A LAID OF PROMISE.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1246, 30 September 1911, Page 13

A LAID OF PROMISE.

AWAITING DEVELOPMENT. RICH SOIL, GENIAL CLIMATE, AND GLORIOUS SOUNDS. A FARMERS' PARADISE. THE HOLIDAY.-MAKERS' PLEASUREGROUND. Marlborough—genial, sunny . Marlborough—the land which produces the world s best barley, grows tho highest grade woo!, aid fattens lambs equal to "prime Canterbury/ 1 the land of tho wonderful Bounds, occupies the north-east corner of the; Sbuth Island. On the north and cast it is bounded by Cook Strait and the 'East Coast as far as the Conway Eiver, and tho western sido by Tennyson Inlet, Polorus Sound. 1 From the Conway to Pelorus Sound it abuts on to the Nelson district, and from the Conway to tho Acheron Eiver the Canterbury district is the boundary. The extreme length from Capo Jackson to the Conway is one hundred and twenty miles, while the width varies up to sixty-seven miles.

But why should it be necessary to thus describe the location of a district which has all the advantages of .soil and climate enjoyed by healthy, wealthy Marlborough ? Perhaps, the comparatively little knowledge which the average Zeala.nder has of the province is due to some extent to tho fact, that the population has been so prosperous and self-reliant for many years that comparatively little effort has been made to attract newcomers. Probably the procrastinating policy of the Government with regard to building the railway has had a deterring influence on tho settlement of the lands. Marlborough'has always suffered, and suffers still, from the lack of internal communication. Were it not for the representations of a Land and Itailway League, which has kept Marlborough's claims to tho fore in recent years, it is questionable whether the rails would even now have been laid for any considerable distance past Blenheim.

The area of land contained in this favoured district is upwards of two and three" quarter million acres, while the population is only about seventeen thousand, or, roughly, four to the square mile. The figures are more striking still, when it is realised that over half of this spare population: is censed, ;on, the Waijtiu Plain,.of 65,00$.acres," in the midst of which' stands the town of Blenheim. Tho soil of this plain- is amcr.igst. the richest in New Zealand. Its fertility is really' wonderful, and after forty-five years of continuous cropping in parts it .will still produce in a favourable season as much as sis tons of chaff or up to sixty bushels of wheat to the acre. This soil has never had fertilisers of any kind applied to it, and still it shows no sign of exhaustion. On the rich Wairau the clouds "drop fatness," all that is required to produce tho magnificent crops being good tilling anfl a fair rainfall in the growing season. THE WORLD'S BEST BARLEY. Marlborough has long been famed for producing the best malting barley. Last season over eighty thousand sacks of this cereal wero grown, and of. this quantity twenty thousand sacks went to Australia for malting. . On account of its high quality, the growers receive top prices, their return last season being as high as five shillings per bushel net. Peas are also grown extensively, principally under contract for English seedsmen. Like Marlborough barley, Marlborough peas have the reputation of being unsurpassed, and tho merchants for whom they aro grown provide tho seed, and pay the grower as much as eight shillings per bushel for the crop. A crop of peas is often grown as a nitrogen-restorer, and followed the next season by wheat, when a heavy, yield is usually the result. The area of wheat, however, has greatly diminished during recent years, as barley has been found to be by far the more profitable crop. Lucerne does well anywhere in the district, crad enor-

mous crops of hay and seed are harvested. Tho samo remarks apply to cow-grass and clover, and yields of four hundredweight of seed to tho aero aro frequently obtained. Tho colour and quality of the seed are alike good, and there' is keen inquiry for it in the open market. Clover-growing has assumed some importance, and there aro several up-to-date mills in the district. Tho subdivision of several large estates has greatly increased the agricultural and pastoral products of Marlborccgh. In the case of Starborough, many of tho settlers went on to I ho land less than ten years ago, with but a few pounds to ftboir credit, and arc now comparatively Wealthy men. There havo been instances of tho goodwill of t'he leases changing hands at as much as X'lo an acre. Contiguous to Starborough aro tho Richmond Brook, Blind River, and Flaxbourne Settlements. Tho settlers on t'ho last-named estate had to stock at eicep-

tionally high prices, bul they aro nevertheless all doing well, and their holdings aro being rapidly improved. Flax-milling has also assumed some importance in Marlborough. The first ilaxmill in tho South Island ,was started in the Wairau Valley in 1869. Thcro are now a dozen mills in tho district, all equipped with modern machinery. The hemp produced at the Timara, Langleydale, and Marshlands Mills is not eclipsed anywhere in New Zealand. There is nothing mediocre in Marlborough's products; It excels in all that it produces, and there is little cause for wonder that in a land of such unique natural resources the residents of Blenheim, which has now a little over four thousand inhabitants, proudly speak of their little inland town as the future "Christchurch of Marlborough." WAIRAU MASSACRES. The richness of tho Wairau Plain appears to have been realised even by tho old whalers who carried on their indus-

