NORTH WAIRARAPA COUNTY SETTLERS ASSOCIATION.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume VI, Issue 1862, 11 December 1884, Page 2

NORTH WAIRARAPA COUNTY SETTLERS ASSOCIATION.

A meeting of the above, to. which tlie public were; i;i invited was told in; tip. Institute las Wight., -;she President/ Jylr. R. S. ifaWlcins .occupded tjs cHair,; Tlie atfendiuief- (h'erel •bfeing ~.. The minutes of Iratihg : bcen'c'(infiraea/^4o' President called upon Mr Park to move the, motion standing in Lis ;' ; the Associatipii. ".constitute itself a mimio Parliament" of which notice had. .'•&eri ; .giyen at the last meeting. 'A!. Mr Park.saida.po3tcard had'been' sent'-to-.'each-'member, stating i'the business that would be brought before | that meeting, and as his proposal Had ■ not been included, he would ask that, the- question may .stand over to a future' The Secretary then read the delegates' report and recommendations ; i : President wid'teldfS' proceeding with the business he;wpuld just say. a'few words on the railway extension. He j.-hftil- received-' a- letter from the,.; Minister, ; of ~ Pnblicr Works \vrfttM : " imvaiefy" in" answer to' 1 « letter .be. hadsent. Stoiit asking .that' rid actioii "might bo taken iintfl ; -Ithfi vpublic r. had' givM an expression of opinion, but as this reply' rot the Minister of Public Works was of a confidential character, lie had written a'gsin also to Mr Beetham and. the correspondence had. set Him free to state that no action would be taken uiitil the ■qnrationhad. befeh'tested by a public meeting, one months time being, the limit of mh' test; that would explain-why haste was made in calling the public together'and that it was not..caused, by va*;design tb '■snatch a verdict,' The letter in. reply from the Government statedthat it was not considered altogether advisable •that the railway from 'Masterton to .Woodville should te altogether stopped tut'only ."postponed for' , a while' to en: : ablo;-the Gorge' line to be cooipjeWd and as-all- the-money 'voted''would be re; .quired for. that .wgrk, -.noirie'. .could be' given. from that fund ,fo.r.. roads.j ;He (the; had-also; written to the member "for Wairarapa'North,. Mr Beetham to urge him to obtain from, the- Minister for Public Works a definite reply, first as to- the railway extension, and next to direct Mr McKerrow to put himself in communication with'the County Council, and • Road Boards, and report on the road system. He . had received a telegram in reply from Mr Beetham, "have seen .Richardson to day, .he had .nothing to add to,letter sent," He bad also received a; letter: from Mr Beetham seating .that tho Land department "would be, glad to consult with local bodies with respect to roads, The Government " would not pledge itself beyond the present main Hue. The Napier to- Wellington line would be pushed on, and' they would not grant , money,, for roads,; 7;.; If, their representatives had Hot been avowedly and persistently againsrthem bn this question, they might have had part-of.-this railway vote for roads. Discredit had been thrown on-the public, meetings, which was a profound misfortune for Masterton. The railway extension from Masterton had been a source of unenviable notoriety. Contractors had been ruined, Workmen left to starve, their only good road injured through bungling engineering, which had caused the flooding of the Waip'oua, and great destruction of public and private property. He did not want to floga dead horse. Their opponents had got what they wanted, or some day would. Mr Beetham ljai} wijtten that he had persistently urged a road policy both in the County and Board, and in the House. Now was the tinte for them to prove whether his professions' were in earnest, A road policy did not mean a Forty-Mile Bush policy, and if it was left in tho hands of the Waste Lands Board they certainly need not expect a North Wairarapa and East Coast policy, Mr Beetham Msa thorough Forty-Mile Binih representative and he had got MeCarcjie placed on the Was is Lands Board as a colleague,- Nqiie of then: would wish to deprive those , settlers of good roads, but they did not wish all the rest of the County and town; injured for their special benefit, and every cent ; of trade should' not pass by Masterton altogether. Masterton must secure that the, Southeast.Fukeioi should not be deviated through Woodville, but directly; cbn- , ne'oted.with Masterton by. Cgodd rgada,He must say he-was-; considerably astoiphecMo hear afcth'e delegates' meeting'Mr Heron say what he did about Masterton and the Eoity-Mile Busli—that provided the lands were settled they ought not to consider Masterton, That sort of cry .was all moonshine, ..They could not make the country Jourish r by.depletj[ng inland ; towns,; He hoped this meeting wouidconcflr with him in abandoning the question as settled by the decision of the Government, and support him in the following motion That the settlement of the North Wairarapa County and its waste lands, the development of its'great resources, and the assurance of remunerative traffic to its railway depends on tho completion of its road system, and that the Government be urged to make the construction of metalled roada a leading feature of : its Public Works policy." . ■—

