NEW ZEALAND FROM JOHANNESBURG.

Otago Witness, Issue 1851, 30 March 1904, Page 11

NEW ZEALAND FROM JOHANNESBURG.

A DEPRESSING ACCOUNT OF SOUTH AFRICA.

(Faou Our Own Correspondent. )

LONDON, February 12. It appcr.rs that the settlement of Mr George Hutchison, lat-e M H.R for Patea, New Zealand, and his family in the Trans-

vaal is not to be a permanent one. He and all the. members cf his family have now returned to the Mother Country. First camo Mrs Hutchison Tilth her second son , and three daughters; then Mr and Mrs W. Gordon Hutchison, and finally Mr George Hutchison Limseii, who has only just arnved. With Mr TV. G. Hutchjbon I had a long talk a few days ago, and h& certainly gave mo a most disappointing and depressing account of matters in South Africa.

" The depression in South Africa i«," lie said, " simply ? hocking. Things have never been anything like so bad before, and I must confess that for my own part 1 sco little clianoo, if any, of an early improvement. Certainly is is about the last placs in the world that I should care to go to just now wtith 'a "view of' settling down; , indeed, I may tell you that I have sold my house xnd furniture and somo other belongiMg-s thero at a heavy sacuficc ill order to set away."

" But how about the mines? Surely ihcy are rich, and must be profitable when wo iked?" "Oh, yes," inswercd \lv llutcl.\o:i, " 0 cc is not the sliglUcsi doubi a-, v* thrmineral wealth of ihe ccuntn : it is £ A mylv

enormous and incalculable; but then it it going to be worked with Asiatic labourthat means the establishment of a state of things that will be intolerable to ordinary Britisher^. Of course the capitalists and! financiers who own or control those mines will make plenty of money out of them, but that will not mean doing any good fof British settlers generally. They will reap none of the benefit ; indeed, on the contrary, the country will become most undesirable and unsuitable /or their residence. Further, the f.tate of things which is being brought about is one which offers no openings at all for settlers with small capital or for young men seeking employment, if only owing to the fact that the cost of living is .still frightfully high, andi likely &o to continue.

" But is there no opening for agricultural or pastoral pursuits in so vast a country?" "Very little," answered Mr Hutchison. "As for prstoral pursuits, there are hardly any live stock in the country now; tho numerous diseases to which they are liable have proved so fearfully destructive that practically most of the cattle and sheep have been destroyed, and there is little or no inducement to introduce others, because there is no reason why they too should not fall victims to the various i ests. As for agriculture, no doubt th^re are «ome fertiV. district?, but as a rule the soil is poor and not suited for the piofitob!^ pursuit of agricultural operations. So that to a'l appearances South Africa, or at anyrate the Transvaal and the Orange River Colony, of which I am really speaking, will have to import tho bulk of their provis'ons, and that manifestly implies a continuance of very hign m-ices. involving pxcessive cost of living. So yon spr. there is very little inducement for Enprlish people to so there, and I am afraid tho country will be a burden on tho Motherland for vcars to coioe. The whole .situation out there seems to me simply disastrous."

" T !-«"■> I tako it that you. at auyrate, do not T""^to +o f.o biok there?'' "Xn 1 ■-> spf-tV or remain, most cert-iiuly," replied Afv Hutchison. "T may havr- to lun cut there for a short time to wind up somf busi-ie-s matters, but as^irrdlv T have no intent-'on of £>oin? there asain to =ottle. I do not mean to sny thai personally I have done at al! badly ther«*. for cs a irattor of fact I on very well: but as thiios are now, entering into busm> ss in Johannesburn- or fmv other Transvaal or Orange River locally is simply • not good enough.