Evening Post. FRIDAY, APRIL 30, 1897.

Evening Post, Volume LIII, Issue 101, 30 April 1897, Page 4

Evening Post. FRIDAY, APRIL 30, 1897.

HARBOUR LIGHTS. • It begins to appear that nothing short of an outburst of publio indignation will arouse the authorities to the ueed of sufficient harbour lights. Since Lord Brassey in the Sunbeam had a bad half-hour on a dirty night outside the Heads, aud did us the public service of telling of the danger of his position, and how such risks might be avoided, there have been published in this journal the opinions of many of the oldest and most experienced shipmasters sailing from this port. They, or to speak more exactly a large majority of them, are in agreement with Lord Brassey that a low light at the entrance to the harbour is indispensable to the safety of the port Opinions appear to differ as to the position of such a light, one party advocating Barrett's reef, while other and equally competent judges favour the low light being placed immediately under Penoarrow at the water's edge. Apart from other considerations, it is claimed that on this latter spot the work would be much less costly, Barrett's reef offering a very insecure foundation, besides which in rough weather it would be inaccessible. Howover, in spite of the weight of expert opinion upon the side of a low light at the entrance, the Government would do no more than consider the strengthening of the Somes Island light, and a few evenings ago the Minister of Marine, with a party of officials, went down the harbour in the Tutanekai to test the effect of a second light that had been temporarily fixed on the island. The result was reported in our issue of the 27th instant— " The weather was very hazy, and the Somes Island lights were quite obscured when the vessel was about a mile and a-half outside Pencarrow Head." This faot notwithstanding, it seems "it was generally agreed by those on board that the best way of assisting mariners to navigate the entrance would be to place a much more powerful light on the island." This, which is the view of the Marine Department, appears to us to be largely influenced by the question of cost. The Government in the first instance was disposed to fob off the maritime interest with something "cheap and nasty," but now, finding that the cost of even an inefficient additional light is likely to be considerable, the Hon. Mr. Hall -Jones holds that the obligation to do the work rests upon the Harbour Board. This apparent repudiation of responsibility will probably come as a surprise to that body, which, we are given to understand, has never been approached either with regard to its bearing the whole or a proportion of the cost of the light or its maintenance. It is held by members of the Board to whom we have referred the matter that the

Somes Island light is in exactly the same position as the Bean Rock light at Auckland, which is being maintained by the Government. If the Treasury is willing to forego the light dues which it now collects from vessels using the port, and hands them over to the Board, the latter would probably be willing to undertake the maintenance of the light, but so long as the Government takes the dues it is ! contended that the Department should ■ maintain it, and the Board will undoubtedly repudiate any responsibility for improving the existing light. This would seem to be a perfectly fair position to take up, and we trust it will be maintained. In the meautime, while this question of liability is being fought out, we would suggest that the Marine Department may do good work by instituting an official enquiry in order to elicit the most expert and trustworthy evidence as to what should be done, aud particularly where the light should be placed. The danger of delay is forcibly and convincingly pointed out to-day by our correspondent " Safety," who— and we may say he is a most competent authority— in another column says in allusion to the late Zuleika disaster :—" With every severe southerly gale we are now having a vessel wrecked in elope proximity to our harbour, and it is to be hoped that this last addition to the long list of casualties will convince the Marine Department of the criminal folly of tinkering in a half-hearted way with Somes Island light, or delaying to establish a powerful light placed low down at the entrance. It is time the general public took the matter up."