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The Daily News. MONDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 1917. THE FAR NORTH.

The recent trip of the Parliamentary party to the North of Auckland will serve to open the eyes of the rest of the Dominion as to the present state and piospeets of this comparatively unknown land. Nearly all the southerners were impressed with what they srnv there, and the result should not' be without advantage to the north and the country generally. The popular opinion previously was that the land was suitable for little besides gum and kauri timber and perhaps fruit growing, but the visitors were shown thousands of square miles that was either being duiried upon or was capable of carrying dairy herds, and thousands and thoufands of acres of unproductive land that should be supporting vast flocks of sheep and herds of cattle, whilst proof vras given that even the poorest land, the pipe-clay land that gum-diggers have picked over, can be converted into good pasturage or be made suitable for fruit growing. The north has worked under difficulties in the past. It has been termed the '"neglected" and the "roadless" north. Now, in order to remove the bad impression made on strangers by the use of these adjectives, it is called the "winterless north," and so, blazoned on all the motor cars that took part in the recent pilgrimage, were the words "Winterless North Tom. Neglected the north has been, it must be admitted. The Government has neglected it in the matter of railways, but more than anything else it has neglected tc deal effectively with the Maori land problem. In the north there are big areas of splendid land in the hands ot the Maoris lying quite unproductive and yielding no rates or taxes. Under the recent legislation a good deal of thv, native land has been bought by syndicates who are holding for a rise in values and keeping back settlement. Railway construction ha 9 proceeded at a snail's pace, but with the extraordinary number of good harbors and the great opanse of water frontage the lack of railways would not have been severely felt but for the want of decent roads. This is the greatest handicap, in our opinion, the north labors under. Apart from a few miles of good roads around Whangarei and from Mangonui to Kaitaia, in the extreme north, and the road> in proximity to Dargavillo, there is no attempt at road making or maintenance. For instance, the Parliamentary party during the sixteen or seventeen days they were travelling only came across two surface men, and, it was said, those were on especially for the benefit of tiie visitors. The arterial roads were put down by the Government years ago, and the settlers are doing little or nothing ii keep them in order. The "neglect" cf the north is principally the fault of the settlers themselves. They have had it dinned into their ears for years and years by the Auckland newspapers and their own representatives in Parliament that the fault lies with the Government, which should undertake ?he whole of the roading. They have been taugfct to look to the Government and not to lely upon their own efforts. The enitt lu.s been disastrous to themselves and the north generally. It has made tlism tnylhing but independent and se'.f-reli-ant, and stayed the development of a r:ch territory. Without good roads the best land in the country cannot be developed properly or attract settlement, but this fact does not seem to have been realised by the people o"T the north. Perhaps, however, the settlers arc not to blame so much as the Auckland newspapers, on whom may be placed much of the blame for the unprogressiveness and undevclopment of the north. Hud >.hey preached a self-reliant policy in the matter of roads and used their influence against the plums of the north being snapped up by land sharks, the north of Auckland would have been in an different position to-day. The settlers will not rate themselves or raise special loans t* prevMe goed roads. Om couaty

council, whose area stretches from one coast to the other, prides itself on the. tr.et that it is the only county council in the Dominion without a debt! But it cannot pride itself upon the state of its roads, which are too awful for words. It is not as if the north is, like so many parts of Taranaki, without suitable metal, for practically right through the north plentiful supplies of metal are available, and it is a significant fact that where the roads are the worst, as in the Herekino district, there you will find abundant supplies of good metal lying elcse by. The northern has a "looted objection to paying rates. H-: regards rates as an unjust infliction, s.imply because he lias been constantly iold that it is (he Government's duty to provide hi in with the means of communication. The party were shown land which the settlers claimed was equal to the best dairying land in Taranaki, and a glance at the fields and the records of cows carried bore out the statement. And, this splendid land, what do you think it was rated at? Kigiu pence per acre! In Taranaki that very same land would be paying up to 10s per acre; certainly not less than (is Sd. But Taranaki lias good roads, it is progressive, and productive to an extent unequalled by any part .of (he world. Much of the good hind was rated at as low as 4d per acre, and very little more than Sd. It is often a good thing for a. district or an individual to be in debt, for then the district or individual will exert itself 01 him;vlf to the fullest extent to liquidate if-, and in the process must benelit others. If the north would but rate itself, ic would, with its immense waterways, soon forge ahead, apart altogether from the construction of railways. Of course, it is in the interest of the Dominion that the north, with other parts of the country, should be railed as speedily as possible, and the Maori lands brought under the control of the Crown. In respect to this Native land question the Governments have all along been afraid to grasp the nettle, and declare boldly that the lands unused should lie taken over by the Crown and the proceeds handed to the owners. Until that is done the north will continue to be handicapped. The Government could with advantage go further and apply tin' same principle to unused blocks of rich land held by speculators, who are also retarding the development of the north, but the future progress of the peninsula rests very largely with the settlers themselves, who should be told their plain duty by their leaders and pros* instead of being taught to look to the Government for everything and fed up with statements about the "robbi/g" of the north by the south. If the settlors will continue in their course of not helping themselves, how can they ex pect to be helped? Besides, this fool'nb attitude of the Northern Press mnslibve a bad effect on the character of the people, making them leas sturdy, less independent, less self-reliant. One tiling, however, it has not done—it has not affected their hospitality, which was simply showered upon the visitors at every turn, and no one can regard them with other than grateful and kindly interest.

Permanent link to this item
Hononga pūmau ki tēnei tūemi

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/TDN19170205.2.17

Bibliographic details
Ngā taipitopito pukapuka

Taranaki Daily News, 5 February 1917, Page 4

Word count
Tapeke kupu
1,241

The Daily News. MONDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 1917. THE FAR NORTH. Taranaki Daily News, 5 February 1917, Page 4

The Daily News. MONDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 1917. THE FAR NORTH. Taranaki Daily News, 5 February 1917, Page 4

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