IN EARLY DAYS

Evening Post, Volume CVI, Issue 13, 16 July 1923, Page 8

IN EARLY DAYS

] JTHE HARBOUR AS IT WAS I i BEGINNINGS OF j\ GREAT PORT ! ,; BAILLIE. Ir I;

|;'; An entertaining and valuable address W of the Port of WelHngtqnJas,. it was in Jij the early days was;; given by";the City Mr. Herbert; Baillie,' under vjthe auspices of the ■Workers'.Educational |;i Association on' Saturday-evening, an ad- - ' dress meriting more-thari^a condensed '':■■ report, and which ."will,':therefore, be ?.'■:published in ."The Posfc''~in:. "sections. % J The first official liientionrpf-Porb Nich--11 olson,' said MriißaillieJ'was jrnado in a j-p Parliamentary ''"Pap^c.^laid: '.before the I'j House of C'ornrno'ns;*fln.j'3_lstyi'ugust, 1835, lira connection wilhYtjiS' recovery o£ Brits' ' ish subjects, who had been detained by

V the Maoris, whenfthe barque Harriet i ; :i was wrecked near Cape. Eginont on 29th ■V-- April, IS-34. Captain Guard, of that 5 - vessel, with, part of his crew and some

r> Natives, were allowed to leave the local- < ■■ it-y to obtain assistance on 20th June, ar3.'"riving.''at. Port Nicholson, by way of

X; Bliiid Bay arid Queen Charlotte Sound, 's'>on.-30th^ June. -' Here he U found . the i: ;flohobher'Joseph Weller, on which he se- <;; cured Ta' passage to Sydney, where he | ; laid his case before the Governor, Sir i'-.> Richard Bourkey' ". which' .resulted in I; ;.H.M.S. "Alligator being sent to' the New | : Zealand coast to recover the prisoners. I i Wellington,; or Port Nicholson, only V bears on the subject by providing a j': meansrfor Guard reaching Sydney, but • :■ the episode:gave.Port.Nicholson its first J. advertisement in ,the British' Parliament. *'] Pprt. ( Nicholspn's part in the story of ■I 'New Zealand, until 1840, was irisignificJ ant-,.,but .'..with ..the advent of the New

« ' Zealand Company, which threw its spot- ?/ light' particularly .on the Cook'". Strait .!■'.', districts," th's 'port showed ■ promise of I ;ita future' importance. In the company's | prospectus,-■'ifc'-is:stated "that; Cook |;Strait, between,lthe. two Islands,, forms ■j; part.of the direct track of vessels home•s '-ward-bound from the Australian ' colo- | nies; that many vessels go"-through Cook 5 ..Strait while others at present pass New •;/Zealand at either.its. southern or northi:.«m* extremity; ibut■'that ;all would- preI'jfer the midway ot rCook Sti-ait, if that i ;'channel-wera-propeily.surveyed, lighted, |:.;and iurrjisliecl<Avith pilots.'.-. ■■'■. ',',.-" *'. At this; ; ;tini€.,also.Colonel.^Wakefield,' a ;'with a small party, was on his' way to ;i -Cook ,Strait on the .Tory, with specific * •' instructions that "he ivas Hoi select the J j location of the first colony, to purchase * lands, to acquire general information as » to the country, and to make preparations j .for - the; formation of settlement's. The j price'paid-for the land'in those days.is | often held, up ; to ridicule when compared *■ (with, the present-day value of '.the same « /land," but 'that is-.thVoftrrepeated story ; 'of the present looking back to the past. .; , TT Th. 6. rivali'y between Auckland -and « 'Wellington,' which is' now~of a fairly' \ . ■.friendly:;natur©,-;;is a,mystery W'inany j;. people. '-'It'is generally ascribed to' the | -removal'-6_f"the_ Seat vof Government in i *1863, but it was in existence long before 1 !that. It originated as' far back as 1840, ?■-when-Governor _Hobson, •witKbuti visit-" £ ! lnS Wellington, "selected Xuckland as 'j the Capital... All sorts-and. conditions of •j-f.men, both, here'and in the Old Country, \' joined in the discussions of pros and ■>cpns..,_,There..was no doubt that at the tune-'Hobson made his choice, North -Auckland-was the; most •important part of New Zealand, and the Waitemata, j^YW^ts...double harbour, was considered ;;' a, strategical position. When Captain r , Hooson and the Colonial Secretary did .) visit Port Nicholson, although they were f badly received, they, gauged the posi- -■ tion very, fairly, i : -,„.'.. ..i ,,„,.. | Mathews,' Surveyor-General, t: who came.witK Hdbson, forecasted that "-».- best"-situation, for the Customhouse 2 would Jj6 v between Pipitea and Te'Aro ,- and in:front of -Lambton"quay— which t must be recovered from the water, and ; there it was plaoed in 186"—22 years afj ter. / Eyen^npw/-it is- within the same

