Aparima , as a name, is not confined solely to one place. It is borne by a riding in the county of Wallace. At the census of 1901, the riding had a population of 1,211; it includes the settlements between Waimatuku and Wild Bush, and extends to Groper's Bush, Gummies Bush, Fairfax and Lumsden Plains. It does not, however, include the prosperous settlement of Aparima, which is in the Wairio riding of the county of Southland, and in the electoral district of Wallace. There is also a river named the Aparima, which takes its rise below the Aparima and Spence peaks of the Takitimo mountains, commonly called the Takitimos. These two peaks rise respectively to heights of 5,200 feet and 5,382 feet, and the river passes the settlements of Nightcaps, Otautau, and Thornbury, and empties itself into the sea at Howell's roads, Riverton. Aparima, as a farming district, is remarkably well watered by the Opio, Waicola and Wairio streams. The settlement extends from the western bank of the Aparima river to and beyond the railway line from Otautau to Nightcaps. Its northern boundary is the line of hundred which separates it from Wairio, and the district extends southward for some five or six miles, and adjoins Scott's Gap on the west. There is a flag railway station known as Aparima, which is twenty-nine miles from Invercargill, and stands at an elevation of 169 feet above the level of the sea. The Aparima post office is eight miles from Otautau, and five miles from Wairio. It dates from 1898; two mails are received, and despatched, weekly, and the postal business is conducted at the local store. A public school and a Methodist church are the only public buildings in the district. Aparima is a rich agricultural and dairy-farming district, and much of the land has long been in a good state of cultivation.

The Church, Aparima.

The Aparima Post Office was established in 1898, and is conducted at the local store. It occupies a central position in the district, adjoining the Wesleyan church, and the public school, and is about eight miles from Otautau, and five from Wairio. Mails are received, and despatched, on Wednesdays and Fridays.

Mr. Norman Stewart Campbell , who has been Postmaster at Aparima since 1899, was born in the Isle of Skye, Scotland, in 1830. He arrived in Victoria in 1853, and was engaged in the construction of railways, roads, and other public works in that colony till 1863, when he came to New Zealand. Mr Campbell followed similar employment in New Zealand till 1890, when he returned to Victoria, and resided there for eight years. In 1899, Mr Campbell came again to New Zealand, and accepted the position of postmaster at Aparima. He was married, in December, 1858, to a daughter of Mr Thomas Bilston, of Sinclair station, Victoria. Mrs Campbell conducts the Aparima store.

Mr. N. S. Campbell.

Anderson, Alfred Augustus , Farrier and General Blacksmith, Aparima. This business was established in 1902, and the smithy and residence, both buildings of wood and iron, occupy a site of an acre. Mr Anderson was born in 1870, at Tuapeka, where he was educated and brought up as a farrier and blacksmith. He worked at his trade for seven years, and then became engine-driver on a gold dredge at Tuapeka. Four years later, he removed to Catlins, where was employed as engine-driver on a sawmill for two years. He afterwards resided for two years at Waicola, when he removed to Aparima, and established his present business. As a Freemason, Mr Anderson is a member of the Balclutha Lodge, New Zealand Constitution, and, as an Oddfellow, he is a member of the lodge at Catlins. For four years he served in the Tuapeka Rifles. Mr Anderson was married, in 1902, to a daughter of Mr James Thomas Park, of Waianiwa, and has one son and one daughter.

Carrick, John , Farmer, Aparima. Mr Carrick was born in 1858, in County Armagh, Ireland, where he was brought up to farming by his father. He came to Port Chalmers by the ship “Timaru,” in 1868, and, two years later, settled at the Taieri, where he was working manager on Mr James Shand's estate for four years and a-half. He was afterwards engaged page 971 with partners, in exporting horses to Sydney and Hobart. For two years subsequently Mr Carrick had charge of the stud stock on the Hon. Matthew Holmes' estate at Oamaru, and in 1887 he settled at Balclutha, where he engaged in grazing and stock-dealing till April, 1894, when he removed to the Otautau district. Mr Carrick has three farms, one at Flaxmere, of 475 acres of freehold; and two at Aparima, of which one comprises 400 acres of leasehold, and the other 241 acres of freehold. He is well known as a stock dealer throughout the district. Mr Carrick is one of the trustees of the Aparima Methodist church. He was married, in 1887, to Miss Stewart, of Dunedin, and has one son and two daughters.

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Mr. And Mrs J. Carrick.

Clent, Edward , Farmer, Aparima. Mr Clent was born in 1869, at Waitati, Otago, where he was educated and brought up to farming. He followed farming at Balclutha and in the western district till July, 1903, when he bought 100 acres of freehold at Aparima. The land was then only partially improved, but Mr Clent has it. Dairying and grain - growing since drained, fenced, and sub-divided are carried on, and as much as seventy bushels of oats per acre have been obtained as a first crop. Mr Clent was married, in September, 1897, to a daughter of Mr Richard James, of Aparima, and has two sons.

Coombes, Thomas James , “Netley,” Aparima. Mr Coombes was born at Netley, St. Austell, Cornwall, England, in 1862. He came to New Zealand with his parents in the ship “Wellington,” and arrived at Port Chalmers in 1875. Shortly after his arrival, he entered the employment of the late Mr Andrew Cameron, storekeeper. On removing to Canterbury, with his parents, he was employed by Captain Parker of Springfield; and then, in conjunction with his father, he carried out a number of road contracts in various parts of Canterbury. In the year 1884, Mr Coombes removed to Southland, and followed up contracting. He bought 220 acres of freehold at Aparima in 1888; the property was then in a very rough condition, but has since been brought into a high state of cultivation, and the land produces luxuriant crops and carries a large number of crossbred sheep. Mr Coombes has been a member of the Aparima school committee from its inception, was chairman for the first three years, and has since held office as secretary and treasurer. He is also trustee and secretary of the Aparima Wesleyan church. Mr Coombes was married, in May, 1892, to a daughter of Mr Richard James, one of the pioneer settlers of Southland, and has two daughters.

