Waitapeka Diversion.

Clutha Leader, Volume I, Issue 24, 24 December 1874, Page 5

Waitapeka Diversion.

DEPUTATION TO THE HON. MB HETNO-LDS.

Pursuant to appointment made at the meeting held in the Schoolhouse, Waitapeka, on the 11th inst., Messrs Henderson, Somerville, and Why took, proceeded to Dunedin on Saturday. In the evening they had an interview with Mr Reynolds at the chambers of the Commissioner of Customs, Dunedin. Besides^ tbe gentlemen . named, the deputation was accompanied by Mr Banks (Dunedin), and Mr Carrick (Balclutha.) Mr Henderson M.P.C., introduced the business, and in doing so explained the original intention was, that Mr/j. W. Thomson, M.H.R., and Mr John M'Neill, M.P.C., should have been present to take part in the proceedings. Both of these gentlemen had, however, been detained at home by unavoidable circumstances. He (Mr Henderson) proceeded to say, the deputation was aware that railway matters did not come under his cognizance as a member of tbe General Government, and consequently they did not expect he would be prepared either to accede to their views or do otherwise. What was aimed at in communicating with him was simply this : At a meeting held in the district, a reply from the Minister of Public Works had been receivd and considered, stating that the Government did not see its way to comply with the request for deviation of the railway line as proposed, via Waitepeka. That reply was not considered satisfactory, and it was determined that the matter should be further agitated. For that purpose, a Standing Committee was appointed to bring the matter more fully under notice of the Government, and they had been named as a deputation to wait upon him (Mr Reynolds) with the view of securing his co-opera-tion at head-quarters. Mr Sommerville entered into detailed particulars as to the various routes by which it is proposed to take the line. Flying surveys of each of these had been made, and it was, he pointed out, a significant fact that while the survey of the route by Waitepeka had only occupied the survey party a very few days, that by the Four-mile Creek had occupied as many weeks. In fact the survey by the last-named direction had not really been completed as yet, and still the engineer reported that the line by Waitapeka would cost at least L 12,000 more than that by the Fourmile Creek. The district was quite at a loss to comprehend the matter, and that was one of the reasons which had induced them to adopt steps for further

inquiry.

Mr Why took pointed out, that by carrying the line along the Four-mile Creek route, the Waitepeka district, and in fact, the South Molyneux generally, would be practically excluded from taking advantage of it for traffice purposes. The bulk of settlement was located in, the neighborhood of Waitapeka. They had the thickly populated district of Warepa, Glenomaru, &c. ; whereas along the Four-mile Creek road, they had only one or two — a very large proportion of the land in that neighborhood being vested in one man — a squatter. Unless the deviation was given effect to, the districts named would reap no advantage from the railway system. They would be no better than they had been twenty years ago. Their produce, which was very considerable — two storekeepers alone having paid as much as L6OO per annum for the carriage of their goods — would continue to go by sea, which would be so much loss to the traffic returns upon the railway. In concluding* he made flattering allusion to his (Mr Reynolds) well known anxiety to serve the interests of the Clutha district, as well as the province at large, and expressed a hope that on this occasion he would use his endeavors to get the route altered as proposed.

After consulting rough sketches and plans of the proposed deviation, Mr Reynold said that, while he was perfectly willing to aid them to the best of his ability, they were not to count upon his aid, except in as far as that it might be consistent with the principle of the railway policy as a whole. In constructing main lines, the object was to carry them from one end of the colony to the other, by the best practical routes, and that object would- have to be carried out, even although the settlement of particular localities might suffer inconvenience. A similar case had occurred at a place called Carslile. Despite the fact that Carslile .was a suburban centre, with a fair aniourit of population, it was found that it would not be advisable to carry the main line through it, in consequence of engineering obstacles. The line was thereforje; carried past at a few miles distah^Veveh: although the inhabitants of the/ place) had forwarded a remonstrance against; that route. It was a fact that the, Clutha district was' not Unanimous in favor . of the proposad -A

remonstrance had been made to the Government against it by residents iri the Southern part of the district, and altogether he did not look upon the plea set up in favor of the deviation as a very strong one. However, the assistant-engineer would be in Dunedin on Monday morning, and if the depu^ tation would in the meantime commit their views on the subject to writing, and let him (Mr Beynolds) have them early on Monday, he would bring them before the Assistant- Engineer, and later in the day arrange for a further interview with the deputation. This suggestion was agreed to, and the deputation retired to meet again on Monday.

