OTAGO CENTRAL.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 12650, 30 April 1903, Page 2

OTAGO CENTRAL.

•THE INTERIOR OF THE INTERIOR. .' (Br Omi Special Reporter.) ' , V.--THE UPPER CIiUTHA. "The, phosnix, Hope, can wing her flight through--the vast deserts of the skies, and still'. defying ■ Fortune's spite, revive, and from her ashes rise," was a. favourite passago of Cervantes; and the people of the Upper Clutha still have hone of railway communication;- but it i? a hope that has been long deferred, and has sickened many hearts, while the settlen still toil on and struggle.-.To return for ft brief space to territory mentioned in my previous articles, I may just mention another important feeder to a railway, at Alexandra, and that is the Bald Hill-Flat and Roxburgh district: The country there is well known as a fruitgrowing area, and- not only tho whole of Bald Hill Flat, but also the, .flat ground and hill elopes in the gorge; aro eminently Suitable, with irrigation, for fruit culture on a large scale. At Butcher's Gully there is a striking example in the gardon ;of a Chinaman named Ah Bon, who grows three tons of; strawberries—amongst the finest sample? produced in Now Zealand—avery yeari -on' a small plot of irrigated land. Practically'the whole of this country, including the far-famed Teviot, would _ be tapped , by a railway at Alexandra. This is also in the declared , goldfield area, and soil: which-would be of inestimable value in the.- years to come is being ruthlessly swept aw.iy into the river by the miners. Passing, on to Clyde again, the rpad enters the celebrated Cromwell Gorgo, through which the surveyed route, of theiihe lias been taken. The same remarks apply to this gorge, for the hill slopes on either side of'the; river might be- transformed into smiling vineyards, producing .their-sioros of tons of the finest wine and raisin grapes. Then another point suggets itself to me, flntt-that'isthe •

ENORMOUS ELECTRICAL ENERGY running' to waste in tho mightly waters of the. Father of Rivers, 'the grand Molyneux. .With' ite steady, resistless sweep the; river is .carrying through the doen gorge it has cut for itself during the long centures a greater volumo of water than is discharged by any other river in Australasia. Hure Waipori, Taieri, or , Lee Stream is dwarfed to insignificance by that ceaseless ourrent which would, when Dunedin and Otago generally requires it, furnish 250,000 electrical horse-power with the greatest ease, and, in addition, irrigate the whole of Central Otago, for it «is easily the superior of r. the historical Nile. Then Sir Julius Vogol's great dream might merge from the shadow into the substance, and the river be diverted in part,from its.ancient bed. Sir George Grey's great dream was a, confederation of the South Sea Islands; Vincent PylVe's, communication from Dunedin to tho western sea, via the Haast Saddle; so why should ' someone not dream now of _ works such, as at. Assouan, on the Nile, in the CluthaKivor, and-of the whole of Central Otago as one of the world's most fertile

gardens, "with electrical power provided 'sufficient to supply motive power to all maoßihery and lighting, systems in the great interior, and. still plenty to snare for Dunedin and "other towjis! A dream, yes, but quite withiu the. bounds of possibility. ■' CROMWELL. Cromwell is well known in gold mining history, situated as: it 'is at the confluence of .tho great gold-bearing rivers Clutha, and Kawarau. It is a borough of 640 acres, population from 750 to 800, buildings 190, ratepayers 130, rateable properties 235, assets £4778 9s 6d, and liabilities £2959 13s sd. The rates;are fairly high, boing Is 3d in tho pound general rate, Is special water rite, and 2d special interest rate. Alexandra, Clyde, and Cromwell are all situated in the Vincent .County, which stretches from Idaburn Valley to Wariaka and iHawca, Wanaka Lako and the country west towards Cardrona being in Lake County. I think the whole of Vincent County : may bo taken as served by the proposed .railway route, and therefore ita statistics may. be of interest. The county embraces 268+ square miles, it has 1148 ratepayers, 1198 rateable properties; its rateable value is £605,165, estimated population 4362, and'its'assete tptal £7040 18s 9tl, and its liabilities (including loan) £3000 Is 3d. I found that the Cromwell hotolkeepera and storekeepers generally did not seem in favour 'of.-a railway';;they argued that the settlers of Hawea had a market in Cromwell for

