HAWKES’ BAY.

Waipa Post, Volume I, Issue 31, 1 August 1911, Page 4

HAWKES’ BAY.

The Hawkes’ Bay district is generally looked upon as one of the most flourishing districts of the Dominion. Throughout the province large towns are rapidly springing up, while its pastoral lands from north to south are held to be second to none. The following letter, which has been placed in our hands by Mr Ingham, is of considerable interest. The writer of the letter is the proprietor of about 100 acres within a few miles of Hastings, having purchased the property some three years ago at £6O per acre. The price ruling in the same district now is even higher than that figure. It is no idle boast to say that Hawkes’ Bay is the richest and most productive province in the Dominion. The Heretaunga plains, on which the town of Hastings stands in the centre, is exceptionally rich and grows maize, root crops, and grass to perfection without manure of any kind. It is also admirably adapted for fruit growing and no less than two or three thousand acres are planted in orchard, chiefly peaches, in the vicinity of Hastings. The noted Frimley orchard claims to have 60 miles of peach trees alone (60 rows a mile long), and a canning factory established about 8 years ago, has increased its output by leaps and bounds until now, in the busiest part of the season, employs 250 hands, mostly girls. The butting up of large estates has promoted closer settlement to a wonderful and beneficial extent and large tracts of beautiful country, which until quite recently was stocked with large flocks of sheep, is now receiving the attention of the dairy farmer, orchardist, etc., and sheep runs are being replaced by a thriving and prosperous population. According to statistics the deposits in the Post Office Savings Bank compare very favourably with any other part of. the Dominion. Another index to the prosperity of this district is, according to the report of the PostmasterGeneral, the number of telephone subscribers. He' says there are more subscribers to the telephone in and around Hastings than any other district in the Dominion according to the population, and Hastings is the first town to get the latest and most up-to-date telephone connection installed. Notwithstanding the rapid strides made of recent years in connection with fruit farming, dairying, cropping etc., on the rich lands of Hawkes’ Bay, sheep farming still predominates over all other branches of farming industries, and this sunny province is well adapted for rearing and fattening extensive flocks of sheep, in fact, according to the Boer delegates who honoured this province with a visit a few vears ago, they declared that there were more sheep on a given area in Hawkes’ Bay than on any other part of the globe. It will not be surprising in face of the foregoing, that this little province should run three large up-to-date freezing works running up ‘to a capacity of killing 3,000 sheep a day each. The chief exports of the province are mutton and wool and according to the statements of the Daily Telegraph the average exports per head of population, is twice as great in Hawkes’ Bay as the average per head of the Dominion. The prosperiry of the settlers on the land reflects also on the prosperity of the town and Hastings town itself is ..getting a busy little centre. The climate of Hawkes’ Bay, although not everything to be desired, compares very favourably with any other portion of this highly favoured land. One has said it is a land of sunshine and willows, anothes has said the winters of Hawkes’ Bay are sufficiently cold to make them of invigorating briskness.