PRESERVATION OF SCENERY.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1249, 6 February 1896, Page 19

PRESERVATION OF SCENERY.

TO THE EDITOR. Sin, —I saw in a late a Yery extensive and interesting' account of a trip to Plimmerton by the Premier and friends for the purpose of saving from destruction a piece of scenery apparently in the vicinity of a proposed township, and it was conserved, and very properly too. It is to be regretted that such steps ha% r e not been taken to preserve other spots in the vicinity of Wellington. It appears to be a matter that concerns nobody m particular ; hence the destruction of almost all the spots that would have added to the beauty of the surroundingdistrict. A litf.lc forethought should have been exercised elsewhere, and the /and&Hsm checked. We, here in i'etone, for instance, have been sadly neglected in every particular. No doubt the apathy displayed by the residents has adeal to do with it. Wehavecloso by several beautiful gullies that are still in their natural state, and as a reserve for the use of the public should bo invaluable. They are, I believe, stili in the hands of the Maoris, and no doubt the tame power that secured the lemoval of a Maori ceuietary, and preserved at Plimmerton a piece of bush .as described by your contributor, could do the sames for Potone. Although, as I have said, these sfiillies are .still in their natural state, I am afraid that before long- tliey will bo denuded of all that will make them desirable as a reserve. They have been leased by various parties from the Natives, and the hidy portion of the land has already been cleared, and no doubt the same wid soon be done with the other portions. I have often wondered what has became of the Scenery Preservation Society. If it is still in existence I would suggest that it extend a helping hand to save from destruction what is at present worth preserving, and much closer to Wellington than Plimmerton, with a town of two or three thousand inhabitants, who have not an inch of reserve nor a public building, excepting it may be the recently-erected lock-up. If your writer wants Maori lore to fill the pages of the Times, he can be supplied with as good as can be found at Plimmerton, with its flags denoting that a sale is to take place. We are not a future possibility, but an actual t )wn with a claim, from a historic point of vio;v. —l am, <fec, Anxious Townsman. Petone, February 2nd, 1896.