EARLY HISTORY OF THE WANAKA DISTRICT.

Otago Witness, Issue 3489, 25 January 1921, Page 61

EARLY HISTORY OF THE WANAKA DISTRICT.

By

Geo. M. Hassing.

11. In my last article under the above hearing, I deait with the career and trials of the early pioneer runholders around Lake Wanaka. In this I purpose to refer briefly to the early pioneer toilers who worked cheerfully in their employ. Sixty years go in the Wanaka district society was divided into- two classes—the squatter and the worker, or the patrician and tile plebeian. The chief of the latter class were the station managers, and of these the first to arrive in ’59 was John Houchau, who managed the Wanaka Station for Messrs Wilkin and Thomson. Air Tiouchan, who spoke with a very broad Scotch accent, was a native of Humfries, a widower with four grown-up sons and daughters. He was a kindly, obliging man, and an excellent judge of sheep. He died in Tima-ru many years ago. Mr John Carter, who took up the management in ’63, was a Yorkshireman, a capital manager, and a great sport. He also passed out in Canterbury some 40 years ago. Of the head shepherds on Wanaka Station, Oswald M’Callum, John Goldie, and George Rennie were the earliest—all fine men. M‘Galium died at Temuka some years ago, and Goldie died in Dunedin ; but George Rennie married and removed to Fiji, where he took up a plantation. He passed out some 20 years ago, leaving a wife and family at Bau Lailai. At Roy’s station Henry Norman was the first manager. He, with his wife and child, came down with the sheep from Wellington to Oamaru in the barque Snaresbrook, Captain Mundle, in ’59. Mr Norman was a capable manager, and his wife a kind, helpful woman. They were

ideal pioneers—industrious, resourceful, and hospitable. When the diggings broke out Air Norman started a hotel and storekeeping business in Albert Town. There he and his wife both died, and are buried in the little cemetery on the Fork Run opposite Albert Town. The loading shepherds at Roy’s were Angus M‘Master and Peter Mitchell. M’Muster drifted away to the West Coast diggings, where I lost the run of him. Mitchell was drowned in the Upper Clutha above Albert Town in the vain endeavour to shin across the river on a suspended wire rope. Ned Poole .and the noted MTvenzie M’Kay were also shepherding at Roy’s in the early ’sixties. At Stewart and Kinross’s Wanaka West Station Air TT. S. Thomson was at first manager and afterwards owner. Thomson was a great pioneer and a firstclass man in every department of pastoral work. He died in Timaru some 25 years ago. Tlie principal shepherds at Wanaka West were Andrew Marshall and Onearmed Jack, the boatswain. Marshall, a well educated young man, was the son of one of the 1, tiding commercial families in Glasgow. He was drowned off a raft in the Alatukituki River in the earlv ’seventies. Jack the Bosun, who had lost his right arm through a circular saw accident at Cruiekshnnk’s sawmill. Upper Hutt. was unfortunately lost in the ranges in ’6l. I was one of the search partv who unsuccessfully scoured the wild country to recover his body, which has never been found. I well remember in that search journey, about two miles at the hack of the homestead, on the face of the mountain range, we suddenly came up against a crevasse, evidently caused bv a volcanic eruption. The chr n was about half a mile long, but only from 2ft to 3ft wide at the surface, with fern growing thickly up to both edges, almost hiding the fissure from human sight—a

perfect death-trap. We dropped som boulders into it, and listened to the rum bling echo, lasting for fully a minute Here, we concluded, rests poor Jack th Bosun.

Amongst the pioneers who carved out an independent existence in those days were the bushmen and sawyers. The first to take up that business in the beginning of 1860 were my mate WiLiam Boddington and myself. We took up our location in a small white pine bush at the mouth of the Minaret Creek, some three miles above West Wanaka homestead. Being surrounded by precipitous mountains, the bush was accessible only by boat, and as there was but one small cockleshell boat (belonging to Wanaka West Station) on the lake at the time, we were imprisoned in the bush for six months. But we had plenty of food, were both young and strong, so we soon had a sawpit built, tumbled down the giants of the forest, and made the sawdust fly. The bush teemed with plump pigeons and kakas, which in tile evenings we knocked down with a long stick, killing as many as we required. While camped in that bush we one night had a visitation of rats, which swooped down from the mountains in thousands. W T e killed hundreds of them with forks tied to the end of sticks.