t' Lieutenant .Wood, later of the Indian •; Navy, who/wrote a. rather disgruntled . book on early Wellington, has nothing to '' !u y a?ainsi' the harbour, but records -i that when f a beacon, is erected on the .j outermost rock of 'Barrett's Reef, and a j lighthouse built upon the "Heads nothEmg more, could _be desired." He also $ suggested -a"circular 'whaif' abreast the • towp ..where-vessels of .large tonnage••..wight discharge.:" To-day, Wellington nad practically a circular wharf—with --projections.—----—• r—•-.■,-. • -r .- -,- --... ■. -.... ;„.... .V*,.,-,,: r -.;^GNAL..,5T.A1JQN5.,.,...",,;..,.

I Mr. Baiilie referred' to beacons and £ makeshift lights^ erected, by public sub- £ scription in several-instance's-,- and said i, that- the.firstssifnar^stafion^vas.-erectea: f, on Mount Albert, the peak to the sbulh' *of Newtown-Park, in 1844. The: signals r used in those days were the same as v.. now used at the Mount Victoria signal ;; station, though some -of them have now £ fallen into disuse. Probably one that j, would be frequently used in ; the-' 'forties, £ and 'fifties—flje 'pircle for a bri,»—ha,s no*, fcbeen used for many years. Until the' ,• days of regular ', steam- communication : ; with the Home Country; the square, 'the £ signal for a ship v,-as an important sijry/nal'to those whoi-were expecting friends,----u or important* cargo;! and they anxiously--awaited &e7 hoist of flags: clenoting-.: thfi' ;iparticular'- ship- signalled; 'but 'the signal J dod not mean that one might make one's v way down to the jetty.to mcct I.friends ;. *;cases,were known.of vessels being delny- ;. cd for days by adverse winds and weathJjer- While the signal station at Mount 'the.outside pilot station was in ?«a small cove a little to'the west of PalOmer Head, but in ; 1866, it -wag-decided ithat the pilot service should be located £ within | the .heads,; Worser Bay. being- the selected. Land was purchased ? " and,buildings erected—some of.which are JjstilPiri" existence—and the' signal" staff 'iVr.as,.. ; -remoyes-;-.-.'from- • Mount/ Albert- to, Mount Victoria. Later, Beacon Hill befcame'what" was known' as" a learners'"sta-; .^iKIl-With telegraph set connectp ed with the Wellington Telegraph' Office, :.; a cadet being stationed there. Still ;-,'later, a telephone was .installed between 1 the pilot station'and Beacon Hill—one of i the first telephone "circuits in 'New Ze'ai ]and. "When I remember trying to send J a message on-that-telephone," remarked , Mr. IBaillie, '"1 think that: the telephone - , -woiSJU not Kaye^become popular if the ;, difficulty^of''transmission had remained; ■On'had to yell 'at top.' The thing was ' so annoying that., the people interested '.' worked but a rough code for U3e on. the ibeil.' 1- 1' " .... i PENCABROW. ,* The first mention of a light was the ' offer of the New Zealand Company, in 1841, to erect a ..lighthouse on Pencar'■jrow Head'at a cost of £1500,' provided■ •that such sum should be a charge against •"future dues. The Colonial Department referred the matter to the New Zealand officials, Whatever the reply may have been, no lighthouse was erected by tlie company, and when 'the- beacon was erected in 1844. the question'of a lighthouse was left in abeyance until 1852, al; though public' opinion., had frequently calledfor one as a.necessity.. Thenecestity .was emphasised by the wreck,'23rd

