THE MINISTERIAL VISIT.

Gisborne Times, Volume XXVI, Issue 2093, 20 January 1908, Page 2

THE MINISTERIAL VISIT.

A BUSY DAY,

Tlio Hon. Air AlcNab spent a busy day on Saturday. In uiu morning lio- attended to the inevitable correspondence, and at 9.30 a.m., ho proceeded to tlio County Chambers, where a number of deputations ivoro awaiting him. Alter hearing the j deputations ho proceeded to the Roe- | buck road bridge, which he declared a visit. Thence lie went to the Jlangapapa school, and returning later ic> town lie received a. deputation regarding the Supreme Court buildings. After lunch the Alinisterial party paid a visit to the To Arabestaeo.

DEPUTATIONS.

The Con’llty Council Chambers were iilied with deputationisls, and a long time was spent ill bringing matters forward in discussing them. THE RAILWAY.

Mr. J. Towiiloy introduced a deputation regarding the railway 110 thought the railway would do moro for the district than the Waikato stock track and other works. This work was next in importance to tlio Main Trunk line. Mr. Do Lautour said he would not detain the” Minister with any long qieeeli. lie thought people throughout the Dominion were satisfied that thir-i. was -one of the most important f.vorks in the country -Air. Towuloy said ho wished the iuf. to bo opened as soon as possible to’ the Williows Crossing.

Captain Tucker said that the lino ,vas paying very well, and tlio ro-■eipt-s should keep on increasing. • Air. Gaudin. secretary of the Railway League, also said a lew words. Messrs E. Grey, and AV. D. S. Macdonald also intended to speak, but owing to the short time at the Alinitcr's disposal they did not not, do ' °Mr. AlcNab said that Cabinet was familiar with tlio East Coast ruil.wiy. The work would he carried on vith more vigor when the Alain Trtmk railway was finished. SMALL GRAZING RUNS.

On behalf of a number of holders of -.mall grazing runs Air. C. A. Do Lautour made a few remarks. He stat'd that tlio holders of those, leases /••uited to bring before the Alinister lie matter of renewals, and they hoped he would use a wide judgment in renewing tlio leases. There were wo classes of lessees among the deputation —original lessees and those who had bought the leases with big goodwill. Rightly or wrongly, in Mi is district it was thought that these leases would be renewed unless the land wero required for public purposes, except lotting. He wished to ask that different treatment should he given to grazing runs in different parts of the Dominion, as oine runs * needed more expenditure. The twelve runs represented on the deputation had been bush land, and ior at least ten years no profit was got from the land These leases should have different treatment to 'leases for broken-in land. The deputation felt that 21 years was not a long enough term for Poverty Bay runs. About five of the leases would fall in at an early date. He (Afr Do Lautour) asked that before the option of determination was exercised by the Government the lessees should he allowed to put full facts before the Alinister.

Air. AlcNab said many of these lear.es were falling in in the South and ho know of the uncertainty regarding determination of the leaso. Advice oil the matter of determination of leases was given by the Disrict Land Board. In Otago the practice was, that when the report of the Land Board showed that >ho lands could not be cut up for -loser settlement, the lease was renewed. But there were many cases, in whirl) th option of determination was >i r y necessary. AVlien these leases fall in, legislation would be forced in the Government Mr. De Lautour was under a misapprehension regarding improvements. The tenant was allowed for improvements, and the amount was in no way governed by tho improved value of the laud. He thought tlie lessees would find at the expiration of tlieir leases that the Act was fair Ho admitted that in open country the conditions were different to bush land, and he thought it was a mistake that when the Act was made, no difference was made between North and South Island lands; but the framer of tho Act probably thought only of the open •lands in his own district, and at the time of passing of the Act there was no evidence that this class of lease would bo taken up so much in the North Island. LOANS TO LOCAL BODIES.

Captain Tucker said that the provision of tlio Act limiting the advances to the Counties to £6OOO per 'liiiium could well be amended. During the winter months the Cook Conn tv roads were closed. The val-

ue of tlio land was advancing rapid’v. and the revenue was also showing that tlio County was advancing rapidly. A loan of £6OOO per annum did tot allow tlio County to keep up with (-ft'ement. A Bill, to have been introduced last session, contained a provision that no limit was put on loans, provided they were approved by the Treasury.

GOVERNAIENT DAIRY GRADER

AU.-AV. D. Lysna-r (on behalf of tlie Farmers’ Union) spoke of the appointment of a grader for dairy produce. They did not want a man for Gisborne' only, but they wanted a man to look after Napier and Gisborne. Shipping by. the present roundabout route took quite a farthing off tlie price of butter from the district.

