Original Correspondence.

New Zealander, Volume 4, Issue 278, 27 January 1849, Page 3

Original Correspondence.

To Vie Editor of the New Zealavder. Sir,— -In your editorial attacks oa the Government system of land sales, it appee.rs to me that there is danger of a falso impression being produced on your distant readers, who might conclude, that as you are demanding land so very cheap, it must intrinsically be of little worth. lie ng one of those rethlents whose attention is practically, con amore, devoted to the pursuit of a country life, perhaps for that reason, i? for no other, you will allow me to expre.-s an opinion on the mater. Admitting, then, that crown lands, or what is synonimou*, lands in a state of nature, should be sold at a low rate, in order that the purchaser may have sufficient means at his disposal to bring them into a state of cultivation, I think the exposition of a few circumstances connected with New Zealand, and especially with this district, will tend to prove that there is scarcely a spot on the globe where land is of rp'cater real value. View it, in the first place, with the eye of au agriculturist, and afterwards as a desirable residence for civilized man, Wd must arrive at the game favourable conclusions. First, then, New Ulster (I detest the term) possesses im equality of cl.mate and regularity of seasons which delightfully surprises every one who comes here. We neither want rain, nor, notwithstanding the opinions of those who arrive from arid Australia, have we a whit too much. Our grass fields are lux-uiant and unchecked by coll thioughout the winter ; and when the hay and co m harvest arrives, we have diy weather to save both, with a degree of certainty that we can •carcely sufficiency apprechfe. In England in every five harvests there is one bad, three indifferent and anxious, and but one re.tlly good, such a harvest as we annually enj >y in this count* y. What unlooked for expenses, and how many anxbus moments are here saved! In winter, too, the farmer of northern Eu'ope must feed his cattle artificially, and much of tue summer growth is intended for their winter cousumption; whereas in this district cattle will not only " hold their own," but speedily fatten on the natuial herbage of the country during the whiter, when the run is not overstocked. Here we are relieved from another source of anxiety and expense. Take, then, the amount of produce given by a certain quanti y of lnnd in this settlement, and compare it with that raised in Great Britain, or any of her Colonies, during say a period of 14 years; the return will be found to be much gi enter hi-re, from the excellence and vegul-uiij r>; the cl'raite ''one, without any considerations respecting the feitility ot the soi'. I need scaicely allude to our exemption from all burdens on land; such burdens as are found in tithes, poor-rates, general and local taxes, which are swallowing up the profits of many a good estite at home; from these things we expect, as colonists, to be exempt. The man who sows here, reaps all for himself. Again, there is another lea&on why the land in this neighbourhood is highly valuable, A large portion of New Zealand, like other countrks, is unfit at present for the residence of Europeans. It is either too far in the interior to admit of an inexpensive carriage of produce to a market, or it is Un hilly or inaocenible for cultivation, or the land is bid (as that on which kaurie has grown). Although, then, New Zealand generally may possess a gond climate, it is only in certain spo's whet a climate, soil, and facility for communication are found in combination. In this district we enjoj these three nquisi'es in a pre-eminent degree; the countiy bem< comparatively level, when compared with New Zealand generally; the land is easily cultivated, and roads ?re (might be) inexpensively formed ; with also our invaluable harbours and rivers, both east and we.«.t, for w^er communication. Secondly, look on it as a desirable residence. It is the healthiest country in the ivot Id. The experience of the musionariee, ot the troops, of the setdeis from nil countries and of all ages, lub shown it to be so. Those who come here with dilapidated constitutions soon mend them ; and ue h«ve merely to point to the robust and rosy-cheeked "infantry" to show what the climate can do in this respect. In America, Australia, and moit of our coloniei, the Anglo-Saxon degenerates, or at least undergoes a change ; but it ir not the case in thit country to any appreciable extenf. In respect to health, people have here to be reminded of two f jets — fir t, that the human constitution will not stand such free libations of dhtilled spirits rs> m colder countries ; and secondly, that clean'iness of habitation is esientially requisite for its enjoyment. In the next place, our persons and property are as secure as in the noo 3t 3 t favoured countries. We have neither earthquakes nor huwioanen. The lower or working clashes are too well off to think of lobbcry— tl c natives, we know, are better to be trusted than the generality of Europeaus. I much regret, from sound information I have recently acquired, that a people who luve been of such valuable assistance to the colonists, should not only be much fewer in numbers than the eitimate usually given, but that they arc even rapidl) decreasing. Comfoit of existence is no mean item in the sum of a country's value. It might have been aiieady ir,. ferred tiiat a genial climate, nnd a healthy country enj >y ing peace and secuiity, must contribute much to For continuation see second page of Supplement : ,

pease of mind and " sublunary" happin<;s>. But to those who bare an innate love for country hfc, perhaps theie is no la.nl which p esent< them with so imny solid and rational enjoyments. The garden is neither frozen up in the winter nor burnt up in the summer ; all the fruit* of temperate regions flouiish in the open air, fioni the strawberry to the grape and melon, and there are no thievish birds to destroy them. There are no venomom reptiles ; you need not fear, as in the Awstiulicin colonies, when weary, ti lie down for repose in the thickest brake. Have I not said enough to show that this country is valuable, and that the available land in it is highly valuable ? Aud yet one thdjg is still wanting. 'J Iris country, which as regularly presents us with our crops as the seasons roll round, is calculated to cany a dense population. Not a thinly scattered pastoral population, with every now and then a scarcity from drought; but every ''hide" of land wou'd carry i's family without fear of famine. And yet why is it neglected ? There is no labour. We unlit labour at such a reasonable rate, that the employer may obtain some return for hU capital. Not only are wagss ruinously h'gh, but the labour obtained is of a most inferior kind, As to the pensioners, they have been of no asiistanca. We want a few hundreds of agricultural labourers, accustomed to work at Inme, end not those who have spent the best ot their days in comparative idleness. Settlers would then make the ficc of the country smile with pastures and cornfields, instead of beitiij, as now under the necessity of discharging their servants, and 1 tting I heir ploughshares nist. Theie would be then tiuth jn the poct'b exclamatior, " 0 fortunatos agricolas, suas i bona norint!" lours, &j., Sic-, lluuicola. Auckland, January 22: id.