WAIKAWA.

Otago Witness, Issue 2151, 16 May 1895, Page 22

WAIKAWA.

May 7 —Much interest has lately been awakened in this place by the establishment at tho Six Mile of another State farm, aett'ement. Fifty-six applicants wore present at the b»Hot held in For'n^e on the Ist inst. for the 22 sections offered, aud of these latter 20 were acquired. Prior to the ballot being taken, the Commissioner of Crown Lands and Mr M'Nab, member for Mataura, al'ires.ed some per'.incnt remarks to the iuten 'ing candidates, but as these remarks have already appeared iv your columns I need not repeat them. A plain, couuuun-senso, oration it wa3. \vh:ch the successful applicants would do well to lay to heart, and suit their actions accordingly. Many of those who have acquired aectious are known to me personally, and I am certain they will make good settlers; othtra can only be judged by their future behaviour. Thirty shillings per acre will be paid for clearing by the G iv-rnmcut, and lighter timbered sections pro ratt. £10 will be «iven to as.-ist in erecting houses. How different from dozens of l oor struggling farmers to be met with in the Bister colonieß,

vrho spent their little all in scraping together the first year's rent, clad their sons in kangaroo-skin waistcoats, and fed their children with wallaby pics and stewed cockatoos ! A dozen sheets of gum tree bark served as a roof-tree, and wild hops raised their head and stuffed their mattrepses : yet still, in a few short y<.aiv, by dint of hard toil on the part of fathf re, mothers, and chi'drcn combined, collaterally with the grit uf all pionei-ra, these same families mizht be seen takiug their produc-s to market with their own good teams, and refpectably clad and happy withal, driving to church onaSuii'lay, and hear the man of God read the appointed Shepherd's lay, "Servant of God, well <ii.n9." Peopled with settlers of the early pioneer stamp, these State farms Will do an unnu-nsc amoiu t of good by stilling the baneful cry of "No work." Peoplethem indiscrimitntely with the lazy and vicious— those who are ever clamouring for work and praying not to get it — and the whole principle will prove a delusion and a snare to the provident and careful who are being crushed to support it. So long as wages are paid for bush felling these latter will eke out a living ; withdraw the wage system, throw them on their own resources to lira on and by the land, and what will be the result ? Again, how about these settlers' children? Are they alsj to be given the same facilities to acquire sec'.ious and homes? Is this State farm principle suppo3ed to apply to all future generations ? Dairy FACroRY.— I am called upon to acquaint your readers of the proposal to erect a dairy factory at Aragona Juuction. In such a proposition there is something tangible— a real genuine boon to a district unsurpassed for growing pastures of all kinds, and a welcome aid to many who have the milk and cannot get rid of it at a remunerative price. That the indue ntnl committee elected to promote so desirable an industry is to be wished evary success goes without saying, but let not thtirover-sanguiueness induce them tostart before th-y are ready. A dairy factory to be a success involves the expenditure of a lot of money, and the district is poor. Some, eager to see it established, may promise more cows than they have grasH for, and winter feed is confined to the few who have land under cultivation. Bettor to wait another year until some of the young valley settUra have eras') enough to graze milch cows with safety all the season through, and not ruin the pasture land by overotocking at the outset, tempted to do bo by the demand for milk which the factory would offer. The shares are to bu alotted according totho number of milch cows guaranteed by each settler — onesharo foroich cow, and there are those who, to acquire these shares will guarantee cows as yet unboi n. Educational.- However much the Education Board in Otago may squabble over minor matters, in liberality to this district they are at one. The schoolroom established at Heathfield is an example and an honour to the board. Moreover, they granted £17 10a to aid in the erection of a shelter shed for the children when less was expected, but in both instances the money has been spent The school is w. 11 atteuded, and under the able tuition of Mr Chef ney the pupils are already making remarkable progress. It is much ti be desired that those appointed to the local committee will do all that in them lies to aid the teacher in his arduous task of controlling those placed under his care, and endeavour, by punning a friendly intercourse with him and each- other, to strengthen his handa and encouroge him in his good work Much can be done to ligh f cn the burden of teachers in country districts by supposing them in their many Mfcle annoyan.es with ignorant pessimistic parents, and in making their lives of 6ohtude in an isolated district pleasant and enj .yable. Maoy a capable teacher has left a country jchool in disgust at the habitual annoyance and impertinent interference of local committees who usurped authority altogether beyond their province or jurisdiction. Nothing i* more galling to an educated, wellmeaning teacher— more especially if the teacher be a la*iy— than to be subjected to the unmannerly, domineering bluster of some untutored, illbred clodhopper; it rids the teacher of self-respect, gives latitude to the f-chilara to withhold theirs, and from being a follower of one of the most honourable proles ions that can be engaged in, a teacher degenerates into a servant of servants. Coal.— The Wa'kawa Coal Syndicate are still boring, and fhe rods are now worked by meaus of an engire. Timber — The export of timber is steady, ana the pl-Mit owned by Mr Oume adds an orci">ional shipl-ad to the output of the larger mill of Mes-rs Gillies and Co. The latter firm h3B recently added a plar.ing and tongue and groove machine to their plant, which can now be safely B«id to be the mo3t complete for its uize in South- ' Send Off.— Mr J. F. Brunlon, late of Rocklands, and more recently conne/.ted with Waikawa as dre.lge manager, was banqw-ted list Saturday in the Wa'k*wa Hotel (the eve prior tobi3 doparture from the district), and a puvse of sovereigns was presented to him as an evidence of the high esteem in which he has been held during his residence here. In any public matter pertaining to tha interest of Wnikawa Mr Brunton always took a leading part, and in any charitable deed bis aid was not withheld. No more h nourable or upright resident ever abola in the ucighboutho d, and Mr B.unton proved hinusclf a gentleman in this— that he never said or did anything to offend aDyone.