THE HILL COUNTRY.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVIII, 5 September 1924, Page 3

THE HILL COUNTRY.

“AIILLIOXS OF ACRES GOING

BACK”.

APPEAL TO PARLIAMENT

MR. MASSEY SYMPATHETIC

An earnest appeal for consideration for the hill country behind Taranaki made by Mr. R. Masters during the course of the Imprest Supplj* debate in the House of Representatives led to a-- statement by Mr. Massey that if the Government solved the problem of those lands by an outlay of £50,000 it would be money well spent. “i want particularly to deal,” S aid Mr. Masters, “with the development of the back country, especially in the North Island. Taranaki is possibly one of the most closely settled provinces in New Zealand, if it is not actually the most closely settled, and, if we study the growth of population in that province it gives us grave cause for concern. * While the population of Taranaki in 1916 was 55,780, in 1921 it had, according to the census, increased to 61,911, and it is interesting to note where the increase took place. Gut of the 6131 increase over that period, no less than 4788 occurred in the towns. It is a matter of serious moment to see many of our counties going back in their population.”

“What is the reason?” asked Mr. Masters. “Let us take, in the first instance, that portion of the country which stretches from the West Coast of the North Island right through to Wanganui. Some of the Ministers have been through that country, and I am sure that they will, agree that it is a sorry spectacle indeed to see millions of acres going back, as is the case just now, to what is nothing more or less than second growth. I have gone along the roads in' that district for miles and miles, seen house after house, section after section, one time occupied by settlers who were doing fairly well, now abandoned, with the road going to ruin. The grass has been displaced by second growth to a height of three, four, and five feet. lam not unmindful of what the Department- of Agriculture is doing. Although it has taken a long time to attempt anything in fbe direction of meeting; existing conditions, there is a certain amount of satisfaction in knowing that the Department is realising its duty. “There are hundreds of " thousands of aeres_ of land that have cost from £6 to £7 an acre to bring up to a certain stage of production, but a large portion of it is now abandoned, and the fanners tlial? are left are having a very hard time. It is difficult to see how to tackle the problem, and I want to impress the Prime Minister and the members of the Cabinet with the necessity'of voting a substantial sum of money to undertake this work. 'The State is vitally : interested, as tlie owner* of the land; it is interested from the point of view of its Crown tenants, its soldier settlers, and its finances, in the advances that liavp been made on mortgages on the land there. “In the Whaiigaiiiomoiia country I am sorry to repeat this —we have no less than 15,060 acres of soR diers’ abandoned farms. Sections are ■vacant, fences have gone to ruin, and second growth in the way of ’carpet fern, water fern, bracken and wineberry growing up, and making the Government asset disappear all too quickly. It is no -use making grants of £IOOO or £2000; if the officers of the Department who are interesting themselves can come to a conclusion, there is necessity for spending a ’ sum.

The Minister of Agriculture: Do you suggest that this Government is responsible

Mr. Masters: I do not suggest anything. And I wish the Minister to understand I am not raising the matter in any party spirit. In conclusion, Mr. Masters' said he had before him evidence from the Whangamomona Conntv Council that they had no less than £1152 of soldiers’ land rates in arrears, which they are unable to collect, on account of soldiers having .left their farms. There was a sale recently in the neighbouring district of the member - foi/ Waitomo, in which 5324 acres of land were s o!d at 2-id. an acre, the Government valuation of which was .C7BG7. The Prime Minister: What was the tenure ?

Mr. Masters: Freehold The 5324 acres were sold for £SO.

‘I is <me of the most serious difficulties the country has to face, 5 ’ said the Prime Minister, “and it has to l)e faced. I have been over some of the country, and I remember what it was eight or ten years ago, but the hand is not so good to-day bv a long wa v as it was then. There half a, million acres there which the settlers will have to abandon unless something is done to keep them on the land, and the task should be undertaken as soon us possible. An lion, member: I think there is more than half a million acres. Mr. Massey: Probably Mr. Masters : There is a million acres between Awakino and Waitotara. Mr. Massey: When the hush was originally felled and burned, and the grass-seed sown on the ashes, the land did very well indeed, and the settlers were (|iute optimistic: hut in recent .years it has steadily gone hack. Not being in the district I cannot suggest a way out, but, if j was there." I would endeavour to understand what should be done to redeem that vast, tract of country. I consider it is the. duty of the Government io tackle it. It could be done with a thousand or two; if it. cost £50.0; 10. and we wee success!ul with the experiment, it would be uionev well'spent. (Hear hear.)

“! saw the statement about the land being worth only about 2ld an acre.” added Mr. Massey. “I sav it would pay us to give those lands to good .settlers, who would improve them. There is no ouestion about that.”