THE MAIN TRUNK LINE.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LVIII, Issue 17909, 11 October 1921, Page 9

THE MAIN TRUNK LINE.

EFFECTS OF A RAILWAY.

•GREAT DEVELOPMENTS. [fIV (H R -ITi lAI I.OMMISBIONES.] No. L Tl would I-. ;iii evoKen lonic f„r those *!„, .no Miffcriiit; from the in.- lornvmn • |il.iii'l "I |"'.'-.-:iiii: in if hv some form nl St" -li |'llOlMg,; lp l, v ,|,,. v c ,, u | rl hc ,|„, W|l ]:,.-! i'"' v •' i'i'iii|iri>lnM.M\. picture -if the. N-I'll I.! "id Mam Trim* Hup, and the .'..••iri.N 1' ■ nlii,!, it. rims Them j. i' Mi' ii niii.ritPi.iUe evidences of pro j_u.-.- ai'l (■'• -ini.-p nf progress, so many 1 o' 1 "' " ; i'it. rr-t. an,| importance that : 1 "■'. '• ' '•" 1 * on them is stimulating i.i>! . iv.-. If lliosu old Aiuklandcr* .hi.! I ■''■•>■> "•<> who opposed tho con(.o o"ii nider Iho impression that a r~i 1 1 -' :- •• dis-ert. .i»i<l who, for »u_;lit I kn '•■ . i''i upon ilip Main Trunk t.- 1'• " '■■ hi.rh tin- wilderness, could s» vli..' i .■' -..ii latci\, ii. is. p,».,,h1e tli.it «.:i ''-•' : ; ■>'•<! ri •-d opinions itujrht

. 'MM." ' " '.I' l .1; 1- .ill r.nly tiio nio.-t----i '[••"! ■•! ' 'i...;.ii ~ili'i\i in .\c,v Zealand .i 'i ■: i - - : ''i " .iv «is earned a vast ~'n '."'i ■ • ' nth. . I ii the most interesting J . I ■- i ■ .' the, -i cm of 11to and coin Hi' - " «'.. Ii II ■>< , ali.:i£ it, now is a ji.. •'.•'! :.•■ ..I ' • ,it inn. I fli '.v m the ii'vir fiU'rc .Viiii.. ran prove a stronger iiign-.'.'o in ■ ...,,.- ~|- ,',,|,.-t"'ict in t lines. (■>'" ' ! '■-'■ ■ • itl.-rl <|i-ti |, t- than the ii-t',.i rt.«i; '- .oL.uiy acluf\ed by this ) h'i' ; ' : ii ' i '" ■' ■ I .-„iw flit; , nuTitry vlv " ; ii' ' ■ "i. 'i ■ -i m tiler ',i r .1. l.uiii l"f".M, I, \ - imutu and Taih-ipe, and when i->r ,i |. ■, ;•!, ~f 300 miles, it was mi "iip--, |i, | unproducl ivu, vvildi r- )!•'■'-' lo il.iy there is an unbroken string oi or.isperou. ii.-.vn*. .uid townships situated ,i n.' tin '..,, '.i\. ~:;.| new towns • '"1 ' '-'-e- in '.> ~'.\,t \ fiom the hne. r lh'".-:. ■. ..i farm.- haw bepn created Mill i.ew i.i- ■- .u,' ! t i:>; made daily. 'nl o I<>l ■''in.:.- aic .ii work cutting ini'dion* '•: i, ~! iimLci ycariy. Scores "l o«iir\ 0r..-.-' ::.,•. e U o.i erected pro.liicin.; i!...i.,.u ,|. ~f |~„.s 0 f butter and rhpiv.i ",cr\ •■LS'.-'ii. ami iiko an irresistab'u ud.' .-■ ttleinent U .-i>rea<lin;j further ~nd furviic: oi, c.i.li ...,,!,• ~f the line, and ai this .utivit) .ii.d imlciiy and wealth jrod'J.:i>i: ha.- 1..t-i m..d,- " p, x -=sible bv that, Imt oi steii lads linking Auckland v.nh Willi.iuion ..iMMim great freight and passengei fins nlmost hourly through lht> da\ and night. The Northern Section.

It is impossibie to gi\p pictorially any adequate idea-of th.e e.Tects of tho" Main Trunk line on the development of the (k-re.it e?,trn; of country through which it rum-, but it is not difficult for anyone who >« fai ulnr with it-s districts to show somcthtlig of ptesent conditions and futuru pi. spects and even ix> inificate its wide ipa» lung ramifications and its infiner,.'' i-ti the national development of New Zetland. As a matter of fact the. Main T-unk is naturally divided into for>- sect ons, each roughly 100 miles in Ipngth. e.-.eh p=u=sing through a different < lass of country each in a different stage of de> e'.opment, >jid each developing in its o\rn particular way. The northern section, ftom Auckland to Te A warn itu, exactly 100 miles, runs through flat or gently undulating country, and is to all appearances weii settled and well developed but in reality it is only just emerging in plare? from the first stage of pioneer Bettleinent. It has of course great dairying *vnd meat raising industries already pr.tabhsl:ed, and a number of coalmines ..nd manufact Tiring works actively worked, but generally speaking these things on which we depend for our trade and commerce are in their initial stages. There ..re still large areas of land within easy reach of the railway ab&oiutely unimproved; there are extensive swamps to be drained and made productive, and there are the large areas of occupied and worked farm '.inds to tie more intensively cultivated. That coalmining can be more extensively developed is proved by the opening of new mines quite recently, and by the discovery of new seams of coal in the valley of the Waipa, near Whatawhata. ttranch lines like the Waiuku section have to be constructed to link the fan country on the west coast between the Waikatc

Heads and Kawhia with the Main Trunk and other branches, or good roads have to •be mad a to tap the resources of the district* eastward.

