The Wairarapa Daily. TUESDAY, APRIL 24, 1888. The North Island Railway Route.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume IX, Issue 2881, 24 April 1888, Page 2

The Wairarapa Daily. TUESDAY, APRIL 24, 1888. The North Island Railway Route.

We learn from Mr W. H. Beetham who lias recently taken a trip through the North Island Railway route that he left Wellington with Mr Buchanan M.H.R, on Friday the Gtlnnst., reaching Hunterville the same evening, where Mr J. G. Wilson M.H.R. joined the party. On Saturday the trio followed up the Rangitikei through a well graded' bridle track to the Hautapu Valley, passing through good land, Next (lay they reached Mr Studholme's cattle station at Ruaniii, on the sources of the farakina river, and found the land of fair quality, well sown and graced, On the Monday they left Ruanui and reached Kerioi 011 the Murumotu Plains and were very much disappointed with the quality of the land they saw here. On Tuesday they followed the proposed line of railway up to the mountains on the west of Ruapehu, and were surprised to notice the enormous sums of money which had been expended on road making. The expenditure on bridges was something tremendous, one alone apparently costing £4,000, with the prospect of becoming rotten before any cart was likely to go over it. On Wednesday the party camped 011 the Waikaimairino plains, a beautiful undulating country, but the soil of it is of very inferior quality. Next day they travelled to Tokano, over fine looking country, watered by beautiful mountain streams, and dotted with nice patches of bush, but the land was most inferior, and in a long day's ride they did not see a single bit of good soil. Mr Beetham declared that the land would not pay to occupy; it was unfitted for small settlers, and it would not pay to take up even as a sheep run. They were extremely disappointed with its quality. He thought that in the present state of the finances of the Colony, to take a railway through it with a view to opening up good country would be an absurdity. After a day's rest at Tokano, where the party enjoyed a prolonged steam bath at the hot springs, they visited'the Waihi waterfall, and returned to Kerioi by the eastern side of the mountains, across a worthless country. A day later, they reached Erehwon where land of a better quality was found with a limestone formation, and crossing by a short cut to Hautapu were gratified to meet with country ofa superior quality, but these good lands, which are all in the hands of the Maoris, could easily lie tapped by a road from Hunterville. It will thus be noticed that two of the shewdest and most competent judges of land in the Colony unhesitatingly condemn the quality of the laud along the North Island Trunk line, and call attention to enormous sums of money wasted in construction of the useless road which is intended to precede an unprofitable railway.