GIFT TO DOMINION.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVI, Issue 238, 8 October 1935, Page 9

GIFT TO DOMINION.

WATERLOO BRIDGE RELIC.

ARRIVAL AT WELLINGTON,

Weighing nearly two and a half tons, a block of granite which was taken from tho Surrey side of Waterloo Bridge, London, is included in part of the cargo discharged from the liner Remuera at Wellington (says the "Dominion").

The stone was accepted by the Prime Minister, the Rt. Hon. G. W. Forbes, during his recent visit to London for the jubilee celebrations, and it is the first piece of the bridge to be sent abroad. Other blocks are to be sent to Canberra, Bulawayo and Nyasaland.

When asked 011 Saturday what use it was proposed to make of the stone, Mr. Forbes said that 110 decision had yet been reached as to its disposal. He suggested it would make a fine foundation stone if it were decided to go ahead with the completion of Parliament Buildings in the near future.

The old Waterloo Bridge was the work of John Ronnie, and was opened in 1817. It was a massive stone structure of nine arches, carrying a level roadway, and was considered one of the finest bridges of its kind in the world.