COLOURFUL DAYS

Dominion, Volume 26, Issue 101, 23 January 1933, Page 8

COLOURFUL DAYS

Landing of Early Settlers

Recalled

ANNIVERSARY MEMORIES One of the earliest settlers was the late Mr. James Coutts Crawford, F.G.S., after whom Coutts Street and Mount Crawford are named, au ex-offi-cer of his Majesty’s Navy, who came from New South Wales and settled at Miramar, subsequently becoming _ a magistrate and a member of the Legislative Council. Mr. Alec Crawford, his son, is still a resident of Miramar, and another son, Mr. Charles Crawford. for years Mayor of Miramar, lives at St. Andrews, Scotland.

Early Reminiscences.

Mr. Crawford, in his reminiscences of those days, writes: — “It was most interesting to watch the arrival of the immigrant ships and the landing of the settlers on the beach. Some persons had roughcast Mannings’ wooden houses (in sections), which were quickly erected. Others dwelt In teuts, and others contracted with the Maoris to run up houses, generally of wattle and daub. The Maoris were astonished and excited and the wonder is that they did not take the opportunity of killing and eating all the immigrants. “Among the first arrivals were Mr. Francis Molesworth, the Hon. Henry Petre (after whom Wanganui was first named), Mr. Walter Mantell, Mr. A. de Brandon, Mr. George Duppa (after whom Duppa Street is named), Dr Evans (whose name is perpetuated in Evans Bay), and Mr. Robert Park (after whom Park Street. Thorndon, is named'. ... “The first few days after the historic January 22, 1840, were not without their alarms. On one occasion a boat landing at night returned to one of the ships, the crew reporting that the Maoris were about to massacre them. Great excitement arose in the squadron. Colonel Wakefield, after inquiring into the matter, told the people they were a pack of frightened geese, and had better - go back to bed. The panic bad arisen from the action of cartain Maoris rushing into the surf to help one of the boats on to the beach. , Hutt Valley a Great Forest. “The alluvial land on the banks of the Hutt River was at this time covered by a dense forest, many of the trees being of gigantic size.. Boats could ascend the river to the locality of the bridge, and the foliage on the banks of the river, the white clematis hanging in graceful festoons from the lofty branches, was superb. The valley being under forest, the banks were protected from the scour, and the flood waters were kept back and ran. oft grachmlly* “When the surveyors were laying off the township of Britannia (Petone), much, dissatisfaction‘arose in connection with the situation. It was, even in those early days, nerceived that the proper site for the'eity was where Wellington now stands, and rumours were afloat that holders of the earlier choices were prepared to take up this site as country land, and then cut It up into a township. A heavy flood in the Hutt River occurred at this time, adding force to the opposition, and it was seen that the township of Petone would be subjected to frequent submersion. "Colonel Wakefield was. however, obstinate, and refused to be turned from his purpose until the arrival of Dr. Evans, who, when seized of the situation, immediately took up the cause of the opposition. He called a public meeting, which he addressed in his well-known stentorian tone, and worked up public feeling to such an extent that Colonel Wakefield was forced to give way. The survey of Petone was then abandoned, and the surveyors and their assistants were transferred to what is now known aS Thorndon, or Wellington North. The Trek Down Harbour. , ' "Then came the task of transferring the families with their goods and chattels from Petone to Thorndon- There was no road at that time along the harbour foreshore, as the sea washed up to the foot of the hills and the forest overhung the waters of the bay. Foot passengers could scarcely pass along dryshod except at low water, and then there were the Kaiwarra and Ngahauranga streams to ford, over which the Maoris would carry passengers pick-a-back for a charge of 6d. These streams were then much larger than thev are now, for since the destruction of the forest the rainfall runs off with greater rapidity, and the average volume of water has shrunk to a fraction of what it was. The valleys of these streams were then extremely picturesque with their Maori villages and small cultivations cut out of the forest. "The chief mode of transport was by whaleboat, and many a hard pull I had between Petone and Wellington, for we assisted one another in manning the boats. After a lapse of about twelve months the surveyors finished their work of laying off the township of Britannia (the name of which was subsequently altered to Wellington as a compliment to the Duke of Wellington, to whom the company was indebted for the passing of the empowering Bill through the British Parliament), and the settlers began to move across gradually in whaleboats and punts. There were then several pas of Maoris on the Wellington side of the harbour. There were about 300 Maoris living in the pa at Te Aro (at the foot of Taranaki Strqet); there were fifty or sixty residents at the Kumutoto pa (Woodward Street), and from 150 to 200 at the Pipitea pa (near the-junetion of Davis Street and Thorndon Quay). The pa of Te Ekewai was in the Kaiwarra bight, and there were about fifty Natives resident In a settlement at the end of Fitzberbert Terrace.”

The Approaching Centenary. The year 1940 will witness the completion of Wellington’s hundred years of existence. It has been tentatively arranged, by resolution of the City Council, that the event shall be marked by the holding in the city of an international exhibition. That decision was arrived at some three years ago, before the depression had deepened materially. It was then suggested that means should be taken to provide a site, and the proposal which gained most favour was that the shallow waters at the bead of Evans Bay should be reclaimed sufficiently to provide some twenty or thirty acres of land for the purpose of an exhibition. The provision of a new traffic tunnel through Mount Victoria substantially improved the access to this site. Motorists can now cover the distance between Courtenay Place and the head of Evans Bay in ten minutes, while the work of reclamation in that quarter is being urged as a most suitable and payable work for the employment of relief workers. So far no citizens’ committee has been formed in connection with the centenary exhibition. It is probable that any definite steps wiU'not be taken until the country recovers from the degression.