A MODEL VILLAGE.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1831, 18 August 1913, Page 5

A MODEL VILLAGE.

UNIQUE SETTLEMENT SCHEMA

A NEW RAILWAY.

TO CONNECT TWO MAIN LINES,

A most comprehensive fichemo of 'land settlement was described to a Dominion* reporter by Mr. Howard Butters, M.1.M.8., F.1.D., who was a passenger for England, via Sydney, by tlio Mocrnki. Sir. Butlers is maiuia-iiig director of Slay , Morn Estates (New Zealand) Ltd., an Unglisli company which has acquired the freehold of a tract of 19,000 acres alongside the Himutaka line, near "Upper Hutt, Tho land is at present completely covered with riimi, ami tho company liua established an ilp-t'o-date mill 1o cut tlio timlwr. Mr. Butters is an .Englishman, but has lived in tlio Dominion for tlio last 14 years, off and on.

What the Company Propose, The company's sclicme'for dealing with tho land is a most comprehensive one, anil although work has been in' progress since May, 1912, such secrecy litw been preserved that, practically nothing is known of tho operations. Tho bush is lour miles from the Wairarapa railway, w*2i*o tho mill is, and it extends'a largo part of tho way to Olnki on tlie Maia i runic line. Tlio railway which tho company is constructing to connect tho busli witn the mill, and which will bo gradually extended right through tho company s property, is intended to become t'lio long-talked-of connection between tho Upper Hutt and Otaki.

'i'ho mill which has been installed by Mr. Butters can cut 10,000 foot of tiuid&y. a much greater output than thatof any other mill so fur constructed in New Zealand. Tho plant is of great

power, and every possiblo labour-saving device lias been installed. It is raid that had tho English company not eccurcd the proporty, the whole of tlio bush would liavo "disappeared in smoke," a* the local proposals wero to clcar' it by burning. A Gardon Village.' Tlio most interesting feature about th« company's works is a scheme for the establishment of a "pardon village" for its employees. A start has already been made, and several very artistic-looking cottages have been completed, ■ The object of the model village, eaiil Mr. Butters, was that cach employee should bo the owner of his own house, as a freeholder. What this company aimed at was having married men, living in good housos, in « "civilised" village.. . Somo of his propositions, Mr. Butters said, wero rather startling from a legal- point of yiow, but ho intended to go on witli tlienv His model village would be governed by a town council. The chairman would bo appointed by tlio company, whilo tlio other members of tlio council would 1m by the townspeople, each section exercising 0110 vote. Sucl; a council would possess the. authority of a municipal council duly constituted in any ordinary borough, and would haro 'power to strilco a rate for sewage, electric light, and other works. In this respect the people .would lw quite independent and iree. Every resident of the town would be obliged to keep his dwelling in goo<l order, and to maintain a garden round', it. Billiard saloons of the lower typo,! "gambling hells," and 6ucli other undo- 1 •sirablo institutions would not bo toler-i' ated. > ' Layina-off the Villaoo, In connection' with tlio garden village said Mr. Butters, it was proposed to develop u liealtli centre. Tho houses would' bo built on the Norwegian system, so oa to bo impervious to cold in '..tho winter. The town would "bo a really first-clasa pleasure resort. At present tlitrro was no such placo near Wellington. Tho central portion of tho toirci would be a reserve, with open streets. At 0110 end would bs a long verandaed hotel or pension, so arranged:. that visitors could havo their meals-TespMially in tho oreuitig—in tho open .air, in the Continental fasnion. At tho. other end of tlio village would bo tho publio buildings, places of amusement, churches, etc, It would l» quite possible, Mr. Butters added, to arrange for ski-ing, a pastimo at present nlmost unknown in tlio Dominion. Thero is a oonveniont route from the town site to Mount Hector, whe.ro tho e>port ocu.ld bo indulged in. By the timo all theso attractions wero ready,'Wellington'' city would ha.vo expanded enough to need them. The railway would be thero to give easy communication with tho city, and tho village should becomo most popular as a week-end resort.

Referring to tho recreations which he proposed should bo provided for the work-, ers, llir. Butters said that ho held that rational amusement was an essential txj til® well-being of tho residents' of any town. The recreations in tlio company's village will Tie directed by tlie town council. Tho main hall will bo used for eueli purposes as tho council may direct. Ho Vus strongly of tilio opinion that work■people needed plenty of healthy amusement, and llho lack of enoh was one of tho great needs of tho country towns of tlio' Dominion at tlio present time. This would not bo lost sight of in tho garden village. Freehold for Small Farms. One of the essential factors of tlio company's scheme was to get its land subdivided into as small farms as wore practicable, suc'h subdivision to carried out ns quickly os possible. The company's policy was tho direct opposite of tho old--fashioned system, whereby .a squatter could obtain a large section of land and lock it up. They proposed to olear it of timber, put down grass, and sell it. But it muet be disposed of as freehold—that was an essential feature of tho schomo. It ntoant a {jreat deal for a working man to possess his own little piece of land. 11l ' ho village, tho workers would know that tliey wcro malting their own homos for their wives and children, and would take an interest in the building of their houses and tho laying-owl of tlieii' sections, wlijch would bo impossible under a leasehold t'chcine, Each man would bccomo tho absolute owner -of las own pieoo of property, and would oultivaito it in tho best possible manner. In tho disposal of tho land, profereuco would, of course, bo given i<> employees of the company. Tlio system of milling to bo adopted would givo workers a great deal more interest in their work tllum any so far -adopted in tho Dominion. Tho work rc-« quired skilled men, who woro, of course, entitled to wages. In o:der to concentrate tho interest of every worker in tlio welfare of tho company, a schomo of payment for woik dono.has been evolved. Wages will be paid in three sections. Firstly, tho workers will regularly receive u, small sum in cash, as a kind of rotajiiing fee,' secondly, flieM will bo bonuses on tho actual results of the work of a man's own department; aud, thirdly, a ban us according to tho profits of tlio company as a whole.

Tlio sections' in tlio (awn settlement would )ra given to tlio workmen on mortgage, tins interest oil which would bo loss than ordinary rent. Should tho town council wish, a co-oporativo storo \vonld ba established. Goods -would bo sold in this store at wholesale prices, and tliero would probably bo a pood yearly profit, which would bo divided amongst tha workers. Important Railway Connection. . Referring, to tho company's railway, schcmo, Mr. Hut-tors «iid- that they bad surveyed a route from llungaroa to Otaki, a distance of about 25 miles. Tho com"; piny in tended to carry .'out tho construction of tlm line over tiio wholo route, unless t'lio Government took it over from them. It was 110 part of their scheme to build <i lino ond hold dt -against tho Government, with a view to tilling it afterwards at a Ui-go profit. Tho Government was welcomo to {»]» over tho line so soon as over it wished. A.U tho company dc-nirod-woro tlio facilities to get their timber out. Already some five miles of railway had been constructed, and another tvo-milo stretch was roady for the laying of the rails.' When tho lino was com plot-' ed it would form an ideal connecting link between tho Mnnawatu and Wairurapa lines. Thore was enough blish on the property to keep tho mill steadily employed for at least 25 yeairs. but as tlio work of clearing was carried on, it . would bo speedily followed by tlio work of settlement, and t'ho railway wouild bo pushed on at the sarno timo. . .