HON. J. A. MILLAR VISIT TO NUGGETS.

Otago Witness, Issue 2815, 26 February 1908, Page 34

HON. J. A. MILLAR VISIT TO NUGGETS.

DEPUTATIONS AT KAITANGATA. (From Ouk Special Reporter ) KAITAXGATA, February 24. The Hon. J. A. Millar, Minister of Marine and Labour, accompanied by Mr Malcolm, M.P., to-day visited Poit Molyneux and Nuggets in order to become personally acquainted with the desires of the fishermen respecting improved facilities for carrying out their operations. The Minister travelled from Dunediii by rail to Romahapa, being joined by Mr Malcolm at Balelutha. At Romahapa the party was augmented by Mr John Hay- (the member for the riding in the Clutha County Council) and Mr Leedor (county engineer). The weather was all that could be desned, being warm and windless, and the nine-mile drive to Nuergets was very greatly appreciated. At Nuggets a very considerable fishing industry is carried on, about 10 boats being daily engaged ; but the work is conducted under great disabilities, inasmuch as there is no harbour of any kind, and the landing place is very exposed, the result being that on many days, when the sea is not too rough for the boats to ply their calling, the surf on the beach is too great to allow of the boats beinpr launched. There is also a danger in landing when a sea has arisen, and although thore has never been any loss of life, it has several times occurred that boats havrj been capsized when making the beach. In all three proposals have be<?n put forward. The first was that a harbour should be constructed at Kaka. Point or Port Molyneux proper. This proposition, however, although doubtless quite feasible at moderate cost, did not commend itself to the fishermen for the reason that it was too great a distance from the fishing grounds. The second proposal was that at the present fishing station, about three-quarters of a mile from the Nuggets promontory, some j j rocks should be blasted away and a wall ' made to break the waves and protect the boats when making a landing. For this work £200 was voted last session. The third proposal was that a wall should be run out from the promontory at about the Lighthouse Reserve boundary fence, with the objeot of making a harbour in Oil Store Bay. When Mr WiSdowson (an engineer of the Publio Worka Department) made an inspection of the place about two years ago. he recommended the last-mentioned work, and estimated the cost at £2000. After Mr Millar had viewed the various sites he met a, deputation of the fishermen, comprising Messrs S. Riddle, C. Arthur, W. Townley, R. Inglis, J. Murray, K. Campbell, W. Ottaway, King, Ruru, R. Mike, D. Dallas, J. Campbell, J. Bates, T. Potiki, W. Dabenet, W. King, J. Dow, and J. Rakiraki. Mr Malcolm, M.P., who introduced the subject, expressed the indebtedness of the fishermen to the Hon. Mr Millar for coming to the district, and mentioned tho fact that Mr Millar was the first Minister of the Crown to visit Nuggets. The fishing industry, he believed. " was one of the great producing 1 industries of the Dominion, and in the circumstances he thought they were quite justified in asking the Government to provide fair facilities for the carrying on of the industry. At the Nuggets station there were at the present time 30 men employed, and that number would be materially increased if there were adequate facilities for the employment of more and larger boats. They were grateful for the vote of . £200, but before it was expended they desired to ascertain whether something: more advantageous could not be evolved. Mr Riddle, who acted as spokesman for the deputation, said that Mr Widdow.«on"6 proposal was for a. straight wall, but in the opinion of the men engaged in the industry it was held that a V-shaped wall, having the angle to the northerly sea, would be the more advantageous. The length would be about five chains, in water which gave soundings of 10ft, 12ft, and 14ft. If this proposal was adopted it would entail the blowing away of a number of rocks within what would then be the harbour. If this were carried out they could use more and larger boats, and (could conduct their w&rk under more advantageous conditions. It would also facilitate the landing of lighthouse stores from the Hinemoa, enabling the work to be carried out in all weathers. The cost of such a breakwater would he greater than that suggested by Mr Widdowson— probably about £5000. The Hon. Mr Millar said he would like to do what he -could to assist the fishermen. He was, however, limited by the amount of money. It was evident that the original intention for which tho vote of £200 was last session taken would not be acceptable. Mr Riddle: It would not fulfil the idea of what it should be. Mr Millar: It would not give the increased accommodation. Mr Riddle: It would gave a saf<> landing, but the size of the boats would still be limited. Tko Minister sa!J tliab if tKe proposal for a breakwater from the cape waa given effect to it would take some years to carry out, and it would be a huge mistake to j go on in the belief that it could Be carried out for £5000. A wall over which tihe sea would break would b<> worse than useless for no craft could lie at anchor inside it in rough weather. It would require a solid cement wall, and the cost would be nearer £50,000. He now knew the place, and he would get a report from the marine engineer and i see what could be done. He desired to | do what he could to protect thft lives of j those who went to sea to make their j living. In the meantime he thought his j best course wtts to improve the present landing-place somewhat so as to make it a little better for tihem. So long as the expenditure would be within a few hundred pounds he thought he could undertake to have that done if they would indicate what wae the moat effective way. What occurred to him was that the rocks which af> present partially blocked the channel should be blown and that wa.ys with a cradle and winch for haulmg 1 the boats up should bfi put down. The fishermen, assembled expressed their entire concurrence wjth the suggestion of the Minister, and they tangibly showed their appreciation of Mr MilUr'f sym-