their produce, and there was no necessity for'tt line to Alexandra-, a terminus at Lander boiijg.sufficient for all requirements. I do not consider this argument borne out by facts.: Cromwell might at present bo a market for a large quantity of tho Hawea. produce—though' I find that a large quan; tily also eomei to Dunedin, oven in spite, of tho enormous difficulties the settlers have to contend with,—but it could never provide a market for the produce if the Wanaka and Hawea country was'developed as it should l K Then a terminus at Lauder certainly doca not' even come within measurablo dis-

tance of meeting requirements, for I think I have already' shown that the Alexandra and Clyde districts more than justify arailway to, Clyde.' I can understand the attitude of the hotelkeepers, for, with a' terminus at Lauder, it would jupfc be a coaoh journey to Cromwoll, and travellers perforce would bo obliged to spend a night there. Settlora, even In the immediate vicinity of Cromwell, however, are of very .different opinion, and

they say, with much more reason, I contend, that 'a ra.ilway'would moke Cromwell on infinitely more important centre. However, if tlio Cromwell people do not want a railwiy, let a branch lino, cut through Thomson's Gorge, by a tunnel, be constructed to Hawca. > , THE GREAT HAWEA PLAIN. From Cromwell I followed the road to IWanaka, on the western side of the river, and I must say, at the outset, that I saw no stretch of finer land in ilio whole torn , , both for vgtain-growini; and stock-raising. The great plain is over 30mile3 long, and the i area of agricultural land is not less than 150,000 acres, including the Hawea, Tarras, and Wanaka blocks; while the Mount Barker block might also be included. This, of course,,does not embrace- all the agricultural, land whiph would, be served by a railway, for theMatukituki Volley, opening to Lako Wanaka, contains an area of W,OOO acres of land of a quality yielding nothing in point ofi'agricultural capacity to tho'celehrated Taieri Plain, the Motntnpu Valley (1000 acres), the Makarora .Valley (10,000 acres), and The Forks (4000 acres), all splendid grain and gross land. After leaving Cromwell an immense area of the Kawarau Valley is opened up on the left, and this is all finfi agricultural country, bordered by important sheep stations. Tho drifting rami has covored a large area hern, and I think it is'hightinie tho planting of marram grass was undertaken on an extensive scale Clnso to the Pisa Range hero is Mr Ritchie's farmi and an inspection of the land there would convinco the most sceptical of tlie productive capacity 'of the roil. MOUNT PISA STATION.

On the left of the road, then, practically to

Wannko- is tlio I'isa Range, which, together with a large 'area of fine agricultural land, is included in the Piso sheep station. Prior to the advent of the destroyer—the rabbit— Pisa.-.wae olie of the richest -stations in the i whole of the colony, but the pest reduced its sheep-carrying capacity to less than onehalf. Mr Searfo, ilie manager, by a diligent orusade, aided by trapping, has now managed to clear the run to a remarkable extent! nnd -as ft result the range is once more attaining - its position as first-class sheep country, and the quality and quantity of the vegetation for pasture is simply aston-ishin'u.-To the risM of the road was tho river, but between the two there is a great area dfjand,'and those,who doubt the value ,, of -irrigation, even after the evidence already put forward, ha-vo only to inspect some of the farms' hero to ba quite convinced. : .'.Results of irrigation.

I.saw along that'road some of the best Braes, oats', and shebp produced in Otago, Small 'races, led from the mountain streams, spread' ths. puro water out upon the. soil, and, tlio farmers have'been richly rewarded for their, enterprise, though they have only conducted irrigation on a very small scale. 'Beautiful fat crossbred sheep were grazimr kneo-dcop in thiok, luxuriant grass ami clover, i\nd there, is no ground on either tho Taiori or Tokomoiriro Plains could produce a greater abundance of clover to the acre. Tho settlers here have an ideal situation;

tlioir homestead plantations grow with astonishing rapidity and luxuriance, they have the clearest and purest water in Nature, and no water rates to pay, and their irrigated fields