try in the neighbourhood .of Cook Strait in tho 'thirties. Longing eyes were cast upon the valley by 0110 Captain Biinkinsiopp, of the whaling vessel Caroline, and ho succeeded in getting the warrior chief, Te Rauparaha, tc; Lsig;i,.n : ;dq(;iii}iont giving him a title. >to>the laiid. For tin's magnificent stretch of country Blinkinsopp gave To Kauparaha an old cannon (which can still.be seen in Blenheim), but the chief maintained that, he had been cheated, and that the only right which lie had understood he was ceding to the captain of the whaler was that he should b.c permitted to oblain wood and water for his ship at Cloudy Bay. Blinkinsopp afterwards mortgaged the land to a Sydney lawyer named Unwin who, after the death of the captain, made an attempt to take possession of the plain by sending a party of men with some cattle to settle on it. The party left Sydney in the sailing vessel Hope on April 4, 7810, and on their arrival at Cloudy Bay, the women and children were left at Port Underwood while the men proceeded to the Wair.iu and commenced to build a habitation. They returned once to Port Underwood and then went back to the Wairaa to finish their dwelling. Suspicions that some mishap had befallen, the party were aroused a few days later, and a search which was made resulted in traces being found of their brutal murder by the Natives and tho devouring of their bodies at a cannibal feast. Mr. Unwin made no further attempt to settle the land and .Captain Blmkinsnpp's widow told the alleged title to the New Zealand Company for thrco hundred pounds. Te Rauparaha had fought many hard battles to win the coveted Wairau from tho tribes who originally owned it, and he was not going to part with it for an old cannon or for any inconsiderable sum of gold. In the year 1539, Colonel Wakefield, agent for the Now Zealand Company, purchased from the Natives some four hundred

miles of country, partly on tho west coast of tho North Island, and partly on the east- coast of tho South Island. Colonel Wakefield contended that the Wairau was included in this purchase, while To Rauparaha, who had conducted the negotiations for the Natives, emphatically insisted that it was not included, and threatened to resist any effort made to settle |t with immigrants. But tho company was in difficulties through not having sufficient land at Nelson to fulfil its obligations to those who had paid for their sections beforo leaving England, and Colonel Wakefield disregarded the threats which had been made, and decided to commence a survey of tho plain, with a view to settling on it those immigrants who could not be supplied with land at Nelson. Immediately the Natives became awaro of this decision, three great chiefs, To Rauparaha, Hiko, and Rangihaota, went to Nelson and warned tho Colonel not to' attempt the survey, but

they affered to allow the dispute to bo settled by Mr. Spain, Government Land Commissioner. This friendly offer was disregarded, as also were the warnings of tho chiefs that they would kill any who tried to deprive them of the Wairau, and on April '15,' 1843, contracts were ontered into with Messrs. Barnicoat and Thompson, Parkinson, and Cotterell for the survey. The work was well advanced when To Eauparaha, with a large force of warriors, armed with guns, arrived on tho scene. They insisted upon the surveyors returning to Kelson at onco and to expedite their departure assisted them in conveying their instruments and personal belongings to tho boats, afterwards burning down their toi-toi wliares. When news of this reached Nelson, a foreo of about forty men, many of whom were labourers, and had never handled a gun in their lives, was dispatched with handcuffs and leg-irons to arrest tho chiefs on a charge of arson. This force met "the Natives at the spot where the town of Tua Marina now stands, and an attempt was made to place tho chiefs under arrest. While the Chief Magistrate (Mr. Thompson) was parleying with To Eauparaha, a gun was accidentally discharged by one of the Europeans, and

the Nati.es, thinking that hostilities had been commenced against them, commenced to fight with all the fury and determination which had caused To- Rauparaha's intrepid band of warriors to be feared bv all the.tribes within striking distance. The encounter was a short and decisive one. A number of the Englishmen wero slam in the light, while many who surrendered were .at once tomahawked to death. The total deaths on the colonists' side were twenty-one, while the warriors had three killed and three wounded.

