The Hauraki Plains.

The first day's tour was not by train, but in motor-cars from Pokeno station eastward over the Mangatawhiri hills and across the Hauraki plains—once the great Piako swamp—to Paeroa. The purpose of this jaunt was to give the business men an idea of the character of the country which it is urged should be traversed by a short-cut railway line, thus saving 47 miles in distance and two hours in time on the journey from Auckland to Paeroa. The sight of this broad belt of fertile reclaimed fen land covered with homes and farms—the homes of four thousand people—was a revelation to most of the travellers, and made many page 12 strong champions of the much-discussed railway. For one, there was Mr. Merritt, the president of the Chamber of Commerce. At a social gathering in Paeroa he said he had been converted from an official supporter to an ardent advocate of the project. There were several other strong supporters of the proposed line among the speakers.

Mr. W. Marshall, Mayor of Paeroa, expressed the hope that the construction of the line would soon be started. It was mentioned that the Government had placed a sum of £5,000 on the Estimates

Productive Country—Near A 1000-Cow Farm.
(Rly. Publicity photo.)
Te Aroha, from the mountain.

for further survey. Soundings and other investigations of this newly-settled peat country were considered necessary before the line was put in hand.