THE HOUNDBURN HILL DEVIATION.

Mount Ida Chronicle, Volume III, Issue 174, 5 July 1872, Page 3

THE HOUNDBURN HILL DEVIATION.

(To: the Editor of tkeMoxnsT Ida Cheonicle:) Snt,—ln your issue of ehe 21st ult., I observe a second effusion from "Fairplay " on the Houndburn Hill deviation, and seeing that he so strongly persists iii advocating the old line of instead of a new one through Naseby, I started with a mind unprejudiced to inquire into the subject. Having satisfactorily concluded my inquiries, I must now inform Mr. " Fairplay "—for he really requires informa tion—that his assertions are utterly groundless, misleading to people at a distance, and therefore calculated to do considerable harm to the district of Mount Ida and to Nasebyim particular. I -ask him where on the Maniototo Plains are the hosts of people who would be ruined and inconvenienced by the discontinuance of the old line of road ? O, there are stations ! Not one; Mr. Editor The station owners, to- whom he alludes, say that they would only be too glad that the main road passed through Naseby, and instead of the carriage on their wool.and stores being greater then they consider it would be less, as the roads now in use would still continue, and, in absence of much traffic, would be much better than they now are. I ask him again where are those who have fenced in large paddocks, and who would be ruined if the road were made according to the desire of the petitioners ? I have travelled the road in question, and have failed to find those paddock owners. Mr. Malloch of the Kyeburn Hotel has paddocks, but " Eairplay " could not mean him, because the line •of road recommended by Mr. Oliver, and now in course of construction, passes two miles from the house of Mr. Malloch, who has therefore to remove at any rate, and his own words are that rather than shift the two miles he would shift the five miles, namely, to the line recommended by the people of Naseby, because on that line he would get better land for cultivation. Now, the * only human habitations that I could observe, and which '* Eairplay " could possibly mean, are two small shanties about five miles -apart and where but few people ever think of calling. I consider it would be a G-od-send for those poor peeple if the old road were discontinued. It would cost them but litcie to shift on to the new line,, where they would get good land for cultivation, instead of trying to grow crops on shingle beds as they now do.

" iFairplay ?? asks what good could it do to the people of Naseby to see a lot of waggons passing some half mile from the town, but if he ever were in Naseby he must know that they could not so pass. They would require to pass through part of the town, and not over 300 yards from any part of it. If all the waggons which pass up and down the Maniototo were to pass through Naseby they would benefit the business people much, at least, as an influx of 100 permanentresidents. But I am occupying too much of your space in writing of " Fan-play." I "hope he will now see the advisability of "caving in," because in the long - run "truth shall prevail." • We should, however, thank him for his ideas —erroneous though they be—because it is only by hearing both sides.of the question that we have a chance of eliciting the truth.

We may, however, cease to wonder at " Eairplay's " erroneous ideas when we think upon the report of the Committee who were appointed by the Government to enquire into and report upon this road deviation. The Committee go on to say that the road recommended by Mr. Oliver "is the sameas that desired by the petitioners." Now, Mr. Editor, did you ever hear of a Committee displaying such ignorance, and having for their Chairman the representative of the petitioner^? The road desired by the

and that recommended by Mr. Oliver-'maybe';the-same for. same quarter of mile or so, but not further. The road recommended by the petitioners would pass above Preston's station, and, run in almost a straight line to Naseby by the Messrs. Sanders' station. It would run through some twenty square miles of the best agricultural land on the plains—land proved to be unauriferous, and well watered by numerous permanent creeks —land which at no distant date will be wanted for settlement, and every one may know how much a road passing through its centre would enhance its value. This road would alsp shorten the distance from Dunedin to Naseby and to the other up-country townships eight or ten miles.'lt would draw all the up-country traffic through: Naseby; thereby benefitting the whole residents to. a considerable extent, and also the carriers and other travellers who, in passing through the town, could get whatever they wanted good and cheap.

The line of road recommended by Mr. Oliver will divide the up-country traffic at a certain point, viz., Douglas' shanty—a part going via Naseby and the other part through the plain, and meeting again near Eden Creek —thus causing the Grdvernment to keep in repair two lines of road. By this line there will, actually be twenty miles more of road to keep in repair than there would be by the road desired by the petitioners. Mr. Oliver's ling is, therefore, the longest, most expensive, passes through the Maniototo Plains where there are no people, and where it is therefore not wanted. It will give satisfaction to no one unless "Eairplay," but will create dissatisfaction throughout the whole district. The Committee have also considered that it would be impossible for the Groverhment, on account of the financial state of the Province, to expend £6OOO in making the road f! .as desire 1 by the petitioners. This is the answer we may always expect while we are misrepresented. If we had even owe qualified representative he would have urged upon the G-overnment the advisability of constructing the piece of road in 1 question, according to the expressed desire of the principal section of his constituency. Money may be scarce, but there is plenty of land, and the line could be let to small contractors —giving two miles or so to each who would gladly take land instead of money, and who would then become settlers of the Province., This would be a preferable mode of obtaining settlers, to bringing them from the other side of the world at a cost of millions of money to the Colony. - Hoping you will insert the above, I am, &c, Maniototo.