NGARUAWAHIA.

Waikato Times, Volume X, Issue 583, 15 February 1876, Page 3

NGARUAWAHIA.

The piciue^t towuibip in Waikdt-o is de'a.iu<ll> tii it of Njj.tuuwdhia, puced ia the Pn'k oi the Waikato -and Waipa rivers, and nestling under the wood-clad range of the Uakaritnata. Its situation at the point of the Delta, too, has caused the whole township to be concentrated into a smaller area than usual in up-coun-try settlements, and this gives to it an air of importance and size which no one of the sister settlements -not even that of Hamilton — possesses. Ngaruawahia was *he first established of these-settleinents, and its position at the confluence of tho rivera was supposed to give it the command of the district and make it tha natural capital of Waikato, and so, in old times, eve the iron road superseded nature's highways, and hill and swamp became alike trifles in the way of the iron horse, it would have been. Iho junction, liovrever, of three or more lines of railway, goes far more now a-days to rim up j '■a bustling I ' city than the position •' on the j forks," which made so many centres in the earlier settlement of tbe United 1 Sutes. Still special natural kdvantages of position such as Ng.iruawahia possesses, 'in addition to direct railway communication with all parts of the colony, will always secure for it a first class position, 'and the very fact that its back country is circumscribed will tend to give another direction to the pursuits of its which may render it in futura time one of the moat important aities of 'the North Island. Here perhaps we may hope to* see before very long the establishment of a cloth factory 'for the working up the wool produced elsewhere 'in the ■district,' and other works of a iiinilar character. At present it is the only township in the district which has anyjfching like a real appearance of com me r: "Pal and : industrial activity, with its steam mills and brewery and workshops, and the central offices 'of the Waitato Steam Navigation Company established there. cdal are in its immediate vicinity, and it is likely to become at once the central source fbr 'the supply of sawn ■ timber to the disttiet. Mr Laaib's mills ' have befcn more Chan usually busy of late in keeping up the supply of flour required up country, but with the present week "Work will bs fairly started on the -•erection of new and powerful machinery in con- * junction with that at present at work. Mr Park, Vho was some littla time since " * engaged in erecting similar machinery for a late firm at Mercer, will at once commence 'the erection of machinery for the sawing "of timber and manufacture of doors, sashes, mouldingß, and "all jother 'woodwork required by builders. The premises ! are now nearly erected in which the new •machinery will be placed, and are so arranged that the v timber brought up the river dan be pulled up in trucks by steam * and placed at once -npon the skids, It is ' estimated that when at work this new department of the mill will be able to turn out from 20,000 to 30,000 feet of 'iioiber weekly. Mr Lamb has already "fixed upon the premises one of the best 1 circular saw spindles in the country, and Nl3N 13 importing planing and moulding ma*oVjnes *"nd other gear ef first-class quality, necessary 'for the manufacture of doors, ' windows, sashes, &c. . The steam motive >" power at present erected ii amply sufficient *foy driving the machinery now in use, as "well as that about to be put up, only on* ' of the two boilers being up to the present time required. The blacksmith's bellows, 'turning lathes, and other .machinery are ' all worked by steam. Mr Lamb ' cer. r tainly deserves the s'uppbrt of the Waikato settlers for the pluck ;h"e has shown, after hia late severe losses by the flood, in c meeting the requirements of the district. 'It is estimated that the new machinery will be iti working order In. less than a 'month. A 'noticeable feature and one that we recommend to Town Boards elsewhere, is theplanting 6f the street* with timber trees, amongst which are large numbers of blue gums, pinus insiguis and other pines. Already the young growth is beginning to have a pleasing effect, and by-and-bye 'these trees will render Ngaruawahia not 'only the prettiest but one of the coolest 'and healthiest summer residences in Waikato. As 'we liave said the present drawback iib the town is the want of back country, 'of available farming land in its imme"diate vicinity ; but that this is so is due 'quite as much to the fault of the Govern. Xbent as to natural peculiarities. There is not much available land upon the Waipa, the range upon its further side "commencing to rise at a very short dis'tauce- from the bfcnk, but as the Delta "opens out there is a good stretch of fanland — through which the Hamilton and Alexandra roadß traverse — still in a state 'of nature, except that the clover growing jfceelj where carried by the cattle speaks •Trail for the fertility of the soil. Much of % tbis is in the hands of the Government, indeed, some 2,000 acres in the immediate vicinity bf the town are thus locked up, and as the upset price is fixed at £10 pev aOre (an utterly ridiculous sura for land unimproved) it is likely to remain so. At the present time a considerable amount of Government money having been er■"panded in the district, thare arre & numbed of contractors, workmen, and others, who have "sayed various amounts — from £50 to perhaps £200 — who would gladly settle down and make first-class Bettiers, if they had 'only the land wherewith 'to do 'so, but the price asked by 'the Govern•menfc fd'r 'the land would at 6nce swallow up their available capital. If instead of at ten pbunds the land were open to selection in small blocks at three pounds or even five pounds per acre, a large number df thetee men would become 6ccupiers of from five to twenty acres, and prove Valuable 'settlers and producers', instead of taking - tsheir capital away with them to *other pai'tß of the country, which will be the •case when the Government works ate finished. As it is, maaj of them »Te temporarily squatting on the Government land on the other side of the Waipa, forming gardens on land to which they «an acquire no title, but showing their desire for settlement, and the value of the

intelligent labour and producing power which the Government, by putting a piohibitive upset price upon the adjacent land, js failing to .utilize. From Ngaruawahia to Mr Harris's pretty form, where the half-way house formally stood, there is scarcely any cultivation along either side the road. The occujMition of one section begets the cultivation of another, and the impetus that the Government would give to settlement by the throwing open of these lauds on easier terms, would more than compensate for the lower price directly obtained frou. them.