WAYSIDE NOTES.

Akaroa Mail and Banks Peninsula Advertiser, Volume 4, Issue 378, 5 March 1880, Page 2

WAYSIDE NOTES.

By a Waysider,

* The ride from Akaroa' to Okain's Bay under a scorching hot sun, and without a breath of air stirring, might not be the pleasantest treat possible ; still, seated on the back of a good easy-going horse, with no whipping required, worse punishment might be inflicted. Tho whole of the road until turning into the Okain's Bay new road is at the present time in first-class order, only excepting, perhaps rather, too plentiful a sprinkling of large stones, and even.the Okain's road is not as bad as is commonly repqrted in Akaroa. It certainly cannot be considered a creditable piece of work to any Road Board ; nor can any traveller, should he trouble himself to consider on the matter, imagine why, after so much outlay had been incurred to form the road, it should not have been kept in decent repair. Still, there are doubtless worse ones to be found if one only knew where to look for them ; and the report that the descent from the Summit to Okain's Bay is impassable is not now true, as the whole of the slips have been cleared away and the thistles cut down, at any rate sufficiently to enable one to squeeze through, and in fact a settler from the Bay drove his trap up and down oh Sunday, the 22nd, so that is is proof positive. The scenery along the wholb of the road is something magnificent, but is seen so often by the majority of the settlers that it is not appreciated as fully as it otherwise might be.

One of the first objects of interest espied in the distance is Mr Thacker's large and well-built saw-mill, with its fifteen or sixteen adjacent cottages, but on approaching nearer the traveller finds that the mill is not working, and that the cottages are empty for the most part, and is sheltered from the effects of the weather, at any rate as far as the lower halves of the buildings are concerned, by a luxuriant growth of " Scotchmen." On enquiry how long and for what reason the mill has been closed, I discovered it was for want of timber of a suitable kind and at a payable distance, and that operations had ceased for over eighteen months.

Okain's Bay boasts of a neat little edifice in the shape of a church which, in size and structure, although certainly not in age, reminds one of the little churches to be found at Ventnor and other spots in the Isle of Wight, so aptly termed the " Garden of England." It belongs to the Episcopalean denomination, and morning and evening services are conducted in it by Mr Hutt, the Government schoolmaster. I was informed that the congregation quite averaged 70, and that in fine weather and not too hot to render walking or riding possible, often over 100 were in attendance. The Government school here has been re : opened over five weeks, and was the first school on the Peninsula to commence work for the year 1880. This was owing to the shortness of the holidays given by the teacher, which again was partly attributable to that good gentleman's disbelief in long intervals of idleness, and partly to the fact of his having been unavoidably absent for a week in the former term. The school and teacher's house are both decent buildings. The attendance roll shows a number of over 50, with an average last quarter of 48. Mr Hutt, the teacher, gives great satisfaction, and appears to be universally liked by the settlers of the bay. He is most ably assisted in hia scholastic duties both week days and at Sunday school by his wife.

Another institution is to be found in this bay well worthy of a passing word. It is the Circulating Library, a nice building, quite large enough for the requirements of the district, and kept in ' first-class order by the librarian, Mr E. W. Elliss. It contains upwards of 1200 books ot the varied collection so usual to be met with in similar institutions, and which are catalogued in a new and not often seen manner, and one which I think might with advantage be adopted by other libraries, viz., In a large map bung up on the wall with the class of literature, name, and number of book clearly set forth in a good round hand, andsaving all the troub'e of applying to the Librarian for the printed catalogues customarily belonging to libraries, and seldom to be having in nine cases out of ten "just been lent to Mrs So and So." . All the leading papers of the Province are to be found here, as well as some from other parts. The institution is kept up by contributions, subscriptions, and by the Government grant.