"Foxton is a flourishing little place, with perhaps a thousand inhabitants, on the bank of the Manawatu River, four miles from its mouth. We saw numerous fields of flax in the vicinity, and were told that flax was an important article of export. We had little time to look around, as our coach connected with the train, and in less than half an hour we were rolling up the valley of the Manawatu, which the railway follows for some distance.
"Ten miles out of Foxton we entered the forest, or 'bush,' as they call it here, though much of it has been cleared away. Lumber is an important product; we saw a goodly number of saw-mills at work, and met freight-trains laden with lumber on its way to the seaport. The gentleman who accompanied us pointed out some villages which he said were settled by Scandinavians, who had proved themselves the very best of colonists.
LOGGING IN "THE BUSH."
"From bush to open country and from open country to bush our train went on, stopping occasionally at stations with little villages grouped around them, but very often with no other buildings visible than those belonging to the railway. Our host explained to us that the railway was built to develop the country, and for the greater part of the route it was in advance of civilization and settlement. 'I think,' said he, 'you have built a great many miles of railway in the United States in the same way, and in doing so your stations have been practically in the wilderness until settlements sprang up around them. Railways in New Zealand have done a great deal for the development of the country, and will do a great deal more as time goes on. They give the settlers the communication they want with the markets, and without such communication they cannot get along.'
SETTLERS' CABINS IN THE OPEN COUNTRY.
"The passengers that boarded or left the train at the stations were principally settlers on the agricultural lands, laborers on farms or in saw-mills, wood-choppers going to their work or leaving it for a visit to one of the towns, merchants and travelling agents of various kinds, and occasional natives. The Maoris have not been slow to perceive the advantages of the railway; at first they were disinclined to travel by it, through fear of evil consequences; but their prejudice is steadily diminishing.