ABOUT THE TOWN

Chronicle (Levin), 14 September 1946, Page 3

ABOUT THE TOWN

T. S.

>D.)

SHANNON SIDE-LIGHTS

(By

We read in the news columns the other day that the synthetic rubber industry has been described as the sickly offspring of a war-time . dilemna. Those synthetic golf balls • we have, been using are no bouncing babies either. We alsp noticed that large scale betting transactions are said to have broken several bookmakers. •Thank goodness we can rest with an easy conscience. Last week we accidentally tu'ned ; our radio on to the Parliamentary :broadcast just when the debate on the recent recommendations put forward by the Licensing Commis- . sion was in progress. We were interested to hear that public , ownership of all breweries had been recommended. All to be • operated from a "sinking" fund, 110 ' doubt. Figures were quoted in the House to show that out of the cost • of a ten-ounce handle, the br'ew- ! ers receive .9d, the Minister of • Finance 3d, and the publican 3.1d. One of these days the poor old consumer of the good amber will find out what he gets. Another extract from the report read : "What is needed is a . system under which • beer would be available to all hotels at fixed rates, just as electricity is provided by the State through power boards." Our only hope is that the level of Lake Waikaremoana will not control the flow of beer as it does the power, otherwise there may be cuts during : the peak period at the hotels. The Flax Crop When drainage was first started ; in the Makerua swamp small flax was growing about 30 inches high. ! After the first drains were put in these plants developed and grew into a fine crop of flax. The crop covered eventually 14,500 acres out of a total area of 22,000 acres in the block. It has been estimated that the crop yielded 70,000 tons of millable leaf per annum, from which the mills dressed about 8,500 tons of hemp and 1,400 tons of tow. There were mills all round the flax area which employed a large number of men. Those that interested Shannon mostly were Mr. C. H. Speirs' mill on the Kai-a Creek, just a few miles out from the town. This was a two stripper mill. , The next mill along the main north road was the Miranui mill, or as it was better known to the average "flaxie" — "the Big Mill." The Miranui mill was the largest flax mill in the world, it had seven strippers working in one shed and two in another, a total of nine machines. The quantity, of leaf cut per annum was on the average of 22,000 tons. To get this quantity over three acres of flax was cut 1 every day and eleven chains of ; tramline were pulled up and relaid j each day. The output of the mill was about 2500 tons of . hemp and ! 400 tons of tow. The company working this mill was known. as A. and L. Seifert Flaxdressing Co., ■Ltd. It was started by Mr. Alfred and Mr. Louis Seifert, who asked ■ others to join them in their venture, and Mr. Alfred Seifert designed the mill and was ' managing-director. • The next mill along the main road was the Mukapai mill, with two strippers. Over the Manawatu River stood the Whitanui mill, which ran four strippers, and not far away was the Poplar mill with two strippers. Both these .mills drew their leaf from the Makerua Flain, and conveyed the cut leaf ! across the river by means of an ( aerial wire rope. These mills employed a large number of men. The work was hard, but the wages were good considering the cost of living at the • time. They were all highly skilled | workers, and it was generally considered that in putting through their work they equalled the very best men in New Zealand. For a long time flaxmilling was a flour- ; ishing industry. The flax lands of : Makerua yielded a heavy crop of millable leaf every three or four years. Prices were good so that ' the industry flourished and provided around £250,000 worth of exports per annum for many years. But, alas — disaster struck in the form of yellow-leaf disease. It was in 1914 that the yellow-leaf disease ' appeared for the first time in the north-west part of the flax area, fairly close to.where the Opiki Hall , stood. It gradually spread over the • whole area and was so disastrous that the yield of leaf dropped from an average of 30 tons per acre for a crop that was growing three or four years, to a yield of seven or ' eight tons per acre 011 a crop grown ■ for five or six years. The flax own- ' ers did all that was possible to find ; the cause of the disease and a possible remedy, but without success. Even to this day it is not .known what caused the trouble. However, it is known that something destroys , the roots and possibly damages the ' crown of the flax plant, thus cut- ; ting off thp supply of nutriment to 'the leaf; the leaves then turn yellow through being starved and eventually the outside leaf dies down and the other leaves get shorter and narrower. So great ;was the disaster of the yellow-leaf disease that it was eventually responsible for the killing off of one of our greatest industries, and the setting back of the growth of the town of Shannon. We hope that during the week some of these old ; "flaxies" will come to light with an I interesting story 01* two of ' the ' romantic industry of flaxmilling in jthe Shannon district. 1 ■