PALMERSTON NORTH.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 960, 29 October 1910, Page 10

PALMERSTON NORTH.

TRADE CENTRE AND TRAIN JUNCTION.

ITS PRESENT AND FUTURE.

the rising imm of:jhe mm island

Palmerstoii North is admirably situated as a trade centre. It.is practically tho junction place of three main lines of. railway, ■ namely Wellington-New Plymouth, Wellington-Napier, and Wel-lington-Auckland, and in addition is tho most important railway junction eentro. in Now Zealand. Evory day fifty trains pull in and pull out from Palmerston North. - .' Next. week—the occasion of: tho big spring show—the averago will go up over sixty;.and on some days there will :be fifteen passenger trains pulling out every three hours. It is very' probable that next week fully'so,ooo people will bo carried into and away from Palmerston North. This great .influx, .'will assemble from all parts ,of: New. Zealand, but especially from the North Island. . They will, of course, come to., admire the show—a show :which is; very distinctly, a credit to the town and district.

And; equally of course, they will come to criticise. The Square, which just liow presents itself.as a sort of sweet little Arcadian Paradise, because .an oblong of bronze green, flanked- by an extremely white city always Avar, attract,, by the greatest of all attractions, which is contrast. Bui nothing, however sweet, .is perfect. And" so. lio doubt various quidnuncs—altogether ■ irrelevant as quidnuncs always are—will-ad-vise the townspeople how.thoy should run the trams, and. manage the elcctric motive water-power,. when they get them, also whether hotelkeepers or tobacconists aro the proper persons to sell cigarettes and cigars on certain days and after certain hours. ' However, Palmerston North is not likely , to. be troubled by such questions Iso long as there is business doing.. 1 • ' .It is generally- admitted that Palmerston possesses very considerable (some say, exceptional) advantages, as a trade centre. Situated .within easy distance of. Wellington,: Hawko's : Bay, North; Wairarapa,: Marton,.-.the '. Main Trunk lino, and Foxton areas,: its railway sorvico seenis- to bo especially designed for its-advancement. Its first passenger train leaves at six o'clock 1 in the morning,, tho last conies in at eleven at i night. , Between those times many trains go many-ways.; It is from those circumstances that the' town is gradually building up a name for itself as a distributing centre; and a eentro for. business firms to work from, Palmerston North business people are re-' cognising the fact that, with the growth of their.town, they must look for nioro than local trade, 1 and this they are now . reaching out for with. exemplary enterprise, ~Bv a system ,of application; aijdv a method of making the town as i attractive as possible, ■ Palmerston should;not'-lag.in- the race for tho honour--of .-remaining the most important inland . town in New Zealand, . but it is well for her. to remember that, as tho theatrical:bill-boards say, "there aro others" (Wanganui and Napier) on her track, and that the battle is .already joined. ! Appended is a brief: sketch, of towns , and districts by which Palmerston North tre,, outside" of' i)ls ; . own, area, Mwliich recognises .Ashhurst,,. Raumai, Pohaligina, Longburn,. Shannon, Tdkqmaru, Roiigotea, Colyton,; and Other, places, . OUTLIERS OF PALMEHSTON. DANNEVIRKE. Danuovirke, ; the growing city of southern Hawko's ' Bay, supplies anothor.illustration of the.valuo'of Palmerston North, ag a business' and ..junction eentro. It lies about thirty-fivo. miles north-east from; tho Manawatu terminus, and affords "'. admirable opportunity, for 'a 'trade '.connection. Of course, it„is easily, understood that Dannevirko has : ;its. own ideas of working out.- its own destiny, but, at ..the .present" time, there- is no. doubt that it reaps commercial advantage through proximity, to .Palmerston North,. ; Dannovirke is ' the apotheosis ■ of "shanties" diimped down, years-ago, at just the .'right'.-place. To-day,-, .wo. seo the up-to-date borqugh, with jva st actual wealth; and ■ greater potential, '.'wealth behind it. Dannevirke.is built on what was biice a: totara' forest, and a traveller, informed a : Dominion'' representative, that, on an occasion;" when i he • went; through . .in , the"seventies'," hq, saw' ■ where .the town now stands!- the 'foiled' totara lying all ,ways,i and. frfim six to, twelve feet deep. A sawmill once stood on tho. site .of:."the present-railway station.- 11 • ■'

