CORRESPONDENCE.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume X, Issue 3098, 8 January 1889, Page 2

CORRESPONDENCE.

The Borough Water Supply. (TotlieEfc) Sm.—As several .suggestions' are before the public, it may bo as well to pass some of them in review,: and see whether or not. they will suffice for what it should be the aim of the municipality to possess, viz,, a pure, permanent, and.cheap service, for both sanitary, domestic and hro purposes; and also one that will induce the. Underwriter's Association to '•educe their present high, fire tariff, In dealing this question, the natural features of'tiie OTtry from which it is proposed to draw tb6 supply, must be a prime factor in the calculation; it must come from a source Vhere the destruction of the fijresfc will not lessen- the 'future risk of pollution will fe ininiinised,. That is tg say it Bbeds within the Stato'Forest Ees'erye , on the Tarawa Kanges', Mr Ronall's I plan of a supply from' the -Waipoua giver, near the Bailway Station, is but a manshift, and will not comply with the requireipnts. previously laid down. Some people mighj. argue that it would be cheap, but if so, it would be essentially nasty, totally unfit for domestic purposes, and only ÜBefuJ for fire extinction in a secondary degree with t|e aid of the Jubilee Engine^,;; : or ' 'Borne- otbty''' apph'ahce, liable to get oujqf order, and not nearly,so effective' as a high pressusa eervioe, fgr street watering, while the Bource. jtyin whence it is drawn cannot- ,be relied uppii in the future, judging, from> the past, as year by year., 'there' is,' less waterju of the Borough during thQ;sjmme'r; '^l)B,-caused bythe lippr.tributaries of- %:vrlygs being; cleajrai of bush ;■; and aa'a-large portion of "the. water shed of thjs river is in the hands of privateindividuaisi so will the. bush clearing continue, and the supply of watetdiminish;' A supply froin.tho Waipipilas many of the saipe objectionable as Mr. Eenall's. with the'.exception that a' highpressureßarvicecould beobtained and a .large quantity of stored by the'erection of a dam or Mr T. 0. Wiw*ams i -land.' vk 'question' bj ': t cost here.sops ip,.fQr njot ■ the;build|ng' of vejry expensive, but;4he r laud -owner \ for land rend§red^use^e^ow|b|ihg : ;! flooded with \ atanytiratfbe■seriously euHail^d'by; i

V~ L —7 ; the'retuin of the Waipoua to its old channel, ail event not at all unlikely to occur, and even should the leveise happen 1 , that is the whole of the Waipoua water come down the "Wai pipi, the M is so gieat in the latter orpek between Mr John Cameron's homestead, and the Ruainahunga that a deep guloh would be cut which would be very detrimental to the flow of water to a loservoir supplying Masteiton. As the amount of water fluctuates in the oreek according to thestatoofthoWaipoua,itfoll9wsthat i the objections raised as to the diuiina tion of supply hold good in both oases' The Sinking of a few .ordinary, wells has : been suggestbdj; This; at the best is.'only a Jemporary aridniost inefficiant:iexpedient; % ;/noiise ior; fire extiaguißhing purposes except iii 'iwnjuhption,^ith : appliances. ■ Cr- Caiman's proposal may be placed almost; in: the/jatne oateg6i7/.;Tliepumping r ofwater?t6 'etevftted; reseryoirs -would ~-be- 'S"-'cbnr stant expense,"; and ;«'nless ? the structures'on which .thesereseryoirs /were placed were of; considorable lieigbt! the pressure would not lie suffioient for lire parposes while the ; supply. would be inade4uate in a I'oyf .years for a/growing: township;r : Artesian wells-would: answer many/require-; meats but at present there is. ho data to go upon' as to what'supply couldhe obtained, rltniight, however, -be' worth/while to ; sink 'a,test well, but it must be remembered that indoing this"the :'diambnd;- drill -at, present here would be of no use until the shingle and boulder strata was gone throughi /From all points a high . pressure;. supply ; : is\th'e-best, ..and Wbuld,4n the loflg run, be far more there/would/ be' little or iio tear/and w'ek, hpodlisumptipn, of coal and a minimum of labor, while everyhouso to whioh the water was laid on would have ample not only for dpmestio but for fire and other purposes, Looking to tlie advance.in electrical science a supply of this kind might be of inestimable value to the - Borough, not only for the purpose, of working machinery, but for lighting also, The question arises where can such a supply be obtained which will, be permanent. The Black Creek has been mentioned,-but in all probability it would be best obtained from" the Waingawa or one of its tributaries above Mr Shaw's land on the southern bank of the river, The question of cost is an element not to be lost sight of, A calculation must be made, and upon one side must be placed the cost of the water supply, and upon the other the reduction of insurance rates, the abolition of Jubilee engines and water carts with attendants) expenses, the saying to storekeepers through having clean instead, of having intolerably dusty streets, do-. mestio aud'sanitary benefits, the gain in having water to work machinery, either direct or through electric appliances. When these'items are all fairly weighed' against the cost, the ratepayers will probably conclude that a high pressure supply will be the greatest boon that could be conferred on the Borough. Before any plan is; adopted it would be a wise precaution to find out what will be acceptable to the Underwriters Asso-, oiation, as it would berather awkward if, after adopting Mr Seuall's or any other temporary plans, the Association refused to lower the insurance rates. lam, k, . ABatepaveu. ". Masterton, January 7lh, 1889,