MOUNT HOLDSWORTH.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXIX, Issue 8387, 23 March 1907, Page 3

MOUNT HOLDSWORTH.

The Secretary of the Mount Holdsworth Track Committee (Mr W. M. Eastbope) has received the following letter from the Commissioner of €rown Lands (Mr J. Strauchon) : "'ln reply to your letter of the 7th instant, addressed io the Crown Lands and which he has sent on to me for'Yep'y, I have, now to say that I have no objection to your Committee erecting a mountain-house at Carke'ek's old camp on the track up to Mount Holdsworth, nor to you .procuring the timber necessary for it 3 erection, provided care is taken znot to destroy any ordnamental or specimen trees standing in the open. These, if any, should be allowed to stand for the sake of preserving the appearance of the house. When you are ready to commence cutting the timber, please advise me, and I will 'instruct the Crown Land 3 Ranger to ;:gv on the ground and mark the trees which your men may cut. "You mention in your letter that you | I propose building a house 30ft by 14ft I '•with 7ft studs. I would, after a long J experience of these mountain houses, , • respectfully suggest for your Com- [ i.mittee's consideration, whether it would not be better to make the j • house, say, 40ft by 14ft inside mea- • •surement, with 10ft . studs. After -all, the principal difference is only a /little extra material, the additional 'labour would be very little. lam •sending you a rough pencil sketch -of what I think would be a suitable ihouse. It may be, of course, that .you have already finally decided on a plan; if so, there is no harm done. To be comfortable, the bunks should be three feet all over, the bottoms thereof should be half-inch mesh wire-netting, well stretched and secured under the side pieces. The chimney shown on sketch is about the most effective and satisfactory, and at top should not be more than three rlnches wide by full cross width of -chimney. It' is easily constructed •with iron (the wooden framework can .be outside for safety if desired), and • does not allow the wind to beat the . smoke down. A three or four inch . bar of angle iron through the chimney, and punched on lower side with holes about a foot apart, makes an : excellent support to hang billies and pots on. Provision can be . made for either eight or twelve bunks in each bedroom, as per sketch •.and section. I think you will find that as soon as the fact of the house feeing there becomes known, a very large number of people will use it, and irr course of time it might become a resort for a week or so at a itime of the inhabitants of the Waira.rapa who are in search of health, ,or in need of a rest and change from buisness. so that in course of • time your accommodation will re- - quire enlarging and improving, and then a caretaker for the summer months would become necessary, and . a small charge would have to be made to cover cost uf his wages ..and further improvements, as is done elsewhere. Your greatest danger will be the wanton vandalism often practised in these out-of-the-way places. The interest I take in these mountain houses must be my excuse for troubling you with this long letter, which I trust you will take in the spirit in which it is meant."