REPORT ON COOK'S STRAITS.

Wellington Independent, Volume V, Issue 414, 29 September 1849, Page 2

REPORT ON COOK'S STRAITS.

Wellington, 25th Sept., 1819. On leaving Wellington I proceeded by the new road to Porirua, the Stockade at Paramatta, through the Horokiwi Valley, and reached the beach on Cook's Straits at Paikakariki. At this point the hills are little more than 400 or 500 yards from high water mark. The country here, therefore, is not worthy of consideration.

Proceeding onwards by the beach to Waikanae, it appeared to me on exami-. ning the features of the hills I had so lately passed, that the road had been taken over a very much higher level than was necessary. I should say at least 300 feet higher. If on inspection, it should be found that a practicable road could be made through the opening of the hills, where I think it should go, it would reach the beach about a mile or a mile and α-lialf to the northward of Paikakariki.

The distance from Paikakariki to Waikanae is about 8 miles, the hills gradually receding from the coast all the way, until at the last named place, the breadth of land is about a mile or perhaps a little more. The country hero is occupied by considerable number of Natives who cultivate wheat, potatoes, &c. Waikanae is the residence of the Police Magistrate Major Durie, and here, too, is a house of accommodation for travellers.

Opposite to Waikanac is the Island of Kapiti or Entry Island : this I regard as a very important place, and ono which ought to be in the possession of the government as soon as possible From its position it would command the navigation of Cook's Straits, the whole of which might be distinctly seen from a signal station placed on the highest point of the Island. Kapiti I believe affords good ancliorage for vessels in almost any weather, and hero might be formed a depot for all the produce, or at least a very large part of the produce of the coast on the east side of the Straits.— Of this J. shall speak more hereafter.— Kapiti, for the most part is covered with timber, and affords excellent pasturage

to ti lHunbor of sheep and oattle, us does the Island of Mima, another hi null Island f e w miles to the southward, near the •ntnuioe of Porirua harbour, l<'roin Waikanao the hills continue to rec edo from the coast till on vouching Otftki, (a distance along the beach, of nbout M miles) the breadth of land from the mouth of the river is about from 4 to i> miles, the soil rich and fertile.— 'j'bc n vcr nuv y k° entered at high water })v small vessels of about 40 tons burden. j'Jicro is a licensed ferry with a house of accommodation for travellers. At about one i nue from the beach a Town Juts been laid out for the native population .which amounts to about 000 souls. 'I'lie streets are wide, there are several excellent wooden buildings and some of them fitted up and furnished in a most comfortable manner. The natives are building a new Church under the able superintendence of their excellent pastor jl r . Williams. This building is very ltir"C, and has been constructed with immense labour, the timbors are very massive and entirely ofTotara; the ridge polo of tho roof is v single piece of timber 80 feet long, and has been brought from ft distance of 12 miles. The roof is shingled in a very creditable manner. The interior decorations of the walls extremely neat. The School house,V'at present used also as a church, contains two large rooms, one for the male children, the other for the females, amounting in all to about 200 scholars.

] have said that the soil at Otaki is very rich ; tho natives arc learning the use of the plough. They produce largo quantities of wheat, maize, potatoes and peaches; these last are generally of an inferior quality, but Mr. Williams has procured a number of fruit trees of different sorts, and purposes instructing some of the young men in the arts of budding and grafting. The natives here possess a number of horned cattle ; these and indeed all the cattle I saw at Otaki appeared to be in fine condition. I'r.mi Otaki the present road is along a hard sand}' beach to Oh an, a distance of about six. miles ; the breadth of available land, inside the sand hills, bordering on the sea shore, gradually increasing. Near the mouth of the river at Ohau, there is a ferry house, affording accommodation to travellers. The river may be entered by small vessels ; there was a small schooner of 12 tons about half a mile further up than the ferry house when I passed. The land in this neighbourhood is, I believe, very good, and produces large quantities of Flax (Phorniiuin Tenax.) An Englishman named Bcvan has an establishment here for making rope, wool lashings, &c. Continuing on the beach we cross the mouth of the river Morowenua, and reach the mouth of the river Manawatu, distant from Ohau about 14 miles. From Ohau the breadth of the back country increases more rapidly. At Horowenua there is a small lake with some good 'bush land between the lake and the foot of the hills. I travelled through that bush some years ago from the Manawatu. I travelled also from a lower point of the Manawatu, to the Horowenua lake thro' the open country; it struck me at the time that the country I passed through would afford good pasturage for cattle, hut that there was little, except in the hush land fit lit for agricultural purposes. The soil is sandy, and in some places wet and swampy." On tho left, or southern bank of the Manawatu the country is flat, with large flax swamps, extending for some miles inland, it is then succeeded by bush land, extending up to the roots of the Tararua range; on . tho immediate shores of the river Horowenua, there is a belt of bush, consisting chiefly of Kaikatea or White Pine. The river may be entered by vessels of from 40 to 50 tons, and they may proceed up tho river from 2o to 00 milos. Mr. Kettle, now principal Surveyor at Otago, surveyed tho sea beach and bar at the mouth under my instructions, in tho summer of 1842. He then found 6 feet water on the har at low tide ; the general rise from low to high water being here as at most other places on this shoro of Cook's Straits, (5 feet—giving a depth of 12 feet on tho bar at Manawatu at high water. On the right or northern bank of this river, the country for about 5 miles from the beach js sandy, it is then succeeded by grass land intersected by sand ridges covered with fern, till we arrive at long beach, from thenco to Mr. Kebble's Steam Mill. ■The country is generally wet and dotted with small lagoons; this country producos a large quantity of Flax, it may, I believe, bo easily drained. This would,

