A COUNTY MAN

New Zealand Listener, Volume 15, Issue 379, 27 September 1946, Page 14

A COUNTY MAN

AMURI COUNTY: OLD TIMES and OLD PEOPLE. By L. R. C. Macfarlane. Printed for the Author by Whitcombe & Tombs, OU will enjoy this book once you accept the fact that-the author can neither spell, punctuate, paragraph, nor obey the laws of syntax. Life, you can hear him saying, is far too short for worries like those, and such a life as he has been privileged to lead, far too sweet. So he just plunges into his story,’ taking neither it nor himself too seriously, and carries you through three generations and several hundred square. miles of territory whether you wish to go with him or not. But you, of course, do wish. What can you do with a guide who keeps saying things like these to you? Now we enter Mackenzie ‘itself. A village of many promises in its early days, when all incomings and outgoings were via Port Robinson, a few miles down the Jed river. The village had all the local trade and a journey to Christchurch via coach or one’s own horse vehicle was quite an event in one’s life. It had its own paper-its own earthquake, m Which, by the way, upset, among many other things, some of the type of the paper, and ever after one column was blessed with a definite squint. But, try as it would, it did not have its own hotel. It built a building two stories-public bar, private bar and all the rest in the best corner pub tradition, and, in fact, had everything, except that bit of blue paper saying it had the right to sell oe and malted liquors. Afterwards, in esperation, it burnt itself down. . . . Cheviot has contributed somewhat to the political history of New Zealand. A daughter of the Hon. William» Robinson married Sir Francis Bell, for so many years a political leader of great character and foresight. The Hon. George Forbes was an original settler, and, besides being Prime Minister, represented the district for 35 years. Again, Andrew Rutherford, another local M.P., will go down in history as the only member who always saw the funny side of politics from both sides of the House, at one and the same time. ... ‘On one occasion, when he was out in the back with his waggon, Fowler broke his leg above the ankle, All sosts of. suggestions were made by his.companions as to what to do. He solved the situation by driving his waggon over to Hanmer over a track that was a caricature of a road. Reaching Hanmer the day after the doctor had been there on his weekly visit, he said that he could not wait a week for the b---- doctor and, a day or so after, drove his team into the ranges. His leg was never Officially mended, but he got along very well for the rest of his The Culverden Hotel is about the one and only North Canterbury hotel that no one has thought of burning down. It has, of course, been added to. At one time it had and the wind used to blow the oF cee Bi

h was somewhat of an abortion and the ty Council took a part and arranged for the present structure, During the days of the big»sheep sales, a marquee had to be put up with plenty of straw to accommodate shepherds and drovers. The house, like most others, has had many occupiers, some have , some have suffered, and some have caused suffering to others. If you'have lived in North Canterbury you will do nothing but grin and ask for more.