The Daily News. MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 14, 1903. A PROGRESSIVE PORT.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XXXXV, Issue 204, 14 September 1903, Page 2

The Daily News. MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 14, 1903. A PROGRESSIVE PORT.

We have much pleasure in acknow . lodging the receipt of a copy of a hand eomely got up and carefully compile' little booklet containing statistical am other information regarding the pro gressive Pott of Timaru, prepare! b; Mr W, J Bardslsy, secretary of th Timaru Harbour Board. Its arrival i very opportune just now when th question of harbour improvement i Br. being so much discussed here, as i ew shows the advantage of up to-dat har^ oar facilities and 'he triumph c ?he engineering skill in providing a ueefi ith port where nature had not provide icd one. The booklet referred to is nc at". BUoil an ambitious production a tis, issued by our own Harbour Boar :ra- some two years two, but, in a very fe< figures, the statistical tables given she the increase in the trade of the port i l_ the ten years frcm 1892 to 1902. Th 'to first table is a comparative return c —. haroour revenue, from which we fio U that it was £13,881 in 1892 and ha risen to £19,796 in 1902, This is substantial increase, but it must b ED DOt ' 'kat during the ten years cor eiderable reductions in harbour dut have been made. If the charges had r< mained the same as in 1892 the reveni test would have been fully £lO 000 mor the master of tonnage a very large it crease h<js taken place, the tonnage i the vessels inwards in 1892 bair 169,247 and for 1902 283,425, Tt increase of imports and exp .rts was al: ,Dg " very marked, being 87,509 tons i 1.892 and 124,497 tons in 1902, ] I i n the vaiue of the imports there hssbae lid- a very satisfactory increase, the valt in 1892 being £594,000, while in 19C it was £833,792. That this satisfactor 38t » increase in trade is being maintuiiif may be seen from the fact that tt value of the imports and exports f( the fix months, ending 30; h Ju-e < this year, have been £583,514. Uoi sidering the future there is before tt ew Port of New PI) mouth in the mat!( of frozen meat-, it is ex'remely satii , j_ factory to quote the progress made i Timaru, as indeed the great incivase i ion their trade is largely due to th a. frizen meat industry, the increa of which has been quite phtn< menal. The number of carcases (lam S3, and mutton) exported in 1892 ws 85,635, in 1902 it was 536,584. Duiin the first six months of the present von the number was no less than 465,49! iole the Port of Timaru now rarikin ing third in order of importance amontf the meat shipping ports, shippin fully one eighth of the output of tli uid colon y- The wharfago provided is 190 f?i£-t, the depth of wat-r at the mai wharf being 26 feet and at the Mood whaif 21 feet 1.w.5.t,, the rise and fa being 6 feet 6 inches. The area ot tb Timaru harbour district is 2,718,80 acres and the capital value hat increase 5 from £6 974,379 in 1892 to £7,822,34 in 1902. A couple of photographs ar ' given, showing the main uharf take during a big storm in 1892, witi the sea breaking over the wharf am troubled waters all along tho break water with a very dangerous range the other is taken from the north mole since erected, and shows tae broad 6ide of the Suffolk, 7100 tons, and th Delphic, 8273 tons, lying comfortabl;

j iloagside the wharf about a month ago. MU rhe contrast is remarkable and shows what can be accomplished by a self reliant people. A slip is added referring to the grea' storm of the early part of this mouth when the Selsdon with 4000 tons of coil and the Waiweia, 6237 tons, continued to work a 1; the wharfs throughout the storm. Mr Ooi Baidsley is to ba complimented on the mi issue of such a 'ot of useful information the and the people of Tiimru on their BVC8 VC e-jterprisa in securing such a usiu! at harbour. It ma. ba mentionei tfca* the reveoue of the B iard irom harbour 22i rate last year was £8770, and thoy got; 1110I 110 no assistance in the shape of land fund and passenger tax. SQ(