yield crops.of wheat, oats, or barley from. 60 to 80 bushels per acre. Tho contrast between irrigated- and non-irrigated land is most strikingly exemplified he-re, for where water lias not bcon kid on the grass is poor, dried up, and withered, providing little or no nutriment for stock. Tito land hero is all of equal quality, but the settlement is on a very small scale comparatively, because there is mo market for anything like extensivegrain cropping. The farmers are obliged to bo content with the email local market to a great extent, and consequently do not attempt to produce more- than will obtain for them a comfortable- living. Even by the most rapid method of locomotion it is two days' journey from here to Dunedin. A midday halt was called p.t tho Quccnsberry Inn, and a. rest in tho grateful shade of the cool, green trees was mufh appreciated, for the Central Otago sun -was Welcoming us with one of those hot, burning days which, are so common in the great interiorand uncommon on tho seaboard. Here' further

striking examples werp afforded. us of tho fertility of the soil under irrigation; but ono' place in the ea-nio district is like ; another, and I need not pause* to. describe in detail,but the drive through that beautiful country willj ever remain a most pleasant memory. A MILLER'S OPINION. Shortly after leaving' Qucensberry we reached Mr Anderson's roller , mills; Mr Andemon expressed the opinion that the country did not justify a railway at all; the land was poor except in ono or two patches, end the settlors had ample local market fov tlioir grain. A littlo further along the road

I realised tho reaaon of Mr Anderson's opposition, for a railway would spoil a very nice little monopoly. Growers of wheat are naturally obliged to take.their produce to Mr Anderson's inill.prorided he pays a price for it which would show a profit on the cost of haulage to Cromwell or further, and in the same way as long ns the flour id-not too much per ton above the-'price.at Cromwell the settlers and others of tho Whole of the Hawea and Wanaka. dijtrietE will obtain their flour from Mr Anderson, who can thus reap a very good profit. Tlourmilling pays, here; this was examplificd by Mr Anderson's highly-cultivated farm, where I e.iw rich grass paddocks, carrying, a very high average of shoop to the acre, and acres upon aeree of rich, strong etiibble, which could have yielded but little under 80 bushels of wheat per acre. This is one of the finost farms in the wholo. district, and this ifl the ground Mr Andersen describes as of poor quality. It is well irrigated, and affords a

spkmdid example of- the value of irrigation in this region. Though Mr Anderson oou6i'ders the land of but litt(e value, it may bo mentioned that he applied for more than the Crown Lands Department would grant. From this point a fine view was obtained of the beautiful terrace land on the other side of the river, in the Tarrae block, with here nnd there' a comfortable homestead ensconced amongst graceful poplar trees, and with tho long, dark Morveri Hills range as a background. ; " I.UGGATE TO WANAKA. The road still skirting,the majestio Pisa Eange, we soon passed-Luggate, a little settlement where there is 'a, punt and-a hotel. Here I , noticed a vory fine'orchard with many varieties of fruit trees growing in abundance. From Imsrgate, to Wanaka the country has practically flip same characteristics as from Cromwell to Queensberry,