To Awamutu to Eaurimu.

The second section of the Main Trunk extends from Te Awamutu to Raurimu, passing through country which but yesterday was a waste of forest, and fern." This •*'as the Ring Country proper. Ten or twelve years ago, when one crossed the Puruu River, which was the autaki line between M?u~>ri and European territory, there was practically an unbroken thicket of fern extending right down to Te Kuiti. and larvny miles m width. It seems only the other day when I rode in hot summer weather by native tracks through much of this countrv, and in places the fern topped one s head even on horseback, and the dry pollen choked orw ir the narrow ways. The only cultivations then were a few Maori plantation.- ,ii the valley of the Waipa. Today farms and rich pastures spread in lung undulations from the railway to Mount i'in>ngia westward, and for long diatanu;.- uaMward. Even half-a-dozen

.•'ears ago must people looked upon this district as hopeless. It was Maori owned, and it is only quite recently that the land ha.* been occupied by Europeans, ihere are about 600 Mjua.ro mile* of arable land her' , apalle of making the finest j class of f-.rrris in iho Jioinimon. Dairying i>. gro'fing in this district, mure rapidly perl.aps than anywhere. <Ue in the Louiip'on »prl the rapacity for development is almost i!ln utable, !'■ r the land is a!.nimbly adiptrd for mitiM farms and high cultivation. In 1887, when I first vi.-H-fj.'i this distnci, tlirre were neither load? nrr farm c . I my way on horseback ftom l-'irongia to i'e Kuiti, and | ■"as present at. the great, meeting of | Maoris, which practically drove Kinc ■ Tawhiao from his royal tillage at ' Whatiwhatihue. and opened the vast a j tent of Ma >ri Ur.d to th«' Mam Trunk i 'inn, and '~ what the line has since! brought —civilised progress and prosperity, j Even o n mv second visit, just before the i fir-t land 'ballot w.,- !,, id. whirl, gave j r.uropeaiia iheir first secure holdings in j the Km.- Country , there, were only two •wonimcirUtn.il hull.-...- in ibis district — one marking t ; .i- present site of '!>• Kuiti, ; the other at tltoioh. ;:;:a. T- Kuiti it now a pr0, ; .,. r ,,us ami pr"„'p vive ti.ivn, and ha.- it bank- and pulri. build 'ngs. p>r, [n 'I, Kuiti southward to Raurimu , •fvon to da) the land u- ouh in tin piune-r ; •".;igp.K if /i tlfio. nt. bo: Taumarunui '' r,|l '\ I'', .'-a- 1.1 ha.- a populati ti of 2143 p.,.,'. ;,-] „,.„ tl ,wr.sh o-'ar.- .-pringup .1: ..'■ ' z >' ' va Hi ■. of the Wanga "'J' Tra :■ • p.i-.'inu '">> 'rain thr ~i;!, ' 11.is part •■! •.. i-..unlr\ irita-.; ne it "till a.. *ildci-Tie.v-. I--.. eiii.-m-nt prrads ■■■■■■-■■< * to '.he .-..• ! , ~., t ,m,| t.:nbe r tiam i r?.« Hi- < -r...,ii., . f -tile mi, af.l branch •.'..<■ ■.. .• - nm .....f.v.ird toward LJ:< la ii I ~-. , v 1.".-'i 'l'i. nc t'h' f ris! f"« ■■ ir a ..., n-|. j ~mo,n . 'i , f ,1" T " ! ' ■p'l-'p-.' ~' ng t} , P ,,rt ~f th, railwa,- j and there . rvr-rv nn,t'i ; <«: of nill more • r *P"i pr-.::re. ,- tin- •>.,;■ fu'u-e /. ' ' n<> t.K.10 • ~,,, ,~, ,i -, r fi ; , i.n< : ,r ' r "'t. •■•: ■ »,',-'- p- -,r i „ and i.e.. ; are ', ~.. ~., ;,,,] .~, .., , vn r , (il ' V ~, I-. 1 1 r,i,:,n„.t,i | f"; a! " -■■ 'I lame. , ! :■;„„„, '' - , ''--'- T'. ■.-.■■rr -.all- ~f -:,,-. U,,,, C;,K ■" ' • - ." ..I ■-, irresl.. rnl fj.r . F-P' r.» ' •• • ~ ~'.,„■ ~.•.,, .. ~,, ! ] ; W.,.> . , ~.„ ■{..,.,, ,|e;,r.,'.r- "i"' ,r " i "'" t "' ! ' : ■• -.'l.tl a-ri, , L ltnr o ~.r\ P'..' r-.l «. r , 0,,