A FEW NOTES.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXV, Issue 6103, 25 October 1880, Page 3

A FEW NOTES.

(by our travelling reporter.) 11.

My trip to the West Coast was a fleeting one, and not made for special reporting purposes, but, amongst other things, to take a few passing notes, and comment But no better field for the exercise of high ability need be desired by the export “ special,” and to do the theme justice weeks of time and many columns of space would be expended. The coast constitutes in itself a district of vast importance and taking features. Hill and dale, plains and valleys, bush and open country, succeed each other in charming variety, whilst the coast line is indented with many inlets, of which Opunake, Bates, Wanganui, and Manawatu are the principal. From Opunake South to Waitara North there is not one worth mentioning, and hence the straits New Plymouth ia reduced to ia the matter of receiving and despatching merchandise. In my last I dwelt unfavorably upon the New Plymouth harbor scheme, and yet out of it some good has already arisen in testing and regulating the labor market. The prices of labor quoted by the engineer were rather surprising. Navvies worked hard and skilfully for 6s. per day; fitters were qaite satisfied with 7a., and carpenters with from 7s. to Bs. per day. Mr. Kees assured me that the men were quite contented with these rates, and worked better, in fact, a great deal, than men he had employed in other contracts at higher rates. At that time he reckoned upon having 100 men in full and permanent employment within a fortnight. But, indeed, throughout the coast I noticed great relaxation in the tone of the labor market. There was no scarcity of hands, and marked indications of giviog way in the price of labor. But one opinion was expressed by employers, and that was that to be in constant request, labor must accept lower remuneration. As we journeyed along the railway from New Plymouth, numerous were the applications made to the District Engineer for “ something to do,” and by men who held land under some form or another, small freeholders and leaseholders, or under deferred payments. His reply was invariably embodied in the advice to turn to their land, and take it out in produce, and very good advice too, as applicable to other parts of the colony as to Taranaki, for, it must be admitted, that from north to south consumers are out of all proportion to producers. What particularly claims the attention of the visitor to Taranaki is the number of running streams, all rising in Mount Egmont. There are some nine of them between New Plymouth and Waitara, murmuring, pellucid, and bounded by high banks. They contain plenty of water, - and have gravelly bottoms, and should be full of trout, but, singular to say, that fish does not seem to take kindly to them. Years ago ova were distributed in several of the streams, but I did not hear of any result, excepting ft was supposed that the shags had taken more than a fair share of the young fry. However, another attempt to stock the streams is being made. A quantity of ova, _ procured from Canterbury, were distributed the other day, and will, it is hoped, be sufficient to, within a few years, provide ample sport for the disciples of gentle Isaac. What is called the Moa Block is a stretch of country at the back of the mountain, and through which the railway passes. The settlers upon it comprise a large proportion of Danes and Germans. As showing how badly the military settlers’ system worked at New Plymouth as elsewhere, I may mention that the block of country from Huirangi to Waingongora Station, just outside of New Plymouth, was settled under Dorset's Military Settlers Act, and out of the original number only about 5 per cent, have held their land; all the others sold out. Many goodly-sized blocks of'country in other parts of the West Coast were acquired by the purchase, at almost nominal sums, of land granted to military settlers, so termed. The Moa Block abuts on to this military settlement (!), and in it is situated the township of Inglewood, a rising place. What seemed exceedingly anomalous to me was the railway and main road, running cheek by jowl almost from New Plymouth to Normanby. For seventeen miles they are not more than a chain apart, the road being connected by bridges, seemingly almost as expensive as those of the railway. Admitting the necessity of a road, it yet, I think, must be admitted that a wider purpose would have been served if road and railway had been a little farther apart, with lateral roads to connect them at the stations. A great deal of the land facing railway and road is in the hands of speculators, who, it struck me, were not to be congratulated upon their bargains, much of it being purchased when high prices were ruling. Farther back the deferred payment system is in force, and, according to report, with every prospect of good result. Upon the very borders of the debateable Maori country stand the two townships of Normanby and Hawera, but the other day the scene of Maori aggression. The effects of the then scare have nearly passed away, but a sense of insecurity still lingers, albeit apprehension is confined more to the probability of vexations interference than to that of serious disturbance. Normanby is at the edge of the forest, and it is there that the grand stretch of open pastoral and agricultural land right south to Eangitikei commences. The Waimate Plains form part of this open country. I had not time to visit the particular part of the Plains that ia to be sold, but I was assured it was just the same kind of land as that about Hawera and Normanby—level, open, and judging by casual observation, good pastoral, rather than heavy agricultural. That the land inclines to lightness, the nearer Mount Egmont is approached, is generally admitted ; but its capability is still an open question, and to, as some people do, hastily pronounce against it, would, I think, be manifestly unfair. That it is good grazing country is acknowledged, but in what measure it excels, this characteristic can only be determined by practical skilled experiment. Of course the Normanby and Hawera people stand by _ their land, and maintain its excellence by pointing to the good beef and mutton raised, whilst I certainly saw land there capable of growing grain crops. But as a grazing and wool growing country, it is at present held in most regard, and stock from it has, for a long time past, been sent to Auckland via Waitara. This introduces another subject, the keen appreciation of Auckland business men of the growing importance of the Taranaki dis f rict, and their evident determination to bid high to secure a permanent trading connection with it. Small steamers now run regularly between the Manukau and Waitara, and I heard that some Auckland merchants and Hawera graziers bad entered upon a project to build a steamer of special construction to work the Waitara, qnd with capacity to carry forty saloon passengers and some JOO head of cattle. Auckland has already obtained a good hold of the Taranaki district, and the people aver that Auckland market wares are to be_ obtained much cheaper than those of Wellington or Wanganui. Certain it ia that Wellington must bestir itself if any portion of the trade is to be retained, and to this end the Government should bo urged to push on the railway from New Plymouth to Patea with all possible speed. In my first artjcle, I promised to say something “ more about Patea auou and this railway question, the magnificent Patea country, and the natural excellence of its small port at the mouth of the Patea river, constitute the occasion. But before availing myself of it, I must revert to Normanby and Hawera. Both are thriving townships, the latter especially, and are well laid out, and contain large and commodious buildings. Hawera has three or four hotels, several stores with other business places, a commodious Post and Telegraph Office, and not a few pleasing private residences. It has its newspaper, too, a paper, however, that aims at fairly representing Normanby and the district generally, and in which effoj-t, I think, it must be credited with some success. Whilst I was there the absorbing topic of conversation was the approaching sale of “ the plain*,” and surprise was expressed that so very few persons had visited the district to inspect the land. I heard a good deal about the state of “ the plains,’ 1 and the damage done to the surface by the droves of Maori p?gs which infested them, but I was inclined to allow a margin of exaggeration for what I heard. But that the pigs were a ssnoui nuisance was evident enough. There was also a great deal of fiiasatisfaction at the small size of the Hooks into which the plains were surveyed, it being averred that no mao could poaeibly exist on fifty acres, and that the good intentions of the Government to promote settlement might be frustrated by this. The upset price was also regarded as too high, and hopes were freely expressed that purchasers would abstain from insane competition, as it would be certain to be attended by disastrous consequences. I can pronounce favorably upon the accommodation of the Hawera Hotels—good beds, good meals, good attendance, and a bath-room are to bo had at tho Empire, where I sojourned, and also lota of reliable local information from host Lloyd. Tho other hotels also boro good names.

