WAITANGURU.

King Country Chronicle, Volume VII, Issue 604, 20 September 1913, Page 5

WAITANGURU.

Own Correspondent,

Measra Armstrong Bros., Cranston and Frederickson are steadily making progressive headway with their reading contracts and are accomplishing good work. They have been favoured with fine weather during the past week, and working conditions have, as a consequence, considerably improved. These workmen are speculative in their ideas of the best means to ad Dpi 33 a labour-saver, and have proved themselves strict opposers of Scotch navigation, "Strength and Stupidity," and have invested in a machine known as the Bunyip. or "forest devil," which is utilised to render prostrate standiiig trees of almost any dimensions. This achievement, its makers declare, it will accomplish, the only stipulation being that the strain does not exeeed~sixty tons: but a parson on comparing the size of tbe machine with the stature of some of the forest giants, seems quite .justified in doubtine its claimed anilities; but it will undoubtedly prove interesting to some of our settlers to learn that laßt Saturday a large matai, about five feet in diameter, wai bodily uprooted by means of the Bunyip, and last Wednesday a huge kahikatea about feet indiameter wa3 likewise laid low. The machine is anchored firmly by means of strong wire cable sling to a stump or to some object which the operators consider will be sufficiently sturdy to defy the strength of the tree which they intend to pull. _ A sling is passed round the tree as high up as it" is Possible to get. In the instances mentioned, and owing to contrivances not being at hand, only about twenty feet was the maximum height attained. Could this height have b=en doubled it can obviously be ascertained that the accomplishment o:: the success would have been greatly accelerated A shackle is fastened on to this sling, and on to this is a movable pully, and through this a long wire cable from the drum of the machine : s passed, and the end mad? immovably fast to another firm anchovaue. The rope then

assumes the delineation of the letter V, the tree being at the base of the letter and the strain directly between the two anchorages, and all slack drawn, is rolled round the drum of the machine, which is worked by a lever and operated in the instances mentioned by four men. This, at first sight, may seem very unprofitable undertaking but those who are cognisant of the labour attached to stumping will agree that four men can spend the best part of a week in many cases in completely extricating the huge roots which held erect these forest giants. Messrs Armstrong Bros., Cranston and Frederiekscn, who should be competent to judge, are very optimistic 01 its money ar.d laboursaving properties, and feel thoroughly satisfied with that their venture will not prove a "white elephant." As is customary in all dairying districts at this period of the year, the talk is cows and butterfat, and our district is no exception to the rule. Butterfat is not possessive of solidity, but it is at present forming the foundation of many high "castles." but the best of its efficiency as a foundation will be ascertained at the end of the season, and the profit and loss account is tallied up.