The following document was prepared by the deputation and handed to Mr Reynolds, as requested on Monday morning :■— . , "For your information, and as rerequested by you, we would state in as few } words as possible, the circumstances connected with, and the steps taken in re the deviation of the railway,- regarding which we waited upon you as a deputation on. Saturday. A memorial of the settlers em- . bracing Warepa, Waitapeka, Puerua, and • . South Clutha, was forwarded to the Government by the hands of Major Richardson, a select committee was appointed to consider it, and from the information then to hand, it was thought in committee that a branch railway would answer all the purposes of the memorialists. Upon i hearing this—" the memorialists having a i thorough knowledge of the country— they i were at once aware that a branch line . could not in the least suit the convenience | of the settlers, whereupon their representative, Mr Thomson, was desired to state this in a letter to the Minister of Public Works, and his reply thereto stated that the engineer was instructed to examine the proposed deviation. The report of the working engineer on the Waitapeka route was at once so favorable that it was forthwith permanently surveyed, and the obstacles of that route were so few that the whole survey was completed in a month's time. The settlers, therelore, thought that the whole affair was concluded ; but not so, as the surveyor was again sent back to siewhether he could make any deviation at a certain cutting near the junction, men being at_ the same time employed putting down trial pits to test the nature of tbe strata, which was satisfactory, being found to be good holdiug clay and rotten rock. But H appears that there was something else in the way, for the engineer immediately instructed the surveyor to go on with the survey of the Four- mile Creek route, and sent at the same time a communication to Mr Thomson, stating that he had now made a permanent survey, and found that the Waitapeka route wasabout three-quarters of a mile longer than the Four-Mile Creek, that the gradients were steeper, and the earthwork much heavier, and that it would entail an expenditure of over L 12,500, and on thesegrounds he could not recommend it to the Government. This reply staggered the-, settlers at once, for they could not understand where Mr Brunton could find tbe gradients to be heavier, the valley of the Waitapeka being traversed by a sluggishcreek, showing little visible fall, while tbe valley of the Four- mile Creek, if it could be called a valley, is so crooked in its nature, and traversed for a considerable distance by a rapid running stream, and very deep, the whole formation being of a rocky nature. This decision of the engineer wav so opposed to what the settlers expected^, and rumors afloat of the determination of Mr Brunton to carry out the original flying route by the Four-mile Creek, seeming to pay no attention to the interests of the large districts that were being sacrificed if such decision was carried out. A memorial was again sent, this time to the Minister of Public Works, likewise a» deputation to hia Honor the Superintend dent, when tbe whole matter was explained to his Honor, which at once approved itself to him, who told the deputation he would' at once write to the Minister of PublicWorks, strongly recommending the Waitapeka deviation. The reply you have no doubt seen, wh.ch reply has been the means of bringing us before you ; and for your information we would now lay before you such information as is of paramount importance to the interests of these districts that it should at once commend itself to - the Government. The traffic of these districts is now very large, and daily increasing ; the districts are very extenjMVe, embracing an exteDt of country for which no communication but by sea hasheen had from the earliest settlement/wEich has not beeu at all times satisfactory. By the railway being carried byway of Waitapeka, it places the line in such a position that it commands the whole traffic of these districts ; if taken by the Four-mile Creek it at once places the railway at such a distance that tbe traffic will be divided between the railway and the sea." By the line going by Waitepeka a very large trade would be done in coal and passenger trafficbesides the usual traffic of goods.? At a later period of the day the deputation had a second interview with Mr Reynolds, when he stated that, along; with the Assistant-Engineer he » had carefully perused the memorandum. He had likewise made inquiries otherwise, as to the respective merits of. the two routes. He thought he was now in possession pf all the available informal tion which could he gained in Dunedin upon the point, and with the view of staying action in the matter, he had telegraphed to the EhgineeMn-Chief to do nothing further iri it ,- until his (Mr Reynold's) / return to Wellington.^ When he reached Wellington he promised that the. subject would- he at once taken in;- hand j rand- " unless' engineering difficulties!; existed of a more serious character than he apr prehended* he was! sahguihe ; the,(deyia- 4,'. k tion would, be; given ; effectl -to. / -tHe 1 added \ that so fax as he could ;gatliei*vi y from ty inforrnatton -i' before; -iim^Mie 'deviation > £s *• proposed; Mas^'fai'iM r/4 ; rnpst ; suitable ;.routf| ,' \ ■ . 4;%? £1 •• -fyi , 44^^41 04Jnt crretmiig^ jSp^fe-fj Mr ; Careful mopossAs^^y "4 : ": 44r '^v444&^So^^^^s^^M^m