A TRIP THROUGH THE MANAWATU.

Manawatu Times, Volume III, Issue 46, 20 March 1878, Page 2

A TRIP THROUGH THE MANAWATU.

[BY (MfR RAMBLIN.& BiEEOKTEH.J FOXTOK : Jjpstving- Wellington by- ene- of 1 the- . small steamers which trade along thej coasts I arrived at the seaport town of- . the County of" Manawatu > Poxton,. aftera run of some fifteen lioursw The wordii [ '•'■run,^ liowever,'" must be received withf. considerable- reservatioiv inasmuch ast Kapjti — a large island to* the wrest of; .the mainrand— was reachedi mr abouti seven hours, and as it affords considerable- shelter*, the- anchor was let go, andi a stay made for- about .four" hours," m» j ordeu to- eros» the Poxton bar at hight water. The town lies on tli£ ;' bank's of" ; the Manawatu River> and at about five- . miles- from its mouth,.. Foston is -by i far the- oldest township ia the County^. fully quarter of a centuijy- having; 'elapsed, since itfcs first settlement ; and although its. progress has not been of* I that Al&ddin.-Kke nature which charac- . iterises the other towns of the Cdunt^^ jit has always- been; notable for- its- corn^ i mercial stability ; ; so> that while/ most of?/ ; its mushroonii brethren haste esperiencedi :the. ill effects: of haivingr too* rapidly- ! overgrown their- strength,, if} has * pur— ! sued the eventenovojc its.- waa:;.suffiering; ■ no reactions andifree- from, the' changes; • and vicissitude whichi are* incidental! to those- places, whose- origin-, were the{outcome' '61' 'the' development ofr theiPublio ■Wbrli»: Policy.. .-. Jtf,. therefore^. ' Foxtooi has not made- the-rapdi strides; (which ha<ve- roarkjed the- progres* off itss 'inlaiidi rirais,. a& ifc\ depended! on» no* j ephemeral atdi foe- it& pDOgperity,. so it !ha« escaped! the- wame of stagnation* | which- has. visited! other jjjaces,.; M— \ thougjl; at fijrst gljance- su stranger might-, jnot be->acliiied!to.f.or,m,a;^erj;' elevated} !opimoniC# Fost»n v .ii; would. require but- ! a short stay- or little investigation to unI deceive him,, andt cause him. to. alter hiss | ideas regarding; the resources^ of thej district andt importance' of the- town*. : Owing to. the- scattered manner in.whichr 'it has been, built,. no one- could* fdrin an* jideafromt a> casual! glance- of its extent,. ithjß wunber o£ its pppulation>- or thei maoy substantial: buildings affd dwetj ling-houses whichiit contains ;. or*.judg'ing. frdmithe sand|j; nature, of the soilfc jwhiclit fibrms. the site- of. the town* proper,, that m its immediate Ticinity- ■ there is suchifti splendid, stretch of agricultural la«d^ Ht is, however,, on its: lvalue as a* port that Fbxton willhave to< ; claim, importance! Situated as it is,, close* to the- seaboard,, with a magnifi— I cent ri^er navigable to vessels of even» ilarge tonnage, all it requires is proper- ■ wharf accommodatij)n : forthe export of" f prod uce,. to- make- it second to none on ;{the West Coast.. At present there is; lan excuse for a. jetty, about twenty feefc= wide, and at which not even the miniature steamers: trading there can . beberthedi Adthpugji m course of time;cereals will be -the staple commodity o£ : ■ export, just now- it is chiefly confined. !to timber, m: which the cpuntryis im— |mensely rich;, but owing to the- want of" iwhai'Baccpmmodajbion for- sailing, craft,. and the diffii'ujty-aod delay m shipping; cargo,, owners oE vessels are particularly chary iii s^eking-a- shipment.,; Thereare two steamers which ply regularly twice a week between Wellington andl Fpxton, and shoulda.saiUng^ciyfJi'haißi

process of shipping cargo for transit to Oatnaru and other places, she lias immediately to haul off into tho stream, and wait until the jetty is again available, and this has often to be repeated ten times before a cargo is taken on board. Laboring, then, under such a disadvantage, and subject to such impediments, it is not to be wondered at that shipmasters give the port a wide berth, that the export trade has sadly diminished, and that, consequently, the town of Foxton has been materially affected Jiereby. Were the representatives of the County to bring sufficient pressure to bear upon tho Government to hare pVoper wharfage accommodation proTided, there can be no doubt that Foxton would soon take the lead of its rival higher up the coast— Wanganui— both m the passenger and export trade. There is every thing to warrant such a supposition, being nearer- to the capital «S the Colony, beside being- the natural outlet for the produce of the districts^ Sandon,, Pulmerstoo, Feildingv and Haleomhe* Why the residents o£ Foxton lave- not bestirred themselves m a matter of such vital importance to their interests, is; difficult to. understand, for there is m> comparison between the aeeess; to its port by the Manawatu, and the Wattganui leading to the town of that aataev I was informed that while Foxtokt has been thoroughly Be^teeted toy successive Ministries, a large slice I of the Manawatu County w.as actually «yen as- a ftarbor Efodtovrmenit fortUe jpioct ;Oif Wahganttv With the excel-lent-natural facilities for' a' large export trade, and the valuable country by which it is- siirroßinded^by the Judicioas«3Epemd4feate of a Haoderate sum Jbaton should, ere ltong, become oiiO'oftbe most Nourishing towns m "the: proTinciaJ d*strick ' SteTerat o^. thej^uii^daings- are sucK as wo«Jd! tin* '.craßi to- the eftpital, *nd it possesses an hotel whiclu for size and; accotttfaodation, has but few superiors m the Coliony. The owner ias eicicfentliy implicit confidence m its destined; progress, and has pinned his faith to. the future of the town to such an extent that he has- expended between £ 5000 and^jßGOOOiiu the erection and fitting up of a building- suitable for- its requirements. Xwas informed that the present representative m Parliament — irno, by the way, is a Wellington meri cliant— contemplates a trip to the- Old Country, and possibly there would ■ soonTbeia vacancy m the constituency. Should sucli a happy contingency arise, I should; lecbmmend the Foxtonians to- select for' his successor, if not a local man, at least ■"* resent of the County, so that his interests and theirs being identical, a ■work fraugM with such importance to .the future progress- of the town as.ex- " "tended wharf accoßimodation should be eontinuo»sly and 1 persistently urged 1 , and hot grossly shelved as heretofore. And,, en passant, I may be allowed to express "surprise at the ftpguency withwhich, up-country cons^jtueocies- seek their- Bjputh-pieees; .from a distance,, Klther than choosing.jtlipse who, living m their midst, know their- wants, and" should they aegliect ,'thfi interests of those whom they have- beea elected! to Berve,.can be readily taken- to- task fbr the delmquency.. lii. Hjy huimble opinion it is fir tetter- 'to- send to. Parliament representatives! who,, thousgh possessed of; but limited 1 abilfityv are honest custodians 6t' the tsru-sfe reposed 1 iin thiem s 'than the professioaali politiciaa ' orlicensed 1 oratWi. wllose eljoqpentte fe neTer <heard m the advocacy.' of those who, have giwea hini the- opportunity of pajading, iit.. ; , . . iTbi he- com£vnMed\