THAMES HARBOUR.

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume XXXIII, Issue 4462, 4 September 1922, Page 2

THAMES HARBOUR.

Sir,—Seeing that Thames is trying to draw your district into the vortex of their harbour scheme I should like to put before your readers what we consider some reasons for wanting a harbour, the minimum cost of which will be a quarter of a million of money. I think when that was spoken the man must have put his tongue ir. has cheek in an effort, to be moderate. For the benefit oE those who do no: know this d'strict I should like to point out that at Tu.rua, which is only a half-hour's run by launch from Thames, we have deep water, and we have sent from our wharf a brigantine loaded with over one million super feet of timber, and sihe never rested on the bed of the river at any time during loading operations; «o why Thames ? with her over tliree-quarter-mile long pier, and even wita that the s.s. Wakatere 'sometimes has to use * her donkey engine to get alongside at high water. If you look into the history of Thames you will find' she Came into existence with the goldfields, and now that those goldfields have gone and the "pubs” are diminishing she looks around for something fresh to sustain her in her decrepit old age. She has lost her usefulness, and having made no provision fpr her depreciation she comes along witn her harbour. scheme, and witflu glowipg accounts of how the farmer 40 miles away is sure to benefit by being able to send In’s produce Home and import goods cheaper. The whole thing is so grotesque that it seems almost superfluous my writing, only I recognise that the less goods are handled and overhead charges diminish the better for all concerned. But why spend all this money on a degenerate town? It only means the silt in the upper reaches of Che riven being cleaned out, which is admitted will have to be done at some future time, then goods can come down from above Te Aroha and we can get competitor, which is the soul of bus mess ; and water carriage is the cheapest mod? of transit. SCRATCHING FOR A LIVING.