The town itself was' first, settled by .immigrants from Norway, Sowden, and Denmark, who arrived in the' ships Hooding and Ballarat in 1872. They numbered twentyrtwo. families, and tlioy named tho place Dannevirke in mouriii'ul memory of : a fortification at Schleswig .taken by'the masterful Germans in . 1864.:' At one. time tho: settlement' was nicknamed Sleepertowh, . owing to tho -.rows: of' sleepers,, which, foiva period, lined tho road,.: cut for tho Gov-, eminent ■ by: the' pioneors. Land sections wero-.sokl at-£l per acre, but the! settlors earned so -little; ,and there seomed to be. so small a future for tho: place, "that it was in.'only-a-few instances that, advantage could he taken of these terms. -. Wages were five shillings a day;, while the rato for sleepercutting was one shilling per sleepor net, the Government exacting a threepenny royalty. The district just managed, to exist till the sawmill era commenced in 1886, when it went ahead by leaps and bounds. : In a few years' time there were fully twenty-fivo' mills operating "about. ;,Dannevirko; and; . with increased -settlement and-railway line .building, tho: place progressed wonderfully. ' At tho present time, the -last of tho sawmills aro about cutting out, and aro moving into the Main Trunk line area, and' the dairy farming industries are even now fairly established.' There: are already -four or five factories in close proximity to the town, andthe farmers ; aro doing well on their sections. The town was constituted a borough in 1892, and its 'population now is .between 4000 and 5000. It has some very fine buildings, and amongst its business firms are some of the most important in the North Island. High, pressure .water supply, gas, and drainago, aro laid on all under municipal control. There is a first-class racing club, and an enterprising- Agricultural and Pastoral Association, which, early in tho year, made a successful inauguration. Tho town also possesses a Carnegio library. Amongst Dannovirko's outdistricts (all flourishing) aro Weber (2fi miles), Wimbleton/.,(41,mi1e5), Her-, bertvillo (50'. milos),y.'..and::: Matamau, Makotuku,' Ormolidvillo, ;antl Takapau, along tlio railway line, WOODVILLE. According to unwritten rules which aro supposed to govern railway Bllbteriniin and railway junctions, Wood-' villo should .rival Palmerston North. That it does'not-do-so is possibly on account of its'.proximity to tho Manawatu metropolis, (19 miles), and the fact that on ono side it is bounded by a gorge and a hill;'- Its'future may bo said to lie in dairying, and already it haß several thriving factories. It says

