THE Manawatu Times. WEDNESDAY, MAY 21, 1879. A SATISFACTORY COMPARISON.

Manawatu Times, Volume III, Issue 43, 21 May 1879, Page 2

THE Manawatu Times.

WEDNESDAY, MAY 21, 1879. A SATISFACTORY COMPARISON.

!l "VVokjs are Flings, and a drop of ink falling like 4bw upon a thought, produces that which-makes thousands, perhaps millions think."

Tbn years ago, the. upper portion of the County of Manawalu was absolutely a terra incognita, for with, the exception of the country surrounding Qtaki and Horowhenua, settlement was unknown, and even,in those districts the greater propprtjon of the settlers were Natives. The laudable" rivalry which to-day .exists between Paliuerstop and Feilding had no reality, and the fast-pro-gressing townships of Halcontfbe "and Sauson were iv the womb of futurity.' The population of the County was reckoned by hundreds, while at present, more, than' one of its towns can boast of their thousand,.*, while, miles of forests have been hewn down, and the hitherto trackless bush crossed and dotted with roads and homesteads. To the outside world -of the Colony, the district is known as a gra^d timber country, and the bush lands of the Manawatu have become famous for their grazing properties ; but we question if any without, and but few within, its limits have an idea that even at this early stage of its existence it occuoies a proud preeminence for its grain-producing qualities amongst its rivals on the West | Coast. When it js. taken into cqusidera- | tiori the number of years during which Rangitikei, Taranaki, Wanganui, and Patea have been settled, the statistics annexed — which have b.een supplied by the Registrar-General— will ta,ke ,mqst people by surprise. They are as follow: —

Satisfactory as are the ahove figures, the true test of the quality of the land is to be alone foaud m the yield of the various cereals, a.nd th,ege a, re th.us glyen : —

From th'e above it will be seen that Manawatu is far ahead of all its competitors, unless RangUileei, ' va, tho returns, and even with that lojig-settled district m some items it has succeeded m topping the list. For instance, while the latter had a,ctual|y double the number of acres broken up, and twenty thousand acres m excess/ la.id down m grass, Manawatu has yielded I,3lo} ton* of jjolaloes against 608 by liangttikei. besidfl 5.00 tons more hay. Then again \n.th,e matter qf. wheats, Mt\nq,watu tops the list of yields of wheat, giving 9,000 more bushelsL_thi>n Ra.ngitikei, and 2'\o(K) m excess of the. o{,her Oo^ntieß. It must, how-crcr, be con.ceded that the disparity, m the yield of oats is much greater \\\,< favor of Rangitikei, the 'figures being 9\,676 and 47,862 respectively ; still when the number of acres m grain and broken-up are taken into < onsideration, the balance is unmeasurei ably m favor.of Manawatu. In dealing with the'future prospects of the various Counties' it must b.e harne m mind that Manawatu i», a,s N it were yet m, its infancy, whilst its rivals are all wellmatured ; that there are thousands of a.cres not yet alienated from, the Crown t and also that there are thousands \\pon thousand* oF acres of Uush, lands yet m their normal state, which the inevitable course of time will bow to t^e axe of the woodsman, and succumb to the power of the plowshare. Gre a,t as have been the giant strides m 'progress made within the la,st decade, we foretel they, will be dwarfed into insignificance by the work, of the next— a future greatness which will shed its, influence over She wJio'le Provincial' District, a,nd prove i one of the. strongest stays of prbsp/jritr. i to Npw- Zealand's capital. With the magnificent- country 4>f Fitzherbert made available for Bettlem."nt by railroad communication, sixty families placed upon the Taonui Block, and the stream. of Dew-comovj} constantly pouring m, ten years fro,m now Manawatu will count its settlers, hy tens ofcthou,«ands, and prove to he — what it is now giving an earnest of being— the granary

' v " ; Wheat Oats Barley Hay bshk. bshls. b.sbls. tons, tonsManawafca 5j,7Q9 56,240. 1626 131Q 1504 Earigititei 47,862 91,676 4460 * 608 1^,59 TaVanalvi 30.,20,6 141,537 3077 1597 1629 Pa^ea;....; 42,950 61,760 17T5 5.9.7 1883 Wanganui 34,000 80,930 344 1518 2632

'• . Acres Acres Acres .Aores m m broken m Grain. Hay. \ip. Grass. Kangitikei ... 6,329 1,068 1,542 96,753 Manawafcu ... 4,594 1,034 776' 73,470 Wanganui ... 2,696 1,438 1,324 84,169 Taranaki ... 3,304 1,163 1,560 44,827 Patea 2,927 989 635 70,568