POSSIBILITIES

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 8, Issue 48, 13 February 1945, Page 6

POSSIBILITIES

"IF WE ONLY HAD A BOAT"

WISTFUL WIMPERINGS

At the recent sitting of the Transport Commission in Whakatane one of the speakers mentioned the fact that freight charges imposed by the Northern Steamship Company were abnormally high, and that if the townspeople of Whakatane owned their own vessel their goods could be transported to Auckland much cheaper. Following is an eiwisagement of the amazing maze of avenues which would be opened up if tli is scheme were entered upon. Naturally the initial cost would be the main stumbling block but in order to give us a clear start Ave have thought of a way out of this. We do not want a big boat nor yet a small but jiust a middling boat—not big enough to be called a ship i} and not small enough to be called a tub j but just a plain ordinary (nicely painted) boat.

Why not (with Peter the Whaler's kind permission) use the Good Endeavour?

"Ha!" you say. "Kids' stuff. Give us something feasible."

But wait! Why not explore the vast field oi' opportunity which such an asset would disclose.

In the first place/ Whakatane would be perhaps the only town in the Dominion to own its own real live boat. A boat with which it could do what it wished, when it wished and how it wished. Tourists

to the town could be led lamb-like to the wharf on their arrival and suitably impressed. They might eveji

be 'impressed' into joining the crew. Naturally the larger part of the crew Avould consist of Whakatane businessmen (no one can run your business like 3*ou can run it yourself) Avho Would be signed on for a minimum period of say 40 years in order to learn the trade thoroughly for a small premium of £100 per year. (The premium could be slightly increased at the outset) . "Not self-supporting " you say with a .sneer. But read on. Look at ■the sidelines which could be indulged in. In the first place when not in use the boat couid be used For fishing expeditions to and round and about and back again from here to there, (to use nautical terms). Business people could enjoy the privilege of catching their own cooking and eating it. themselves and refeeding it to the rest of the fishes all in a matter of moments.

Again, it could lie. used as a yacht on fine Sundaj's thereby offering to (re) tired businessmen a chance to take up the sport of yachting. Wha katane couid even hold a. regatta day and challenge all-comers to beat them in their vacht.

Not to exclude the younger generation, a Sea Scout troop could be formed and on fine Saturdays the boat could be used as a troopship to transport Sea Scouts to and from etc. (to use nautical terms).

Then in the glo-rioils long summer days (of which we. have seen too few) and evenings (of which we have likewise seen too few) it. could be used as a house boat in which townspeople and others could be poled up and down the glorious reaches of the Whakatane River by (in order "jiot to impose on a few) delegates from the various local bodies. Tn the long autumn evenings (entering upon which we shall soon be) the boat could be anchored outside the three-mile limit and with an expeditious shuttle service with smaller boats to and from the town inaugurated could function as a night club; (refreshments supplied by various good Samaritans). In the day time it could function as tlie middle piece of a bridge with a plank to either shore, from the end of Landing Road across to the Paper -Mil:s alter the style of the one invented by Mr Bailey. A billiard room could also be installed where mil; workers could pause for a fast fift3 r or a hurried hundred on their way to work. Tlie. boat could be used on Sundays and holidays, as an alternative to the bus service to Ohope. Passengers would disembark offshore and surf in on boards supplied by various other good Samaritans. Naturally the policej the press and public opinion (the three driving forces in the world today) Mould have a private suite where they could entertain each other on a lavish scale. I

In addition ( a tow-path could bo established along the edge of the river where businessmen who had finished out their term of 10 years could keep in practice with the boat after the stj'ic of the vulgar (pardon/Ave mean Volga) boatmen.

Finally when the bonl lutd dune its .full length of sterling service x J and was no longer seaworthy ('when

the -water comes in faster than any power on earth can hail it out'—for the benefit of the uninitiated) it could be turned upside down and used as a liou.se perhaps for the harbourmaster after the. style of the one described in 'David Copperiield' (written by Mr Dickens whose first name was Charlie —a:so for the benefit of the uninitiated). These are. but a few suggestions which we feel could lie profitably pursued by townspeople of Whakatane if only we had a boat to ourselves. Many ideas regarding the use which one of our own could be put to occurred to us and doubtless many more will occur to the reader. One in particular which came to min i is one which, if followed out should turn into quite a thriving business. 'Why not get two and breed from them? Oh! Jiy the. way ? we almost forgot. We meant to say that in between times when slack moments the boat might conceivably be used for transporting goods, to AueKland too 1 !.