excellent land capable of producing any crop it the soil were irrigated.' As that side of the valley closed in towards the lake I saw many traces of ■ the old moraines, for all this great plain was once a ..lake bed, originally hollowed, out by glacial action. Shortly after crossing the. boundary line l>ctween Pisa, and Wanaka. Stations the Cardrona' district awearcd to tho left; with famous Mount Criffel boldly standing sciatinol in. the foreground. '.Then, aftor crossing a creel; and passing the. littli? settlement at Albortown, Mount lon, a bla& olxjliak of rock, arose in front, and a little further cm we. obtained night of beautiful, peaceful Wiinaka, a. fitting ending, to o.ur day'* jjllgrinweo Mu'ough the lioat, and fine, im'palnoble, but insistent,' duet. On the right and left dark blue nitijros, cloud capped, reared their hoary heads in majestic somnolence, while tho gathered waters of the placid lake crept in around the* fwt of those noble folds in peace,, : tranquility. and beauty , ; afar off appeared those daintily beautiful liphte of a setting sun behind mountains, glancing on the i*reat peaks tad losing themselves in opakcence in the bosom of the waters, dark shadows concealed the recesses of theqrwiter ravines,' and over all vras tat mysterious iiitaniiMo ultramarine haze—Nature's ,veil—fhe'brcatli of the Earth Mother and the incense- of the mountains. In the foreground; eat like a jewl in sapphire, was the little settlement of Pomhroke, its building, suramin? white in tho (lyinif cimlieams, and its many trees and graceful willows elorifind bv tho dainty tinting of autumn—stretching down to- the shinp-lj beaches, surely one, of 'Hμ moblest (situations in the world. Rut even that splendid scenery does not satisfy all the feelings nf hungry travellers,, and after a decent Christian bath—a, luxury wo had not known for some davs—we sat. down to o splendid dinner at Mw Ruseell's comfoftablo hotel, Fortunately for us it was-Lent, and tho delicious lake trout would have formed a Gumntnons renaot for the .mudi-quoted geds at Meusis. Tlie pholegraphjr,, whose sonse of thft artiatio had been outraged by repeated photographing of unruly cattle, fat, sloepy sheop, irrigated pketiircs -pnd oxtonaivo plains, which ho vowed would mean a fiuccpasion nf "flat" negatives, now had his phanrc and he wont for iinsct offpete ratf! the nbliains cimeia, mui>t have been stminod. A nuiet. peaceful \mlk_ around to Wanaka Station from whence the nanovamio grandeur in the fast fadin? lichts could bo iu?M.v appreciated; ended that day. AN OPINION OF."WEIGHT. ■•

Next morning a now glory was added,to those superb mountains, ever grand, but l'always more inspiring fci-day than yesterday, for heavy cloud wreaths rolled lazily along th'oldark spurs; but there was no time then for admiration of tho scenery; I was looking for particulars of the trade and commercial possibilities of the district, and was eoon in conversation with Mr R. Macdougall, a well-known resident, and a member for that district :Vi the lisfo County Council. Mr Macdougall commented on tlio fact that comparatively few tourists ever visited Wanaka, which had a great asset-, in i(n ficenio wealth; indeed, iho cliinato and sconory v/cre unsurpassed, but travelling was expensive, and tourists as a general rule did not care to.faco the journoy from Cromwell in tho slow, lumbering cbaoh. There were a number of lartje sheep stations in the district wind a considerable traffic in wool, but this industry was handicapped by the enormous -distance runholdcra-"were obliged to cart the boles. Somo years ago town lota had been offered for .sale in Pembroke, and the placards issued by the- Government contained a definite promise that the railway would be carried through to Hawea in 1884. Believing in that promise, and trusting to the honour of the Government, money had booh invested by settlers in land and efeamers w.ero placed on thn ]a>e, Mr Macdougall liimsolf investing £3000. A. few yoars lalor there was «iill no sign "of a railway, and tho vulue of portions waa reduced to £15.by the Tjand Board, investors thereby having their capital- depreciated onesixth and being confronted with the-fact (lint they had taken tlm Government at its word and paid £30 each for sections, while similar sections adjoining were now to bo purchased for £5. There wai no better district in Central Otago for tho growing of Hie peach and apricot. Th favourable seasons grape ripened well, but sometimes the frost? militated auaiowt the successful oultivsition of .the vine. Mulberries and all stone fruit" could be cultivated to perfection. He considered that a block of 20.000 acres on Hawsa Flat would be the mesfc productive land in the colony if water wore led out over the ground. "Mr Ureher, the district engineer, had- given en opinion that for £1200 or £1500 an irrigation scheme could bo .carried out and the- whole of this Innd enormously enhanced in value and

