Thames Harbor Board.

Thames Star, Volume XV, Issue 4912, 7 October 1884, Page 2

Thames Harbor Board.

The usual monthly meeting was held at 4 o'clock this afternoon. From the Har-bour-roaster's report we cull the following:—Work at Goods Wharf has been confined to keeping the road and planking repaired. The Board is strongly recommended to double the stringers all the way down the wharf, as a considerable saving in planking would thereby bo made. A mishap to one of the powder magazine trucks caused £5 damage. As the dredge and punts are liable to get wornieaten during the warm weather, and as they cannot safely be put up the Kauaerauga Creek, the Harbour-master recommends that tho machinery should be taken off and stored ashore, and that the three punts should bs hauled up and oovered over, there being no immediate prospect of either using or selling them, while, if left at anchor, the machinery will require attention to prevent rusting. Bpealcing of Shortlaod

eh'innel, (h.3 Harbourmaster says: — "I devote-] some 'days last week to examining Siiortland channel. I find it is constantly altering, especially so since the last fresh. While the ketches Lizstte and Ziliah were stuck waiting for the tides to make, I, with their assistance, screwed a pi!s down on the spit b&tween the two channels to assist them to haul out round the bend, as anchors will not hold in the bottom there. We also took all the snags out of both channels and marked cut the outer channel with temporary beacons, as that channel is now the better of the two. I am afraid th;>t I shall find most of the snags washed back again now these fresh westerly winds have set in. If such should prove to be the case I would suggest that a contract be let to some of the boatmen to bring all the snags in close to the railway embankment, as there are punts available, there not beifig much work for them at present, and the snags would not remain long, but be taken away for firewood. Various suggestions have been made for improving these Shortland channels, but I c;m see no better or more effectual method than that shown on my plan of November last, as the principal thing appears to me to be to concentrate all the scour into one channel, and that can only be done as I have shown."