SOUTH ISLAND TRUNK LINE

Hokitika Guardian, 12 July 1929, Page 7

SOUTH ISLAND TRUNK LINE

SETTLEAI ENT PROSPECTS. MARLBOROUGH MEMBER QUOTES FACTS. WELLINGTON, July 10. “Land settlement was the main question which brought me into Parliament,” declared Air Healy (Wailau) as a preliminary to a strong advocacy of the completion of the South Island Main Trunk. He had been a farmer fpr many years, he said. He put all his sons on the land, and lie wanted to give other men’s sons the same chance. He Ibelieved that the agitation against the railway was promoted by Reform newspapers and was headed by the Union Company. He was not anxious to foist this line upon the country for posterity to pay for, because he knew it was worth while, and should have been built forty years ago. The late Government put down four miles of rails and sleepers,'hut never finished the bridges, only putting in a few lonely looking piles. The present Government was cleaning this up and making a further length available for transport. He had some knowledge of the settlements on the railway from Blenheim fo Ward, and knew that until railway facilities were provided there was no chance for smal] settlement. Where formerly there was only a couple of stations with eight or ten men on each, to-day the district had over a thousand people. Some of the land which would be tapped bv tne extension of the line was beautiful limestone country, which would grow anything without manure.

COUNTRY OF BIG HOLDINGS. The member for Wairau presented a large array of details regarding land avilable on the route of the line. He had been in touch with most of these properties while in business, and knew what he was talking about. In the Awatere Valley there were 256,438 acres of Crown lands, including; •eres of small grazing runs. Between he Clarence and jComvay Rivers there were 254,470 acres of pastoral leases. 1 i2,6d4 acres r of small grazing .jams. ‘3,000 acres of■ large freeholds and 2,000 acres of; small freeholds, aT eautiful land.; Altogether there were early a million acres, nearly al> ‘Vown land, suitable for c’oser, settle•leut.

STARVING. FOR A RAILWAY Detailed figures, were given of large ■;tates between two and thirty miles ■om Blenheim, totalling 147,399 acres, wned by nine persons,. Mr Coates: You have a railway. It ••on’t help that.. Mr Healy: We are isolated from our markets. To support this point the speaker said that owing to this handicap, Marlborough fairmers lost 4s iv head on their lambs, compared witli anterbury prices, and os on store beep. He described large areas of ountry perfect for production of me■!m> and ha'f-bred sheep now held in xtremely large .holdings, and gave Particulars of yields from well-culti-;ated lands. Most of the country to railed provided easy construction, "he first twenty-five miles from, the -orthern terminus went through sand lanted with marram; It was level ■nd construction could go on at the ate of‘miles a week. There were. ‘ owever, three large rivers to bridge, his country would have a wonderful •enie value, apart from its product'"eness.