a great deal for tho Woodville climate that while at the present time several more populous districts are showing decreasing milk supplies, Woodyille shows a general increase. At one time it was thought that Woodville would bccomo famous, by reason of its copper' mines, but although copper has been found in the district, enterprise has been usually handicapped through want of capital. The place has several industries, in addition to- dairy factories, notably a bacon factory an ' a.i fellmoEgery. The borough (formed in 1887) has muni-. "cipal gasworks, : high-pressure _ water supply and drainage, public swimming b'aths, fine soventy-acre reserve, recreation ground, and soma vory' fine troutfishing rivers.' The other day the town achieved fame and a warm corncr in the heart of his Excellency the' Governor by reason of the novel and distinctly pretty manner in which tho school children "held up" the King's representative in order that they might seo him. ' A red,' white; and blue ribbon stretched across the road, and the presence of-a large number of healtlfyfeatured urchins is a memory which will doubtless be long remembered by Lord Islington, as one of his most pleasurable recollections among the smaller generations of young New Zealand. 1 Woodville possesses one of tho most successful country racing clubs in New Zealand, and also an Agricultural and Pastoral Association. , . FEILDINC. In many ways Feilding stands on' its' own feet as a trade centre, but the fact that it is situated only about thirteen miles from its big sister, Palmerston North, and the added fact that several of tho big Palmerston-North firms have branch establishments in the smaller town, are very good, reasons for the belief that in a measure Palmerston North absorbs a certain amount of Feilding's general trade. The healthy.; commercial rivalry which exists between towns in the North Island in their own special areas is indicative of their enterprise, and in-almost every ease has led to progressive commercial and municipal activity, and generally to better, conditions of 'livings Foilding.is a:,striking illustration of this fact. It feels that, with Palmerston North growing bigger and bigger overy year, with its great' and growing- importance as a railway centre, it must put its best foot foremost in order to hold its own. .For this development , the town is helped considerably on ■ ac&unt of its' geographical position, which directly taps'large areas of back country: la' this category, for instance, are'included tho .mail coach routes which ■run .through one way 25 miles to Iteway.past Waituna West, and up at,tho back.of the Main Trunk railway,lino; in another, 36-miles to Rangiwahia, and-within 14 miles from Maiigawoka : in another, 30 odd miles past Kinmbolton'and Apiti, to Jlmutoi and Utuwai,. districts, over Mountains at the. back of the Danncvirke district; in another, 12 miles -to the Sanson .district, which is the terminus of,the Sanson tram, which, runs-from-jFoxton.vi£All ' these .trade' rptfttfs" conjoin at Feilding, and it -'is only natural that a gjood percentage of busi-' ness comes into Palmerston. .Tho ; ; town' itself—one of- the prettiest' in . the North' Island—lies in ; a -garden ,'of well-kept farms' and; plantation;?,• 'and dairy factories. Apart from its general excellence as a town and district, Feilding achieves eminence iiv other ways. U The public eye Was focussed upon it somo time ago, when, owing to some circumstance or other the rest, of the jvolatiln Dominion' .was in a-ferment, a ■necessary antidote was provided -by a telegram 'whicli announced that "Feild--calni." Upon . reading *-that announcement in-, tho press,- the: '• temperature of every temporarily;excitable individual dropped again to • subnormal. - Some weeks ago, Feilding inaugurated, a pretty idea in the proposal that Nbw Zealand should adopt the kowhai as its national flower, and that there should be a "kowhai" day. Ajid'with its . characteristic '-, enterprise Feilding celebrated tho day forthwith.

