trade. For many years ho was postmaster at Waipawai, 1 Registrar of Births, Deaths, and Marriages," and a J.P. A Note:! Customer. Amongst his customers was Hapuku,tho noted Hawke's.Bay chieftaiiij who ■took a. large part in all. the affairs ofthe time. .-' Tho ingenuousness of ; tho Native is well shown in the following story. On one occasion he purchased a saddlo .-from Mr. and .as a sign that' ho would -tako tho article, carried-it out .of the shop and deposited it on-tlio-track. a. sign that ho'considered 'that tho. saddlo was his property;- and ' that 1 it'.Was.-neither to bo touched nor changed by anv hand "but his'*o")viir'"Had"'the''s'addlo been left in tho/shpp'i.'Hapiiku',-thought it mighthave become mixed.:'witli;;qther saddles, and, Jn! any. ; _case, ~ono' saddle was. very, ■much ,liko''anb^iier,.saddle;,.butithe' Na-.. tivo know:,.that.'once lie had'placed:his mana on.it,on:the'rough track,'<it .-would' bo a bold nian'indec'd-who would-iiiterr fere with-; his';.p: pperty.., ■ The ; saddle stayed. on the', road nearly all ■ day, : but never a ' hand' touched it. "In;, fact; Natives passing-by gave it a very, wide berth, , until ; .' in- the 5 evening .Hapuku came .riding, by,..' aiid, : , paying for/tlie . saddle;'■■carried ';it' v awaj>; ; /: -j. A Saddle Boom. ,ThQ- Natives apparently had a great weakness for saddles. On one occasion.. on a Christmas morning, Mr. Rathbono records, a'gang-of Maoriscame -through ■ from a shearing, and knocking Mr. Rathbono up, purchaser £70 worth of saddlery in five minutes, besides other things. Mr. Rathbono learnt the language, and at times acted as a Native azent. Ho found, the. Natives vcrv honest. Oh one occasion .ho had a Maori debtor who owed'him as much as £3000, and eventually received tbo money.' >.• Tho First; Whites. . J Amongst the first white people whom ..Mr. Hathbono knew, in and around,Waipawa, ...wero ""-Messrs. E.-. Bibbjy ' 3, M'Gr,oevy,,,.aiul ■ Dr. Todd.. '.Dr.... Todd; • who is.'at-present residing at "Waipawa, 'has had a very eventful career. Ho came ,to New Zealand in 1864, and at .tho timo of the Maori troubles was as--s|stant-surgeon'- to: the -12th and -14th. ■.Regiments, which wero. stationed at the •Waipawa. stockade, portions of vrnmn now bridge som'oof tho Mount VeVnb'n waterpop'ses at .Waipiikiirau: ■ Tho W.ii-' -pawa district .residents with those.from :-farther - south', - wero sworn. in as. militia. and patrolled the stockade. .Cfiptqin 'Russell, of Waipukurau, :Was in charge -cf theso men,. who numbered between ■ twenty and thirty. Mr. Rathbono was ono of the party, and later is understood to have seen service at.the Battle of Omarunui.

Abbotsford Purchased. In 1871 Mr. . Rathbone went in for farming, and bought tho "Abbotsford". ■ Station, which was then a very'rough ■piece of country' indeed. ' The station was named after its first owner, Mr. William Abbott, who afterwards sold it to Jlr. James Collins, from whom Mr. Rathbono in turn purchased it. Thcf .place was very hilly, but it had seme good limestone patches, and Mr. Rathbone saw that with attention it was eminently suitable for agricultural and pastoral purposes. Some idea of the roughness of the estate may he gauged by thorfaet that'one jrhole'blcck . ,was .covered, with fern, 'six- or riidit feet in height, and that where now it takes two hours to muster.sheep, it then absorbed twenty full days. Wild pigs were a.ll over the placc, .andthero were ' English, 'grasses. *. Mr.l *Rathbone dealt With the farm in a very 'thorough •way. First of all, ho cleared off all the fern, and then subdivided and feneeo the place so as to make it suitable lor working purposes. He had a good seven or eight years' work before the run .could bo said to be in any state of improvement. When lie liafl finished he had "Abbotsford"' divided, into fifty paddocks and blocks, air permanently watered, and a number of shelter plantations were well on the way. Sir. 'Rathbone had a hobby for' building dams _so that every block and every ■paddock could bo supplied ivith water. Although, useful .to .an incredible ex- ; tejit,«' tlio 'inauguration - of - the - system > Very .Qxpensivo,;a-fact-which' may, ibo.'ieasily" understood when one remem-.' |befsi, that...one- dam. which, feeds, .four, ipaddooks: is'B4'acres..m; extent.' *.•-, I H" c! Tlitr3," i . It'can be readily understood that the expense of -making "AbbotsrorcT: i»u .improved ,farni' was; a severe-tax - upon iMr. financial resources.. ■Things .were, not -very".flourishing...av, •tlio time, in -New.Zealand, sheep, were ■only, of-use for their wool,', and. until jtho. mpat . freezing industry was.- lainy. .011 its legs aifd for. a good manv years ; afterwards, the lot of the sheep-farAier iin New Zealand 'was far—from- "rosy: - :Mr. .Rathbone-. had" his-, full-1 sharo' of I these and - other. -.worncs> 'when>banks-| . were-foreclosing with' the. usual ..panic. On one occasion,. '.ho* states.:: ho. .went: 'fflv.er, Jo -.the., bank,..and offering his. ,-bunch of keys .to' the .