The Patea Mail. Established 1875. WEDNESDAY, MARCH 28, 1883. THE HARBOUR.

Patea Mail, Volume VIII, Issue 1014, 28 March 1883, Page 2

The Patea Mail. Established 1875. WEDNESDAY, MARCH 28, 1883. THE HARBOUR .

+ —” Like Mr Mace, we are unwilling just now, to enter into a prolonged con trove rsy regarding tbe merits and demerits of the guide pier and western breakwater, Onr correspondent has expressed his opinion that it would be preferable to construct the former instead of 500 feet of the latter. Wc think differently. Mr Mace says that he has carefully looked through Sir John Goode’s report, and that he cannot find one word in support of our statement that that Engineer said if we “abandon all hope of constructing the western pier, then fall back on the guide pier, &c.” Mr Mace is quite correct; but we never said that Sir John Goode’s report contained anything of the kind. Our correspondent certainly might have thought we referred to the report, and we were to blame for not saying that it was in a letter to Mr Thomson that Sir John Goode expressed the opinion mentioned by us. Subsequent events, no doubt, convinced him that if the outer work were constructed the guide pier would be unnecessary, because the river would possess sufficient scour without. Moreover, the guide pier, as originally projected, was an inner or river work, under the lee of a substantial breakwater, and consequently,iflhe pier is built without such protection it will have to be of a much more massive character than was first intended, because it will be exposed to the full fury of the sea. We question very much if it could be built for less than £12,000 ; and why then should we expend that sum upon a work which, upon the completion of the western breakwater, would, most likely, prove,we won’t say useless,but at any rate, necessary. Of course our opinion may be taken for what it is worth, and that after all may be very little ; but wo think it would bo far better to attempt the main work in place of any inside improvements. If we are unable to start the former we can always fall back upon the least expensive scheme. Once let the western pier get out to 500 feet, and it must go on. The future will show us the way to do it, at least we are sanguine enough about the progress of the district to think so. For the benefit of our correspondent we sha, 1] ask Mr Thomson to be good enough to print that portion of Bir J. Goodes letter containing hie reference to the guide pier.