Mr McGregor in seconding the motion' said he thought they were taking the right course, and he had believed this would be the result of the agitation. Ho considered it the duty of the Association to urge the Government to make the question of roads for the North Island a leading feature in their future policy. In Parliament when a rale for roads had come up it bers whose districts had not the same necessity for wads as this district had, and there was eonsiderable disinclination on the part of the majority, of. members to vote large sums of' money for roads as they did not know the want of them, The surveying and locating of roads in such a district as this cost w much' as many counties south pay for the whole making, that is the reason therefpv© the South s,up: port railways in preference to road 6, '&n agitation of the present sort would shflw. these people that the North. Wpirarapa Bettlers were in' earnest, did: not think'the President.)!

done 'justice to their Member (Mr Beetham) in his remarks. He (the speaker) know Mr Beetham to have fajjeit a consistent and persistent adI'dca'te of the road policy, and had .pjqved the reality .of, hi 3 professions ■by his actions. It was-but due to him ■i'o say- that he- had given'much time to •thisbraneh ; of County work..

-' r 'The President said it waß now desirable for the Association to" consider Sfhsther a public,meeting.'should be 'held .to press upon the. Government the necessity expressed, .in the resolution, .or .whatheiv the resolution should ■be'passed by-'the Association as it now stood and be forwardodto the Government. - •

Mr Park said he had come there--that'eyening with the idea of discussing, wlieiM .it '.would? be- to the interests of- the?district" W continue the • rail way ,-ta EketEliuna, .or- that it stop at That"was what they Were called there for, according to the notice on the post card, but the President had submitted a- totally different question,,. jtQ. /tlie - meeting, which he considered quite, unfair, If this question'! we're' carried -the ■ Government would continue to think- that they did not want tlie'jailway-extended. He thought'the public should have aii opportunity of expressing its opinion on tho continuance or otherwise of. the;, railway. • .The':: President was taking them at a disadvantage, he-.was- quite satisfied the public did want the railway extended (Cries of no! no I and yes, yes I) Well then, a public meeting would give them an opportunity of ventilating, their , views,,and he would move, " That .a public meetingbe held: in Masterton- and be fuliy_ advertised,'- :witli a : .view to obtaining a full expression of opinion of the people of Masterton .and County on the policy ot suspending the construction i of the railway beyond Eketahuna." If the line was pushed on fri'm Palmer'ston to Woodville and this end stopped, .Masterton would be'practically" cut off, from the.northern.end. of the County,-: and it had'been made to appear that the peopje of Masterton -had -desired, ■thatr They had been misled at a pub-r lie meeting, and when a small majority had carried a resolution, it was brought, before ■ tlie Ministry- as if if were backed up by .the, whole people, whereas it was no such thing. He considered the public should be allowed an exprosione of opinion ap, if the Association went to the Government without it they would simply be niaking themselves a laughing stock. ••• ' Mr Mackay seconded Mr Park's motion. He considered tho question should have been fully discussed, not, only here but jn other of the coanty as'it was a most important one. Ho did not wish to interfere with the proposal re 1 roads, but wished this question of railways cleared, up so that they might bo able to work striaight. , Mr Bunny said he understood; Mr Park did not mean this as an 'amendment •

Mr Park said bis proposal was the first in order of business on ; the postcards sent out to members arid must in consequence stand ns the substantive resolution. It was all uonseiise 'calling a meeting for one purpose and ignoring it for another.

Mr Mackay was somewhat surprised at not seeing the motion of, Mr Hawkins' on the paper. Mr Hawkins' motion ought therefore to come as the amendment to Mr Parks' resolution. . Mr Bunny thought Mr Parks' motion a totally distinct one and should be subsequently dealt with ••; Mr Park said if the President, would move the first motion as printed on the order paper, he would'be quite willing to move his as an amendment.

The President, said lie was sorry to have taken the bone out of t|ie mouths of Messrs Park and Mackay who had evidently been prepared beforehand for a fight, but tho question was entirely changed by the correspondence. When the delegates made their recommendations this correspondence was not before them but it was in possession of the meeting now and it was for the Association, to form their own judgment of the letter. He considered the agitation on the ptjilwaya settled, and Mr Park's motion wanted to drive them into opening it; again. If he drove them to face a publio meeting they would do so, b'it on him be the responsibility of continuing the agitation (hear, hear). Now the Government had come to a firm decision on the matter he.wan not going to waßte time atfempting to 'alter it. -He would (inhere; to. his lirst resolution, and if any one wished to speak to that 'he would be glad to hear them.