Mr. AlcNab said that it was the duty of the country to see to the making of a permanent scheme for grading at all points. Air. Cuddie was now in England fixing up the appointment of a grader in London, but he would :tsk,Air. Singleton if anything could bo done for Gisborne. THE RABBIT PEST.

On behalf of the Farmers’ Union Air. AY. 1). Lysnar brought uv> tlie matter of rabbits. There seemed no danger of rabbits from Onotiki, but they might come through from tlie" King County. The Union wanted the Stock Inspector to inspect these lands. They did., not quite rely on the reports supplied regarding rabbits in Hawke’s Bay. One mail had killed four thousand rabbits in four months and had been fined for not killing enough. Air. AlcNab said there was a difficulty in having the Government officer inspect the country. The Union should appoint a mail to carry out the inspection. The local officer was very experienced in the matter of rabbits, lmt he would bo ill a very uncomfortable position. Settlors should, not rest quiet just because the rabbits wero being kept in check. Even if the rabbits wero kept under in one distric.t enough might get out of the district to contaminate another.

Air. Lysnar asked if it would not be possible to leave a belt ol hush between Poverty Bay and the rabbitinfected land for the purpose of helping to keep the rabbits out. The belt could he proclaimed a scenic reserve.

AlcNab said ho would look into the matter and see what could be done. AVAIKATO STOCK TRACK.

Captain Tucker brought up the subject of the AYaikato stock track. He said the work done previously was very expensive. The track was good for 53 miles tram Gisborne, and then there was a gap of eight miles. The track already made was two chains wide, but the further eight miles need only he half a c. tin wide, and the cost would only he about £SOO. He thought die wo- k conimenced, and ou which so lna ,’i money had been spent should he continued, hut others wanted the track diverted to go near AVaikare il- ana. Air. AY. D. Lysnar introduced a further deputation, consisting of lU'-in-•hers of the Farmers’ Union. Lie said that, the track common- od was doing good work, and dio.ild ho cen tinned, but a track via ''•'■ulcuviboana was also wanted- There was

only ;i small piece of truc'k to 1)0 made to open tlio route. About 10,000 sheen were to leave Oisborno at any oarly ilaLo for Auckland, and (boro was a steady demand. For ,02.500 tlio track could bo opened.

GOVERNMENT GRANTS

Captain Tucker brought up tbo matter of Govenment grants. Ho said that some of the grants were expended by tlio Couny Council and others by Government departments. Tbo wet season, in which no work could be done on Iho roads, was coming on, and the Comity would tliko to know what works would bo done by tbo County. Tlio County thought tiie following works on the Estimates should ho done by thorn:—GisbonioWairon boundary £IOOO, Mot.il to MoLu bridge £2lO, Ngatapa-Whare-kopae £IOO, Poututii-Motu (C tor £) £550, AVaiapu Inland Clso, Waibuka Valley (£ for £) £2OO, Waikolni Valley £2OO. Mr. Carroll said lie did not expect to have any difficulty in getting the works handed to the local authority, lie bad discussed the matter with the Department and was informed that where possible the Department would prefer that the local authorities do such works. Tbo works mentioned bv Captain Tucker bad been discussed and ho (Mr. Carroll) expected a reply <ri tlio matter at an early date from tl"' Minister of Public Works. BOROUGH ENDOWMENTS.

The Waihirere block was mentioned by Mr. Townley. lie asked that the land be granted to the Borough Council for a quarry reserve. He also asked that eight acres near the railway station be dealt with similarly.

Capta'u Tucker said tlio Waihirere grant should be to all the. local bodies, and not to tlio Borough Council particularly. Mi-. Townley said lie would not ob•cet to that. He only desired that the land ho handed to some local body.

Mr. MoNab said he would bring the matter of the railway reserve holer tbo Minster for Railways. Ho would prefer to see Waihirero hand od over to the whole of tlio local bodies.

STOCK RESERVES.

The Farmers’ Union (represented by Mr. Lysnar) urged that stock reserves should bo cut out of all land cut up for settlement. They wished particularly that a reserve be cut out of the To Arai estate when it is cut up. Mr. MoNab said he would communicate! with the Department as to what had already been recommended regarding To Arai. The Government: was keeping the question of stoelc reserves in their view, and would he obliged for any suggestions from the settlers.

WH A REKOPA E-TAH OR A RO AD. A deputation' from the Wharekoy.ue Association brought forward the matter of the Wharekopae-TahoJa_ road. The Hon. Captain Tucker sakl (lie deputation wanted to borrow money now which in three years they would be able to borrow through' the County Council.

' Mr MeNab smid;lhe matter did not "oui.e under the. view of the Minister of Public Works untl the loam was saised- —before that it was a. matter for the Minister for Finance. It was a good principle for all ministers to he informed of all matters in the tfl'erent districts, so that at Cabinet meetings they could be 'discussed properly. Ho would make a note of Captain Tucker’s remarks, and oinig ,-hem before the Premier . - TECHNICAL SCHOOL.

