WELLINGTON NEWS NOTES.

Otago Witness, Issue 2520, 2 July 1902, Page 65

WELLINGTON NEWS NO TES.

(From Our Own Correspondent.)

WELLINGTON, June 2*. The Gladsfcon special settlement in the Waimarino country has so far been a failure. The land lies on a timbered plateau to the oast of the volcanoes. A pettier wrote to the Land Board the other day stating that the block was so heavily timbereu that only two or thr&e settlers ventured to isolate themselves, and, now that the bush round their homesteads is felled, they find themselves barricaded among high stumps and logs in what are termed " wooden section*." The writer complained that the block should not be closed against fcettlement, emphatk^lly declaring that "such a decision by a so-called Liboral Administration was a disgrace to civilisation." Unfortunately the member* of the Land Board, having visited and inspected the locality, wore co.i\iuceel that it was totally unfit for settlement until the railway reached the locality and the saw-millers had a chance of removing the bush. The letter Was simply received. Settlers in the Awarua. block, near Mangaweka, are asking for a reduction of th«ir rents.

June 26,

A forest about 30 miles from Rotorua, estimated to contain 300,000,000 ft of totara, rimu, and malai, has been -puicbased by Mr Peter Bartholomew (of Levin) and Auckland residents, who intend to p.rect a sawmill on th© block at an early date. A tram line 12 miles long is to bo laid to connect the mill with the Auckland Rotorua railway. A deliberate attempt was made a few days aeo to wreck a train near Hastings by placing a rail across the railway line. Fortunately, the driver noticed the obstacle and pulled up the train in time. An interesting piece of news was given to an Evening Po3t representative this morning by a- visitor from Taranaki, who says that the Natives of the district around Parihaka are in an excited state now owing to the feeling worked up by Te Whiti concerning the Coronation of the King. It appears that for some time past Te Whiii, who first won celebrity among tho Natives as a. prophet, has been foretelling that King Edward would never go through the> Coronation ceremony. Te Whiti made this statement at tho quarterly meetings of his followers, which are held at Parihaka. Tho latest of th;?9e quarterly reunions came off last weok, and there was a larger attendance than usual, as Te Whiti had been rallying his followers up in anticipation of thefulfilment of his prophecy. He kept the majority of the Natives in ParihaLa uutil the news came through as to the postponement of the ceremony in London. This result has naturally increased the. mana of the prophet whose influence had for some time been on the wane. The Taranaki visitor states that this return of the mana of Te Whiti is unfortunate, because jus followers, who proved \ery troublesejme some ycard ago by entering upon and ploughing up settlers' lands, were fast loping their faith in Te Whiti, and were ceasing in their objection to the operation of tho West Coa^t Settlement Reserves Act. Under this measure the Public Trustee has charge cf the lands of the Natives, and, acting upon Te Whiti's advice, his followers ha^e all along iffus=ed to aceppt tho rents due to them In some cases fairly large sams of money are saiel to be due to these. Natives. Te Whiti influence has been bael, bce-jiuje in=tea<l of encouraging his follower-, in leading an industrious life, his iiiflue-jice Ins gone all the other way, and they for the most part spend their time in fear ting at Parihaka, instead of cultivating their lands and providing for their future