MAPARA GRIEVANCES.

King Country Chronicle, Volume V, Issue 396, 16 September 1911, Page 5

MAPARA GRIEVANCES.

To the Editor. Sir, —On reading some recent issues of your paper, I was rather amused at the conflicting statements made by your Mapara correspondent, regarding the dairying industry in the block for this corning season. In one of his contributions he puts the number of cow 3 down at something like 200. In a more recent one the number reduces to 100, while in the issue of the 6th inst., his supply is practically nil. Information like this is rather misleading and doesn't tend to promote the welfare of the block. As to his imaginary grievance re the supposed ten chains of bad road, he seems to forget that he has a first-rate traffic bridge and a well formed wide road at the Mapara end which is I, presume, the portion he alludes to, while the settlers at the Kahuwera end have neither, with the exception of very primitive foot bridges and tracks, both done at their own expense. So chat he doesn't want much when he talks of water tables and metalling. The district road engineer has been along recently, and possibly he may take some steps to improve things. Kis lieutenant says there's no money available, and if there was he'd take good care it went a long way. Between the two of them, a settler won't need to worry as to how he is to spend the surplus. To increase our "happiness" Johnny Government expects us to pay £1 Is 9|d per roll for wirenetting which can be bought from any firm in Auckland fnr from 9s to 10s.

i Settlers certainly object, as we are not quite born idiots, and the matter is being inquired into. We'll get the ultimatum about Tibb's Eve (a day supposed never to come). Meanwhile this particular article is being consinged daily by indignant settlers to a climate much warmer than Te Mapara has been this past winter. In future any settlers in this way, wanting wire netting will do well to do the buying themselves, as an article can be purchased anywhere at about 6s, to answer the purpose equally as well as this 21s and 9d tack. For the grand finale, before a settler's advance is cut out, they deduct from fourteen to fifteen pounds out of a

total of £2OO and charges interest on it for 66 years, and they still call it an advance of £2OO, I fail to see it. They call this item "supervision." It goes, I supposed, to pay the ranger's salary. As there are 2 8 settlers in this block at say, an average of £l4 10s a head, it amounts to a tidy sum. There are also about eighty or ninety Tangitu settlers whose valuation in several cases is from £3 to £4 an acre, and at 7-i per cent, it would be no mean sum both settlements being looked after by one man. Settlers don't deny a ranger the justice of getting a decent salary, but when it; comes to the department deducting this amount from theii paltry advance and charging interest on it, it's pretty tough. Settlers fully recognise the fact that the major portion of the difficulties and troubles wt labour under are due to the red tape o1 departmental rule, and not throug* any fault of Government, whose in tention and purpose it was to help the settlers to the best of their ability am until matters like these are brough under their direct notice and made public, we cannot expect redress. ■! am, etc., A SETTLER. Te Mapara, 11th September.