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Oamaru Mail, Volume IV, Issue 1203, 24 February 1880, Page 2

The Lincolnshire delegates spent several days in this district, and left by Friday's express train for the South. Everywhere iu their tour throughout the Colony they have been treated with all the hospitality of guests from the Old Country entrusted with a mission as important to us as it is to those whom they represent. Whatever may be the nature of their report to their Lincolnshire friends—a report that will have its effect beyond the boundaries of that county - in other respects, we are sure that they will do colonists the justice of bearing testimony to their hospitality. Mr. John Reid, of Elderslie, met the representatives on ! their arrival at the Oamaru station, and drove them through the town, pointing out by the way all the matters of interest, The harbor works were visited, and minutely inspected, the complete plans of the work were perused, and the history of the project from its inception to the present time was recounted. After being presented with photographs of the wopkg, the representatives lefc for Elderslie, Of course Mr. Rejd pointed out the properties en route, and afforded every particular likely to prove iof interest to the visitors. The following was the programme carried out during their stay the district : —On Monday they visited Elderslie, Incholme, Balruddery, and the properties in the neighborhood ; on Tuesday, Taipo, Totapa, and the lower part of Awamoa ; on "VVednesr day, Windsor Park, Corriedale, and The Tables ; on Thursday, Toko-rahi, where they remained for the night; oh Friday, Mr. Borton's property, Duntroon, and the Papakaio Plains, calling at Mr. Peter Aitchisop's, a|>4 lunching at Waikourn. The delegates wci»e then driven into Oamaru, and left by the afternoon train for Palmeraton. As may be ima? gined, they did not go through our district with their eyc3 closed, and they listened with evident interest to fac s connected with each property of moment - prices, yields, &c. They confessed that they Jiad seen nothing during the whole of their experience to equal the crops and the country they had been shown in this and the Timaru district. Although judiciously undemonstrative and reticent as to their ideas of the Colony, yet they qould not help expressing their intention of recommending their friends to settle in this part of the Colony; and the fact that one of them made a liberal offer for one of the properties in the district proves that their expressions of admiration were genuine, We re* member that one of them, whilst speaking at a meeting held at Timaru in honor of their visit to that district, expressed the opinion that the prices demanded for private lands were too high to tempt English farmers from home, and he mentioned a price at which he would like to see land sold, which was less than half the amount offered by one of them for the estate in question. We have been requested to state that the delegates would have made a systematic tour throughout the district, but the time at their disposal for completing their report and starting for Home was so limited that they were reluctautly compelled to confine themselves to an inspection of properties with a view to promoting the immediate bbject of their visit.