Mr Guild said' the question origin-, ally-had beon roads versus rail ways-, it had now got to a road policy, and they had abandoned the railway question. In advising Government to grant them a sum of money, he would ask iu which body they proposed to invest it! if in the CouHtyand Road Boards, the grant would only go to benefit present roads and not to open up Crown Lands —whiek.alone would benefit Masterton. If the railway were carried to Eketahuna it would open up Puketoi in one direction, .arid from tha Hawke's Bay district it would bo much easier to open up that block in .the other, direction, and that would benefit both districts. He thought the discussion of a good road policy ought to come before an agitation, to Government: for money. . Mr McGregor considered the letter of the Public Woiks Minister had set : at rest the railway qiiestioii, but still he thought a public meeting, should be held, .and lie-hoped the President would re-consider the matter for that purpose, ••• The President said he was quite in the l)ands of the meeting. He would put the resolution as circulated on the order paper. This was done arid declared lost. .

. Mr Park rose to say he wanted to move an amendment upon that resolution, but the President, informed him he was too late, The President then read the resolution he had originally proposed, and Mr Park moved as an amendment, "That it is desirable that the railway be extended to

. ■The President declined -to . accept that as an amendment, and Mr Mackay moved that the words be added " and that a public meeting be held in support of the resolution,"

The President accepted that and the resolution was put and. carried unanimously. The President moved "That the Association apply to the Government, to set apatt &.'sufficient area of' th| Crown 'Lands as near as- possible ft). Magtertoa as. a peopje's park M tji| country;" ,JSe had been told to adherf to., some practical question. If •this was not a practical question . He would like- to know what was, No' ' one believed mor9 : thai) himself in the •to .do,-,do - iti- with:' thy might," but if that meant the highest aim they were to have was, to grow the most wool: and mutton, to buy cheap and sell dear, to get the most work out of the Workmen, own more land than their neighbors, 4c., he wquld protest against it, in the face for wealth let them take care, not tq forget, love," pity, and kindness, and remember the brain depended on the action of the heart. Could they find anything more practical than that which contributed to the happiness of the'mass of the people! Could they ■look at the rapidly incre.a.siag; pbpula- ■ tiort' of the''district of Masterton and say a practical question to.; PQ&de'a- park- for the future 1 The land around was fast becoining. all private, property, all fenced in, with fenced roads, and every year the open land was getting less and less, the inhabitants had.no pasture but the arid .park patch, ', andno shade but .the verandahs. Let them take .(( lesson frbm where eVery town ha 3 its. park, their only; regret being, that' they had not set aside free-lands for, the public in .large towns earlier; (The -President'read'an : extract from Mr Hussey Vivian's work on . the parks of America.) ■ The; expense of; keep in'g iucH ;:parb in . .New. . Zealand oyer'am} above the revenue'derived from depasturing would have td be met. •The' a Land Tax for' a .Property Tax.aiiq reverting thattax to the.County would relteve-'the Colonial .revenue of'it's •burden;./ He thought lu . Q '.V: - to set aside-vacant' spaces" in the -way suggestec,, 1 1 -

Mr Mackay seconded the-motion, It could do .no harm, and "might do a deal of good and prove beneficial; to the towiispeopls in the future.. He; would like to Bee.more of the forest reservos coiißorved. it would also be of public utility. •■ ■ ■■.".. ■ '

; Mr Paytou asked if the President was in a position to say whether there was any land^suitable, for .tho-purpose of; aojlifilic merve. the Association were prepared -'with a recommendation if miglit lead-to them being saddled- with^ a.CfOD aofe. onei'esetye. the same as the Borough had got, land did not'know what on earth to do with (laughter). They had two parks . already, and one cemetery. Be might suggest another cen'ctery be

. The.,. President did not hoid with anyone attempting to throw riijicule ;on such a proposal, 'No cloulit the. delegates would choose a suitable site. He was. quite certain': they would regrgt it. in the . future if not ■ done.

The resolution vviis put and oarried. , Mi'-Bunhy moved-" That the- Goveminent be requested to survey the lands on tho eustern side of the Puketoi tahefes; ■ '"cbmmencing at a point nearest, to with a view to the formation of special and village settlements in accordance -with the;.; V provisions of ; the Land Act, 1877, Amendment Act, 1879, and the order in Council gazetted December 4th instant," Mr Bunny went fully into the details of the provisions of' the Special Settlement Act, and pointed out thb many, advantages that would arise to tlie district by preventing this particularly rloh land from falling into the hands of speculators.' Mr Mackay seconded the proposition which was fully discussed by several members and Anally oarried.