The Temuka Leader SATURDAY, JANUARY 21, 1882.

Temuka Leader, Issue 907, 21 January 1882, Page 2

The Temuka Leader SATURDAY, JANUARY 21, 1882.

TpERE is not in New Zealand ft town that has made such progress for the last few years as Ashburton.' Seven or eight years ago it consisted of . ft few bats scattered about on a barren plain, but now it takes a foicmost place as a third-rate town, and if it continues to go ahead as it has been doing, in ten years time it will have few equals in the colony. It is not that it

has any natural ad - ! antages, or that its resources are greater than those of other centres of papulation. On the contrary, it has theArawback of haying, no harbor, and; it is situated in the midst of a plain which is for the most, part very poor land. Still Ashburton is going ahead at a rate which surprises everybody, and it is very likely to continue doing so. Efforts have been made in Timariq Oamaru, Wellington, and other places t.o start woollen .factories, but they, have fallen through owing to the insufficiency of the support that was promised to them. Undaunted by the experience of these towns the people of Ashburton have resolved to get up a Company with a capital of £50,000 for the purpose of starting a woollen factory, and we mistakethem very much if they fail in carrying their project out, to a successful issue. They have already overcome obstacles which at first appeared more difficult, and we feel almost confident that they will succeed in this new undertaking. Many laughed at them a few months ago when they proposed holding an exhibition of colonial industries in their town, but the Ashburtonite’s were not to be put down with a sneer. With that indomitable spirit of industry which characterises all their actions they went to work, and in a few weeks had the gratification of,witnessing one of the best industrial exhibitions ever field in the colony, openedin the presence of a large assemblage of representative men from all parts of,fins Island by his Excellency the Governor. Titnaru was six years discussing how to get a water supply ; sis mouths from the day on which the question of a water supply was first mooted in Ashburton, it was flowing through the streets. Tin's is the secret of the progress Ashburton is making. It has men who do not waste their energies in talk, but who proceed at once to action with a determination and industry that seems to carry them through the greatest difficulties. Foremost amongst these are the Fried'lander Bros., Mr Thomas Bullock, Mr Shearman, Mr Joseph Clark, and njany others, who are aUvays ready with their money, as well as tbeir counsel and assistance, whenever any movement for the good of., the district is on foot. Besides this, there is not in New Zealand a more business-like public body than its County Council. No sooner had the Borough Council supplied the town with water, than the County Council spot

sti .ams of water, brought from a distance

of about 18 miles over the .plains of the Ashburton County, thus increasing the value of property considerably, and doing a vast amount of good. The Friedlander Bros, have now developed a new industry. They are quarrying, and . bringing to Ashburton 4 the Mount Somers stone, which resembles, but is much superior to, the Oamaru stone, it being more solid. It is thus Ashburton is going ahead, but of course it would be of little "interest to us in this district if it did not contain for us a lesson which we might well study. The town of Temuka is situated in the best agricultural land in Now Zealand, taken as a whole, and, besides, it has the advantage of its immediate surroundings being taken up principally by well-to-do settlers, instead of having it locked up, as other districts, are, in the hands of a few sbeepfarmers. Thus it hrs many natural advantages -which Ashburton does not possess, and yet Ashburton is leaving it far behind in the race of progress. There is more real wealth, our settlers are far better off in this district thr ■ in Ashburton, and ,we want nothing but push and enterprise amongst our let ding men to make this town keep pace with the progress that is being made in other localities less favored by nature. The first step that should be taken is, in our opinion, to keep the trade of the district in the totruj and how to attain that object, aught to be the allabsorbing question with everyone whp desires to see this town prosper. In our opinion there is but one way, and that is by the residents in this district co-operat-ing with each other in starting some new enterprises. 'We propose, as a beginning, to start a co-operative store on a liberal scale. We suppose that there are 1000. householders in the district to whom Temuka is the neare-l town, and if there were to lake a £lO share each on an average, a capital of £IO,OOO could be raised., With such a capital, a very good

store could' be started here in which everybody would have au interest. We believe that £4O a year for each of its 1000 subscribers to spendinthe necessaries' of life, is far below the average, but even at that figure it would make the receipts of the store £40,000 a yoar. In Timaru all goods are marked at least 3J- per cent to 40 per cent above the cost price, and supposing our local co-operative store sold its goods at 20 per cent profit, is it feasible that anyone would go to Tirnaru to buy goods which could be got from 10 to 20 per cent cheaper in this town. In a properly conducted store, such as we have pointed out, we feel pretty well sure that its yearly rr ,eipts would not be far short of £40,000. If there was a profit of 20 per cent on that sum, it would yield an annual income of £BOOO to the shareholders, and thus, besides getting their goods about 15,, per cent cheaper than they could otherwise get them, they would have splendid interest for their money. Now this will, no doubt, bo regarded as an Utopian, idea, but we believe it to be within the bounds of possibility. Our figures may be a bit in

excess of the re al transactions of such an institution, but at the same time, there is no doubt that if eyen n<?t spent altogether in the store, £40,0P0 would be, spent annually in this town if the. people had sufficient encouragement to make this their market town. There are many other industries that could,be started, but w.e leave the further, discussipn of. the subject to men who have better local information, ,and more commercial experience, for the present.