The Daily News. FRIDAY, MAY 27, 1921. TARANAKI’S GROWTH.

Taranaki Daily News, 27 May 1921, Page 4

The Daily News. FRIDAY, MAY 27, 1921. TARANAKI’S GROWTH.

It is generally considered impossible to make statistics interesting, but the figures submitted by the president of the Taranaki Chamber of Commerce to the General Manager of Railways on his recent visit to Taranaki cannot fail to arouse considerable interest. To the rapidly-dwindling band of early settlers the aspect of Taranaki to-day, as compared with their first impressions, must present such a great contrast that they may well wonder how it has been brought about, especially in view of the fact that, owing to Native troubles, the settlement of the province was retarded so greatly that it was at one time a common saying, “Taranaki is fifty years behind the times.” Up to January, 1871, the province was practically isolated from the rest of the Dominion, except by sea transit, but on the, eleventh of that month the first coach started from Wanganui for New Plymouth, reached Hawera the same night, and owing to there being no inns or hotels, the passengers had to accept private hospitality, before continuing the journey round the mountain, reaching their destination late the following evening. Hawera and Patea were then in their infancy, while Stratford and Inglewood were dense bush, and it was not until August 21, 1873, that the first sod of Taranaki’s first railway was turned at New Plymouth for the line to Waitara. The official opening of the line from New Plymouth to Hawera did not take place till October, 1881, and it was in February of that year that the foundation stone of the New Plymouth harbor was laid. In the comparatively short period that has intervened between then and now, Taranaki has become the most closelysettled area in the country, and in more recent years its productivity and volume of trade have advanced by leaps and bounds. for instance, the railway traffic as compared with Wanganui and Napier. In 1914 the inwards goods and merchandise carried to New Plymouth amounted to 46,711 tons, and in 1920 to 70,493, the figures for Wanganui being 8535 and 34,859 tons, while those for Napier were 11,905 and 18,896 tons. The coal and other minerals also showed a large increase, the New Plymouth figures rising to nearly 23,000 tons. Traffic for the same period showed that the number of passengers from New Plymouth increased by 3000. as against 1000 for Wanganui and 21,000 for Napier (where there is a considerable suburban traffic, and where there are two to three times the number of trains), while goods and merchandise from New Plymouth rose from 63,000 to 71.000 tons, from Wanganui 23,000 to 45,000 tons, and from Napier fell from 26,000 to 25,000 tons. The outwards mineral traffic from New Plymouth remained at between 14,000 and 15.000, that for Wanganui at about 13,000, while Napier dropped back from 27,000 to 17,000. Gratifying as these figures are from a Taranaki viewpoint, yet more remarkable still are the other statistics which testify to the wonderful progress of the province. The post and telegraph reyenue for Taranaki compares fav-

orably with that of other similar centres, as do the saving bank deposits, while the Customs revenue for 1921 (£80,000) is far in excess of the collections at Gisborne and Timaru. and may this year exceed that at Wanganui. Vast strides have been made in the trade at the port, as shown by the fact that in 1916 it amounted to 90,000 tons, while in 1920 it reached nearly 124,000 tons, and in the first four months of the present year was at the rate of 136,000 tons. It is, however, the value of Taranaki’s exports that is the main cause for congratulation. For the year ending March 31, 1921, the total value of these exports amounted to nearly five millions sterling—over £BO per head of the population, a figure which is £3O ahead of the average for the Dominion. This splendid result has been made possible by the hard work, co-operation and enterprise of the dairy farmers. The province owes its progress and prosperity tp butter-fat. The financial results cannot be solely measured by the output, but must take into account the enormously increased value of the land and the accompanying additions to the consolidated revenue. On these grounds the people have a special claim on the Government for generous treatment as regards railway development.