THE NEW GOVERNMENT BUILDINGS.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXIX, Issue 4202, 8 September 1874, Page 2

THE NEW GOVERNMENT BUILDINGS.

(From Hansard.) In Committee of Supply, when moving the item £35,750 for offices for the Public Departments, Pis Mr. Richardson said a number of designs had been furnished for buildings in Wellington,. and a great deal of consideration had been’ given to the matter by the Government. It was proposed to commence immediately the erection of the new buildings, which would be constructed of wood, and it was expected they would be completed within eighteen months. As soon as a portion of these buildings wasready for occupation, the offices would be removed from the -wretched rooms they now occupied in the Assembly building, after which the library could be so arranged as to provide the room required, and better accommodation would also be afforded in Bellamy’s. The Government did not wish to incur any further expenditure in patching up the present buildings, as to do so would simply be a waste of money. The Government proposed to adopt No. 1 design. The Government were loath to ask Parliament to vote, the large sum that would be necessary to put up buildings in brick or cement. If either brick or concrete should be decided upon they could not then use No. 1 design. The estimate for No. 2 was £58,000 for concrete, and £65,000 fir brick. There was a great difference of opinion as to erecting a large pile of buildings, in this city, of either brick or concrete. It was due to the Colonial Architect so say that he was strongly in favor of concrete, but he (Mr. Richardson) had an equally strong' opinion that a too great risk would be run, in consequence of the chance of earthquakes. Both concrete and.brickwork could be built of sufficient strength to resist any earthquakes they experienced in Wellington, but the cost would be very large. If it was the opinion of the Committee that a more permanent class of buildings should be put up, the matter was open to consideration. He certainly would not feel justified,in recommending the House to erect so large a pile of brick or concrete. In Peru the concrete buildings stood well, but there they used the best class of cement, the walls were excessively thick, and the buildings are one storey high. It was absolutely necessary that the Government should have the building erected, for all the accommodation marked on the plan would be required, and the Government would then give up other buildings they occupied. Mr. Carrington said the walls of buildings he had seen in some earthquake countries were four or five feet thick. Churches and various other large buildings were constructed of adobe and also of stone ; and although the walls cracked, they had not come down. ■ Mr. Wales said that in San Francisco, where there had been worse earthquakes than any in Wellington, brick buildings four storeys high were put up. Iron entered very largely into the construction of buildings in San Francisco of four or five storeys. The cost of iron over wood was not very considerable, and they would givo great protection against fire.

Mr. Richardson thought the large piles of buildings in San Francisco, referred to by the bon. member, were constructed of brick and iron combined, and were very much more expensive than ordinary brick buildings. The walla were of brick, and were covered inside and out with iron. Mr. Brandon attributed much of the notoriety attached to Wellington in respect of earthquakes to the bad quality of the mortar used in building chimneys in the old days. A very slight shock would bring the brickwork down. The earthquakes in Christchurch and Nelson had been quite as bad as the worst in Wellington—those of 1848 and 1855 ; but the residents in the other cities did not make so much fuss about them. The item, as already reported, was agreed to.