The terrible alfair was afterwards inquired into by Captain Fitzroy, the iiow- ! lv-appointed Governor of Now Zealand, | who, very much against popular opinion, j decided not to punish tho i'aoris, as he I considered the Englishman had no right : to take possession of the plain till tho ownership had been decided by Mr. Spain. Governor Grey afterwards paid ■ Te liauparaha ,£I6OO, with a promise of further ; payments in consideration of his claim to j tho lands under dispute. On tho NewZealand Company surrendering their charter in 1850, a further sum of three thousand poinds was paid to tho Natives in final settlement of their clnftn, and although there were tribes which had previously denied Te Itauparaha's right to

sell, the Europeans afterwards remained in peaceful and undisputed occupation of the land. SUPERINTENDENTS OP MAKLBOEOUGH. For twenty-three years the provincial system of government, introduced by Sir GeoTgo Gray, v;as maintained, and under this system Marlborough was grouped with Nelson, and owing to its limited population it ivas entitled to only ono representative on' a Council composed of 24 members, Mr. Joseph Ward was select, ed for the position, aLd despite his undoubted ability it is not to be wondered at that the peoplo .of Marlborough considered that they were not fairly treated. As settlement progressed the district became entitled to greater representation, and in jloS it ha;. three members on the I Council, Messrs. James Balfour Wemyss, Charles Elliott, and John Tinline. Still tho Marlborough landholders were not satisfied, and tho climax came when the Council, presided over by the democratic Superintendent, Mr. J. P. Robinson, raised the selling prieo of pastoral land from ss. Bd. to ss. lOd. per acre. Tho Marlborough settlers took advantage of tho new provisions of the Act, and petitioned for separation. Mr. William Adams, an English solicitor, who had taken up the Redwood run (now part of Alondalc station), proceeded'to Auckland with the petition. Tho request of the petitioners was granted, and in November, 1859, .Marlborough became a separate province. The election of the first Provincial Council took place early in the ensuing year, and tho following gentlemen were returned: —Messrs. W. Adams, \Y. ,D. H. Baillie, Cyrus Gaulter, J. Godfrey, W. H. Eyes, J. Sinclair, H. Dodson, Charles Elliott, Joseph Ward, and A. P. Seymour. Mr. Adams was chosen as Superintendent and Mr. Gaulter as Speaker. It might bo mentioned hero that from the time of his first election till the abolition of provincial government in 1876, Mr. Gaulter continued to hold office in some capacity, and gavo his time ungrudgingly to tho servico of tho district. The Council fixed tho prico of town lands at .£l7 10s. per acre, suburban lands at lfls., rural lands at 10s. Sd., and pastoral lands at ss. 10d., During tho first fessiorf of the Council thero came a rift in tho lute, when it was resolved, on the motion of Mr. Seymour, to erect provincial buildings at Picton. Tho Council then divided into two parties, bitterly opposed to each other on this vital question, the Blenheim party being led by Mr. Eyes. But in spito of all opposition Picton becajne the scat of government. In 18G1 Mr. Adams resigned the position of Superintendent, and Mr. Baillie was elected. Tho most nolablo event of llr. Balllio's administration was an

effort to keep in check tho Opawa Eiver, which had burst its banks abovo Blenheim, and was flooding the lower Wairau Plain. An engineer was employed to construct protective works, on which a sum of no less than <£11,030 was spent, but the first flood destroyed tho whole works. Although various schemcs were tried nothing proved successful until Mr. Charles Eedwood devised a system of pile and wire dams. This was so effective that tho Spring Creek settlers, fearing the water would be thrown across to their settlement, obtained an injunction of the Supreme Court against Mr. Redwood's dams, and eventually the Wairau Paver Board had to cut a channel to drain off tho flood-water.

11l ISG2 tho Council was enlarged to 17 members. Captain Baillie, finding there was a strong opposition, and anticipating a strugglo to bring the seat of government back to Blenheim, prorogued the Council. The opposition denied his right to do this, called a meeting of their own number, and clected Mr. Eyes as Superintendent. Eventually an appeal was made to the Supreme Court, and the decision given was in favour af Mr. Baillie. The Council was then dismissed, aiid the election which ensued resulted in favour of the Pictonites. Sir. Thomas Carter was chosen as Superintendent, and his chief advisers were Mr. Baillie and Mr. Cyrus Gaulter. Mr. Carter's term of office was a very trying one, chiefly on account of the disorganisation of labour, which resulted from the discovery of the Wak.nvi--- - i goldfield. He resigned in 1861, and was succeeded by Mr. A. P. Seymour. During the latter gentleman's term of ofiice the Blenheim party made another determined effort to bring the scat of, government back to the town of tho Plain, and eventually succceded. At the next session, Mr. Eyes, who had led the Blenheim faction during the long and bitter struggle, was elected as Superintendent. For four years he he'd office, but was eventually again defeated by Mr. Seymour, who continued in power till the aboliti'on of the provincial governments in 187 G.