From Hawera to the town of Patea, or, aa it is also called, Carlylo, the distance is about fifteen miles, The road is excellent, and

passes through grand open, rolling country. I covered with the richest pasture, and sub- | divided into many farms. The fences are nearly all live, and of gorse, and their green and yellow and the almost rank pasture dotted with sheep and cattle, formed a truly taking picture. For miles right up to the mountains this kind of country extended, and constituted a landscape rarely attractive. Of course, the land varies in quality, for whilst much of it was superlatively good, patches of lighter soil were to be seen. Some of it certainly might challenge comparison, and, taking it throughout, its pasturage is not to be equalled by that of any other part of the colony. A paddock of one thousand acres belonging to Mr. John Hare, situated between Patea and VVaverly, was brought under my particular notice, and I must say that I never saw anything to equal it elsewhere. Such pasture ! and such cattle browsing it. All about here the land was unquestionably of good general farming character. About midway between Hawera and Carlyle is situated the small settlement of Manutahi, comprising a store (kept by Mr, Foreman), a publichouse, and one or two other buildiogs. I Carlyle ia a pretty little town with an unmistakable air of prosperity. There is a long main street, flanked on each side by substantial buildings, the various banks being repre- ; seated, and every kind of business Hayward’s 1 Albion Hotel is of the best, and is far above what might be expected in such an out of the way district. Carlyle, however, has a great future before it ; the Patea river, upon whicli it is situated, is quite a large stream with a comparatively open entrance, that has been vastly improved of lato by the few thousand pounds spent upon simple harbor works. It is now easily accessible to good sized steamers, the depth of water having been increased to from nine feet at low tide to sixteen feet at high tide. It is, in fact, the port of the district, and when once the railway from New Plymouth is connected with it, it will bs the inlet for southern trade, and will open the entire Taranaki district to tho enterprise of Wellington merchants. It is here that check may be given to the push of Auckland, but no time must be lost in completing the railway, or Auckland will secure a grip of the Taranaki trade that it will be next to impossible to relax. It is a subject that demands persistent agitation on the part of Welliogton. With good water carriage to Patea. an improvement upon the existing steam service, and the railway right through from Patea to New Plymouth, there is nothing but apathy to prevent Wellington from successfully competing with Auckland in supplying the district. The port of Patea is situated about a mile from the town. The latter slopes to the river, which is spanned by a substantial bridge. The high road crosses it and leads to Waverly, ten miles further on.