Mr. DcLautour said that for some time there had been am endeavor to get agricultural classes at the technical school. They wanted permission to carry on woodwork and r. grind tural work in the time now occupied by woodwork. They could get the money and the teachers, but could not get the necessary time. Air W. Morgan- said 1 that if a blitter grader were appointed to Gisborne ho could act- as instructor, hits salary being arranged. Mr MoNab said t-liat in the wist the idea had been to get men as graders who had only one duty—to grade. There might he a temptation if the suggestion regarding teaching' w-a-s carried out to engage -a- good- Instructor although lie was only a sec-ond-class grader. In the past he had always set his face against such suggestions. As the technical schools progressed it would probably be found advisable by-tho Education Department to engage an agricultural instructor who could travel throughout the Dominion. He would prefer to run the Gisborne grader at a loss if he were a good man, than to out in a poor grader capable of giving agricultural in s t ruc± 10 li.

PAKIHI ROAD

Captain Tucker mentioned 1 -the Pakilii road, which. wais claimed- to shorten the distance between Motu and Opotiki. Air Lyisn-a r on behalf of the Farmers’ Union urged the claims of the Pakilii road. The road- done away with was one very dangerous to stock. The trip from Alotu to Op-o-tiki would be reduced by 20 miles. Twelve miles of road would have to bo made.

ROEBUCK ROAD BRIDGE

OPENING CEREMONY

After giving each -a lengthy -and exhaustive hearing to the deputations, except the Railway Lea-guo, which came last, the Alinisters, the Mayor and the County Chairman and others were driven to the Roebuck road bridge, which was formally opened. There was'-a slight- fall of rain before noon, 'and this interfered with the attendance of the public at the opening ceremony of the Roebuck road bridge, which was gaily dressed in bunting in honor of the occasion. A number of photographers, amateur and otherwise, were in evidence.

Air. J. Townley, the Mayor, expressed his pleasure in asking the Minister of Lands to -declare the bridge formally open for traffic. It was, he explained, a- new kind of lift 'bridge for navigation, purposes. The expenses had been considerable. £5500 had been borrowed for its erection, but that liad not proved sufficient and it had cost- a- little over £6OOO and ho -hoped that it would prove -a. success to the -district. The Alinistcr’s visit on this occasion was very .suitable and lie had groat pleasure in -asking him on behalf of. the Borough Council -and people, to declare the .bridge open tor traffic. The A fillister said -that nothing gave him greater pleasure than taking part in- functions such as this. In the northern portion of. the Dominion:, to which lie belonged, a previous minister told -a deputation when an estimate wa.s asked for, thu,t there was enough to build many bridges. Their rapid running and treachciourrivers resulted in loss of the lives of some of th.c very best settlers, and literaH'y, the riverbeds were strewn with the bones of those who had lost their lives in ia. vain attempt- to cross at unseasonable times. He referred to the necessity for spt timing these streams and -it was to the- credit of the settlers that they taxed themselves to the hilt to find- the manor rather than lean upon the taxpayers for that purpose. He recognised that they had put their hands in their pockets -and- not depended l on the Go vernment of the day to do this work. He could see from the nature of the structure that it would do for mimi-y years and future generations would -recognise the tribute paid them lr t-hose of the present day. He had much pleasure in cutting the ribbon and declaring the bridge open. (Applause.) Three cheers were given for the Minister and the new bridge.

THE MANGAPAPA SCHOOL

VISIT OF INSPECTION

Tli<> pa rty drove on to Manga pa pa School, via. the new bridge, and they were met at the gate by Mr. Aralcalm McLeod, chairman of the committee, Air. Cole, the headmaster, and some of the members of the committee.

When the Ministers entered the •school and inspected the two rooms. Air. Cole gave a detailed explanation of the position', and .showed the impossibility of successful work in such a crowded and vitiated atmosrihern.

Mr. McLeod stated that the building was erected live years ago, and the accommodation was hopelc;sly inadequate. The Hon. Mr. Carroll remarked that the increase of population had been phenomenal. Both Mr. MoNab and Dr. Chappie agreed that the rooms were extremely small lor so many pupils. Mr. MoNab stated that Mr. Few Ida (the Minister for Education) would be hero on February 12th. The party then returned to town via the Ormond-mad, and proceeded to Ka.iU to view tlio school there, ami came hack by Do Lautour-road. Town was reached at ten minutes to one, 'when the Ministers went to the Supremo Court buildings.

THE COURT LIBRARY.