pathy in their behalf by according him three hearty cheers. It should a!eo be stated tha< Mr Malcolm's services were not undervalued, inasmuch as the member for tho distucl was also honoured with a -vote of thanks. Mr Millar, having tacitly promised anything up to £500 for the Nuggets impiovement--. continued his journey towards Kaitangata. At Willsher Bay a halt was made to enable Mr Millar to inspect the Recreation Reserve on the banks of Kcroro Cieek. From this point the Mimstenal tour was continued through the Port Molyneux territory and by way of tho punt to Inchclutha. In every direction the crops, both root and cereal, called forth high encomiums. The mainland at Kaitangata was reached by way of the prosaic bridge. Kaitangata. having been reached and tea partaken of, the Minister of Marine and party were conveyed down the ri\er towards tho mouth in order that they might have a personal acquaintance with the proposal shortly to be put before the Go-^ernment for the establishment of a harbour at the mouth of the Molyneux. It should be here stated that although the Molyneux has for years discharged , its waters into the Pacific without any , claims on its surfaces for mercantile purposes, it has recently been borne in upon those who have the interests of the Clutha district at heart, and in particular the i Kaitangata portion of that district, that the river is capable of much greater things than have ever been thought of it in the past. . . As an outcome of the idea which has been simmering, a deputation to-night at Kaitangata waited on the Minister of Marine. Mr Millar was personally conveyed by trap from Kaitangata down the river to its mouth in order that he mig"ht for himself see the potentialities of the proposed harbour. On his arrival back at Kaitangata a deputation comprising Messrs D. Stewart and J. C. Anderson (Clutha River Board), J. Mosley (chairman Bruce County Council), C. E. Yates (Mayor of Kaitangata), and others waited on the Minister. Mr Malcolm (member for Clutha) introduced the business and with it thp deputation. It was fully explained to the Minister what was desired. The main point in the representations of the deputation wa6 that in the constitution of the Molyneux Harbour Board Olutha County, Bruce County, Milton Borough, Balolutha ' Borough, and Kaitangata Borough should be represented in the ratio of two members to each of the counties and one to each of the boroughs, with two Government j nominees added, — making nine members in i all. ' The Minister, in reply to the representations made, 6aid that he was very pleased indeed to find that the Clutha people were prepared to convert the river into a harbour. As regarded their representations, he would be quite prepared to embody in his Harbour Boards Bill the proposal of the Clutha peoj>le for the constitution of the Molyneux Harbour Board. On the question of rating, the Hon. Mr Millar j pointed out that the old Harbour Boards ! Act gave no. rating powers, and unless the Molyneux Board had statutory rating powers its position under the proposed bill was in nowise affected. Mr Stewart: We have rating powers over a strip of land up to Kelso. Mr Stewart was asked if it was the Harbour Board or the River Board that had the rating power over the strip of land up the river to Kelso, and he replied that it was the Harbour Board. He added: "You must understand, however, that the River Board and the Harbour Board are one and the same." The Minister, in reply, thanked the Kaitangata people for their kindly and courteous reception which they had accorded him. He was very pleased .indeed for the facilities vouchsafed him for seeing for himself the requirements of the district, and particularly those affecting the river at its junction with the ooean. He thought that the representation of the deputation with regard to the constitution of the proposed Harbour Board was a very fair one —viz.. that the Clutha and Bruce Counties should have two members each, the Milton, Kaitangata. and Balclutha Boroughs one member each, and the Government two nominees. In the preparation of the Harbour Boards Bill last session he had been faced with the fact that some harbour boards had as many as 19 members, whereas others had only 12. In his bill of last year his desire had been to make the representation of all boards equal, and he thought the proposals he had put forward would certainly meet with acceptance in Otago. The Minister desired to say that it wa9 in the interests of the people as a whole that the elections for local bodies representation and harbour board representation should take place simultaneously. With | this object in view, as Minister of Marine his purpose was that the election of members of the Harbour Board and of county or borough councils should take place on the same day and under tho swne returning officer, thus economising election expenses.

The Hon. J. A. Millar was this morning interviewed at Milton by two representative tradesmen, who requested him, on behalf of the anti-Saturday holiday petitioners, to have the weekly half-holiday fixed for Thursday. air Millar, however, in declining to ' aoquieeoe in the suggestion made, pointed out that the Milton Borough Council was the statutory authority, having sole jurisdiotion over the half-holiday. The meeting had been properly convened, and the resolution arrived at was in strict conformity with the provisions of the act. Mr Millar informed the deputation that he was, in the circumstances, left with no other optiojj than to gAeette Saturday as the half-holiday for the Milton district. After arrival back from a trip of inspection to the- mouth of the river, the Minister wae met by a representative deputation of the Kaitangata Miners' Union. It is understood tlmt at this meeting, to which the press was not admitted, the Minister delivered an address of an hour's duration. He explained fully the provision* of the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Amendment Bill of last session. At the conclusion, of the address the union expressed its Approval of the measure. The Minister also dwelt at length on the Workers' Compensation for Accidents Bill, and his remarks were received with approval. Varkms matters connected with the mining industry, and more particularly affecting the Kaitangata mines, were brought under Mr Millar's notice, and he undertook to place them before the Minigtgr of Mines.