RAGLAN.

Waikato Times, Volume XXV, Issue 2086, 19 November 1885, Page 3

RAGLAN.

Ar a meeting of the K.uim Highway Coaid, held at Te Mata this day, itwasdetouniiied to open up the load from Raglan to Una puke, passing the hoiius of tlio .imii settleis, and keeping along the base of Kanoi mountain. I'ioin Kaglan to JSI i liiddi'lN f.u nt ii just eight link's ;uid .1 lnlf, l)iit I>j the old load via Te Mata, nearly twt ntj. The proposed iii-w load is thus not only much .shoitei to Kuapukc, but it will al«o open out some of the \or\ best land m the di'ti let that now lit- idle. It was also deteiiuiuod to request the (fo\eminent t<> depose of 10,000 acios of land (already suivejed at tin head of Aotea haiboiu), undiT special settlement clause*. Now that the mail contiactei, Mr Sutton, has commenced to inn his mail coaches twice <i week to and fiom H miilton to this placo it is t<> be hoped he may receive the patronage fiom the public w Inch his endea\oiiis to pio\idc for their cmufoit Jinmc On Tuesday morning ]a*t thy mail left Hamilton with pahsengerx, mails and goods punctually to the tune on its ti ip to Hag lan. The conveyance was cnnifoi table, the steeds all that could bo defied, lxttu would be hard to be found, and there tvas not need to nay : " To talk of the weathei is nothing but f«»Hy For when it rains mi the hill it may be sun in the Valley." Hut for one slight hljowci soon aftci stilting the day was -plondid. Wh.itawhat.i was m)ou l eached, the mails delimed and recei\od, and once moie we sped on at a good p.icc. Th'j nearer we got to the mountain, tho more hi •icing tho an w.i.s. The road is good in most places, but in seven oi oi n 'ht paits lefiuues .ittention, and if the (.oveuinient would only evpeud a mii ill sum wo should have a .splendid summer load, and when we considu that l.ulways tun Noith, South and East fiom Hamilton it is only ju>t that a good load should be made and kept up westw.ud to the Raglan coast. It will come no doubt. "All tilings Lome to those who wait. ' In reaching the summit of the walcishcd, we looked behind us for a moment. What a mow was theie. The \alley of W.iip.i and W.tik.ito stietched out like a pmotam.i Wh.it a gi md future is befoie the di>tnct we lia\e left behind. \\ htn all its waste lands are tilled, and tinning fac tones fill its towns. When the tiaftic t« and fio between here and Auckland will he too much for the singlo line of rail, and g<\oda umuuyed by n\ei, uwxl and lad, and a busy industrious population occupying the whole land. Then, yon know, Kagl m will have it-> i.ulway too. But boon the enchanting scene vanishes, .is w e sp, ,-d down the incline into the Waitttuna Valley .md arrive at Host Sutton s, le.idy and willing to do justice to the c\cell< nt sjnead set out foi our bodily wants, foi wo cannot live on air, however bracing it may be. To those who enjoy a diivo and cannot find time to go on to K.igl in, I -hould -ay drive to the Half-way Hou-o and letui n to Waikato again. In the W.utctun.x Rivei haid by whitebait are caught in laigequ m titles; the delicacy of their rl.uoui tho wuter can vouch foi, but, not posies-ing the g.ustioiioiiiic pen of a S.il.i, cannot pei haps describe. Isut let those who want to taste them come to this well kept hostelry, and I don't think they need be disappointed. Why should we not lead of his Woi ship the Mayor of Hamilton and his councillois eating then whitebait heie? The hoihes changed once inme we speed mi. On our left, two miles fiom the load, i- the splendid valley ot the Waitetun.i, with a block of very good land unouuupied, and on our right the iiv ci of that name, someday to be filled with tho ln-ty tmut. and the sportsman will then cast his " fly " ujion its waters to tempt the speckled be.iuty. " With here and there .v lusty tiout, And here and there a grayling." For a moment Boltons fair abbey como* before the mind with Wliarfo's romantic waters, tho >Stud and Baden