Manapouri

Southland Times, Issue 14816, 18 December 1900, Page 4

Manapouri

— (-PIiO.I Ol'U OWN VOliV-VUH'OSVLI.T.) "Its warm to-day ?" is the exclamatiuu '. you- heat" in this part when tiro bipeda ' succeed in nuiuiug across uauh other ,and this ( remark has held good for week? past ; in fact the past winter bas been, as elsewhere, phenomenally fine. A few thunder showers have varied the monotony and given the ' people a spoil of carrying water to thirsty gardena, stock, etc. Being ho far from a railway station our « output from ihirt vorner of ihe glube is wool and lam glad I v .sty that sheep and ] lailttbs are looking first-cLisH mi the native tussocks ami the clips should bo above the average. The übiquitous rabbit is getting scarce, due, I believe, to a fondness for pollard, flavoured with phosphorus, and their inability to run faster than tho settlors' dogs. The tourist traffic has just begun and ! proniine.s to be .something liko a record .season. Two young men from your city, Messrs Brown and Lnxford, havo been viewing thu lake und, having v, little time to spare, went over the n_\v route Uj Doubtful Sound. I understand they were higlily delighted with their trip, the only j want being a boat at Deep Cove. As there ,

is a firat-claas hut at each end of the track and the distance from the lake is only 10J miles it is certain that a number will avail themselves of this short track, taking them, as it does, to what many con sider the finest of the sounds, viz. Hall's Arm. Another year passengers by the U.S.S. Co.'s steamers could leave the vesse at Deep Cove, see Manapouri and Tc Anan. and rejoin the vessel at Milford, a roniK trip that would have no compeer smith oi the line. The grim reaper has been in our midst, Mr K. iScohic, of Lakeview Station. <le parted this life on the 21st November, leaving a crown up family <>f four sons ami four daughters. The deceased made mrui\ friends during his residence in this district and the heartfelt sympathy of the com miinity is acoorded to the family. A grievance — and a reasonable one — we have in the want of a bridge over the Mararoa river. A considerable sum has been voted for the work from time to time, but then, I suppose, we are a bit impatient : 10 <jv 20 years hence ire inll have a bridge : likewise sundry occupied sections in th< local cemetery and "found drowned will be the jury's verdict just pre vious to the tenant taking possession. A lumimr reaches us thai an endeavour will bu made to have the bridge site shifted uji opposite Mararoa station, and that a new road will be constructed to Te Anau. Needless to say such a proposal would meet with hearty opposition from nearly every resident in the district. To paj' the least it would be a great injustice to all but a few, and they would not benefit to any great extent. I hear something of the telephone making a start from Eastern Bush. A wire is wanted very urgently, many visitors having to curtail their stay owing to being out of touch with the outer world, and in eases of sickness or accident its want is felt very urgently. It would do more to bring about a boom in visitors than the discovery of a Rotorua in this neighbourhood. I believe that the Colonial Secretary has granted the Southland Acclimatisation Society the privilege of issuing netting licenses on "this lake and also Te Anau. This .is right, but 1 am afraid the license fee of £2 is rather high, as there is no sale of the fish permitted, and it is doubtful if there is sufficient in theso lakes to pay for the price of a net, to say nothing of boat, etc. 17th Dec.