WAYSIDE NOTES.

Akaroa Mail and Banks Peninsula Advertiser, Volume V, Issue 426, 20 August 1880, Page 2

WAYSIDE NOTES.

{> By A WAYsiREn.

•lyVainui, to a perfect etrnnger, might present few charms, or furnish few remarks worthy of.insertion in your journal ; but to one who has visited the place before, and who has not seen it during the last few years, 'some , ' wonderful changes are apparent. Vast strides towards improvements iiave been <> made, especially in respect of. the roomy and,well built structures erected by the residents of that bay. The most-common remark I hear, and the, ordinary*reception I meet with is, "Times are hard," but'l am sure that to any one who visits Wainui no signs of hard times can.be viejble. ...... -

Knowing of old that yon by no meane favor a long, rambling, wearisome epistle, I will endeavor to condense, these notes to the best of my ability. The first eight which struck me upon , landing at the old jetty was the new schoolhouse and schoolmaster's residence—an undoubted credit to the bay. During a conversation with some of the settlers, I learned that an unpleasant altercation had taken place at the time of its erection about the site upon which the school should be built, and although the all-powerful Education Board had carried the day pro. tern., the settlers had shown' that, they intended to have things .their . o\rn, way, and hacj oir their own account built a schoolhouse on a different site, so the Government school house had to be closed, / What a pity'that a few dissentients should have cost the settlers such a large extra outlay. f More especially is it to be regretted,' seeing that tbose who were the chief instruments in the affair have .since 'left the district. But " Let by-goneV bV; .bygones."' The first place I made for'was |he residence of ray old and well-esteemed friend, Col McDonald, and instead of . finding ■ the small and hbthely cot in which he resided of yore, I found a large, two-storied still not less hospitable) house built upon the most approved .style,, by, .Mr J. Allotti; of AkaToa,.; with i all the latest improve- 2 menta calculated to facilitate the process of cheese-making with the, least jinconvenience or unpleasantness to the cheesemakers. ; From thence I went to visit another old friend —Mrs Warner. I found that although not yet in the fashion, still she was far, ;on the way, and the frame of a large and , what ".promises: to be a Jwelll built house adjoins the old bouse. . ''-■ '■ 1 /• j ; I;fearyour, jwjlL- not allow me to mention all changes I foun<i in 5 Wairiui; but I can hardly conclude without ' mentioning the grand, improvement, made to Mr Joseph/Bates', ,hoase, the

handiwork of the same well-known builder —Mr John Allott—showing evidences of the able manipulation of the saw and hammer being well to tho fore. ,, I might honestly state that no architect could have designed a'inorp complete or rooiriy residence* roomy so far as comfort ie concerned,

but happily not " roomy to loneliness," the family being sufficient to make the homo happy.

With regard to traffic, I might state far better opportunities ore offered for traffic than heretofore. A good Government road has been opened from the wharf, leading up the Wainui Valley for a distanco of some four or five miles, and although not metalled all the way, improvements upon the traffic accommodation are to be met with on every hand. Ere quitting the Bay I had an interview with Mr Walmsley, the Chairman of the School Committee, who kindly shewed me over the school houee at present used by the settlers, and taken over— so far as the providing of a teacher is concerned—by the Board of Education. It is a fine lofty building, some 33ft by 24ft, with the iatest improvements in the matter of ventilation. The school is well supplied with maps and charts, besides a well-assorted selection of diagrams, a study calculated to improve the young and tender mind. This, en passant, I might •tate has been built entirely by a few persevering Wainui settlers, who determined to have a suitable school for their' children. At present the roll shows that 48 boys and girli attend the school; last quarter the average attendance was 40, a proportion which I am sure few schools can equal, and none beat! The other echoolhouse—the one built by the Board of Education—is used as the post office and library, of which I shall make mention before concluding, and although both institutions should be properly prdvided for, still even a waysider cannot help thinking a radical wrong has been done in building such a grand edifice for a schoolhouse finally destined to be used for such a purpose. The library contains over 400 volumes, which were judiciously selected by a committee appointed for the purpose, and contains favorable specimens of every branch of literature. The subscription is low, and the library is well supported by the settlers. I cannot conclude without bearing testimony to the hearty hospitality which is everywhere displayed in this settlement. To be a stranger seems to be sufficient to ensure every kind of entertainment being offered in the most friendly manner, not forgetting the national beverage of most of the settlers—"whuekey."