Cattle. But tho " past is gone ; present time alone avniN, ' for, as the immortal bard lephes, "Come what, come may, Time and the hour runs through the roughest day." Onward we speed. Mr Moon's, with its lovely trees, like an oasis in the deseit, is pa-ied. Ahead of us appears a dense - Mimke, lost for a while, but all at once, whilst abreast of Johnstonc's bush, on the left hand of the road we perceive a dense hie coming with great fury. To tuin the coach round was at once Keen to be tho best, and after great difficulty, and no little tioublc was accompli-hed. After retreating for flome distance, the only eh nice appeared to be to fight tiie with hie. Mi Sutton, at no little lisk, after leasing the coat h in charge of the " Youi Own," pi oci eded, amidst stifling heat and dense smoke, to light the fire along tho loadside. With thed< < siredeffpcta t «it appeared, as aftei resuming his seat, the horde's heads weie once moi c turned for llaglan, and at a rattling pace driven past the fire, which, in p.i-sing, seemed to revive again. The hoises did not like it, but they had to go, as we had been detained sotno time. How ever, tho danger was past. It is to be hoped careless people will take a le.s-on fiom this, and not hre the fern with a wind blowing on to the road. IJi>ides endaugi'i ing the mails, lives might be lost. The t'lcgraph poles would havo been burnt h.\d not the fern been cut down some time \h'ioii\ Leaving crackling fire behind, vie gladly inhale the gloiious se.i biee/e, 'ami soouiench Kaglan, hut leave till anotln i day a report of its advantages, only just to say that good accommodation can now be had at Mi Suttons Raglan Tein;» ljnce Hotel, he having bought the same, and is fitting it up with cveiy de-nc to make v Niton computable, also at Mi Moon's Haibour View Hotel, w ho is hay ing the xamo dono fop Ins houso. May many visitors patronise them this summer, and rpceive lasting benefit in rostoied health fiom their sojourn at out delightful sea side icsotr, which is yet to be the Scaiboro' of New Zealand. The Haglan limestone has won for itself a good name in Auckland at last. Tho lime it pronounced to be the veiybp^t m New Zealand, and second to none m tho world. Such is the tentnnony of both buildeis and aiclntects. One agent alone will take 1000 bushels per month. The Sugar Company use it largely, and a great future is before Hiiglan in this respect alone. Mews Moon and Vorooo, having had an excellent burn last week, shipped a quantity by tho local steamer yesterday. The buildingutone from Mcssis JJruco and T'eiguson's, too, is much ad mi led. A veiy larfife number of cattle arc sold at the Obaupo silo yard* from ftaulau, and-aiu of veiy supenor <[iiallty. So that all along thu line KagLin will boon hold its own, <nid wo will revcise tho words of Avon's baid, and say : " To day Raglan can btand against the world, Yestorday none so poor as to do her honiftKO." From tho report of the sub-committee of tho Hospital and Charitable Aid Bo.ud, gent to our representative it uoems that the evpendituie from .January to October was £">739, and from returns given by Mr (irahcim of amounts expended in the various plaao«i of the Auckland distiict, it seoms Raglan is not mentioned, no ono having received relief from here. Th is speaks volumes in a word. It is said by thoso who know that only ono person ever received relief, and all persons from hero attending tho hospital paid their own expenses. When we (Jopsidcr that the united evpoiiHon last yoar amounted to £9000 odd, at leant we in Kaglan may bo excused in not seeing thu force of being taxed for thoso institutions. Our representative on the abovementioned board leaves for Auckland next week to attend to his duties on the board which meets there on the 20th inst.— (Own Coiiospoiidoiifc, November 11th.)

Thk foiots of the United States com prise four hundred and twelve Hpccios of tteea. Of these, sixty tuo peculiar to Florida,