HARBOR DEPARTMENT.

Southland Times, Volume III, Issue 243, 18 April 1866, Page 1 (Supplement)

HARBOR DEPARTMENT.

(From the Southland Times, 16th ApriL) Its our Wednesday's issue was published a letter from Captain Osborne, of the schooner "Isabella," commenting severely upon, the management of the Harbor Department. The subject has received attention, and the harbor master's (Captain Greig) report to his Honor the Superintendent, in reply to the said letter, has been placed at our disposal. It is also upon authority we state that, with respect to the negligence of the Customs, the following are the facts : — The "Isabella" came up to the jetty on Tuesday afternoon of the 3rd inst ; entries were passed at the Customs for the cargo, on Wednesday of the 4th inst. After her cargo was discharged, she was rummaged by the Customs officer on Saturday forenoon the 7th inst. We subjoin the report :

Harbor Office, Invercargill, 13th April, 1866,

Sis,-^-I beg to address a few remarks to your Honor, in consequence of certain comments about the leading beacons at the entrance to this port, made by the master of the schooner Isabella, in a letter of his which appeared in the issue of the Southland Times, of the 11th inst.

When the beacons in question was erected, the depth of water was' 18 feet at low water all the way up the channel, from the bar to the Mokomoko jetty. The " bar," as it was called, was a narrow strip of sand, which lay across the entrance to this deep channel, with three feet less water over the deepest part of it than the channelinside.

The use of the beacons was to lead vessels of great draught of water over the deepest part on this neck of sand, and to guide vessels of less draught in low water.

Since that time the deep channel has been filled up with sand ; and the course of the river, in place of following the windings of the shore, now takes almost a direct course from the Bombay Eock out to sea, through the middle of the sand banks, and has levelled the outlying banks to almost an uniform depth right across.

Had the Captain of the Isabella kept the beacons in one until his vessel, had nearly hit the shore on which the beacons stand, he could at any time have altered his course and crossed any part of banks thereabout at high water, for there is a:uch deeper water on the line of the beacons than in any part of the bar, a vessel has to cross before she can get into the harbor.

The beacons— although not of any practical use lately — could hardly lead to any disastrous results ; for, besides that the line of them outwards is over ' deep water, the buoys which were mentioned in connection with them in the Sailing Directions, dated 7th August, 1863, having been removed should be sufficient to deter a stranger from proceeding in with the beacons in a line, and seeing thing else to guide him; for these Sailing Directions tell him that the beacons were only required to lead over a space 200 hundred yards wide.

The best passage into the harbor at the present moment is by keeping the beacons in one until the shore is nearly approached, and then crossing the spit abreast of the pilot station to get into the deep channel, whichis buoyed on the starboard side: and as soon as a beacon is placed on the wreck of the Oscar (which has been for some time prepared' for the purpose of being placed there,) directions for coming in this way will be pubhshed for the guidance of shipmasters frequenting this port — but not for strangers.

My only advice to strangers would be : Don't attempt to enter the harbor without a pilot. A notice to this effect was published in the-. Provincial Government Gazette, No. 26, of 23rd August, 1864; and in Gazette No. 20, of 26th October, 1865.

Besides, my report on the harbor, published in Gazette No. 30, of October, 1864, pointed out the rapid changes which the harbor mouT;h at that time was undergoing.

When the channel follows the line of the, shore again new sailing directions may be then published; but I cannot conceive what kind of directions could be given to guide a stranger through between shifting sands, and to provide fort every possible change in these sandss which might take place. "

The orily improvement I can suggest for the benefit of strangers bound to this port is to increase the pilot staff, and to allow the signalman at Steep Head to keep at his -post in place of having to act occasionally as boatman. This, however, would cause the harbor expenditure- to be considerably increased ; but without doing that, £ do not see that the arrangements in New 'Eiver, with 7 only the present material to work on, can be made better than jm. their existing state, excepting some in contemplation which your Honor is already aware of. I have the honor to be, Sir, 'Tour obedient servant, J. B. (xbeig, Harbor Master* Ta his Honor the Superintendent of Southland^ t -