ARTHUR SOANES 1880's TARATA RECOLLECTIONS

Arthur Soanes was born at Christchurch, New Zealand in 1881. He was the grandson of Henry Soanes and Sarah Bint who had migrated to Christchurch on the Lancashire Witch in 1863. His mother, London born Elisa Allman (1859), was the sister of Philip Bint's wife Charlotte Allman.

My memories even at the age of 82 take me back to the year 1888. Although then a lad of 8 years, in Standard 3, this year was a trying time for parents and tradesmen as there was a slump without work for 9 months. Something had to be done and carpenters, painters, bricklayers and even cabbies had to migrate to a different kind of life in the bush.

Four of my uncles took up a 453 acre block called the Moa Block, Huiroa District, 10 miles from Inglewood and 3 miles from Tarata township. They took it in turns to establish a farm and I remember well the preparations for our family to take its turn of early bushwacking and cow spanking in 1889.

 Father attended sales by an auctioneer to get equipment such as a cheese press, vats necessary for cheese making, a separator called Alexandra, a swiss product side saddle and timber jacks for stumping, and a churn. All these were duly packed as well as furniture for the trip and sent to Lyttlelton the day before. We slept on the floor and were up early to pack another case to be forwarded for the steamer trip in the Takapuna leaving mid afternoon for Wellington and New Plymouth. We arrived at Wellington in the early morning and sailed later the next afternoon for our new abode, arriving mid morning the next day.

It was great excitement to three of us boys seeing the Sugar Loaves and the Breakwater at Port Taranaki. We disembarked and had to put up at a hotel close to the beach. I remember father and I going on to that beach the next morning after the furniture and effects were on the train. Our eyes were strained on the scenery which was a railway with bush on both sides and sawmills everywhere.

We duly arrived at Inglewood about 10 o’clock. We had morning tea at Turners and later dinner at the Junction Hotel. The furniture was transferred from the train to Joe George’s wagon. Joe incidentally was mail man and at 1 o’clock we moved off. Some of us were on foot and mother and the youngest brother were aboard the wagon which had to travel over roads not metalled, full of ruts, and up and down hills as there was very little flat country.

There were four or five houses seen from the road and three rivers to cross and these fortunately had bridges. An uncle came out to Kiamata and two of us had relays on horseback which was a new sensation. Having heard of wild pigs, we were anxious to see these and to our surprise as the day was closing in we saw pigs but not wild ones. They were domestic ones without ears and we were told the reason for this. When they got out on the road, Tweed, the dog, had chewed their ears off, being used to holding wild pigs by the ear.

The track from the Junction to our farm was on a survey for a road to be formed 1 mile long off Tariki Road and we passed our farm house to go to Aunt Charlotte’s for tea. Fifteen of us sat down to young suckling pig, parsnips, carrots and Doughboys. As our beds and furniture were not available till the next day we had to stay the night.

Next day the pack saddle was brought into being. The packmen who had to trek through a clearing track for a short cut carried bedsteads, chests of drawers and other items which the pack horse could not manipulate, as well as fallen trees for bridges over gullies.

The house on our farm was about 20 feet from a creek with two wooden steps to the door and built with wooden piles. The timber was adzed weather boards up and down with fillets. It was scrimmed and papered with newspapers. There were four rooms, and shingle roof and iron chimney with bars across for hooking a camp oven in which to bake bread and also for hooking big boilers for vegetables etc. Our garden was across the creek and this had to increased by stumping and planting.

The dairy was established although previously tunnel caves had been in use for pans. These huge pans of mild were skimmed with a skimmer before the separator came into used and how we used to like to put our cup out for separator milk. The cream was made into butter which was put into 70 lb round barrels until the square white pine boxes were used. Think of it, market price 4 ½ d first grade [butter] and a deduction of ½ d for second grade! I remember once the cream getting overheated and this was put in a muslin bag and a sack by father and buried. It was dug up again and made into butter, for this was the product that really made the farm and was subject to such men as Newton King and others who had control of this industry as far as stock was concerned.

Now I must pay attention to the way of living garden projects. This was unique, for besides vegetables, such things as hops were grown, Linseed for poultices, Caraway seed for seedcake and Tobacco. I remember a huge Bucateer [sic] tree where all stumps were burnt producing potash and some wonderful roots of White Elephant potatoes popular at that time.

The bush had plenty of scope for one’s appetite with goggies, a sweet fruit, Konini berries , wild fuchsia and the heart of Nikau , all eaten. Wild honey was sought , after a tree with a swarm of wild bees was chopped through ready to fall. This was best done at night time with a smoker to tackle same and produced as much as two 16 gallon baths of honey. Among the novelty jams that were made were wild blackberry, melon and pumpkin and carrots.

To make variety in food there were pheasants, pigeons and pigs as mutton was supplied only once a week by the butcher. Wild cattle were sought after for a change but one had to trek miles for these and usually try to carry more than human strength could negotiate. Eels supplied the major part of our fish diet and a large one would be smoked up the chimney .

