LADIES' BATHS AT TE ARO

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 1968, 27 January 1914, Page 5

LADIES' BATHS AT TE ARO

CHANGES DESI 11 ED. ' Yesterday afternoon the Reserve.!) Committee of the Wellington City Council, at tho request of Dr. PkttsMills (who is the president of tww or three ladies' swimming clubs') and Mr. Thomas Shields (a Wellington swimming ontlnisiiist), paid a visit to the ladies' baths at To Ami. Ths object- of this pilgrimage was to demonstrate to councillors that the women's and children's hath is not ?ri well arranged as might bo. When, the party visited the baths at 3.30 p.m., the tide was an hotir short of high water, yi the depth at the first stejw (tho lowest part of the baths} was nearly six feet, so that for an hour and a half before and after high water the baths wore impracticable to those ladies am! children who could not swim. These, lißWiWr, are provided for, somewhat ctiriomdy, by a concrete tank about JOft. by 20ft., onitabling about 3ft. of fresh watovj whiA ! yesterday afternoon, was fairly alive ! with girls. ' Dr. 3'kits4liSls, who is an advocate of swimming as an aid to health, informed'a Doaixios reporter that it was rather unfair that women and children who eatikl not swim should lie debarred from a splash in the salt water in s-ilch a city as Wellington, and sb« wished to as-eoi'tiiin if something could rot In* done to increase tho space available to lady non»s\vh)vmers at any state of tho tide. If the tide We're anyivhorc Hoar ths full, visitors who wero not swimmers could not, have p. dip except in the fresh water tank, which she had observed frcfiuently hart' only a foot or ;io of water in it. Mr. Shield') also thought I liat it was highly desirable that more Access ,to the f-n.lt water should he- given to lion* swimmers and learners, He thought that another tank, at n lower level than the fresh water one, might he elected— a tank in which learners and noiiawimmei's could find tho bottom at the top of the tide, A slanting stage, broad steps, and other suggestions were made l,y roeiitbers of the committee, but Anally it was decided to postpone ooirsideratio)) a week, and then have an inspection of tho baths at dead low wnter hi the presence of tho City Engineer. It w-as discovered by the councillors that it would be (piito possible for n , swimmer to dive under the floor of tlso I frefcli-watw lank (which is below tlvs J M,lt-wator lovel) and get into diiliculiies, and it was tacitly agreod that t!io spae<v botwe-en the piles supporting tho tank should be bonrded-in to . avert tiny trouble.of. ths.kiad. .