FEILDING

Evening Post, Volume CV, Issue 144, 20 June 1928, Page 19

FEILDING

WON FROM THE BUSH ITS EARLY STRUGGLES THE TOWN. TO-DAY The centre of rich agricultural land, tho town of Feilding is playing no small part in the development of the Manawatu district. The town as it is to-day is a monument to the endeavours-and the sacrifices of its early settlers, men and women who cheerfully faced hardships in the knowledge that they were paving the way for future generations. .' . _ > In 1873 the site on which the town of Feilding now stands was a veritable wilderness, apparently, offering little prospect of ever : becoming anything else. Nearby, the town.of Palmerston North was gradually feeling its feet, and settlers were gradually acquiring tho land in the surrounding district. The great potentialities of the district were slowly but surely, being' tapped, but the enterprise of the pioneers had not as yet carried them to the rich land which was awaiting development in the district which now surrounds the town of Feilding. The Government, moving slowly,-had not realised the possibilities of the district;' all its efforts had been concentrated on the land in the vicinity of Palmerston North. Fortunately for New Zealand,. however, the colonies; were attracting the attention of influential people in the Homeland, and a definite emigration movement was taking shape. 'Encouraging reports had reached Epgland of the land that was awaiting development in the new outposts of 'Empire, and the outcome was. tho formation of a body known as:the Emigrants and Colonists' Aid Corporation. This corporation was destined to play no small part in the history of' New Zealand in general .and .of the Manawatu district in particular. The syndicate had as its pre.si4._t. th. Duke of Manchester, ajid under his guidance very little time elapsed.. before its objects: were put. into] practice. . Soon after .the formation' of the corporation, the Hon. Colonel (afterwards General) Feilding, from whom,the town of •Feilding derives its name, was sent out to the colonies to spy out the land and select a snitable spot for the • settlement of emigrants, The task of selecting such a place was not an easy one. Colonel Feilding first visited Australia^ but there his quest :waa unsuccessful and he finally turned , his; attention to New Zealand. It'was well that he did, for in this country his. search' came to an end. A visit to the Manawatu district, then in gradual process of development, convinced him that the area of land around Feilding had much to offer to the emigrant who was willing to face the hardships and th. setbacks inevitably associated with life in the colonies. ■ The site on which Feilding now stands was chosen as a suitable place for the settlement of the new arrivals!. As it presented itself to Colonel Feilding, the, site could not have been very prepossessing. It was, in fact, little more than a dense bush, but Colonel Feilding was not the man to be turned aVay by such considerations. He saw the possibilities of the place, and he decided to recommend to, the corpora', tion which he represented that there was a suitable opportunity for it to carry out its objective. .SETTLING THE EMIGRANTS. .; Negotiations for the purchase of the, necessary land, afterwards known as the Manchester Block, were opened up with - the Government. The area consisted pf 106,000; acresj and the .Govern-, ment offered to sell it to| the- syndicate at a reasonable figure^,provided the syn r dicate would agree to settle 2000 people .upon it within a period: of six y years. Colonel Feilding; had -no mandateI.to, complete the! purchaseVor to enter into any- agreement with ythe Government, and it was necessary for hup to make a; trip to the Old: Country' to place his recommendations 'and' .the. proposals of the Government before'the syndicate which he represented. ,On his arrival in England he found that.'much of the enthusiasm which had: existed prior to his departure, had. died away, and despite $he glowing and optimistic reports which he. had to submit to: his principals considerable difficulty was; experienced in raising the necessary capital to successfully ; cqrry ■ out the scheme. By 1873, however,..the.capital' had been subscribed,: and the first selection of emigrants was made. Free passages were provided by the New Zealand Government,.and in 1874 the first party landed in Wellington. There'the immigrants gained their first taste of the country which lay before them—to them it was a land of promise—but their journeying? were not yet over. The discomforts of a Jong sea voyage in those early days were as.nothing compared with the discomforts of the journey to their new home, a home which as 'yet existed only in their imagination. From .Wellington the immigrants were taken by steamer to Foxton, and it is recorded that in this portion of the journey the old steamer Tui played no small part. From Foxton they were taken to Palmerston North by the old tramway, which in those1 days was in its infancy, and here they were quari tered for some weeks. But it was the trip from Palmerston North to Feilding that offered the greatest hardships, and one can imagine many of the. immigrants wishing very fervently that they £ad remained in the Old Land, which, if it offered no glowing prospects for the |uture, certainly offered some measure of comfort. A rough roadway— how rough it actually was cati' bo well left to the imagnia tion—had been formed between Palmerston North and the site which had been chosen for the town of Feilding, and the only means of transport were bullock drays. On those drays the immigrants were obliged to undertake the final: stage of their long journey from the Homeland, but that final stretch did not mark the' end of their hardships. They found that their new home was little more than a bush clearing, with no .other accommodation offering than a -few tents. However, the settlers,: glad that their wanderings were over, set cheerfully to work to make their home as comfortable as possible, and before long a number of two-roomed whares were erected. These whares were erected on acre sections, valued at. £10, and the weekly rental charged was seven shillings, the whares becoming the property of the settlers after a period of three years. Work was found for many of the immigrants on the railway contracts which had just been started and on the formation of roads. , EABLY DAYS. Once the first arrivals were settled others were, brought out, and before very long the. town of Feilding began to take shape. The immigrants included many Danes and Germans,' and the majority of these followed farming pursuits on a small scale. When they arrived in New Zealand those Danes and Germans know scarcely a word of English, but they were anxious to .learn and to make good in the land of their adoption. In this desire they were assisted by some of the English settlers, many of "whom were people of culture and refinement. One lady conducted a school for both boys and girls, tho girls meeting in tho afternoon in the back, room of the whare and tho boys meeting in the evening. Tho lady who conducted this school had a large family of her own to rear, and her action in assisting the Germans and Danes to acquire an education was typical of the |

fine spirit which prevailed among tho early settlers in the Manawatu- district. An amusing incident may be quoted as showing that even in those far-off days there was an unwillingness on the part of residents of the town to be outdone by; others. As has been mentioned, the people were housed in two-room whares. One sottler, blessed with a large family and anxious to make- them as comfortable as possible, conceived the idea df building a lean-to on to the back of his whare.' His operations' were watched with. the.closest interest, and as soon as he had completed the job all

