ONE TREE HILL

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXII, Issue 22141, 21 June 1935, Page 15

ONE TREE HILL

Sir, —In the Herald of June 20 there is an extract from the Herald of 50 years ago stating that the Onehunga Borough Council sought to have One Tree Hill dedicated as a cemetery for Onehunga. An explanatory note is added which stated that no further reference to this is recorded. I think I can explain why. More than 40 years ago Sir Maurice O'Eorke told me that when it was proposed to make the hill a cemetery, he was in no doubt about the unwisdom of the suggestion. He quietly went to Wellington and secured a notification in tho Gazette that this land on One Tree Hill was a public recreation reserve. I do not remember what were the steps he told mo he had taken to secure this end. Of course, when Sir Maurice took this step there was no thought of Sir John Campbell's great gift of Cornwall Park —nor indeed when Sir Maurice spoke ,to me on the subject—but I think the creation of onehalf of the hill as a recreation reserve may have had some influence in securing Sir John Campbell's gift. I should like to see some public acknowledgment of Sir Maurice O'Rorke's wise forethought which has resulted in the citizens of Greater Auckland possessing one of the finest parks in any country. George Mac Murray.