ROADS AND ROAD SCENERY.

Wellington Independent, Volume XV, Issue 1326, 23 February 1859, Page 3

ROADS AND ROAD SCENERY.

The first duty of the Government of a newly colonized country is to make roads. Till they are made the country is not our own —we can neither use it, nor travel over it, nor subdue it; nay we can barely see it. If this be true of all countries it is particularly true of New Zealand and most particularly of the Province of Wellington. Consisting of fine fertile plains aud valleys separated frnm each other by mountain ranges of very considerable means of tapping them is essential to their occupation, and th° Government which neglects this duty abdicates its most important function.

Of all the Provinces of New Zealand ours is the must difficult to tap. The level plains of Canterbury, and the gentle slopes of Otago, both void of timber, present companitively no' difficulty; while a profusion of ready broken metal in the shape of exhaustless supplies of scoria, gives Auckland immense facilities for road making. But in this province though we are surpased by none in the extent of good land the mountain barriers by which its various districts are separated, aud the very heavily timbered character of the greater part uf the country to be tiaversed, makes road making an undertaking of no ordiuary difficulty and cost.

Yet for all this we are prepared to challenge all New Zealand on the extent and excellence of our roads. Indeed, we believe that there are few new countries in any part of the world, in which such roads are to be found, whether tested by the difficulties overcome in their construction, or their goodness now that they are made.

We hare, as appears by the table appended, no less than One Hundred and Twenty three miles and six furlongs of solid metalled fund"— all of it of easy grade, and adapted for every species of traffic. Besides this there are about 10 miles ofbridle'road, which we do not take into the calculation. Considering the character of the country through which many of these have been made—the Ngahauranga for instance — which is almost a tunnel, nearly three miles long, through solid rock—the Riimitaka which crosses a mountain range 3000 feet high, and over which you might trot a stage coach, —the West Coast road a great part of which is over a very broken and precipitous country,—the Ohariu and Makara winding through heavily timbered districts- are works which would show to advantage by the side of the best works of the Old Country.

Wo should be glad to see a comparative statement.of the progress of the other Provinces of New Zealand in this particular; only premising that we have inserted nothing in our Returns but fully constructed thoroughly melalled roads— honafidc turnpike roads, with the omission only of the turnpike. We think we can challenge all the other Provinces to show as good a return. One feature in connection with some of these roads we must not omit to allude to. We mean the extreme beauty of the forest scenery which they open up We have traversed many huu-_ dreds of miles of forest in other lands, have de lighted our eyes with the delicate spring greens of the foliage of Europe, and the gorgeous autumnal lints of the maples, the hickories, and the oaks of the Western World—we have revelled amid the stately magnolia groves of the South, redolent of perfume—but nowhere have we scon forest scenery equal lo that of the hill forests of Now Zealand, with their dark' velvety evergreen foliage—uonirasting with the bright skies above, and the sparkling streams which gush from every crevice of the rooks amidst which they spread their wiry and toi> tuuus roots. Nowhere can the beauties of the New Zealand forest be , better seen, nowhere are they more striking, than on the windings of such mountain roads as we have referred to.

I lo the lover of the picturesque, there is Bcenery )at this moment on the Ngaburanga, theOhariuj jand Makaru roads, which it would repay many miles of laborious travel to see. Unfortunately , the freshness of its beauty will not last for any great length of time. The round topped Brta with its gorgeous Christinas garlands—the graceful Tree Ferns—tlio elegant Manuka— the Eastern looking Nikau—the brilliant K-raka, brighter and more beautiful far than tho laurels of Italy—all are destined to fall before the axe of the woodsman* or to burn in the clearings of the hardy settler enticed by the new made road into the hitherto impenetrable Ustiiesses of the bush. Those who take delight in the beaties of nature should lose no time in visiting the scenes we'buve mentioned. They Will amply repay a stroll'this summer time, hot though the way maybe. RETURN OF ROADS, Me'fllei and finished, in. the Province of Wellington, to the 3\u dag of December, 1858.

Lemgti ■I I j Name Oj Road, II 3 l ! North Western Road North Kasiern " "Gieyiowu , Swamp Morrison's Bush Moaka White's Line Troiter's UVtteto Peck and Weston's Beeihaio's Reuall's Mill '.' Jackson's Ngaburanga , Ohariu Makara , Kurori ; Obiro \\ In the Town of Wellington .... Watigiinui South North Darnell's litialj 32 0 ! 'a o 6 i 2 ] 4 2 1 1 2 1 2 i 2 4 i 2 7 3 1 2 4 4 0 5 1 4 17 0 3 0 1 5 , 123 6 0 0 0 a 1 7 5 8 8 0 7 0 0 0 7 0 0 6 0 0 0 3 2 3 2 4 1 17 3 1 1123 I ' 6