Waimate North.

Northland Age, Volume 3, Issue 6, 11 September 1906, Page 5

Waimate North.

(From our own Correspondent.) In my former correspondence I stated that some of the settlers on the recently cut up Pakaraka estate were going to discontinue to the factory, but I now hear that more satisfactory arrangements have been made and those supplying last season will continue to do so, also that the Dairy Co. will run the cream from Pakaraka to the factory, thus saving the suppliers carting the milk to Ohaeawai. Home separating is a move the Daily Co. are making in the right direction, and had it been allowed at the start there would no doubt have been more suppliers than at present. Potato blight is still here. One party had a small patch of early potatoes nearly in flower, near which were beans and other vegetables. The blight, after destroying the potatoes, also spoilod the beans. This seems strange, but probably the beans being close to the potatoes were more liable to be attacked.

Perhaps after so much Maori last week I should give them a spell, but I have heard so much about tbem lately that I think a little more will not be amiss. Quite a number of them were veiy short of cash last week; so much so that in order to “raise the wind” to cross to Russell Land Court some had to pawn horses or cows, some saddles, while some offered puriri trees as security, and when asked where the trees were they remarked “ He in the bush.” Now, why are they so short of cash ? In the old days the Natives were not like this. At a meeting of the Maori Council, held at Ohaeawai the other day, I am told one of the worthy (?) councillors was dismissed from office, and his downfall should be a warning to others not to follow his lead. I hear our Government are getting very generous in the way of helping the needy (?) ones. In fact the Natives in the settlement of Oromahoe are said to have received three tons of seed potatoes free. Now, the Native land in Oromahoe is about 2000 acres of almost all first-class land, and there are about one hundred and fifty to two hundred Natives living on it, while the Native school has an attendance of about forty or more, and out of all that area of fertile country there is not more than ten acres cropped annually, the rest being mostly open (unfenced) bush and scrub. While passing through the above settlement the other day I saw what will fully explain why the Native needs seed potatoes, and why Native land is so little improved. I fancy I hear you say “What did you see?” Well, I will tell you: I saw about ten or a dozen fine, able-bodied young men, some of them basking in the sun under a shady tf-tree and smoking cigarettes, while a few of the more energetic ones were kicking a football about, cheered on by an occasional grunt from those too indolent to join them. , This is not a half-

holiday picnic nor vet a weekly or monthly gathering to practice the various games, but an every-day sport with the young Native as long as the Icai lasts. Those are the sort of individuals our Government are assisting ! While on the other hand the man on the laud (tlu* white settler) who is virtually the backbone of the colony, has to toil and scrape to make both ends meet, whieh “both ends” includes the education of the Maori as well as keeping the roads in order for his use ; and up to the present I have never heard of one instance where a white settler has received any direct help from the Government in seeds or otherwise, but I do know that if a “ crrtwn li*uant. ” settler happens to get behind a little with his rent he is told to pay up and look smart about it. I wonder how all Natives in the colony would do with the present mode of managing, providing the Natives of this district were taken us the standard and the administration as at present. Would the books balance at the end of the year? Pity we were not all Maoris. What easy times we would have: smoke fags, play billiards and football and sloop, and when hard up ask Hone Heke to send along a few seed potatoes. “ Glorious !” September 6th, 1906.