Hobday's, Feilding, Photo. THE MAYOR OF FEILDING, MKEZFXm,

his neighbours folUw-d ysuitjy "agaitt • making the.houses likeyso"ittany; peas in; 'a pod. "'/";'' ..:.:'':—"'''"■'."'!';■' '--Y;Y ';' THE TOWN JCO-DAY. . In the intervening-years since 1874 the town, of Feilding has made solid progress, and to-day it'can boast —and it occasionally does—:of a population of close on 4300. If the; town has one fault it is'that it is too close,to. Palmerston North. People find it cheap and' convenient-to do much of their shopping in the centre 'of .the Manawatu, and Feilding thus loses a percentage of business, but even so the town is prosperous enough. It is the centre of a very prosper; ous farming area; blessed with •■ rich; loamy soil, and while the land continues to produce as it is doing at the present time, Feilding has very little to fear. Feilding was constituted' a borough in 1881, seven years after its birth, and it has been singularly fortunate in the men whom it has

as its leaders. Wise counsels have prevailed so' far as the lay-out of the town is concerned, and Feilding to-day must rank as one of the prettiest and neatest inland towns in the North Island. Wide, well-kept streets give the place a fine appearance, and the square is a thing of beauty and a joy forever. It. is not so big as Palmerston North's famous square, but it is equally wellkept, and during the summer months it is something well worth seeing. Many'fine houses and well-kept gardens also add very materiafly to the general appearance of the place, and. many of the public and private buildings would be a credit-td any frow^. Feilding1 is supplied with ' every modern convenience. The Manawatu-Oroua Electric Power Board : supplies the • town with electricity, and the gasworks are owned by a private company^ There is an excellent supply of water, and during the drought experienced last summer Feilding was one of the few places which had no anxious moments. The supply of water is taken from the Oroua Eiver, and there are reservoirs of 1,500,----000 and 250,000 gallons, situated at a distance of fourteen miles from the town. The capital' cost of the underi taking was £50,000, but since it was first laid'down, extensions costing over £'20,000 have been carried out, these including anew weir, intake, settling basin, and pipe-lihe. There are thirtyfive miles of mains, and the average pressure is 1101b to the squaTe inch. There is also an up-to-date septic tank drainage system, which was laid at a capital' cost of. £50,000. Municipal fresh-water ba.ths are provided, and there is a library' consisting of close on 10,000 books. Another' branch of municipal undertaking is the abattoir, established in 1904 at a capital cost of £5563. In the matter of reserves, the townspeople aro particularly well catered for. An attractive, spot, both in summer and winter, is Kowhai Park, which the council controls' as a Domain Board. It is within a few minutes, of> the centre of the town, and is an ideal spot in which to spend an idle hour after a busy day;in the business quarter. Victoria Park, Kitchener Park, Johnson Park, and a new ground justrecently opened offer ample opportunities for sport and recreation. Close to the town aro the golf links land the racecourse, ■ the latter being placed at the disposal of the public as a reserve by the-Eacing Club. TH_i TOWN'S INDUSTRIES. Very naturally, Feilding depends largely for its existence on the primary industries, which aro well represented both in the town and in the district. The Cheltenham Dairy Company's factory at Makino is one of the largest in the Dominion, and its output of butter exceeds 2000 tons per annum. About a mile out. of tho town are the works of tho Feilding Farmers' Freezing Company. These were erected at a cost

of £150,000, and they, are one of the most flourishing concerns in" the district. Within the borough there is situated the only agricultural high school in the Dominion, and the board which controls. it also controls - the technical school, I which is largely attended' by both towu and country students. As has already been stated, Feilding is fortunate in its public men, and in the list of those, who have occupied leading positions are to be found the names of men who have played no small part in the history of th.c Dominion. The present Mayor of the town is Mr. E. Fair, a prominent business man. He was elected to his present office last year, but,„prior to that he was a member of-the Borough Council. He is a brother of Mr. A. Fair, K.C., New_ Zea-land's-Solicitor-General. . Associated with Mr. Fair on the council are the following gentlemen:—Messrs. .T. Collins, J. Corpe, J. L..C. Hill, A. C. M'Corkindale, S. D. Pearce.D. Pryde, V. E. Smith, H. Stewart, and C. E. Taylor. The Town Clerk is Mr N. C. .Harding, and the borough engineer is Mr. T. K. Hay. The member for the district is Mr. Gordon. Elliot, who succeeded the' late Hon. D. H. Guthrie, for some years .Minister of "Lands" during the.; Massey regime. " Another prominent citizen is Mr. J. G. Cobbe," who. represents the district on- the Wellington Harbour Hoard, and who was a few weeks ago re-elected to the position of chairman of that body; Mr. Cobbe was for many years a prominent business man in Feilding, and. although he has now re-. I tired his.name is still associated with 'one of the leading businesses.'At. the .ptesent titae'-he tiakes a-leading part' ■ in;'the'' affairs-'of fh-e^Feildin'g Farmers-'' Freezing yCompany., .-. .: ;.-•;,-. : -.-- :' ■:'."...: '

(Hobday. Feilding, Photo)