King Country Chronicle Saturday, Feb. 24, 1912. DISTRICT SETTLEMENT.

King Country Chronicle, Volume VI, Issue 442, 24 February 1912, Page 4

King Country Chronicle Saturday, Feb. 24, 1912. DISTRICT SETTLEMENT.

The information that the Crown lands to the east of t.hc railway in the I'ukeUitu district are to he opened up will he welcome news for the people throne,bout the district generally. Until wry recently little attention iv;i? paid to the hinds in the locality mentioned, and unroaded, and mure? or less neglected it has lain waste avvaitii>g (he action of the authorities to have it prepared for settlement. That a vigorous land settlement policy is necessary to the welfare of the Dominion in genera! is widely recognised and it is not. too much to assume that in such a well favoure J district as ours every effort will he made to bring into occupation all the available land, in the shortest possible time. For pi any year "< the settlement of the district was confined n> the western side of the railway, and until the openin;; of the Kangitoto block by the Governt'.u 'H a coupl" of years ago, the eastern land was practically terra incognita (o Ihe average ae ttler. The I march of :•!•> llciiH'iit in the locality was Ud by thc..«f who woro willing to lake up native leases, and undergo (lie n i ene ein;' without roads, and wit!) the problem of roading native land.-; in a very unsatisfactory position. '1 he introduction of Crown settlor, en t alleviated the position si) me what, ami the further opening up of the Crown lands which is projected cannot fail to greatly improve the position. The effect of the settlement of these lands on the town can hardly lie ever estimated. Business in all branches must increase, and as a stock centre To Kuiti will become of importance second to none in the province. It, was long ago predicted what the opening up of the eastern lands would do for Te Kuiti, and with the measure of progress which is already in evidence as a result of the partial set Mem. Nt of western lands, there is ample : :,'ope for imagination to run riot, am! :-!jM be within the bounds of what ilikely to happen in the course of a fo w year.-'. Time must, elapse, and nmcli labour be aconipl ished before a pathless wilderness can be iransfonm-ii into improved, or partly improved, 'arm land. but with a sympathetic (Jowrmm'stt providing due and prop-T :iss«:'Un<v. tomneia) and "(berwisia ihe pei mil of year:; will be few, am; the liit'ne <an be regarded with ouuarbe ity.

The entries received for the Waikato Cental Show, to be held at Cambridge on the 7th and Bth of next month, to date number 1883, comprising: Horse classes 710, cattle 393, sheep 175, pigs 105, dogs and miscellaneous 500. The number of cattle entries are an easy record for the Auckland province, , the popular Holstein breed being H largely represented. The stock entries number just on 1400, which exceed those of last year by 175, and there are,some from the outlying districts that have not yet come to hand.

Work at the Te Kuiti railway station during the past few weeks has been particularly active, the whole of the staff being busily engaged in the dispatching of produce and the receiving of settlers' winter supplies. Accommodation for the storage of produce and general merchandise is byng taxed to its utmost.

In connection with the projected race on the Thames for the world's sculling championship, Arnst has authorised Mr James Field, a London sportsman, to sign articles with Barry as soon as the latter's money is available. He has booked his passuge on the Otway, sailing on March 113 th.

A cable from London on Thursday stated that the Privy Council refused an application to appeal in forma paupers in the case Ah On versus the Attorney-General of New Zealand. Ah On was convicted at Napier of keeping a common gaming house, and fined £2O. Dolan and Ferguson brought the case before the Appellate Court iti Wellington, when the Chief Justice referred to it as "a comedy of errors," but refused to quash the conviction. Mr Jellicoe then appealed in forma pauperis, with the result stated.

Wirths' Circus, which was billed to shuw at Te Kuiti on Thursday, struck bad luck on the Main Trunk line. Owing to stress of weather and the execrable roads at Ohakune, the circus could not reach Te Kuiti in time. Upon arriving at Taumarunui the management decided to rest and show at that town.

The contractor for the drainage works at Te Kuiti (Mr L. Spencer) is making fair progress with the work but is being hampered somewhat by water. In the section near the outlet timber has been met withu and explosives have had tu be used. Some of the trunks, are lying lengthwise just at pine level and theße give considerable trouble.

Drug habits sometimes manifest themselves in very peculiar forms, says a Manawatu paper. At one of the ilaxniills in the Foxton district there is a Maori workman who IB B "painkiller" fiend. His daily consumption amounts to three bottles — one before each meal. While this supply is maintained he is an expert in his particular branch of the trade. The other day, however, his stock ran out unexpectedly, and for a while the habitue was in a bad way. He was practically "iaid up," and it was not until a fresh supply was available that he was able to resume work.

The New South Wales Totalisator Commission, on arrival in Melbourne from Adelaide, found that a silent inline net' appeared to have set the machinery of antagonism in motion. Winhiii).: to conduct the business of the commission aa expeditiously a 8 possible, l\lr licvien (president) went tn (lie various racing and jockey clubs and invited members to give evidence before the commission. On every side he met, with a polite but unsympathetic. reception. "There H going to be trouble," waid Mr Lovien. "I am bej^inninj* to think that I will not get much evidence from the owners fend jockeys of Melbourne. Well, if they do not come forward I eball have something to Boy something that will startle them," Mrs Brennan, a well-known teacher of pastel painting and ,stencilling, is visiting Te Kuiti, and will give a course of six lessons in the above. During the course each pastel pupil completes and receivs five goou pictures. Mrs Brennari's ability as a teacher is well-known throughout the Dominion. Specimens of work can be seen at Blackman and Cobb's business premises. Intending pupils should apply at once as the visit is a shocfc one. The payments made by the New Zealand Dairy Association, Ltd., On the 21st inst. to their shareholders and suppliers covering butter, fat supplied during January, reached the splendid total of £48,729 2s 6d. The committee of the Te Kuiti Racing Club is to meet on Monday evening, when the balancp-sheet of the recent meeting will be presented. With such a succesful meeting to dißcuss the committee should have a happy gathering, as it is probable the profit over the meeting will be shown to bo in the vicinity of £3OO. Preparations are well in hand for tho Aria sports gnthering which taxes plane on March 7th. A highly attractive programme of events is published, and given fine weather a record gathering should eventuate. The supply of cream to the Te Kuiti dairy factory ia being well maintained, and the output, for the season, considering the. late start, gives promise of being very satisfactory. Th 6 local demand for Limedale butter iB steadily increasing and the indications are that the supply for the season will be absorbed in tho district. There was only one tender for the erection of the Pio Pio school, and as the price was considered too high the Education Hoard decided to Undertake (he work with its own staff of buil,l, I-. The school should be finished in time to provide proper accommodation tor the winter months. After the exl„,i ! ( m-e of Ibe past in a marquee the ,>!;:i11j>(' in a comfortable building will lie appreciated by I'oth teacher and