The Harbor Fizzle.

Gisborne Standard and Cook County Gazette, Volume III, Issue 331, 30 July 1889, Page 3

The Harbor Fizzle.

[TO TSK XDITOX.I >BtSurelv. after the experiences of the last fortnight, and your leading article >n Saturday's issue, on harbor and harbor works, the scales which have so long blinded the eyes of the members of the Board, and of the ratepayers, must have fallen, their eye. ' light have been restored, and their common lense faeulities brought into play, so far as to acknowledge that the so called harbor works are a complete “ fissia, and that for the last three years the members of the Board have been “ hoodwinked," “ bsfooled," •nd " bamboca’ed " by specious reports which from time to time have been made by one who onght to know better. In (the Engineer’s) earlier reports, and in support of his stonewalling scheme, he says, that " step “Bf'step as the works go on the pier can be used by vessels of the smaller class,” Yes; be was right so far; the poor illfated Malta! was once berthed alongside the pier; the Australia once, and one or two cargoes of cement have been landed; but, alas I and •Im I never no more 1 The Maitai has gone down. The Australia is still alive and floating, but inorder to be kept so, religiously •voids the breakwater, and the honest •kipper auspiciously (but safely) looks at it from his aehorage. The Engineer, in one of his reports about 11 defective mooring piles ” •ays that the mode of fixing the piles, to the concrete work was adopted from the design of Sir John Coode; ergo, if the piles went the blame rested on the shoulders of Sir John. Poor Sir John I Should the newspaper paragraph aver reach England, good bye to wealth, status, and reputation. Again, the Engineer ■ays that the works as being carried ont are tn adaptation of Sir John Coode’s. Such a statement is entirely misleading, and has no foundation in fact, Sir John most strongly condemned any scheme for Harbor works be. ing undertaken, in connection with the river, or »ear the river month. He even would not BVi.il himself of the facilities afforded by the boat harbor, but left that intact and went MMmriderably further to the Eastward, He to construct a root to carry an for a distance of no less than an “ for'-v feet (1110) in order free wash of the sandbearing watertravels daily with each tide from to West. He then commences to build bis breakwater in about twenty feet depth of dear and still water, free from any sandbearing current. But the Engineer says, •• This is all bunkum. There is no travelling land; Sir John was entirely misled ; the Information supplied to him was entirely erroneous.” Well, I can only say that Sir John’s instructions were faithfully carried out JlfMt T. Perham, of the Public Works Department, and Mr Perham had an exceptionally good opportunity of noting the effects of the currents and freshes, both in the waters of the Bay and in the river. He was constantly at work for about four months on bis first visit, and on his second visit, after the big flood in 1877 (or 1876), again took soundings, and carefully noted any changes made, which were transmitted to Sir John. But enough about Sir John this or Sir John that. We have not retained Sir John as Consulting Engineer; neither do we pay him a good fat •alary to give ue at least some sea going accommodation for our £lOO,OOO, We look to the gentleman who has all along received carte blanche as to the nature and mode of carrying out the work, and on him alone rests the tntire responsibility of bringing the works to ■ successful completion. If he does so, all credit will be given to him, but if a failure—wall, then let him be “ sent to the place from which he came, and then, <be„ die.” The breakwater has done good service in trapping the sand from the East, and the western spit is doing equally bad service in trying to make • junction with the breakwater on the West. To remedy this the Engineer proposes to build • groin eo as to trap the sand. We will suppose that both walls do their work, the breakwater on the East, and the groin on the West. What is to be done with sand now lying in the channel, and the which will assuredly accumulate in the ' channel with every ebb and flow of the tide f I think you gave a reply to the question in one Of last week's Issum, vias., dredge I dredge 1 flredge I—Yours, Ao., Tsx Mak oh tbi Stmxt.