without doubt very muo h j m . mjve the quality of the ilux, us it would the nature of the soil. J may here observe that as we have now every reason to believe that flax, by some of the new modes of dres smg lately proposed, and now beimr practised, may be dressed at a remunerating price, the Manawatu will soon J have no doubt, become a very valuable district The river itself rises, I am told, in tho J ararua mountain at no great distance from the head of the valley of Wairarapa. On looking up the general course of the river, the mountains appear to fall away into low hills and gradually to die out; at some distance on the north side of the Manawatu another range of mountain begins to rise; this is called the Ruuhine, they appear more distant from the shores of Cook's Straits than the end of the Tararua, and I believe the range is higher. I imagine this to be the case because, there appears to be more snow on them. We know that from the head of the valley of the Wairarapa the natives frequently travel into the Manawatu district without passing over any hill of consequence. We know also that the natives travel from the head of the Wairarapa to theAhuriri and Poverty Bay; this fact has lately been corroborated by Mr. David Scott who not long since returned from Ahuriri to Wellington by that route. There is no doubt whatever) I believe, but that a good road may be easily made when required, from any part of the northern shores of Cook's Straits through the gorge between the mountains to the East coast of this Island, to the Taupo and Waikato countries, and to Auckland. This I consider a matter of great importance, as it will open up large and very valuable districts. But to return to Cook's Straits.

From Manawatu to Rangitiki, by the beach, the distance is about 13 miles; near the mouth of the Rangitiki is a licensed ferryman, who keeps a house of accommodation for travellers. This river, I am told, is as deep at its mouth and quite as accessible as the Manawatu, but vessels cannot proceed more than two or three miles up ; boats, however, may proceed much higher generally. On the left, or southern bank, the country affords good pasturage for cattle within one mile of the beach. I did uot proceed far inland on that side, for the great object of my visit was to inspect the Company's new purchase, which commences on the north side of the River Rangitiki; of that, therefore, I shall speak more particularly at present.

The new block extends from the Rangiliki to the Wangailm, but that part of I it lying between the Rivers Turakino ■ and Wangaihu lias been reserved for the Natives, and I did not visit it, but confined myself only to that part between the Rangitiki and Turakino. The distance from one river to the other along the beach is about 17 miles, though the average breadth of this block is not, I believe, more than I*2 miles. For about one mile from the shore the country is loose sand, and valueless; the country then begins to assume a better appearance, producing good grass, flax, toi toi, tutu, and fern—in many places the herbage is most luxuriant: for about 10 or 12 miles, however, the country is intersected by ridges covered with high fern —these ridges form a number of basins, through many of which I passed ; the bottoms of them were generally covered with grass, kc, and most of them would afford excellent pasture for cattle. My route led me through some bush and old potatoe gardens, at about three miles in a ' straight line from the beach ; the land here appeared to be of an excellent quality, the vegetation rich and luxuriant; we then came to more open laud, similar to that already described, and. soon readied the stakes marking the boundaries of the Native Reserve, which contains I believe about 1800 acres. I passed through the reserve to the Pa Parawenua, from thence on towards the cast, and crossed the River Tutu-nui, at some distance above its confluence with the Rangitiki ; near this point the fern ridges terminate, and here I ascended one of them, and attained a fine view of the country, extending to the foot of the Rua-hine mountains ; below me appeared a large plain covered with high grass, toi toi, flax, and what is generally called the cabbage tree (Conlelinc Xushuifis)--the native""name is Ti. This plain is intersected by the River Tutu-nui, bordered by bush'consisting of Ivaikatea, Matahi, Totura, and Tawa, all good woods; tho vegetation of the plain is of the most luxuriant description—l have seen no-

