THE SETTLERS

Te Aroha News, Volume VI, Issue 337, 26 January 1889, Page 5

THE SETTLERS

appear on the whole to be of the right stamp, most of them having struggled manfully through the early difficulties always connected , with settlement on unimproved land. Some of .them came from Auckland without, a shilling in money, all they had being their household effects. They have worked hard and practised rigid-economy, and are now on the road to comfort, and though they are well aware of a few, more years' of hard struggle before them, they are looking hopefully to the future -with confidence that they will be able, to make comfortable homes on their fifty-acre .sections, notwithstanding the prediction of prejudiced false prophets. Out of thirty-four families settled on the stock, three have given up and left, twenty-four have built comfortable cottages, each having the Government loan of £20, for which they pay interest. Every settler has a small garden plot neatly cultivated with vegetables, also an orchard planted with fruit trees, also a cow, some of them several, besides other cattle, sheep, pigs, poultry, etc, Several"foave a,"-horse and boats. .There are plenty of fish in the harbour. On the whole, though there may be one or two exceptions of grumblers and ne'er-do-wel's, this settlement is a decided success. Ibis doubtful if there is a small

settler that is rnsjfc tmuch better off than when he came on hie> land. Some of the old settlers appoarjust a little jealous of what they think are more favourable conditions of settlement than when they took up land. '