Waverley, another thriving township, but much smaller than Patea, is surrounded by grand country. The hotel accommodation ia good, and every description of ware is obtainable at the stores and other business places. The last coaching stage is from Waverley to Waitotara, distance about ten miles, across more broken country than any we had passed over from Hawera, but still first-class for agricultural purposes. A word about the coaching, which, whilst on the whole good, is open to improvement. For instance, I would suggest that, when the curtains of coaches become too old to be tagged down in the usual way, they should be either replaced by new ones, or repaired, instead of being nailed down, thus converting the interior of the coach into a sort of dismal cell, from which nothing is visible. Also, that the box seats should be placed at the service of strangers, who desire to see the country, instead of preference being given to balf-drunken constables, who descend at every opportunity to nip with the driver. This hint, I hope, will not be thrown away. At Waitotara we are onground comparatively familiar to the public. The Waitotara Block is almost a household word, and its easy acquisition by the present fortunate holders, is a matter of history. The township, a snug little place, is situated in a deep valley, out of which the railway to Wanganui climbs at quite a steep gradient. And what a country the railway traverses in the some twenty miles to Wanganui. In every direction rich pastures, promising crops andiflooks and herds, truly a laud of high fertility and flowing with milk and honey. I was much pleased with the excellence of the railway arrangements. Evidently the Hue is carefully managed, and in this respect reminded me of the well ordered railways of Canterbury and Otago. My stay in the town of Wanganui was brief, but I remained long enough to be quite favorably impressed with it. Judging by its outwar 1 appearance the town is thriving, but I was assured the depression of the times pressed heavily upon it. I can recommend the Rutland Hotel, which has just emerged from its ashes as a capital abiding place for travellers, and the enterprising proprietor, Mr. Evans, deserves support for his pluck iu so soon rising superior to the dire disaster by fire that lately befel him. The Railway and Commercial hotels are also first-class hostelries. Wanganui ia a nice town with many pleasing features. There are scores of beautiful private residences and lovely gardens, horticulture and floriculture being in the ascendant. I visited the Maori College, as it is termed, rather a palatial edifice, situated a mile or two up the river. It ia the outcome of the philanthropy of Mr. Ghurton, who has built and endowed the institution for the education of Maori youth. It is under good management, and is perfect in its arrangements—lofty, well ventilated, and liberally furnished apartments, with extensive play ground and garden surrounding it. The Maori inmates numbered some half-a-dozen only—all girls, excepting one. They looked happy and contented, as well they might, with plenty to eat and little to do, except play, for the Principal wisely abstains from submitting them to over study, two hoursadayintheachoolroombeingthe limit. In the immediate vicinity of Wanganui, the land is more or less light, but this characteristic gives place to substantial soil towards Turakina, through which the railway passes, and I may observe continues right through, thence to Foxton, intersecting the townships of Marton, Greattord, Haloombe, Feilding, and Palmerston. The whole of the country for within a mile or so of the sea coast, back to the ranges, is magnificent land, densely timbered in places, but capable of growing anything almost. Rangitikei ia noted for highclass land, and thence to Feilding the country is simply superb. I staid a night at Bulls, and received some attention from Mr. Dalziell, of the Royal Hotel, his knowledge of the district being extensive. In fact, wherever I went, I found the hotels comfortable abiding places, especially as they are nearly all under ten o’clock licenses, and thus quiet nights are the rule.

Travellers by rail obtain but a cursory anti unsatisfying view of tho country, and those who can afford the cost, and wish to see and understand the beauties and value of the land, would derive much gratification by taking a buggy and driving right through to Wanganui from Palmerston. I “buggied” it from Bulls to Palmerston, calling at Sandon, Feilding, and Awahuri, and a delightful drive it proved. It was indirect travelling, for one has to hark back to Awahuri to regain the road to Palmerston ; but every yard of the way is more or less interesting. To all outward appearance, Feilding was the most promising of the places I visited between Wanganui and Palmerston. Turakina is a snug little place, but lies under the incubus of large land holdin", from which also Bulla suffers, but in less degree. Tho approach to Palmerston is through dense forest, but wherever it is cleared the land exposed is rich in the extreme. The bush is thick, indeed one large section, of which the timber had just been felled, was literally piled with fallen trunks, branches, and brush. This, when dry enough, will be burned off. Touching land clearing, I heard an original theory propounded at Wanganui as to the relative advantages of clearing the ground altogether, or allowing the larger trunks to remain. If was maintained that these trunks mere than compensated for the space they occupied, by sheltering pasture from wind and sun, and that paddocks fu which a reasonable ngmber of logs were permitted to lie produced richer and more abundant pasture than unencumbered ground. The township of Palmerston is built in a natural clearing, surrounded by bush. It is a fine town, well laid out, and containing all the elements of prosperity. l am indebted to Mr. Fergusson for his veyy kind attention in driving me about the place, and pointing out what was of special interest. We crossed tl;e Fiteherhcrt bridge that spans the Manawatu river a mile or so south of the town, and there I saw evidences of the destructive character of the great flood of the early part of this year. What was once the fair homestead of Mr. Warburton was literally effaced, and the site covered with silt and snags. But what surprised mo most of all was tho state of the bridge. Tho approach to the main structure on the south side was much damaged by the same flood. Two of the standards were partly destroyed, and the bridge rendered unsafe thereby. It will bo scarcely believed that tbe is still in tho same condition ; nothing has been done to secure it, and tho next flood will probably sweep away the south cud, and do