Activities on the farm included cows to milk. Twelve was my quota followed by a three mile walk through one mile of bush to school. After school cows to milk again and then to bed. School holidays were spent grass seeding. Cocksfoot and Italian Rye grass was to be thrashed. After cutting this was dried out and carried in a sheet to the thrashing ground which was generally a level spot with a gig sheet. The heads were all placed in the middle and a flail (long stick with another smaller one attached with leather) was used to beat out the seed. When this was taking place, refreshments were supplied by a limejuice bottle beverage and oatmeal water. Underscrubbing bush before falling for burning in March had to be done as well as firewood cutting for fuel. Mostly we used Tawa burnt green and ToiToi, heaps of which were used in a day. Shingles had to be billeted for cow shed, dairy and roofs of other farm essentials. This was done with a knife, after the style of a butchers chopper. We gathered fungus jelly on fallen bush which was dried and sold to Japanese for making oil. Posts had to be split for fencing and the gully dammed up for swimming in the summer time.

New Year’s day, sports were held at Tarata and a dance in the evening. I remember a shrewd move that went wrong. Father delayed milking the cows so as they would be on their regular timetable next day. On one occasion, we went earlier that father and he duly arrived to give music at the dance with his concertina. We boys, ahead of the others, arrived home at midnight to find to our surprise that the cows were all at the cowshed, some bailed up backways and frontways with milk running from them. At 1.00am when our parents returned another picnic started. We had to milk again and get calves out of the creek. As cows rested for two months of the year, except one for our own use, winter evenings were spent playing cards, chess and draughts. Often cousin Jim would make off down the road for home after 1.30 am.

Accidents were always happening in the bush with slashers and axes slipping. My brother, Frank, who was left handed, cut the top off his thumb whilst grass seeding and father chewed a wad of tobacco and put it on again wrapping it up in chewed tobacco. This healed without showing it had happened. A cadet on our farm was underscrubbing and a slasher cut across his foot. After carrying him some distance to the house, father and aunt Charlotte sewed it with ordinary thread as a doctor’s help straight away was impossible.

Communication would have had to be made by horseback and would have taken at least two days. Everything turned out successful and cadet Bill Hurly left us on Xmas Day which we thought very unusual. Killing a tame pig without a knife was one of my mistakes caused through giving it blood milk from a cow calving. I was advised it was blown and it was buried for dogs meat.

The cheese press supplied us with cheese after rennet was mixed with milk. This was probably before a cheese factory came into being in Taranaki.

We boys had three visits to Inglewood township in three years. It may be been four for me with two bags of fungus on a horse. In the slack season, the men worked on the Zig Zag to Tarata to make a road for vehicle traffic the first year after our introduction to Taranaki. After that, bullock wagons with 16 steers were seen hauling timber to the outblocks. Papa rock had to be hewed in cuttings and wheel barrowed over sides. There was no metal road till about four years later. While at the farm, our road, the Kohiti Rd was formed during our stay and bridges built. The contractor was Mr. Bligh. A tent was erected about half way along the road just outside our vegetable garden. There was a galley and the bedstead was composed of Punga Trees, and Fern and a mattress. Over this was placed an oilsheet and blankets.

During a period of a fortnight’s continuous rain, the creek swelled enormously and trees and everything went swirling by. This caused anxiety as the water reached the flooring of the house and all food had to be raised on tables. It abated and all was well again. However all one could use on the road was a sledge.

The Schoolhouse had a living room for the master and a schoolroom. All classes were in one room. The master was handy to afternoon tea and he often found he had overstayed. Somehow the clock advanced half an hour! There were about thirty scholars and most of them arrived on horses, some three abreast.

Well, after 3 ½ years father came to Christchurch to see another brother who was to take his turn. He having married in the meantime, he rejected his taking over so father came back, sold up the stock and packed again for Canterbury.

I had to go to Tarata to pay for the school books and my trip resulted in a refund. The furniture was packed again and our farewell was on foot. We called at neighbours en route to say goodbye. Mother rode on horseback with Aunty [Charlotte] on another. Father was with the mailman and the wagon trailing behind. We were waiting anxiously at Inglewood as it was near train time and there was no wagon arriving. The pole shaft had broken and another had to be cut from the bush and lashed on. They just made it and that night we sailed from New Plymouth .

There was no main trunk railway line in those days but oil and iron were in the news. The Budget with we got once a week after a two mile walk for the same.

Two days later we were at our home in Christchurch. At the age of 14 years I left St Albans school to be in a bicycle shop in the days of the Penny Farthings or bone shakers as they called them. I made and fitted spokes to there and afterwards managed the plating department but rouge and emery dust affected my throat. Afterwards I followed the occupation of bricklayer and drainlayer till retiring and was nicknamed "Tary" at school after Taranaki.

PS. This may be of interest to younger generations. It gives an insight in to junior pioneering. The pioneers enjoyed every minute of their experiences and hardships as they are called today and can appreciate the easier life they have today. They can look ahead a day and think of their past in their spare time.