It is very well known that Feilding derives its liamo from.the Hon. Col6nel Feilding, brother of the Earl ,of Den-: high, who claimed descent from the Gorman houso: of Hapsburgi. The namo is' spelt "Feilding," and there are -many people who wonder why :it•-wasrviiot.' spplt- ; "Fielding." -Fielding, tho great novelist, and author of "Tom ■' Jones," |;was also of the branch of the Denbigh, house. He :spelt" Ill's name "ie,"' and his explanation 'of the difference in the spelling may be correct. He was once asked by his kinsman, the Earl ,of Denbigh, why he did not spell his namo' liko the rest of the house.: His-reply was that he could not say, "except it be that my branch of the family were': the first that knew how to spell." FOXTON. • / Foxton, which lies about'twenty miles from. Palmerston North, and- is connected thereby by ' a railway service capable of much improvement," was named after Sir William Fox, one-time Premier of New Zealand, and one of the men now referred to as a "giant of former days." The town is built on the Manawatu River, and, given the proper help, should develop, into a shipping port of some importance. ' Lately the' residents of the place have made' an effort in this direction, but trouble, [ with tho' State lias so far apparently blocked tho scheme. 1 "With - its' river deepened,' better harbour accommodation, and a decent railway service, Foxton would bo : an'important adjunct indeveloping Palmerston as.-. 'a 'trade ceiitrej but apparently the time is not yet.' Something will possibly.be done when the local bodies and Chambers of Commerco " interested combino , and agitato continuously. At tho present time. FoxtonV main industry .is flax, .which is being taken .from the Moutoa swamp, said to be one tho finest flaxbearing areas in New Zealand. Foxton lies within easy- access of some ex-, i cellent dairying centres, notably. Oroua Bridge, Ilimitangi, Oroua Downs, and somo good country on tho mail coach route to Shannon and Levin. Foxton is one of tho oldest towns in tho North Island. It.'was'ah important shipping centro to.the Manawatu district beforo tho advent of tho- present railway running into Wellington, and in tlioso early days its wooden tramway was utilised to carry immigrants and thoiri belongings into the new town of Palmerston North. The place was also tho headquarters of tho mail route to Wellington, one of its carriers in tho-prc-coach period boing, tho late Major Kemp. The town was. constituted a borough, in 18S8, when tho first Mayor was Mr. 10. S. Thynne. Tho borough has an area of 1240 acres, and. the population; is now between 1500 and 20001 As a holiday resort, Foxton has many advantages, which are; as yot not sufficiently known. Its river is adniirablo for boating purposes, and some months ago was the sebno of a big sculling carnival, in which somo of tho principal oarsmen in Australas.'a competed. Wliarangi, at tho mouth ; of the river, is a line sca-sido bay, well spoken of by all who have visited ihsv plaoe.

