Kokatahi Enterprise.

Hokitika Guardian, 5 October 1922, Page 4

Kokatahi Enterprise.

a— © Of* —v —"*■ NEW LIME KILN OPENED AT ICO ITERANCE

There was a considerable gathering of j 1 settlers and townspeople at the linie].j]n M.t Cnmclback, ICoxterangi, I vesterday afternoon to witness the opening of the new kiln just completed by the settlers of the district, who lormcd a small company to carry out the work The settlers’ wives and daughters attended in goodly number also, and supplied a bountiful repast for the | visitors and friends gathered, and this was enjoyed before the more formal , part of the proceedings took place. The , afternoon was fine, in the country, and j the visitors did not encounter the rain which foil late in the afternoon till re- j turning to town. Representatives were present from various parts of the dis-1 triet, including the Arahura. Several ( motor parties attended from town, in- , eluding Mr W. Jeffries, County Chairman. Apology was made for the absence of the Mayor (Mr Perry). Messrs Dalgliesh and Scott of the Agricultural Department, and Messrs Evans and Morris of the Progress League wore _ , present also. _ |

THE NEW is. n. A. Past experiences have proved that.the limestone at TCoitomngi has been most difficult to successfully burn, no doub owing to the very bard nature of the stone and to some extent by the moisture contained. The new kiln just built has been designed to overcome these troubles, and is therefore of a smaller diameter in the furnace than usual Another trouble with the old kiln was the faulty drainage. Ample provision has been made with the now structure, to deal with this trouble, I'or the better concentration of beat the diameter is not more than (5 feet inside the furnace at the centre, and i lect. <> inches at top. Thu foundations of the kiln ucie made bv excavating well into the solid limestone. The base is built of reinforced concrete and up to lb Let in height, of concrete and rough masonry the remainder being built of concrete blocks. The outer wall is circular in shape the hack half to natural rock bein * r filled in with stone. The furnace throughout is lined with fire bricks, •> inch eupold at bottom, and 9 inch end wedge bricks throughout the portion subjected to the greatest heat. The (ire bricks are hacked with 2 inches o hue sand, tlun nil inner wall of 9 inch eonblocks.

The space between the two concrete block walls varies from 2 feet 6 inches at bottom to 1 foot (i inches at top, and is filled v, itil partly burnt limestone mixed with lime, and gravel, at, intervals of 2 foot inches. This is reinforced with several heavy wire ropes, set in concrete. The wall at base has an nvedepth from inside furnace to outside wall of 0 0r.7 feet, while the circular portion is I feet in thickness. The measurements of the kiln are approximately 31 feet in height, being 4 feet from hot tom Hour to firebars, and 30 feet furnace. The diameter js S feet (1 inches at bottom increasing to fi feet at 10 feet high and tapering from b feet at IK feet in height, to 1 feet fi inches at to)). The kijn is fitted with moveable firebars with openings on two sides, discharging into truck, the openings being controlled by traps. Ihe capacity of flic kiln is I lons of lime per day. The estimated fuel is 1 ton of •oal to produce I toils lime. For - haulage of coal to top of kiln a water balance tram is used, hauling half ton per load, and discharging into lurwe bin at ton of kiln. Lime screen and bins are yet to be erected, together with large storage shed. The noarrv when properly opened un should 1m mose convenient to work. The stone although hard, and close grained, is very easily broken. A fine water supply will shortly ho completed, for stripping the elnv cov,,riiithe limestone, and will he sufficient for any power purposes that may 1 111 rPil

XIIE SPEECH .MAKING. ! About 3 o’clock after an interesting j inspection ol the new kiln which stands out against the hillside, having the apnea ranee of a circular turiet, the assemblage gathered at a suitable spot. Air If. T.. Morel, AI.C.C., Chair- ; man of Directors, commenced the pro j feedings attending the formal opening of the new works. j Air Alorcl said it gave him great j pleasure to take part in the ceremony j connected with the new kiln. Cnt.ei j the old conditions the price of lice had crept up till it been mo almost, j prohibitive. The new ki]n was of a j better design and they would get .1 { higher percentage of lime in the more | thoroughly burned stone, thus ensui-j ing a cheaper commodity. The people j had supported the project well. Iliej directors had done their best in the j matter of construction, and were for-j tun,ate in securing the serivees of Air H. A. Hoddington. who had done splen- : did work. All were well pleased with the results which wore a credit to the builder. Lime was necessary for the district. It came next to the butter; faotorv in importance. Last year the 1 factory had turned out 179 tons of butter, and there were rumours of a j ucw- factory to oojre with the increasing output. So there would ho a demand for lime to justify the new kiln. As to price, the directors hoped once the works were in order that the price per ton would he nearer 20s than 30s. The cheaper rate would increase the consumption, and the wider use of the lime would add to the production of the district. Their manager, Mr D. J. ■Ciiltanec, Air .Morel regretted to state, had resigned for the purpose of returiij ing to Okuru. Mr Ciittance’s depari tore would he a loss. In the building ] of the new kiln all the staff had work- ; cd well, and though the estimate for | the work was set down at £SOO, the cost of construction was under £4OO. The saving was to the credit of Mr Hoddington, whom he thanked in the name of shareholders. Air ATorel concluded by trusting the kiln would be the useful asset to the district they all expected.