August, 1851, of the barque Maria, which ■ran ashore near the Karori'. stream, and became a- total wreck, 29 lives being lost. The absence of a lighthouse was held as being chiefly responsible, and a strong appeal was made to Sir George Grey that one should be erected at once. He agreed and proposed that the duty on spirits should be increased by Is 6d' 'per gallon, for the purpose of raising tlio means to do so. The proposal was carwed, but still no lighthouse, but, according to. one. writer, "instead of ;i proper lighthouse being erected, a miserable shed, with a bow window in it; was constructed, in .which was placed an indifferent lamp light." One of-the first committees to be set up by the House of Representatives was one appointed on 22nd June, 1854,. to report on the lighthouses and beacons required on. the - coast, and 'during the fourth session: bf'-.the Provincial Council, 1856-57, it was decided; to erect :a permanent light, the sum of £10,000 was voted for'the purpose. On 26th March, 1857, the superintendent.,- w.rote to Mr.. Edward Roberts, who had by then returned to England, forwarding plans and specifications as prepared,'by him in 1853, asking him,- with -Mr.; James Smithj. a Wellington'bitizeri then in England, to obtain and send out.' the building, with all its fitments, lirfit apparatus, etc.. the sum of £5500 being fixed as a limit'to cost. ■'.-.■'

Colza oil was used by New Zealand lighthouses until 1872. The. Marine Department's .report. of that year suggested a change to kerosene, which would result in more brilliant lighting at a reduced cost. In 1877,, Pencarrow and Tiri Tiri were the only lights using colza. In 1881, kerosene lighting was completely installed. ' ' ■Towards the end of 1849, the ship Inconstant, 588 tons,-df London, in entering, the harbour missed stays and drifted on to the rocks at" the point, near Pencarrow, named after her. Fortunately H.M. surveying steamer, Acheron 'was in port at the time and towed her off, but apparently the damage was too ex T tensive for. repairs' to be effected,' for the vessel was sold to a local ' shipwright, who in'turn sold it to John Plimmer in 1850 for £80. Mr. Plimmer received permission from Sir George Grey to remove the vessel from the Te Aro beach to: a short distance to the north of Clay Point, in front of Barrett's Hotel, by that time removed to its present silo. He cut down the upper works, shored up the hull,-connected it with Lambtbn. quay by means of a bridge, and- constructed" over part of. it a large building, of two floors, while the lower part of the ship formed } a basement. The building was fitted as a. .warehouse, and auction room for Messrs. • James Smith and. Co.,' who opened it for business on 14th May, ■1851. The building was generally known as Noah's Ark; although it. was often called Plimmer's"wharf.. The'earthquake of 1855 caused some damage by throwing- the' vessel on it's - side, .but, wjth difficulty, ft ."was replaced firmly and safely in its old position. After the shake Mr. Plimmer built a retaining wall to the north of. the Ark and filled in around','it.: When' the reclamation of 1861 i-eached the Ark' it was necessary to cut off the fore part'of the ship, which went over the Street line, and after the reclamation was completed" Mr. Primmer constructed another wharf from the ■ breastwork-, Plimmer and Reeve> .wharf,- the .last private wharf .in. Wellington Harbour to.'go, which it did when the Te Aro reclamation was undertaken.

• The first official harbour .light was a red light shown from the end of "NoaH's Ark," in 1858, "for the guidance .of vessels .coming in to an anchorage „ !in Lambton Harbour." A white light .was shown. from the deep water wharf, in .1863, but., it was placed ;so low- that complaint was made that it was hidden by. any vessel that' might be lying at the end «of the cross head, but on the completion of the' extensions in 1867 a powerful red lamp -was placed at the end of the wharf. . „ . (To be continued.) . ' ■