A NOVEL NIGHT RIDE.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 398, 6 January 1909, Page 4

A NOVEL NIGHT RIDE.

ON A BUSH TRAMWAY. A Dominion representative,: travelling through the' King Country a day or two ago, relates the following experience which befel him during his trip, the novelty of which is sufficient in itself to stamp an indelible imhis mind:—' "'. ; ' I spent a few days in Auckland, and while there I received a letter from my friends vouchsafing the information that they would meet tho coach from Taumarunui and that I would be conveyed, "home".in their, f'motor car."- A canny doubt was natural under the circumstances, but I. waited in patience and said nothing.; ■ . ■ ' ' ■ I arrived by the Main Trunk at the town-, ship of Taumarunui in due course, and the "car" was there all right, but I could soon see that it was of the bush variety, and of one-horso.power only. A tramway runs for a distance of about eight miles, and transports timber from the bush -to the sawmill; but when not in use by the timber milling proprietary, permission is given for the use of a truck, and the users. tie. .the. truck to a horse's neck and off they go. . Surprise abated, we made preparations for our novel journey The load consisted of seven persons," and, in addition to the human freight, the usual weekly supply of provisions was also placed on board. - AVe distributed ourselves on the limited space available to the best advantage, and hung on. Cushions were at a premium,- and wo settled ourselves as comfortably as we could. . ' "All ready?" sang out the driver in cheery tones, which reverberated again and again through the bush. • "All right," came the response. :'■-.• A crack of. the whip and" we started. The scenery was, magnificent. First of all, we crossed a.long and high, bridge over the Wanganui River, just a couple of miles Lifore its junction; with the Ongarue River. The Wanganui presents a fine spectacle, but, of course, by no means as imposing as,when it reaches the,town that bears its name. As we proceeded. the ! scenery; increased in grandeur, and-in this instance it was beauty in diversity. . Imagine a beautiful- starlit,. cloudless night, tall of the forest-on either side whichj at times,' blotted out tho view of sky and stars, and we moved on in partial darkness, only the sound of the horse s hoofs and the sight of companions serving to .recall the |mmd to tho existence of civilisation. .It isat such moments that one feels the subtle vibrations; of the vague, indefinable something' termed.the ''Spirit of the Bush." . ..Stfli we : . glided\ on. Kahikatea, :-rimu, I totara, matai, gave place,to one another in rapid succession'as,we journeyed on in. silence. The scenery, too, changed, and-we came to a,,-spot of, almost inconceivable beauty. On our right was the bush at its thickest, and -on our left, twenty feet_ below, flowed the Punga-Punga Stream, a tributary: of the Wanganui, winding round pretty headlands with scarcely a ripple, to disturb .the surface. • -A pretty" fringe of verdant. shrubbery nestled on tho distant bank, luxuriant with the deep gren of summer. To .make the view, if possible, more picturesque, the a "dim, -religious • light,"-., the finishing touch to a picture of natural loveliness. ■ ■'•■■■ - '■— '• '■■•'. ~- ',; Pumice!'in. all>shapes and'sizes, abounds.: In fact ; tho'country seemed mostly of pumice formation. A memorable -portion ef. the ride was the .passage .through -a : pumice "tunnel.-' It was:really a cutting, the hillsides towering to a great height, -.but a wooden roof had i been laid down to prevent slips, wjiich were not infrequent. It must not bo:supposed that our destination ,was reached without mishaps attendant, on an improvised; conveyance. All had gone well for a mile or so, when a lusty "Look Out" from the driver, accompanied by the sound of • a-wooden of ake~ jarring on the wheel, awoke us from our reflections,; and before we thoroughly realised; the position, the car had run off tho line at a weak spot. No one was hurt, the provisions • were replaced , on. the trolly, and we; "were again on the way: ; Placidly we proceeded, and before long,"the settlement; situated among the manuka l on:_ a-clearing,-came into..view; thus ending 'an"interesting '"trip:*": y >■