tjung hkc it m auy other pan of New -Aculuiid. Beyond the grass lands the country appears to be covered with lim»cr; it rises, but by un apparently gradual ascent, to another terrace. I have seen a g ()0( l deal of .New Zealand, and I am led, from what I saw in this new district, to think that the land will he found valuable to a distance of at least 40 miles irom the coast. Outside and to the eastward ol the bush, occupying the space between the Rivers Rangitiki and Tutunui near their confluence, Mr. Bell is at present residing—he has charge of some sheep belonging to Mr. Skipwith. Mr. Bell spoke m very high terms of the country around him; he said he had been some five or six miles in the country on the other side of the river, or between the Rangitiki and the Manawatu, and that country he described as the imest he had ever seen anywhere. From Mr. Bell's hut I returned to the beach, and on the following day proceeded to the Turakino, which river" I reached near the Maori Pa within the Reserve there. Thesands of the beach between these two rivers appeared to contain a large portion, not less I think than 30 cent, of the iron sand which is now exciting so much interest in this country.

Two natives accompanied rue in a walk through their reserve, it certainly is a beautiful spot, and the soil appears to be of the finest description. I then walked up a hill in the hope of getting an extensive view of the country, in this however I was disappointed; I found the laud more broken than on the Rangitiki side, the vegetation of the same character, but more luxuriant if possible. The weather proved unpropitious, but I may safely say, that of all the country I have seen in New Zealand, I have seen none of which I think so highly as I do of the Convpauy's new purchase. I only hope that the district between the Rangitiki and the Mauawatu, may be added to it, for I feel convinced that it will then form an admirable site for a large settlement. The country from hence to Taranaki may be seen on a clear day, it has great breadth ; of its fertility I can only speak from my own knowledge of so much as lies within five miles of the northern bank of the Wanganui; for the most part, that is good land, from others I have heard most favourable accounts of the land all the way to Taranaki.

I will now, Sir, enumerate all the rivers which I believe to be navigable for small j vessels of 10 tons and upwards. There are the Waikanae, the Otaki, the Ohou, the Manawatu, the Rangitiki,*the Waiigaihu, the Wanganui, the Waitotara, and the Patea, nine in number; there maybe more, but the mouths of all these rivers are accessible in moderate weather, and they are all within a few hours of Kapiti, where a depot might be formed, and the produce of whatever nature might be there shipped in larger vessels. W. M. Smith, Captain, Late Royal Artillery. : .*. The schooner Queen, Capt: Marshall, arrived this morning from Hobart Town, after a boisterous passage. Mr. Marshall has kindly furnished us with files of papers, but our columns are so crowded, we can make but little use of them before Wednesday. A brig has been working in, during - the night, supposed to be the Torrington, from Sydney, chartered by Mr. Peacock. The barque Promise was laid on at Sydney for this |)ort. Mauried. —At the Episcopal Church, Thorndon, by the Rev. R. Cole, M.A., on Saturday, September '22, Mr. Samuel Maxton, Baker, to Susan, eldest daughter of Mr. Dunn, Dyer, both of Wellington. To the Editor of the Wellington Independent. Sin, —Want of space which p.s you stale, prevented the appearance of my letter in reference to Mr. Fox's attempted suppression of (lie Otajo Keics immediately on receipt of is, is no excuse for its non-appear-ance in subsequent numbers of your paper. Mr. Fox, under cover of an answer to some statements in the Spectator, of which I knew nothing until after they appeared in print, has in a third instance evaded answering the question proposed in that letter. You, to direct attention from the question have indulged in some general statements against me, the graver of which are unlive (random shots falling wide of the mark), and can be met by only a simple denial. The residue of those statements are partial truths, examples of the suggestio falsi, a mode of sophistry in the use of which drilled advoca'es of the isew Zealand Company should be expert under penalty of losing their billet. Witness the case of the Otaqo Ncic?, Malicious people will infer that Mr. Fox was your prompter. Is it true that he did endeavour to suppress the Olaijo News when that paper retVsed to be the echo of the Company's assertions? This is the question which noi;h<.T rVs'wtl'iil invitation nor printed re-

qiiaition will induce Lira to answer. And until it is riTiswered he and you must excuse the doubts which will force themselves upon weak minds. If you think the cause of freedom is advanced by scurrility 1 am happy to differ with you, and if you consider my opinions of so much importance that without being able to controvert them you must refcort to that weapon to evade their force, I may be pardoned for accepting it as a compliment to which modesty has hitherto prevented me from considering them entitled. ° I remain Sir, Your obedient Kervam, 0. Wellington, September 20, 1849. [O. is too cunning He knew very well, for we informed him, tbat we did not have room for his communications, up to the day of publishing them. As Mr. Fox did not see the letter in question, and us he did not prompt us, malicious people like 0. are welcome to surmise and invent whatever untruths they think proper. Had not our remarks been correct, 0. would not have taken so much trouble to convince people of the " compliments" conveyed in them.]