Kiritehere-Moeatoa.

King Country Chronicle, Volume V, Issue 347, 22 March 1911, Page 5

Kiritehere-Moeatoa.

The Marakopa - Ratanui cricket match was played olf at Marakopa and it resulted in a win for the challenging team from the limestone district. Ratanui's talents shone forth with great power, Marakopa being badly beaten. Arrangements are being made to get on a match between Ratanui and Ivawhia. Mr Chase, captain of the Kawhia Cricket Club has been written to by Mr V. Jackson, Ratanui, and I understand a favourable reply was received in regard to arranging for a match to be played in Kawhia at a future date. Captain Wililamson, late of the s.s. Pitoitoi, came into Marakopa with his new auxiliary scow, built in Auckland for the West Coast and Marakopa trade, on the 15th inst, and relieved our little seaport of the lean times it I had been experiencing the past few | months. Captain Williamson, it must be remembreed, was the first man to run a regular salt-water cargo service to the Marakopa heads. In the early days of Marakopa, previous to the coming of the gallant Captain to the heads, flour cost —for it had to be packed along a rough sea-coast track from Kawhai whither certain of our County-merging friends said our interests lay—pretty nearly £1 per hundred. In those days Mr Jack. Willison, Marakopa, did most of the packing from Te Maika, and no one envied him his journey. There is supposed to be a ghost or two on the Te Maika-Marakopa track, but Jack Willison says that he never saw any, so that's conclusive. Since the coming of the local coaster, Marakopa no longer depends on the old track, which is now falling into disuse. It is old enough, this old coast road, such as it was in the olden days, as to to be historic. It was used by Te Rauparahara and his merry men in the good old days, when a man carried his ticket of introduction in the shape of a tomahawk and a long-barrelled flintlock —but more aiient this later. I consider it time that something ■was done towards getting rid of that awkward angle of furze and brier covered country lying between Te Kuiti and Oparure. Sheep running in and out its by-tracks or passing along under the ripening furze seed have them dropped amongst the wool to be carried into the back country. It is reported that the poles for erecting the Marakopa-Te Kuiti telephone line are abuard the s.s. Pitoitoi. We, all of us, prayfuliv hope so. A captious theosophist says that someone, developing psychic powers, has been seeing these posts in an astral form—but knowing what we do we must reject this idea as being entirely erroneous and untrustworthy. On riding along the Arapae road one is particuary struck by the fewness of the improvements done on it. In response, as it were, to the urgent appeals of settlers—from Marakopa to Te Kuiti, many of whom have been on their sections for the past eight or ten years—a few ginger bread and pie crust improvements have been done from time to time: but nothing, even in the smallest degrees, such as promises and pumped up road grants have lead us to expect. Who or what is to blame for this sorry state of things? Come, tell us the reason, I pray! By a regrettable miscalculation as to the exact hour for dining, the Kiritehere cricketers, who won a supper off Marakopa in a cricket match of five games, did not turn up for supper. The table was laid for eighteen. Kiritehere tarried, but supper did not, and when the team, headed by its captain, hove in sight, most of the good things were gone.