BLACK TOTARA.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLVI, Issue 2708, 15 March 1924, Page 4

BLACK TOTARA.

THIRTY FOOT LOG TAKEN OUT OF RIVER, A little while back, when the Manawatu River was at a very low state, the attention of the s.s. Kennedy’s skipper was called to a large log protruding from the bank of the river a little above Aparima’s pah, and right in the course of the fairway. For years the Kennedy and other boats making the port have sailed over this obstacle with-

mil I lie knowledge of sin-h a danger, and it was only owing to the low state of the river that ii was " delected. As a matter of fad, the , wash of the Kennedy laid bare a i portion of the log near the bank. It was decided that the log would have to be removed immediately if boats were to work Ihe port in safe- 1 ty, and so Messrs Joseph, \Y. Bryant and Len Smith took the work in hand. A preliminary inspection of Ihe log was made and it was decided to atlcnip! to “In-eak it out" by the use of punts at high tide. On Saturday afternoon (he trio set mit in Air Joseph’s launch, towing two 1 punts. A( dead water hawsers were fastened round the protruding end ' of the log and the log sawn partly through tit Ihe bank. As the tide rose the strain on the log increased j and it broke away from the bank, leaving approximately thirty-five ft. of trunk attached to the punts. This was sawn up into six foot lengths and the whole towed to the beach at the north end of the harbour board’s shed at the wharf. The howl of the log where -awn off was five feet in diameter and il i.- reckoned that there is still a considerable length of the log -till embedded in the bank. The work of splitting the log into posts was then taken in hand and is now still in progress. If is estimated that they will get some 350 six foot black totara posts out of the log.