ADDITIONS ASKED FOR

Mr. Nolan pointed out that the library needed enlarg.ng urgently. Two u.ises of books had just arrived, and -100 were shortly expected, and there was no possible place to put them. He suggested an outward extension of the building. Ho also drew the Minister's attention to the fact that there was no room for rob-n-g, nothing beyond the cupboard for dm robes. '1 he -Magistrate, Mr. AV. A. Barton, painted out that there was insufficient accommodliton for juries. Judge Dennistoii', continued Mr. Barton, commented on the lack of accommodation for the common jury, and when the Supremo or any other Court was sitting lliero was no room whatever to hold the Magistrate’s Court: in. Once .it had been held in the library. • Mr. MeNab agreed that the rolling should not be connected with i he library, but he thought that ull the avaWblo book space had not been made use of. All - . Barton estimated the total cost of additions at £SOO. He a‘so mentioned the needs of the M:ua.v trato’s room.

'Hie size of the strongroom was also druwai under tlio Ministers notice. . After lunch the Ministerial party drove out to the Te Arai Estate, returning in the evening.

INTERVIEW WITH MR. McNAB

THE MINISTER AT TE ARAI

.Seen on Saturday evening bv a “Times” representative, -Mr. McNah said lie was pleased at his visit co the Te Arai Estate, as shewing that' it was so much nearer town than he had expected. Thus late in the da-v ith'e Government did not often get -an estate of that magnitude within three-quarters of an hour’s drive of a large centre, and land put in the market will feel the effects of its proximity. “To a southerner,” continued the Minister, “tile figures appm-r high, but they were, oi course, •accustomed to a long winter and die- growing of winter feed, which pulls down the carrying capacity of property and adds materially to the expenditure and reduces its" capital value. I hope the tenants will find 1 the rents wo have put on within their means. Although some or it is rugged country, leading is reduced to a minimum by the fact that a large number of roads are already formed, and fences, more or lets secure, extend in many directions, so that with a minimum of extra roading, we can put the property in the market. The date has not yet been finally fixed. From what*l hear there are going to bo a great number of applications.”

INTERVIEW WITH MR. McNAB. This morning slr. McNab leaves for Tolaga-, .and lie goes to Waimat-a inland so as not to -double the route. Re had no particular object in view iu visiting the two places named., but he was just travelling to see as much of idle country as possible. “My next appointment,” said the .Minister, “is at the Rua'kura State farm, which I reach on, Monday, 27tli, to m/ike final arrangements in connection with the/ accommodation wo are erecting -for cadets. We aretaking -a forward move -in connec-. cion with experimental farming, and making places where farmers’ Borncan get two or three years-’ experience of a liig-h class, or people coming from other parts of the world, and we hope to extend the system over the experimental farms -and shift the cadets about, so as to get experience of all parts of the Dominion. It will necessitate elementary farm instruction, but they are not to bo made colleges so much as firstclass farms, lluakun- is the furthest forward, and the experiments commence there.” GRADING.

“I was much struck with tilie force of the contention put forth in connection with dairy produce and it: local grading, and' I am satisfied that perishable products, -at- any rate. o mnot, with -any great success-, be centralised prior to- grading, and wc will li-ave" -to put up with -a slight loss in the work of the Department if we wish to- retain our present standard of efficiency until -the export here justifies financially the permanent- residence of a- grader here." “Does that- mean that to appoint n- grader for "Napier and Gisborne would result- in financial loss?” queried the reporter. “It i-s all the same principle,” replied the Minister. “It simply brings it nearer to the present, and it will be -different when, at- a futureday, the operation becomes profitable. I am speaking purely from a departmental- point of view, -and I am not a vying that to- put a man here would be a loss, looking at- it from the producers-’ point- of view, but they do not- pay, and- we have got to secure a-high -standard, and at the same time not run riot financially. This matter will steadily be kept in view by the Agricultural Department.

THE GROWTH OF THE AGRICULTURAL DEPARTMENT. A MAMMOTH UNDERTAKING. “Great -as is the Department now, it will be vastly greater ten years from now, -at the present rate of progress, . -and it will probable require the energies of a Minister doing that -and nothing else. Ido noi know of -any _ Department whose development is increasing like this one, not even excluding the Railways, because the business with -the latter is simply an addition- to the volume, while the Agricultural Department adds.to its branches-. There are nine divisions with nine heads ■under the (Secret-ary for Agriculture, and they include in the ain.imal world, in tiltstock world, branches which in the general .administration of the country are controlled by different Ministers, -as, for instance, the veterinary corresponds with Public Health, -and has- a -department of its own. The dairying work, poultrygrarung, bee-keeping .and others correspond with Trades -and Customs, and .it controls the production and in the value of the industry, roughly speaking, three-quarters of the Dominion. It- is not possible to contemplate its development even along safe -ind sound financial lines In the future; it is a mammoth undertaking.”