j Air James Fleming, Chairman of the | Kokatalii Dairy Factory Cov., expressed his pleasure at joining in the day’s function, and congratulated the district on the new and up to date kiln now available for the production ol lime. Nature had provided bountifully with ; j such a large deposit of limestone, and j !it was their duty to make the best j use of it. By using lime freely the j production of butter fat cou]d he increased 00 or 70 per cent. He had j used it to advantage, personally, and] I when the lime was in more general use ] j the district would derive a greater ad- j ■vantage still. Ho complimented .Mr J j Hoddington on the workmanlike way ■ in which the kiln had been built. I Afr AV. Jeffries, County Chairman, thanked the promoters of the gather- . ing for the invitation to be present. | He knew of the vicissitudes of tho j | former kiln because at one time he was , a part proprietor. Tho history of the ; , production of lime locally was detailed, j M r Jeffries remarking that in one y«nr ] the company had a return of £IBOO. ! 1 1 was a good tiling for the A. and P. ; j Association to take over the kiln and i the manufacture of lime for the benefit of the district. There were millions of tons of limestone available, and it would be available for noaerations to come, assuring the fertility of the soil.

The use uf lime would give the land an enhanced value while the consequent progress of the district would give them an unearned increment fully justifying the enterprise shown, Personally he was satisfied with the prospects of the district, and with the opening •of through railway communication the place would advance rapidly. He had 1 spent a largo sum in South Westland with the object of bringing the buyer 1 and the seller of stock closer together, 1 and the farmers would reap the value } of that trade. They should not be ] pessimistic hut go on persevering and the results would be manifested. The time was not very far distant when | they would have 2o or 30 butter and I cheese factories established in the dis~ ! triefc. The Canterbury people were now | with them and the bond of sympathy which would he created by the intcrcourse of trade, would add further to I the prosperity of the farming districts. Speaking on County rating matters, I the County Chairman said that next I year with a further cut in the hospital 1 lew, he fully expected it would be possible to reduce the general rate to six farthings in the pound. Mr T). .T. Evans, President of the Progress League, joined in the eon- < gratulations on the occasion which had j brought them together. Mr Evans ' jeoked forward to the Midland railway supplying a market outlet for all the Coast could produce, and the stabilising of prices would be of great help to the farmer. In regard to the tunnel, Mr Evans mentioned the fact that dairy produce through the courtesy ol the Hon Minister of Public Works could now he sent through the Arthur’s Pass tuiintl. a concession of the greatest importance to the settlers. The matter of the eoal deposit at Koitorangi was also referred to, and the suggestion made that it should be exploited for the cheaper working of the lime kiln and domestic uses in the district. Supporting Air Jelfries’ state- ' meats about the probable reduction of the County rate next year, Mr Evans 1 said that would he possible, he thought by the fact that increased revenue would he raised |>y motor taxation for road and bridge upkeep, the cost of ! which had hitherto fallen on the gen--1 oral body of the ratepayers. There was also the fact that the steady outgoing for * Kokatahi bridge repairs ! would come to an end, and that would mean a large saving on the rates. Tn J concluding Mr Evans praised the pioneers who had come into Koiterangi district in the early days, and who had done such good work in opening up the district, and bringing it to its present prospering condition. He wished it 1 success in the future which ho fe]t sure would he contributed to by the ' new lime kiln which he suggested | should ho called the New Era. Cheers were given for the new project and for the builder. .Mr Hoddington. and a vote of thanks carried l>y acclamation to the ladies who had supplied the afternoon tea. I The gathering then disimrsod.