The Manawatu Standard (PUBLISHED DAILY.) The Oldest Daily Newspaper on the West Coast. TUESDAY, JUNE 2, 1885. PLAIN TRUTHS.

Manawatu Standard, Volume X, Issue 4, 2 June 1885, Page 2

Manawatu Standard (PUBLISH ED DAILY.) The Oldest Daily N ewspaper on the West Coast. TUESDAY, JUNE 2, 1885. PLAIN TRUTHS.

The Waikalo Times m an article ""Sin jrtKTway administration very truthfully observes that for some years Auckland has been treading m the path of prospsrity. No other town has enjoyed equal advantages with her. Street after street of new buildings has gone up, palatial public buildings, [warehouses, and; hotels ' have^pfahg up In the chief thor-" Otfghfares; new suburbs have been planted, and princely residences have been built oat _pf r the superabundant wealth wtvfelf lias been produced m her marts ; large areas of land have been reclaimed from the sea, docks and shipyards have been constructed at an enormous cost. Altogether the progress of that part of the colony has been unprecedented. ' We ;kre not pessimists by 'any means; we have the most sincere faith m the future of the colony, and the provincial district of Auckland m , particular ; but we must not shut our :! eyes ! t6 the signs of tbe times. We ''are 'compelled to recognise that the tendency of late years, owing to the .fjyjeqditure of money (borrowed' money chiefly) upon harbour, works, 'u*6cks, buildings of all kinds, coup, led with the general depression m agriculture, has been to draw the floating ? poD illation to Auckland ; and iHis is true m a greater or less degree of all the other large towns of the colony. But the lavish expendLture of late years must soon cease, if for no other reason than that many of the things necessary to be done! have been, or are nearly accomplished. Already we hear ominous reports of distress m the .tjtjes, (that labourers are more plentiful than labour. To some extent the pressure of this evil has been relieved by the Government providing work at low wages. But this device is n^satisfactory and can only be vegarded as temporary. The proper way to meet the difficulty is J>y opening up the country and fostering settlement. The present system of .r ( ai}way administration is ndt an aid, but a bar to settlement, and a radical change must be effected before it can be adapted to the purpose which the framers of the Public Works Policy of .1870 had m view. These, are precisely our ideas of the state cjf things that must sooner or later Bring about a reaction m the temporary prosperity of our large colonial centres. Borrowed money, speculation, and public and private undertakings, make things brisk for r fc j tihie;' lajid attains fabulous prices, wajps are high, money is plentiful, aria people are deluded with the idea that the good times are going to last for ever. The fame of the prosperity of the place spreads far arid wide, and people flock to it from all quarters. They prefer town life^at least the most of them do, and while things are brisk they earn high wages and live extravagantly. Then comes the inevitable reaction, which tit>\lows the ephemeral prosperity as surely as the rising succeeds the setting of the sun. In a few months more the outlook ts very gloomy, hundreds, perhaps thousands are out of employment, and down goes the value of everything with a run. This has been the history of every large town m the T CoJony without exception. Yet c pe6ple v do not learn wisdom. We the old truism: Never will there be permanent, real, and substantial prosperity until our land is occupied, and local industries are established. Our railways should assist the opening of the. country for purposes of settlement ; but for the mo3t part, though obvious errors of administration, they fail to do so. I Our population are too prone to rush from one part of the Colony to another, because times are said to be better. Most of those who go return sadder and wiser, finding that distance had lent enchantment.. If ; our people would learn wisdom, they would avoid the peripatetic mania. Wanderers do not prosper. But the great drawback to progress and prosperity is our unoccupied lands. Our population are too prone to seek the towns instead of' pushing out into the country, where m time they would benefit by the fruits of their perseverance industry, and self-denial, feel themselves more independent, be able to make suitable provision for their families, instead of the ever-recur-ring dread of depression, want of employment, not to speak of the manifold concomitant drawbacks attendant on life m large towns.