CARTERTON.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1107, 19 May 1893, Page 17

CARTERTON.

The decision in the Wairarapa Lake case has advanced the dispute a step nearer the end and there is now only the Privy Council to appeal to. This case between Alfred Matthews (chairman of the Eiver Board) and the Natives does not touch the real trouble, which is that the Government sold to the settlers in the Lake District lands they had never purchased from the Natives. This was in the old Provincial days, and —as I heard one of our oldest settlers remark in discussing this veryquestion a few days ago—the Provincial Government would in those days have sold sections in the moon if anyone had come along with money and wanted to buy. A matter of four or five thousands of pounds would probably wipe out the injustice that the Natives complain of. The settlers have honestly paid for the land they occupy and they hold a title from the Government. The eel fishing is only an incident brought up by the Natives to keep their claim good. The fight is in reality between the natives and the Government, and in the meantime the settlers have been heavy losers by the damage done to their lands by the overflow of water from the closed lake, and from litigation* That dairying centre, Dalefield, is a thriving little place, its cheese factory having caused it a world-wide repute. They are a social community too, and during the winter season' hold weekly gatherings, at which the young people dance and their paters and maters are content to look on. They are in numbers outgrowing the capacity of their hall, and they have had a meeting of the settlers with the result that a public hall of a size sufficiently large to meet the probable requirements of the district for the next.ten years is to be built. It may not be out of place to mention here that the Dalefield Dairy Factory is now receiving over 400 gallons of milk daily, and they hope to continue open to the end of the current month, which is a fortnight or so longer than usual. The Taratahi Factory is also still running, and will probably continue the same length of time. Mr S. C. Skey, a resident of Carterton, has just imported a road engine and waggons to be used in the conveyance of wool and other produce from the runs to the railways, Thia ; is a step in advanoe, and it is to be hoped it will prove a profitable one. I do not know whether its weight will prevent its crossing some of the bridges [but it weighs over 14 tons, without wood or water. Boad engines are coming into vogue in the Wairarapa. Planks are carried with the engines and laid lengthwise over culverts and small bridges, for the' wheels to pass over, and this lessens the danger of a collapse. Mr W, Booth has a sawmill away in the bush and there is an office close by which is locked' up at night by the manager, On Thursday morning it was found broken 'open, but as no valuables were kept there nothing was found disturbed. Two iron bars were missed from one of the benches, Mr Booth's planing and moulding" mills are nearer the town and here there is an office in which the books are kept and in which there is a safe. On the same morning this office was found to have been forcibly entered. The door was burst in evidently with one of the crowbars brought from the lower mill, for the two werei found lying inside the room. There are no dwelling houses near to the office but it stands on a slight eminence, and a light in it could be seen at a good distance off. To avoid this dauger the thieves had made a screen by nailing wood over the windows. Then they had' gone to work with the crowbars to force open the safe. They must have expended a deal of time and energy over the work for the handle was completely wrenched off the door and there were several indentations round the rim, but the locks held fa.st wd could not be forced, a,nd, the Intending thslves got no return fqr> their, labour, This is not the first attempt at this sort of work at Messrs Booth and . Oo.'s place. Some years ago a night of labour was spent in a vain effort to force a safe of theirs. Since that time all money is banked on the day of its receipt and nothing but a little silver in the' petty oashbox is evec left in the safe at night. The Rev S. J. Gibson, the newlyappointed Wesleyan circuit minister, preached at Carterton on Sunday night, his subject* being ' Model Young Ladies.' The building was crowded, the subject i being out of the common. It was well worth listening to and many of his points wore telling in their application. Mr Gibson intends giving addresses of a special character periodically, with a view, no doubt, of attracting people to church who are not in the habit of attending any place, of worship.