| five or six hundred pounds worth of dunJftJ®* I marvel much at tb 3 sip:*thy of the Govern- , meat in permitting the bridge t > remain as it is, or is it the old question of O ainty versus General Government, and who shall do it ? Complaints were rife at Palmerston about the increased railway tariff, and indeed, were common to the whole coast. But at Manawatu the special grievance was the rise in the coat of timber carriage; the rise, it was averred, being just about equivalent to the narrow margin of profit enjoyed by mill-owners. Passive resistance to the imposition was advocated by stopping all the mills for a month, and letting the Government feel what that meant in loss of revenue. I thought the idea worth entertaining, and believe it will be carried out if the Government does not give in. Thanks to the railway, Wanganui is within a day and a-half of Wellington, for the afternoon train from the former place arrives at Foxton at ten p.m., and thus the traveller has a period of sufficient rest before starting by coach from Foxton at six o'clock the next morning. From Palmerston the country gradually degenerates to the mere sandy waste that prevails about Foxton. And I must say that from Foxton to Paikakaviki the country is sandy, with better patches of land at Otaki and one or two other places. The country, or what X saw of it, is also more or less poor from Paikakariki to Wellington, and the whole of it from Foxton presents a surprising contrast to the grand country to the northward. Still, much of the land is good for settlement, and taking this into consideration, and also the importance of connecting Wellington, by easy and sure mode of transit, with the vast stretch of rich country from Foxton northward, warrants the straining of every nerve to bring about the construction of the long-talked of railway to Foxton, And yet the journey by coach is far from unpleasant in fine weather. Mr. James Macara’e coaching arrrngements are excellent. There is no stint of good horse flesh, and wherever the road is fairly even, from nine to ten miles an hour is kept up. It takes about eleven and a quarter hours to complete the journey, including a stoppage at Otaki, at half-past nine, for breakfast, and another at half-past two, at Pahautanui, for dinner. Shaw, the well-known Wairarapa whip, tooled the team on the day I travelled, and a skilful whip and good companion he proved. Otaki is a small settlement—half European, half Maori. The races were as nearly amalgamated there as they could be, but the result now is that they are being sundered by force of circumstances —the Maori is fast dropping behind in the race. The night prior to our arrival was a festive time for Otaki, the white residents celebrating the occasion of the opening of a new echoolhouse, with a ball. Before this the soirees dansante of Otaki were mixed affairs, white skins and brown skins mingled promiscuously, and hopped and jumped and perspired freely together. But there, as elsewhere, the line had to be drawn somewhere, and as one of the white skins, a female one, by the way, remarked to me, “ Oh, they (the brown skins) came it a little too strong ; you never could depend upon the men as partners, they would go away and leave you at any moment ; and as for the women—well, when in a set of quadrilles they had a habit of sitting down and spitting around.” And so the committee of the latest ball decided to exclude Maoris, did so, much to their disgust, and the affair, I was assured, was most successful. Otaki is a rising and pretty place, and, when the land about it is released from Maori trammels, will become a township of no mea 1 importance. The most interesting part of the journey from Foxton is from Paikakariki on the beach across the high range to Wellington. The coach climbs the range along a winding road cat out cf the face of it, and which has been rendered very much more safe than it was before, since the members of the Railway Commission travelled it the other day. It has been fenced at the more dangerous places. All up the road, and from the summit of the range, a magnificent view seaward is obtained, and across the Strait; the Middle Island is distinctly visible. Picturesque and beautiful also is the country down the valley to Pahautanui and round the bead of Porirua harbor, and up a range again, beyond which is the little town of Johnsonville ; and thence down the long and winding gorge of Ngahauranga. Some good patches of land are met with, and cultivation is progressing apace. The drive from Wellington to Pahautanui in bright weather is delightful, and pleasure seekers may make a note of this. The distance is about 22 miles.