THE THREE KINGS.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1496, 19 July 1912, Page 8

THE THREE KINGS.

JvO LIGHT TO BE ERECTED. ■ The Mackenzie Cabinet, before leaving office, considered the question of building, a. lighthouse' at the Three Kings for tho benefit of mariner?, and decided that a light in that situation was unnecessary. The Minister for Marine (the Hon. ,i\ JI. B. Fisher) stated yesterday that he doe? not propose to ask the present Administration to review the decision of its predecessors. Explaining why he had taken up this attitude, Mr. I'isher stated that in connection with the requests made, at various times, for tho erection of a lighthouse on the Three Kings, Captain 80llons, 'of the Government slcainer Hinnmoa, was requested when on his recent northern voyage, to visit the Three Kings, and look into the matter of a suitable site. From his report it is quite clear, the Minister stated, that it would not be advisable to erect a light lionse either on the western, or the middle King. There is a suitable site on the big Kiuj, but a light in this place would bo .ftVemiles at'the back of the Western King; and it is considered by authorities a bad' thing to have a light at tho back of a , danger. The Western King is the island on which the Elingamito was. wrecked,' and it. is the- first, one met on a voyage' from Australia. Owing to the length of the big Kin™, f.ue length of the tramway" which would be required to take, material from the landing-place to -tho site, and the difficulty that would be experienced in landing, the cost of the lighthouse would be great. All the islets are high, and in ordinary weathed stand out so boldly that they can be seen from n vessel, eve-r. (hiring thfr niglit, in pleiity of time to avoid them, if a good look-out is kept. In foggy weather the light would probably be so obscured that it would not be ssn. Neither would n fo2signal on the big King be Tieard Worn! the Wc'tern Kimr. Tho Thrse Kings nr? 32 mfles from the Caps Mark van THeuien licht, and -M miles from the North Cape, where -% lighfliouye is about, to 1:p erected, and there is a, deep-water channel, without any danger in it, between the Threo Kings ond th?=° two canes. Tt is considered thit, careful navigiitnrs should have no , difficulty in going safely throitdrfhis channel, and in view .if this it dn»t' ( not apneor to be iifcc?snry, in the interests of safe navipitiou, to orcet a ljnhfliouse on the Three JCine;?. "I raav add." said Mr. Fish< r. "th-it v.KseU from Australia sometimes make New Zealand to the south of Cape Mariavan Dienien as well as ton far to the north. An instance of this occurred when the Hinemoa met the Victoria, from Sydney, steaming due north about 30 miles south of Cape Maria van Diemen, showing that she had made tho coast further south than that, instead of inking the channel between tho Three Kincs nnd Cape Mnria van Dienien. "There wouM prob.ib.lv not have been any asritntion for a light on the Three Tv.ngs,' , the Minister remarked, in conclusion, "lip.d it not been for the wreck of tlie Elingamite and subsequent investigation has shown that that wreck was entirely due to the fnct that the island was not properly charted. A special Aot of Parliament has since been passed which has restored-to Captain Atwood the certificate that ho lost- as a result of tho Marine Inquiry into the wreck."