productive capacity. The initial co3t, said 'Mr Macdougall, would bo repaid by the land the first year. If Wadiitea"ware known a<s it should be. a.nd Hip railway accommodation promised by the Government were an accomplished fact, the shorea of Waitaka would be dotted with villa residences where iho wealthy people of the colony would snoml a month'or two in summer time. Thorn were valuable timber areas at the head of tlm lake, where one sawmill was at.work, and the many great valleys contained a large acreage of most valuable agricultural land, yory little of which would require much irrigation. Referring again to the subject of irrigation, Mr Macdouga'.'l mentioned that settler.'! were beginning to play the Cavdvona. River on a barren flat with most excellent results, and the sediment in the river from the mining operatione was a valuable fertiliser.' He was a. firm beliover. in irrigation, and it might te remembered thot all the ancient civilisations of the world were in the dceri lands, os E»vpt, Lybia, Palestine, and South America (Hie Aztecs), for instance, The water used in the claims on Mount Criffel was allowed to run to! waste into the river, while, after it "-liacl : left the.mines, it could Ire brought down over wiles n[ the flat from Luggate to Wanaka, A line to tho Lakes .was urgently required,- for without it the district ..could novor be ilcveloned to any extent. A good mean.3 of affording temporary relief .would be to take the railway to 'Clyde,' arid put a go"d road through Thomsori'iV Gorge','finis' enabling the journey from the •lake to Dun".ilin, or vice vorea, to be made-in'one--day,.'

old cottage. With its high-pitched, thatched ' He had becu fighting in the intorests ofthat district since- 1E62; and ho thought it high time tho Government afforded the- caßlors somo relief. Young neople would not stay in the district with its present disadvantages,, and, whereas a few years ago the school children at Pembroke numbered from 69 to 70, there wero now only 30. It was scarcely possible to estimate tho great strides the whole district would make wero a railway carried through; the tourist traffic alone would bo an over-increasing consideration. If the Government could not manago to carry a railway 'through nt preflent, and the settlers wore to resign themselves to another long wait, then the Government miglji hand the Vincent County Council about £10,000 or £15,000 to make a thoroughly good road through Thomson's Gorge, so that a motor natscnger car could be run through to tire lake. Thee© are- the opinions of a man who haa the interest of β-lic- district «t heart, and who hiw grown grey in tho struggle to obtnin recognition of its great resources. Readers may judge whether Wanaka has received the consideration from the Government it should. Unfortunately, time did not permit of a vi3ix to tho Malukituki Valley, ait the foot

of Mount Arpiring, l or Jlotalapu or llaknrora Valleys, but the acreage given and tlio statement made by Mr Macdougall should ffivo an idea of the rwources Wanaka : possesses in these valleys alone. Much of the couii'try surrounding Pembroke, and also a considerable area up the lake, is eminently suited for fruit-growing. In Mrs Russell's garden I saw a number of fino fruit trees, and also several mulberry trees, which had grown to an enormous size. One of the fiimst farms in the whole colony is just between Wanaka and Hawea.' This is Mr Kingan'B, nt The Forks, embracing about 4000 acres, where wheat averages 80 bushels to the acre in almost- any year, and oats from 80 to 100 bushels: It seems to me the very height of absurdity for northern critics to attempt to decry the Wanaka and Hawea districts, but, unfortunately, their irresponsible statements are accepted by a House which knows no better, and meanwhile the settlers—the very backbone of the country, which is the proud boast of legislators both at Home and abroad—toil on and struggle. Wo hear so much in the debate on the Estimates from Ministerial benches of the necessity of opening up the country, of givifg Hi© settlers roads and bridges, and of developing tho resources of the country, while trade commissioners vaunt our wares tit Home; and then the. Minister site.down .amidst (ho applause of his followers. Meanwhile one of the most valuable areas of agricultural land in the whole colony lies comparatively unproductive. If the Government were desirous of opening up the country and of developing the resources of Now Zealand, it would have lent nn oar to the wants of.this district yenre ago. Were the same tract of country in America, it would have .been thickly populated now, and with fast express trains running throughout its entire length. Hero no one scarcely oven hears of it, but, I think, were ili in Auckland. Wpstland. or Canterbury, the whole IToups would have visited it over and over again long before now. There is the ripli land lying opan ready for the willing brain and hand of the agriculturist, all the people ask is a means of getting their produce to the natural and nroper markets, ami they will do the rest. The country I have mentioned in tin's nrticle is only that on tho. western sirlo of the river; on the other is Hawea, and that will be dealt with in the next issue. Upwards (if IPO.OOO acres of agricultural land, capable of producing as heavy crop? ns any other soil in the colony, and abundance of fruit, in addition, and no reasonable means of conveying produce to its natural market! Would such a condition of affairs be tole-

rated in any other part of the colony?