-bank agentj rcr : quested ,-hini,>.to step 'in. and.'take pes-. • session, .. and-rso. end- the trouble onco' :: and for all. •: The advice was 'refused, •however, ..and the ."Abbotsford"..owner. ! triumphed; over these financial difficult ties,..as, .lie had previously.:ovcr 'more material. troubles. . SUCCCSSi In the course of time Mr. Rathbona became the owner of other sheep farms besides "Abbotsford," namely "Tourero," "Makotuku," "Tikokino," and "Otanga," in various parts, of Southern Hawke's Bay, and on these farms 'he depastured ' the ■ very fino •, Lincoln sheep and Shorthorn', cattle-with which 1 his 'nam'o for many years was preeminently'associated: - , ■'■ Shorthorns.-, r - . .'Tile; ShofiJi6r.il'. stud was 'started! in I'6S6". witha.'l BullJ .and V'{wo? cowG..'J)f tho , lattqr,'."bne,, : •Lady,. v ,ybi ; clon, jras .ji sre'at.r.aiiimal, She'.-was ?hpwn ,at ..variolas agricultural and pastoral shows, .and in her,time took-first.and.champion •'at Sydney, at ■ Palmerston North, aim at Ilawke's Bay. She waß a champion at liino years of age. In 1897 tho herd had increased to 120' cows,' tho sires being 'Earl Verdon; Duko of Abbotsford 11, and Duke of Oxford XV. Tho latter's sire was also a champion at , several showijj. The herd; .was excced- . in'gly pure! and, naturally, hail, a great .name,, and the stock, more tlian.held ; its'own against the pick of tho Island :at the .various agricultural shows. One of tho later champions, Lord Kitchener, was champion at the lflOo Hawko's Bay 'Show, beating importations from Australia in , addition to local -stock, "and 'when tlio herd was partly-dis'persed J in the, same year.,..w.as_.sold..forJ.Za_guiiiea.s, 'Tn 1900 Mr. Rathbono practically retired from active so-vice, and amongst 'cither ,thing3i-Mr:.-W-.. : .H.-.,Ratbbona.took.. qliargo 'off "tli'b'Sho'r.thbr'ns|.' ' : an'd? 'nowi' after a' generally; ' . Th6vherd ; v kept; •pure all.; ; 'and' i's iiow, 1 in'.'ilrV; . Rathbonels opiiVoii',; s'ecoiid ;t6-noiio'. ;; It' i numljers;.".l'3o 'cows,'; and.'Mr. .'.Rathbono' has of ; 70'.pure-bred hulls to West .Coast' '.buyers. ~'There .is': at' present, a,.run .on , Shorthorns,",and /the '.demand I 'cannot be. supplied:... . In. con-; nection-with his* belief 'foribreed purity,. Mr. W. 'H. Rathbone strongly; discountenances''the Suggestion' that Shorthorn blood shbuld'bo bolstered- up.:with 'Hereford and -Polled Ari^us'blood,'for copstitutioiialj.reasons:-' Like the Lincoln sheep,': ' ! tlie;."Shbrth6rn ~is V'admittedl£;?a is: reared'.;supc«ssf'ul!'y; : Sy,Vb'ree'dCT :liko to',, give : aire;i'iirid attention . tb"'tjie 'subjeet;:and l islK';Ratbbon.e',V'eh';rightly 'points-;'out-that purity of breed-;,is ,'on'o' of.the.grp;atest ; of:,virtues in fhe'reafirigof pedisxeelstock;" '■ . Llncolns. , .Mr. W, - Rathbone;':started.- sheep-., breeding -when- -ho acquired - ''Abbotsford," but- at'first the liccks were 'run--fling on' a'.4op-aere Maori''lease) !-m still iii " the; firm's employ." '.There" wero'at first -,three; different breeds','''namely English. Leicester, Lincoln,,'and. Shropshire, but iof;these, tlio Lincobis. aVe the only ones,now in existence on. ".Abbotsford," and- these:have :boen crosscd with 'tho übiquitous 'Rpniiioy;-.w'iiii ■'the -ex-, ception of the' st'ud./ -.Lincphis,-';' 'which number 400. Tlie 'Sb'ropsh'ir.e ; ahd -English Leicester: flocks^..^wcre'.disperse;!' in'; 1907, wdien a;.portionNbf..,"Abbotsford''', ' was sold. ''.;The,'w,eiiHt';of'the'''Abbotsford"'- clip}has graduallyig'ono -.up,- until, in 1909', it '"averaged . ptir fleece. ;' : '. :'■■' ■. • - ' -, As a Sportsman. ' ' ' Mr. -W. Rathboha died in : 1904, and it should be recorded that after making a success as a merchant and shc-jp-tui'-, mer, he, in his older age. became a turT patron, and for a period of fourteen years his colours woro at times very prominent at the principal race meetings. Amongst his best horse* may bo mentioned the great Merganser, Palaver. 'Blarney, Zanilla, and Fleka. Since his death, tho racing st'ablo lias been dispersed. "When Mr. Rathbone died his estate, was divided amongst his children, of .whom ho. had nine, four sons and five daughters. -- >. Present Ovvnors; "Abbotsford" is at present owned by two of the sons, Messrs. W. K. and 11. M. Rathbone, but Mr. W. H. Ratlinone practically manages the estate, awing'to tho fact that Mr. H. M. Ratlilione's experience has been largelyOf a mercantile nature, ho having becii connected with that portion of the business from 1891. Mr. W. H. 'Rathbone, who was born in 1871, was educated at tlio Napier Boys' High School, and subsequently wis at the Canterbury Agricultural College, at Lincoln, and on iiis return to Waipawa he took over the management ofl the property, his Drother Leonard having control of the stock, but now Mr. W r . H. Rathbono practically manages the whole concern. Both ho and Mr. If. M. Rathbone reside on the estat«. and both take a keen interest in all h/al and other matters concerning the welfare "of the district.