HANGATIKI

King Country Chronicle, Volume I, Issue 28, 3 May 1907, Page 3

HANGATIKI

This is a district suffering under great disability caused by large tracts of unoccupied Native land, and as the Chronicle has so ably handled the question of Native land, noxious weeds and rabbits, I must ask you to introduce to your readers some facts about this place. With the exception of about a dozen settlers, three living on Native leases, the rest living on land acquired from the Crown, the balance of the country is a wilderness in every sense of the word. These settlers are surrounded by large areas of really splendid land, which is not only unproductive of good, but it is at present the cause of considerable disadvantage. There are no rates derived from these areas, therefore the settlers have to indulge in private enterprise in road making to get to their places. This is a great injustice, as it enhances the value of the waste land, which not only does not contribute towards road construction, but, as will be seen, is a great drawback to the settlers otherwise. These thousands of acres of unoccupied waste Native land are becoming a vast rabbit warren. Rabbits can no longer be classed as a nuisance ; they are a plague. Last winter the Native owners objected to the Government laying poison because they had a few pigs running about, and no doubt they represented to the Inspector that they would destroy the rabbits, which of course they never attempted to do. Now the rabbits have got beyond control, notwithstanding the efforts of the settlers to destroy them. An instance can be mentioned of a settler who lost ten acres of turnips out of twenty-five, through the rabbits. The same settler sowed twelve acres of mustard but it took the rabbits sometime to appreciate this hot-tasting vegetable. It grew to about four inches in height before they got to look upon it as a relish; they then cleaned out the whole paddock. When the amount of grass the rabbits eat is considered —a thousand rabbits would eat as much as fifty head of cattle or 300 sheep — it is easy to realise what a disadvantage the district is labouring under, through unoccupied land. One settler has awakened to the fact that he has been paying rent for Native land and paying Natives to clear, plough and crop this land, and the rabbits breed on the Native land adjoining and devour his crops.

What a beautiful district could be made of the land between the Mangapu and Orahiri streams, and Otorohanga on the north and Hangatiki to the south. This is all good ploughable land, equal to the land round Te Awamutu —rolling downs and alluvial flats, all easily worked country —given over to a few run out horses, rabbits and noxious weeds. Ten years ago the track which was then in use from Otorohanga to Waitomo. through the old Haurua racecourse, was clear of furze, and now it has become impassable. At that time ther,e was just an odd furze bush in places ; now those bushes have extended to acres. Last season odd plants of ragwort could be seen flaring in places, making a start to compete with other abominations. Under present conditions it is only a delusion for anyone to think that the Crown or private enterprise would be doing the Natives an injustice in taking these lands, to make use of them, at any value fixed by arbitration, or some other fair method ; for the land is not remaining in a state of nature. It is deteriorating in value through the growth of weeds, etc. It is only the industry of the settler in improving their properties, and the efforts of the Government in road making, that gives the land in its present condition any value. If the land was of any advantage to the Natives, the present state of affair might be excusable, but the owners are reaping no benefit, except that they replenish their larders sometimes with a few rabbits. The rabbit has taken the place of the pig on the Maori menu cards. They look upon the rabbit as their " kai " now, and they consider any effort to exterminate them as an injustice to the " poor Maori."