The Daily News WEDNESDAY, MAY 20. TARANAKI'S WATERING-PLACE.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LI, Issue 127, 20 May 1908, Page 2

The Daily News WEDNESDAY, MAY 20. TARANAKI'S WATERING-PLACE.

Tlr* enlhusia&in with wlut-h the proposal | ru (Icviaii means ol' popularising Nr\r | I'iymouth's attractions a*, a holiday ami I le.-idential resort was taken up by eiti- I /ens at last night's meeting augurs well for tlie ultimate siieeess of the undertaking. Having the .Mayor'* assurance I that the question of improving tlie Hsj plumule was leeeiving t ln- attention of himself ami the borough engineer, and that a delinite would later on be

laid More the Council, the meeting conlined its atU'iitinii to diseasing means of entertaining visitors and townspeople at I lie holiday >ea*on, and generally ol

encouraging ami popularising tin- use <>r tin' beach as a camping ami jiiiniik iug resort during Hie summer months On tlu> ipiesli.iu <i( attractions during tin- Christmas holidays. Ihc general feeling of the meeting \va.- in favor of a Year's Day or tin' day after, added al- | traction., to In- n regatta, and. if it can | li,> arranged, tin' presence of a warship I fnun tin- Australasian squadron, an I j rin> linvcrnnicnt training-ship Aniokura. (in tin' other day it was suggested a garden party or sports gathering should In' hi'ld on tin* Sporls Cround. at which Ihc bluejacket* and A kura lioys would Ilw a programme in thcin-clvcs. During | tin. week. al-o. ih,. Taranaki .locke'v (lull and the Taranaki Tenuis-Assueia lion hold their annual lixluies, so thai a continuous round of amusement would he provided, and that without interfering with the established and popular | provincial gatherings at Stratford and IKlthani. A committee was set up to carry out the project, but its functions will be principally to map out a programme, anticipate the recpiirenicnts of country visitors, and advertise the attractions as widely as possible, the actual conduct of the various functions being left to the bodies controlling them. The committee would arrange lor the H| necessary railway accommodation, organise bi-altraetions for the children, perhaps, and generally exercise a supervision making for the fullest enjoyment of a holiday-seeking populace. The tominiltoe'a sphere of usefulness, however, need not lie bounded by the mere arranging of holiday functions. As was pointed out by more than one speaker, we want to induce our country friends to spend their summer vacations on tin New Plymouth beach instead of joiirleying farther alicld. Too little has ecu done in this direction, but little can | ic done unless the Harbor Board can be mil d to adopt a. less conservative iiilicy than its recent actions credit it villi! We see no valid reason why the iiiihling of summer bungalows, unprcentioiis summer camps, tea-rooms, and lie like should not be, encouraged by he Hoard. With its delinite harbor [dans, the Hoard can .-lively say what portions of the beach are not likely to he rciuiivcd for its purposes. AVe unconvinced Mint a liberal policy in this direction would popularise the beach, lite harbor, and New I'lyinoiith as in amount of spi.rN. picnics, or other attract ions could ever possibly do. Rather than discouraging enterprise in this ■direction, it should be in the inteiwis of the lioard to popularise summer settlement on the b -h as far as possible. There can be no more objoclton lo the erection of bungalows Ulan to fishermen'-, camps. We have not tieslightest liouol that, with the co-opera-tion of tin. Harbor 'Hoard, the committee, backed by the townspeople, will initiale a progressive programme that, within a very few years, will place New Plymouth in' the forefront as the popular wateriiu'-place of the southern portion, at least, of the Island. We possess every natural advantage in pre-emi-nent degree, but people want to he told about them.