ORIGINAL CORRESPONDENCE

Patea Mail, Volume IV, Issue 363, 9 October 1878, Page 2

ORIGINAL CORRESPONDENCE

(To the Editor of the Patea Mail.) Sir, —Observing in the Chronicle that there is a cry of scarcity of men in this district, perhaps I can enlighten your readers partly the reason. Will people pay men wages—fair wages ? Now, take hush work. Some people purchased land on the deferred payment system, at the enormous sum of £275 18s for 178 acres, to be paid for in twenty instalments within ten years —that is about 2s 6d per acre rental. Another purchased in the same way, 320 acres for £504. Now, what do those people want to pay (I must admit the supple-jacks and lawyers are not so thick but that sand-flies can play

80-peep without breaking their heads). One man is giving 42s per acre, and he is the only one that has any one at work, and the men are foreigners. There is no road to the land, part of the way is a pack road. It takes a man a day to come out to, say Manutahi Store, and back. Now, surely when they bought the land at such a figure, they ought to bo compelled to carry out their conditions. Men would have taken the work if they could have got fair wages. I have just looked to see what adjoining sections for cash fetched, which I find some £3 3s per acre—all being about the same quality. No doubt, when it is sown down to grass, it will readily fetch £8 to £lO per aero.—l am, &c., WORKING MAN.