Mr. And Mrs T. J. Coombes And Children.

Hardwick, Thomas , Farmer, Opio Farm, Aparima. Mr Hardwick's farm, which is on the banks of the Opio creek, consists of 372 acres of freehold, and is devoted to mixed farming. The proprietor is a son of Mr John Hardwick, who is elsewhere referred to as an old colonist.

James And Son (Stephen James and Richard George James), Farmers, “Spring Meadow,” Aparima. Messrs James and Son's property consists of 275 acres of freehold, and is worked as a mixed farm.

Mr. Stephen James , the Senior Partner, was born in 1841, in the parish of Bodmin, Cornwall, England, where he was brought up to farming. He arrived at the Bluff in January, 1864, by the ship “Edward Thorn-hill,” and a month later settled in the Wrey's Bush district. Mr James was employed in the district till 1875, when he took up land and commenced farming on his own account. His land was then in tussocks, swamp, flax and rushes, but has since been brought into cultivation. Mr James took his son, Mr R. G. James, into partnership in 1902. Mr James served for a term on the Wrey's Bush school committee, and held office as a trustee of the Methodist church. He was married, in December, 1874, to a daughter of the late Mr James Gard, of Cornwall, and has two sons.

Mr. Richard George James , the Junior Partner, was born in May, 1878, in Wrey's Bush District. He was educated at a private school and at Wrey's Bush public school, and was brought up to farming by his father. Mr James was married, on the 31st of December, 1900, to a daughter of Mr Alexander Robson, of Aparima, and has two sons

James, Richard Samuel , Farmer, Aparima Mr James was born in 1866, at Wrey's Bush, was educated at Otautau, and brought up to farming by his father, Mr Richard James. He took up 279 acres of freehold in 1894, and has brought the land, which was then all in tussocks, to a good state of cultivation. Mr James is a member of the Aparima school committee, and is one of the trustees of the Aparima Wesleyan church. He was married, in 1893, to a daughter of Mr John Hardwick, of Aparima, and has three daughters.

Lightfoot, William Thomas , Farmer, “Mount Eric,” Aparima. Mr Lightfoot was born in March, 1861, at Wadebridge, Cornwall, England. He was engaged in farmwork until he was twenty-one, when he enlisted in the 46th Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry. Mr Lightfoot served in England, Ireland and Egypt, and was one of the expedition sent out to relieve General Gordon, 1884–86. He received a medal for the expedition, and also the Khedive's medal. Mr Lightfoot arrived at the Bluff by the s.s. “Arawa” in 1889, and worked with his uncle for two years at Benmore station, and was afterwards employed for nearly two years at Avondale station. After 1894, he settled at Aparima and bought 116 acres of freehold, which was then in its rough state, but which has since been almost entirely brought under cultivation. Mr Lightfoot has been a member of the Aparima school committee since its inception, and is one of the stewards of the Wesleyan church. He married the second daughter of the late Mr Thomas Rowse, of Mevagiasey, Cornwall, and has one son and one daughter. Mrs Lightfoot was a nurse at the Cornwall County Asylum for seven years before her marriage.

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Mr. And Mrs W. T. Lightfoot And Children.

Robson, Alexander , Farmer, Opio Downs, Aparima. Mr Robson was born on the 16th of May, 1852, in County Down, Ireland, where he was brought up to dairy-farming by his father. He arrived at Port Chalmers by the ship “Christian McCausland,” in 1871, and was employed for some years by the late Mr James Mackintosh, sometime member of Parliament. Mr Robson afterwards purchased a farm at Drummond, but sold out in 1880, and removed to Aparima where he bought a portion of the Opio Downs, and subsequently increased his holding to 400 acres. The greater portion of the land was then in tussocks, and raupu swamp, and the draining has proved a most expensive undertaking. Mr Robson estimates that draining and laying down the property in grass cost fully £8 per acre, but this outlay has been fully recouped by the excellent crops obtained from the land. A crop of turnips was followed by two crops of Tuscan wheat, and these not only recouped the cost of improvements, but also the original cost of the land. Mr Robson is a director of the Southland Farmers Co-operative Society, chairman of the Aparima branch of the New Zealand Farmers' Union, and an elder of the Wairio Presbyterian church. He was married, in 1880, to a daughter of the late Mr William Warnock, of North Invercargill, and has three sons and four daughters. The eldest daughter is married to Mr R. G. James, of Aparima.

Mr. And Mrs A. Robson.

Mr. John Hardwick , who is well known throughout the Aparima district, was born in 1829, in Buckinghamshire, England, where he was brought up to farming. He arrived in Lyttelton in 1870, by the ship “Zealandia,” and commenced farming near Christchurch. In 1874, he removed to the Ashburton district, where he carried on farming till 1881. In that year. Mr Hardwick took up land in the Aparima district, and was engaged in farming there till he attained the age of seventy. Mr Hardwick was for some time a member of the school committee at Seafield, near Ashburton. He married Miss Foshel, of Huntingdonshire, England, who died, on the 31st of August, 1895, leaving four sons and four daughters.

Mr. J. Hardwick.