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Hokitika Guardian, 12 February 1920, Page 2

The position revealed at tins County Council meeting on Tuesday afternoon regarding the flood menace in the A no hupa Valley, was a serious one. The situation is grave indeed, and the discussion took a very serious turn indeed. For some unaccountable reason the plight of the set tiers lias failed to excite the practical sympathy of the Government. Then engineers have visited the Valley, the Minister of l’ublic Works has himself toured the district, hut not any of these gentlemen have realised what is patent at every flood. Laymen pave recognised the situation and in considering the postion have accurately forecasted what would come to pass if remedial measures were not taken. At the meeting on Tuesday a report from Overseer Millner was read which seemed to put the matter very clearly, Mr Millner pointed out that it was waste of money to grant small monetary doles for the work in sight. This economic loss could he avoided only by dealing with the situation in a comprehensive way, and instead of granting £IOO, to provide £I,OOO for the work in sight. |Bv the larger expenditure alone could the inroads of the river be arrested. If left unchecked the erosion will do serious damage to the dairying lands, imperilling the future of the industry in that locality. As an indication of the view the residents take one settler is preparing already to moye his dwelling to the terrace, as ]ii s family does

not care to face the dangers likely to arise from fluture floods. This fact should bring home to the official mind the reality of the position, and if the Government is alive to. the situation it -will seek to retain the land not alone for the present occupiers, but also for the future, so that the district will continue to be a wealth producing locality for successive generations. The loss of good land is a national loss for all time.

/The County Council! has elected to hasten slowly in the matter of acquiring road making machinery to meet the requirements of the times. The County Overseer was sent away last month to the North Island and the tenor of his report at the meeting this week wa s that the Council had very little to learn in the matter of road making. Experience in the North Island regard, ing motor machinery was not conclusive. In some cases where motor lorries were procured they were discarded for horses and drays. The latter were generally in favor, and instead of heavy draught horses, lighter horses were used so that the return journey with the empty vehicle could be made at a jog trot to save time. In certain circumstances where there were special •loading facilities lorries were satisfactory, but the machines could lie worked with their weight on good sound roads only. 'Hie Council elected to wait another year before venturing into the experimental stage, except in regard to a road roller, in respect to which it is proposed to make a modest experiment. Machinery of course would be labor saving, and it was the lack of labor which prompted the Council to consider the matter of machinery. Fortunately labor is growing more plentiful and the difficulty of the past wnl be cased It would appear that tlie ideal motor vehicle for road making and repairing has not yet been designed. Something smaller, and therefore ig i - er than that already on the market is ’ required, and perhaps within the next year the Overseer might be able to adapt a suitable machine. To some of the small but effective tractors i might bo possible to attach a body for the transport of material which would meet local requirements, and when not required for gravelling work, the tractor could be otherwise employed m working a road roller or drawing the road trader. From what transpired at Tuesday’s discussion it would appear that some adaptation of this kind would meet local requirements.