POINTS FOR THE MINISTER FOR PUBLIC WORKS.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 641, 19 October 1909, Page 5

POINTS FOR THE MINISTER FOR PUBLIC WORKS.

'•;'■'. ;- : ;,:S6ME :, PLAiN/ FACTS 1: '' ■'■ ■ i fis^w^,^ d i^^ thero's.'moast'tirutchinVVand I. think'ZT the,:, Minister :for; - Public Works ■. S^ 1 , ..It'.ia'safe.to-siy, sir,,that-a'.verv lareetwr ■centageMfvm'oney.votedfby Parliament for' the bettertaen ..of °s noS' ■ n SW or effectively applied, and, in thecal!' of-the. main- phura.Road,: tk is partiouari? noticeable, ■>. the.; increase of population'at\a. : ,but,oue-arterial-outlet to the rail; in the absence; of.a'progressive and-pi™ tical-rtad, policy; leavts the,road worse every year.,; .1 should; hkq. the .Minister to inspect a mece.qf,pumicing, put.dows;.by. a roadman,on his own.desigii ,nnd from ■..experience l -of siffl lar work, at a point about three miles from Onga.rue ontte-Ohnra Boad.; Thisparticular piece of. work ; was done In a pracKcal .'manner' fern,or an/. handy bush,'-and drained thoroughly,-. i aud from a swampy-and bad. piece: of• rodd-it•■ .was.transformed' jnto^a , splendid-'.bard;-'surface.."..'-The cost,- I believe was n6t over .fii-per chain. As a contrast 1 should like his-inspeotion of !a' piece of 'pumice' laid-down' at a point;about :6ne mile and a half from Matiere, .where , the. :pumice, wagoned fiTo-,inilos,at'a cost'of. fen or twelve ehillinmi a :yard,.;was laid , , down' ;under/ the immediate snporvisiOn ofa: well-paid-rofficer. The lattor piece; of-work/.was .carried through :; without Fasoin. n g,-.th«agh'.the present chief engineer of the Wellington '..roads district and-. Public , W.orks-DopartTncnt had (when written to ■ bv the" phura,. Settlers 'Association)- distinotly stated.pumico-w'ould'not stand withoutfascinos of some kind to drain it, ■;The result of duinbing this pumice on a,soft formation without" the above-;p_recautio.n-'was that it promptly:' went out of'sight'as iajon. as .'.wot. weather and heavv traffic;bcgan.to .toll- on.it,- 'The.porHons saved were, only .recovered; by- the.roadman., lifting the ■ putihco ;and; placing' brii3h • and' rouin' fa£ oining _beneath.-..,..At. ono.place, too, nino miles fMm;.qngaruo > ,a, very, bad piece of- road ran through.'a,gully; which: had-pumioo banis on .eaoh :rise and a downhill.run of not more than sixty., yards. , ' While, pumice. , was" abundant ■ a.; roadman-; actually-1 did .part-of it- with a ■■wheelbarrow , till a 'visitiag 'officer 'promptly stopped .him. iThis'part continued ,to' anashand B & c K : "P»T*'!si cl?s yi ,th * 6 ,'} 1 " 5 applications of; , the, •Northera ■ Ohura'■■:.' Settlers' Association S retailed •-, on'..the,, authorities; to-do ■ the work •rie/otber. piece.' of-'pumiijihg, went-- oombletelv' out;6f'. sight from"-the -eame-dause '■« n,

pumice before mentioned. ■ Parts of the road nave rhvolite rock overhanging, which could be dislodged by , a pick or bar, and spoiled up on'the road itself, but nothing is done,'and the sight.of : metal, beside a bad road brings forcibly home the cry of Coleridge's "Ancient Marmor," "Water, water everywhere, but .not a drop to drink.": . : It can safely bo said, sir, that if a contractor kept even his service roads.in the state in which Government leave the road access to a largo body of.settlers, he would eoon be left but the choice of, one path, and : that would •lead to'tho office of the Official, Assignee. Again, the quality of timber used leaves much to bo desired, and I think closer supervision should be used to prevent'faulty or sappy timber being used in culvort or bridge construction. "I have seqn timber used locally in Government works, and in many years' experience in works for local bodies 1 nover ' 6aw such poor'quality put in, and it is generally accepted that Government works demand nothing but the best procurable. I make no apology far - my criticism of this timber, for, as a ratepayer/1 shall.bo called on to pay ior replacement;*of this same timber in the uear future. . '.''■■ ■-. .. :. •■..-,

I should'also like to draw the attention of the^ Minister to. a couple of large fillings near Matiore, which were put in. with no culverts at their bases to carry off the natural drainage of large catchment areas. -The result of this was that delightfully, blue/and pellucid lakes formed, and at first I thought the authorities were procuring ornamental waterfowl or making swimming baths, till men Were.put on'to dig trenches to let the wafer- away. This was very well, tall- the fillings evinced a desire .to go with the water, and- the ditches were hastily dammed up and culverts were inserted near the top, the water, still collecting at the base to sodden and.dostroy.-••expensive earthwork! when one of tie fundamental'principles of road construction should- have! taiigKt those- responsible.that drainage'is the'main thing" in -nyearth formation. What wonder, sir,.-that 'a worthy, hardworking settler's wife, , whose outlet this.spoiled, should remark that "she thought it time'to .let,-the women direct the roadmaWng." . Till lately there were on the bank of the Ohura Eiver rafts of bridge-timber, built, evidently, their depth, by a man who nad a boundjes3 ; depth of water and the two-thirds submersion of an iceberg to guide him for their depth almost equalled their width. Certainly nothing but an abnormal flood-could shift them, and as a result of the' ■ sapient knowledge of this brilliant inventor who must rarely be of kin to 'the inventor, of .the tin. steamship,, these timbers to' my own knowledge lay about two years besido ;a .wagon road, and-in the meantime, I presume/ some deserving ■ settlers wero risking their,lives jn .a -.bridgeloss istream. Now, sir, nothing I have stated'in the'fore? going can be. gainsaid, but may be proved by the,visit of.an outside inspecting engineer, and , . .I sincerely hope that the present Minister may prove a new broom," and that he will, regardless of any particular coterie, start at once in,.a systematic manner to complete the'pumicing of the road from, the railway, that settlers may get their stores.and necessaries at a reasonable rate; instead of the prohibitive ones which exist at present. I would.also respectfully draw his attention to'tho fact that the two , local dairy factories are languishing and going to the rear, and the cause is not in the lnnd nor the settler's, but. simply the old cry "bad roads." Twenty; thousand pounds, judiciously applied by a man of the Minister's practical experience, would work wonders, and ■double .the'revenue, from this already populous; .district , if placed upon the main,.thorougnfare, where :it would- equally; benefit all residents'.— I , ami v etc./. ; .■■'■■ ■■:'.■.■..,>'■!.'. . ■ . .. . ■■ ' '•"• '■.-"■ ■'■ ■' r ■■-•.■-. OHUEA' SETTLER.. ■■>•. >: i i •.■■■■ ■ ./ 1.,!'. ,'■-.■