The Kiwitea Stream.

Feilding Star, Volume XVII, Issue 16, 18 July 1895, Page 2

The Kiwitea Stream.

As reported in our yesterday's issue, the delegates from the Feilding Borough Council and Manchester Road Board — The Mayor (Mr "W. A. Sandilands), and Councillors A. R. Allan and E. Goodbehere of the former, and Messrs G. Wheeler and 11. J. Booth of the latter local body— met at Mr J. H. Fry's yesterday morning, and with that gentleman as guide, accompanied by Mr G. E. Little, followed the course of the stream through Messrs Fry's, Elkington's and Bruce's properties to where it crosses the Cheltenham Cross road, a distance of nearly three miles. The inspection was made at the instance of the Feilding Borough Council with a view to ascertain if there was any truth in the statement that the Kiwitea overflowed its banks in the properties named, the flood- water then finding its way into the Makino stream. An inspection of the stream shows that the floods have been over the banks in various places, but from the lay of the country the water would flow back again into the Kiwitea, there being a terrace, only a few chains from the Eiwitea, running from the Cheltenham Cross road through the properties named and into Mr Bell's property, adjoining Mr Fry's on the southern boundary, over which it would be impossible for the Kiwitea to overflow. Right np the stream there is an immense amount of drift wood, but as the course of the stream has been straightened during the past few years and the water-way widened there does not appear to be any likelihood of the Kiwitea breaking into the Makino. There is only one place, in Mr Elkington's, where the flood-water might be conducted over the country lower down. It is where a shallow swamp starts a chain or two from the Kiwitea and runs through Mr Fry's property, but that gentleman assured the delegates that this swamp found its way into the Kiwitea lower down in Mr Bell's property. To the west of this swamp there is the terrace before referred to, preventing a direct overflow into the Makino. Where this swamp starts there was originally an elbow in the course of the stream, but the corner has been cufc through, and an immense pile of drift wood has lodged in the original course, which would, to a great extent, prevent at any rate a great portion of the flood-water from flowing into the swamp. While going across hig property to the Kiwitea, Mr Fry pointed out a creek running between the Kiwitea and the hills, eventually flowing into the Makino in Mr Bell's property. Between this creek and the Kiwitea the terrace above referred to runs. This creek has its source in Mr Davis' property, crosses Mackay's lino, and follows the foot of the hills till it flows into the Makino. Messrs Fry, Booth, and Wheeler, expressed the very justifiable opinion that the excessive rainfall in May, 1894, and April last, was the cause of the floods in the Makino, and pointed the fact that higher up the Makino road, where there was a range of hills between the Making and Kiwitea, the floods were higher than ever known before. The creek from Mr Davis' also flooded the flat land through which it flowed. Again, the floodwater has been known to flow from the Makino down Forlong's road, which is on the southern boundary of Mr Bell's, into the Kiwitea. Unless there is a break in the terrace and in Mr Bell's property, which Mr Fry states there is not, it seems impossible for the Kiwitea to overflow into the Makino. The natural conclusion must then be that tho water flows much faster from the hills now that the bush has been cleared away and the land drained, than formerly, thereby causing the floods in the lowlying country. Considering these facts it is improbable the delegates will make any recommendations to their respective bodies.