A TRIP THROUGH THE MANAWATU.

Manawatu Times, Volume III, Issue 50, 3 April 1878, Page 2

A TRIP THROUGH THE MANAWATU.

[By our Rambling Reporter.]

I Passing on through Carnarvon, the site; of a proposed township about four ffiilei distant from Foxton , ■'-'. after a journey by rail oE twerity-foiuL miles, through a splendid tract of alternately bush and open/but level, country; the township of PALMERSTON is reached, which is situated ;upori as picturesque a site as it is well possible to iniagiri c, for which " thb . credit must be, however,; giyeri to* . nature, not '..'-.rtifice. The line passes right through theL centre of the town, which is composed of two fine streets running parallel . for about a mile, : with a large natural square bf about 20 acres m the very centre. Six years since, the snort of the iron horse awakened no echoes, and ■theiline commodious hotels and stores which iiow flank both sides of the streets, had but an existence iri the The riuuiber pf dwellirigs might be sign fled by the use of one figure, and. its population by two, while at the present moment its residents A#each almost as many, thousands.- A : bush track arid single house was all that marked the existence pf thb - now flourishing town, with its Municipal .Council,- banks, hotels, local organ, and all the concomitants of a settlement fifty years old. At present Paimerston -would appear to'be Suffering a depression consequent upon the exhaustion of the public works, but that it is but ephemeral no oue who * cbnsiders its, advantageous position m the County can for a moment doubt. The BorougfcCouncil, with a wise discretion, has availed itself Of the beriefits of the Municipal Corporations a A(Jt,LIB76 v and have gone into the market for the purpose of borrowing £10,000 with a view of prosecuting works of improvement m and about the' towri: The money, I .wraa* given to understand; could be readily obtained ; arid by its judicious outlay, extending over say, three ; years, the progress- Of the town would be developed,- property enhanced, and employment, .provided for a nrimbe'r of workmen, until the line through to Wellington shall have been contpleted. But it is riot Only the; town: of Palmerston wlii eh, having no childhood,- Sb tO speak, has sprung from infancy to maturity at a single bound, but the whole County has been developed with such rapidity that while five years ago there was but one schoolhouse to its credit; there are at present no less than thirteen. Country has been cleared, the bush has disappeared, miles- of metalled roads have been formed, bridges have been converted into broad highways, aud -from township to township " there is a perfect chain oE homesteads and habitations. Iri Palmeroton, the members of the Anglican, Roman Catholic, Wesleyan, and Presbyterian Churohes can all worship iri buildings devoted to their respective creeds, while local industries dfj all kinds are m full swing—- the ; work of little more than half a decade. Ere this ink is dry ; conimuuicatiori between Foxton and Waiiganui may havb been accomplished,. and a direct line of transit,^extending for seventy-five miles, iri operatiefl,. where but a, few years ; since there existed not even a carriage ■■ way-. But, great as has been the change ; m the past, I feci convinced it will still be surpassed iri the future,- ;' It is true it may not be effected with the same rapidity, but that a steady progression will b© its experience is not only jay conviction, biit that of others who have -paid thb district & visit* Palnierstou

can now boast of a local brewery wherewith to quench the thirst of those who believe m the nut-brown ale ; while the disciples of Father Matkew have atf establishment for the manufacture of their particular beverages. Saw-mills jire m swing, a sash and door factory at work, aiid a large building is now m course of erection foir a mill to grind the; produce of the district. Nine miles froih. town alon^ tho North Rangitikei road is the village ot Awahuri, the greater number of whose residents are the original owners of the soil. Although the all-absorbing White man has succeeded m getting a foothold, and a large, commodious hotel of some thirty rooms has been raised to minister to his wants, he is still m the minority about Awahuri, and tho Maori has not as yet yielded up his vantage ground. Pursuing the road, Mount Stewart is reached, from whose suramifcthe eye, Oil aclearday, can cover an extent of over one hundred miles, taking m the snow-clad hills of Ruapachuin the Auckland Province, looking northward ; while to the southward the Straits ,, are r crossed* and the mountains of the ' Middle Island areseon.in the distance. Some miles farther on, the rising township of Sanson is reached, called 'after One of the pioneers of the district; who, with his cosettlers, originally hailed from ;<theHutt. "What . strikes a stranger mostafter ascending Mount Stewart is themagnificent stretch of open country which comes beEore him, and the contrast is the more marked; as it is 'tb*»v first which he has seen since leaving Foxton. Sanson is within a: short- distance Of the FOxton- Wanganui line, andi judging from the country, and the number oE agricultural settlers, its produce Should form no small matter of revenuetO the railway authorities. -Al Ijelievethere is somesdifferehce of opinion as tothe proper outlet for its export trade,, some holding that it would be advantageous to have a branch line of rail toconneqt it with Foxton, but as this is a: matter ij'pon which I am not competent-, to' judge, I will not hazard an opiriiori.-. I'may, however, state that the* majority of those whom I heard speaking uporii the' matter weie m favor of a good road, toxtap the Palmerstori line. .Leaving: Sanson behind, the River Rangitikei is. retfohed, on the; other side of which theold town of Bulls lies,- but "as the river is the boundary of the Manawatu I will return, and take my leave of Palmerston, by saying that, young as it?iaAin years, and great as* are the evidences of ?lif e**in the to wrtship, there areSfipurnf ul traces JfiaC death has already "obtained a footing, and-iri the wtyside churchyard sleep those *who have fought their last fight m the battle Of progress. Situated at the north (Or Terrace) end of thetown, on a narrow patch of land, bounded -by the railway line on one and the road on the other side, stands the ... Palmerston Necropolis. The site has ' been badly chosen, and the ground worse kept. There are some' dozen mOnuments erected to those sleeping there, biit ere long these will be invisible, lost m the luxuriance of tangled: grass ; arid N vagrant weeds.?; ."Why ,a'?spjpt so sacred as the last resting place of tfie dear de-parted-hould.he. placed m what must eventually become the crossing place for all traffic, is hard .to surmise !, To my mind such hallowed spots should be far beyond the hum o± every-day life, and not as here— within hail of the* shriek of the whistle or the rattte, of thewaggon. 5 ' Leaving PalmorstQn,Awe still ■.journey onward through dense bush for--about six lriiles^ until X the train pulls; upfajjaitt at a platform* ininus a station;, and a board placed there informs bobthat lam at . . . a L A BUNNYTHORPE-, A named aEter the now celebrated— if I may use the word— member for W-U rarapa, called by some Mr. BarnacleBiinny. The township, no doubt,; looks; good on paper; arid contains^miinerous; streets named .after politicians with equal claims to the honor as thoser possessed by the whUom 'Provincial * Secretary. At present, however;, it i& a township butin name, and were it not. for the information gleaned; from, theaforesaid board, and the intimation from, the guard that it so, a stranger wouldL be oblivious of the fact. [Since writing; ,the above I have learned that the Government intend holding. a Crown Landssale at. Welllington at the end. Ofv this-morith,,-at which over some -five hundred sections will be .offered -'-for sale.]^ However, as .we again proceed,-, evi--L deuces of civilisation, hecome apparent^ and wayside homesteads, sawmills,, and; other indicia of industry greet the eyeuntil the river Oroua is reached ;, themondtony of bush is over for a time, a, splendid panorama appears, m. front,, with the RuahirieAßanges as a back--ground; and Feilding is 7 before u,s. >. X. must j' however; defer my remarks, upon this;- almost the youngpst. Viowiv of the Provincial District,, to,a. future; issue*