DAYS OF THE LOCHNACAR.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XXXVII, Issue 12410, 21 March 1911, Page 5

DAYS OF THE LOCHNACAR.

MR. W. D. S, MACDONALD AT j TAURANGA.

After the business of the deputation to the Minister for Works had been concluded at Tauranga, some toasts were honored, and .that of MrTW. D. S. Mac Donald, M.P. for Bay of Plenty, was enthusiastically honored. ' , M!r Mac Donald, m replying, said it afforded him great pleasure to pay this, his first, visit .' to Tauranga, In "travelling through from Rotor ua that day he had seen -some of the district, and was surprised at the. lack of settlement and development. Now that the tailway was under construction it would put a different complexion on matters, and the large area of land m the neighborhood and its fair quality would make for the full development of the port. Tbere was great development m. the Bay of. Plenty from Opotiki to Tauranga, and from Opotiki to Te Whaiti there tyos an. area of a. quarter of a million acres of Crown and native land being-iirepai-ed. for settlement. J Tauranga possessed tho best natural harbor between Auckland and Gisborne, and there "was & great future before it as a port. Next Wednesday the Minister of Public Works would turn the first sod of the new Rangitaiki drainage works, and the drainage scheme would drain an area of about 80,000 acres of rich fattening land. Theto was no doubt that with the construction of the railway a large portion of the produce of these areas would be conveyed to the port of Tauranga, where it would be loaded into the deep-water vessels from the freealiig works, which would follow when the development of the land had reached a certain stage. He predicted that within the next ten years there would be' as great an increase of population m this end of the Bay of Plenty as had taken place during the last forty years. He instanced the great development that had taken place in ' Poverty Bay, and mentioned that the barque Lochnagar took away the whole of the wool clip, about 1800 bales, about a quarter of a century ago. In 1908 the exports •of Gisboroo totalled 800,000 caroaseß of mutton and lambj and 16,000 carcaßes of* cattle, m addition to dairy and agricultural products. Although their land might not be of such high quality as m other parts, still they had a superior climatq/ which made for great- advantages m the development of the land. He was able to speak from a, practical standpoint, as he had been associated wjth the land on the East Coast for a period of 28 years. Ho hoped that while the prosperity of the country continued that a progressive railway policy wouki be pursued, especially along tho East ; Coast, which up to the present, out of huge sums borrowed for railways and other public works, had only had the honor of assisting to pay the interest Ho believed that the Government of the day was now keenly desirous of developing the Bay of Piety by the purchaso of native lands, construction of roads, and the railway. He intended to again contest tho Bay of Piety seat, and if returned he would do his beßt to work amicabty w.ith his colleague representing the Tauranga 'electorate in ' promot ing the interests of the East Coast and the Dominion. He hoped on some future occasion J>6 again vißit Tauranga and dpend a week m. the district so os to Become better acquainted with the d is fcrict and its people. : Mr Mac Donald then resumed Ijisseat amidst applause!