While lying in the bunk of our tent of an evening, with a big slush lamp blazing, we dexterously speared them as they poked their heads out from under a wooden platform partly covering the floor. To secure our flour from destruction by the invaders we threw a strong supplejack over the limb of a tree, and hoisted the sack up close to the limb. A couple of nights afterwards we had occasion to lower the sack, when, to our surprise, a dozen or more rats, as white as millers, sprang out of various holes before it reached the ground. However, we had to make the best of it till the boat arrived with a fresh supply. Strangely, in a fortnight every rat had disappeared as suddenly as they had arrived.

I was also the first to start sawing in the Alakarora Bush, at the head of Lake Wanaka, which I explored with Air H. S. Thomson in '6l. The Alakarora Valley was at that period covered with an entangled mass of fern trees and flax, growing to a height of Bft to 10ft, and the ground a jungle of dried and decayed vegetation, over which it was utterly impossible to make any' headway. The only access to the bush was by following the river beaches, and fording the river whenever obstructions presented themselves. To get over the difficulty in our attempt to reach the bush, we started a fire at the head of the lake. This soon developed into an unbroken seething ocean of flame from hillside to hillside, and, fanned by a strong, southerly wind, it raged for three days and nights, travelling up the valley 20 miles. It was a terrific blaze that levelled everything in its course, and disclosed the charred remains of an old Maori pa near the bush —the old Alaori Kaika Paekae (the place of abundant food). This great fire transformed the appearance of the country, so that in March, 1865, when the late William Dochertv and I started on our exploring trip by way of Lake Wanaka, the Alakarora Valley presented a beautiful carpet of luxuriant grass, over which it was a pleasure to travel.

In ’6l E. Pipson (Strathalaw Dick), Red Bill, James Isbell (Jerry), J. D. Ross (Yankee Joe), A. E. Farquhar, George A. Wrayatt, and Jqmes Johnson (Big Jim) established themselves in the Alakarora Bush and formed quite a little town ship, which in honour or Mr Isbell was named Jerrico. Every one of these bushmen was a specimen of a splendid independent workman. The work was strenuous, but the returns fairly good. The food was simple, chiefly mutton, damper, and tea. The working hours were from daylight till dark, with no half-holidays, nor did we

sigh for any. We were a happy lot of contented boys. Pipson and Isbell died years ago at Wanaka. Parker passed out while storeekeeeping at Stirling. Vv ryatt became a prosperous and respected farmer at Garston, where he died some years ago. James Johnson died in Dunedin, and Ross, who became a flourishing wine and spirit merchant in Glasgow, passed out peacefully there some 10 years ago. Then there was another set of inde pendent pioneer workers—the boatmen and timber rafters. Of these I also started the first boating and rafting, both on the lake and on the Upper Clutha. My dear old and faithful partner, Wrn. Ellacott, joined me in the business. Others in that line were Thomas Primate (Yorkey), Alf. Pinn (Black Tom), Theo. Russell, Charles Hedditch, and Henry Palmer. Rafting at that time was a rather venturesome business, but it paid handsomely, and we were all fine swimmers. At one time on a wedding excursion I swam for nearly an hour in the icy-cold water of Lake Wanaka, chased by .an expert boatman in a dinghy, who was t.rving to capture me. “Catching the duck’’'was the game. By means of repeated diving I escaped mv pursuer, but the intense coldness of the water congealed the wax in my ears so as to produce complete deafness for several weeks following. The few of that jovial wedding partv still alive will remember with pleasure that happy outing. Of the early boatmen and rafters, Alf Finn is still living in Perth, V estern Australia. His daughter, Airs Quinlan, who under the pen-name of Daisy Primrose used to contributhe so acceptably to the P.L.F. columns of the Otago Witness, is still actively engaged in literary work. William Ellacott, after a residence of 26 years as a planter on Raiatea, near Tahiti, retired and died in London. Thomas Primate passed out in Dunedin; Then. Russell and Henrv Palmer at Wanaka; but Captain 0. Hedditch is still fairly active, and resides with his wife and family at Wanganui. Of the’ whole army of those brave, hardy Wanaka pioneers of the earlv ’sixties not a half-dozen are left. Such men are the real and true Empire-builders.

They now rest from their labour, but by their courage and exertions they have left this country better than they found it.