LEVIN. Levin is at present very, justly regarded as the most progressive town oil the Manawatu line between Wellington and Palmerston North. Commenced in tho 'eighties, and. named after one of Wellington's most illustrious citizens. Levin for many years led a very checkered existence, and its rapid progress dati-s from its inception as a borough in 1906. Municipal gasworks, high-pressuro water supply and drainago are .following each other in Quick succession, and in addition, to some vory well-built buildings, it is stated on the best authority that during tho noxt twelve mouths tho town will build in brick to the extent of from £12,000 to £20,000. This work will bo in connection with somo street leases which wore sold a few days ago at au aveiage of £1 lis. 6d. per foot per annuii, on twenty-one-year leases. . Twelve '.years ago .tho same leases could bo purchased for 6s. per foot pof annum, so tint "it will be seen that in that tinio .the'value of city property in Leviu has advanced 25 per cent', It is generally regarded as a very probable fact that the futire of. Levin will be a feeding centre \o supply the hungry' thousands of Wellington. Even now,' largo quantities of milk are sent down to the capital city and also;to Palmerston North, and with its fertile country, tho place is well fitted for dairying and the growing of vegetables on a very, largo scale. The place already possesses a . State farm, known.as Wereroa, and established by tho Hon. W. P. Reeves . in 1894. Experiments of a very extensive nature are practised at the Wereroa Farm with reference to stock breeding and the grooving of root crops- and cereals. Its area is about 800 acres. Levin's great scenic attraction is Lake Horowheiiua, the Killariiey of New Zealand. Its subtle bays, mysterious nooks, and ghostly headlands, surrounded _ by irregularly-topped hills, which mirror their outlines in the bosom of fho "sleeping; tideless" soa," are the wonder of many ( a. world-travelled.tour-ist.'l Amongst .': Levin's , ■ sub-centres' are Otaki, situated a few miles away, and which' district 1 it ' is ; -now .proposed to turn'into a borough. The '• proposed borough will have an acreage of 2790 seres, capital value 0f.£164,884, and ,£i population of 1232 inhabitants, excluding 228 Maoris and 32 Chinese. The Native, area of tho town comprises 414 aoies, with a capital value of £4428. Otaki is forty-eight miles from Welwith a very fine sea beach and a beautiful climate.;: The town has a notable 'mission church of unique Construction, . and erected: in 1848. The roof is supported by three solid totara logs, measuring,fifty feet in' height by about two feet ;in thickness; To Rauparaha," the well-known' Maori warrior, at one time made Ot'alci his headquarters, and a monument lias been- erected to his memory near tho old mission church. . . '; 1 >■'. PAHIATUA. ■ft l'ahiatua ■ lies' around' the .'-Manawatu Gorge,. about'' twenty, miles from ' Palmerston North, and seventeen-miles over the low-lying Tararua Ranges, via Ballance. The town is one of the most progressive in '/Worth Wairarapa, . and had it not been side-tracked;, over the construction <of>fih6; railway line which was at first'-intended-.t0.;b0.-,constructed through its main street, it'would have made still further progress. 'Pahiatua's main street, ,which_ was built ' for tho reception of the railway lino, is .three chains wide. ' .' A' portion of: this centre is now laid otit artistically-in the; form of gardens, 'something like those of Palmerston 'North 'and Feilding,- only on a smaller, scale, and lately there was a proposal to shift the post office from its. very , inconvenient , site; -to one of these garden centres. The ' scheme fell through owing ';to the townspeople not being able /to,-agree lipon which- particular square- the i.gjst "office should be ago,' Pahiatua was a collection of a few buildings, situated at the: end of the Forty- Mile Bush. ■ To-day it is a: very important farm centre, with fifty miles of good back country running - back through Makuri and I'oiigaroa to : Aohanga, and with all the modern conveniences of a well-kept town. -Wool, .mutton,, and dairy produce are the staple, products, and tho town is;a very important' live stock market, which with that nf Eketahuna and Mastcrton. There/is seldom longer than a ninodays', drought in the/Pahiatua, .district,' ' and': consequently it has a good, name for prolific pastures. '■/'-. - Its champion trout , stream, the Makuri, now spoken of as a possible supply for electrical power for Palnjerstou North, -Woodvilte, aiid Masterton, has never TUn: dry,: and:- is/always - gurgling even in. the ..dryesfc; of: weathor. The 'town possess a gasworks; high-pressure water supply,-'and drainage; It has also several local, industries, Technical School, Hospital, library, Racing Club, and an' Agricultural and 1 Pastoral Association.- One of the district dairy companies, "The Ballance," is tho largest of its kind in the Wairarapa ; district, aiidone of the largest in the North Island. Pajiiatua " was _ made into a borough .in 1892,' when its .first Mayoi was the late Mr.; Job Vile, M.H.R Amongst the town's, sub-centres •;' ar« Makuri, a progressive town. Jiineteer miles back over tho Puketois,'Tongaroa, another twenty, miles still furthei backward,' Rakaunui,' Aohaiiga;; an.d Waioiie in the samo area, Konini and Hamua, a few miles ito the south, Scarborough and Mangatainoka, near the railway line, and Ballance, over the mountain on the way to '. Palmerston -Nortli. : The meaning of the word Palliatiia is "the resting-place of the god." MAftTOfl.: • Marton is tho chief town of the Rangitikei County and the junction of tho Wellington-Auckland Main Trunk railway lino. The town' has been in existenco for many years'. It was .con. stituted a borough in 1879, and with the advent of the Main Trunk through railway line has made great progress. The district around Marion is one of the. finest' in the North Island. It is fiat country, with largo agricultural ■and pastoral'interests,- and a - good stock market town. The climate is genial and there is iiow in operation an excellent drainage scheme. The beauty spots of Marton. .are its park, its rural lanes, verdure clad hills,'- villa .residences, and., pretty farm plantation's. On a clear day; from the "Bonny Glen" hill, near Marton, one niay obtain a magnificent, view of Ruapehu, Ngauruhoe, and Tongariro on the one side, Egmorit on the other, a magnificent .view of the Turakina Valley, and to the westward a great sight of' the Pacific Ocean. Marton : is ,at present fast growing towards tile railway station, which at- one time was fully two miles from the town.. ——— . ii. ..