EARLY RIVER TRADE TO BLENHEIM.

Marlborough Daily Times, Volume IX, Issue 20902, 14 May 1887, Page 2

EARLY RIVER TRADE TO BLENHEIM.

TO TIIE EDITOR. Sir, —In your issue of yesterday morn' jug Mr Horton published the remarkable statement that lie lias no wish to become historical, yet in his speech he professed to give an account of the shipping at the port of Wairau in times past. At all events, if Mr Horton does not desiro to be historical, at least when he ;makcs statements in public they should be accurate. Again, Mr Horton says—my remarks were confined exclusively gto the initiation of trade between here and Wellington, and its subsequent development,” To give a fair account of this branch of the subject lie should not have omitted the account of the traffic carried on' between here and Wellington by Messrs Sinclair and Bowler, as early as 1554, and subsequently taken up by the steamer Lyt elton, which for many years ran between Wellington and Blenheim, and Blenh im and Nelson, and w ich, in conjunction with the Falcon, carried most of the produce to Wellington for shipment.

The initiation of the shipment of Wairau. produce to Lon on via Wellington practically commenced before Mr Horton arrived in Blenheim.

Provious to the year 1870, or 1872, I cannot quite fix the date, the ptoduco of the Wairau, ancl also that of Nelson, had been shipped at Fort Underwood,; and about this time a line of vessels was laid on from Wellington, one of which was despatched monthly. Flax drasssing was then carried on to a considerable extent, and the fiax dressers desired to get their produce to the London market as, early as possible, and for this purpose shipping in Port Underwood was abandoned, and shipping in quantities via Wellington initiated, and many hundreds of thousands of pounds worth of produce passed the straits in the Lyttelton, Falcon, and other small craft: I ihink if Mr Horton had said the object of his speech ffiad b en to bring prominently forward the initiation of the Union Company’s connection with Blenheim through/ the traffic of the Wailii, he would more correctly have explained his intention and no doubt he did wish to do that, although he disclaims , the desire of being historical. Mr Horton’s speech'at the present time has an interest beyond the mere question of whether he is contributing to history or no. M r Horton’s interest and inclination alike induce him to advocate shipping by the river in preferendo to shipping by a vessel in PictOn direct for London, and Mr Horton’s speech on Wednesday must be regarded as an item in advocating his peculiar theory. Of this more anon. —I am, &c., SETTLER.