THE ROAD FROM EAST TO WEST MAITLAND.

Auckland Star, Volume I, Issue 98, 3 May 1870, Page 2

THE ROAD FROM EAST TO WEST MAITLAND.

From near the old Black Horse public house—a place any old resident of Maitland, or traveller in the Northern district will remember—to Dr. Scott's old house, the road between East and West Maitland was more or less covered with water the whole way, though not at so great a depth by about twelve inches as on the last day or two of the March flood. At the Victoria bridge the water rushing over the top of the flood gates with great velocity, and notwithstanding the circumstance of the carrying away of the gates last month, there was etill a difference of fully a foot in the height of the water inside and outside the gates, proving conclusively -what I affirmed in several of my previous reports, viz., that the masonry work alone kept back an immense body of water. The water being over the top of the whole structure, we were unable to see whether the gate which, resisted the current last time was still in its place or not j but I was informed by a resident of the neighbourhood that it was still there, and nearly closed —a fact which, if true, would be additional explanation of the comparatively small quantity of water that found its way on to the Lochend estate and Loutli Park. The numerous houses on either side of- the road from the bridge to the High-street railway station, were all flooded, more or less, the water in some instances rushing through them ■with great force, carrying everything moveable before it. To the left of the road, as I have already intimated, the quantity of water out was not so large as the great height of the river would seem to warrant one in expecting, but still there was a large area submerged, and the back water was said to be rising rapidly. As a matter of course, scores of houses in the direction of Louth Park were inundated, though only to a limited depth.