PORT CHALMERS GRAVING DOCK.

Hawke's Bay Herald, Volume 13, Issue 1031, 16 March 1869, Page 3

PORT CHALMERS GRAVING DOCK.

(Prom the "New Zealand Sun.")

The works in connection with the Graving Dock at Port Chalmers have now reached a stage at which rapid apparent progress cannot be made. All the earthwork, in what may be called its first stage, has been completed; and the necessarily tedious undertaking of constructing a coffer-dam has been commenced. , The dock is to be 300 feet long; but the earthworks have been completed to fully 600 feet from the shore line/ TLe southerly bank or pier (on tLe side towards the jetty) has a base about twelve feet W,ij3e, and its top width is 90 feet ;. while on tLe side next the hill even a greater quantity of stuff has been used. In all, about 35,000 cubio yards of stuff Lave been quarried and deposited. In tLe nortLerly bank several Loles Lave been sunk about midway, as a test of its "Sdiidjtyjand it is found tbat water does not percolate thwaglw^weiJ^-oijLjb piles, eacL 40 feet long, and driveiflS feetfinftr tLe solid, are in place beyond the line of tLe eartLwork; tLey will form parts of thepermanentwoodenbreastworkorwharf, at the seaward end of tLe dock. In constructing tLe coffer-dam, a plan wLicL is novel, and not tLat suggested on tLe official drawings, is being adopted. TLe latter plan involved double piling witL sLeet piles, and a great deal of puddle between, wLicL, wLen tLe coffer-dam Lad served its purpose, would Lave left stuff to be dredged out of tLe dock, or from tLe front of its sill. TLe plan adopted is to take piles 24ft. long, and to reduce their sides to faces sufficiently plane to allow stout battens to be nailed on, throughout the length that will be exposed to water, and about 4in. apart. These piles are being driven so as to keep tLe battens of one closely jamming on tbe battens of tLe next ; and tLe grooves or cLannels formed by tLe battens will be filled witL rammed puddle, or witL puddle and Lay mixed. Cross beams will be added, inside. It is believed tLat a perfectly watertigLt dam will tLus be formed ; and it will be one tLat can be easily removed. TLe completion of tLe coffer-dam will probably occupy two montLs, at least, from tLe present time, tLe work being carried on by two sbifts of men, from four in tLe morning until eigLt in tLe evening. Of course, until 'tLe dam is completed, no excavation witLin tLe line of the dock can be commenced. 13,000 cubic yards will have to be excavated, so as to leave the level bottom for concrete, stone facing &c, with a clear deptL of 22ft lOin. of water on the dock sill, at tLo top of LigL water, spring tides. A good deal of what is excavated will go to fill in about 120 ft at the shore end, between the embankments ; and the rest -will be needed, for filling in, as the concreting and masonry proceeds, or for bringing the embankments to their permanent levels. TLere is now, at the level of LigL water, over 100 ft of clear widtL between tLe eartLworks, wLile the width of the dock will be 92ft. The cofferdam will be almost semi-circular in form, and its stretcL will be 94ft, the ends being joined to parts of the permanent breastwork before mentioned. The getting of stone, for facing the dock, is being vigorously proceeded witL ; and the quarrying leaves a great quantity of spalls wfyicL will be broken for metal, for the concrete. TLere will be needed about 80,000 cubic feet of dressed bluestone, for the facing ; and the quantity already got and dressed is about 13,000 feet. Some of the blocks are 12ft or 13ft long ; and anything less than 2ft 9in. long is not used for this purpose. The fortunate position of tLe quarry whence this stone is got Lad much to do with rendering it possible to commence the dock. Had it been necessary to cart the blocks any distance from the quarry, the cost of tLe undertaking would have been seriously increased. But the quarry is on the hill side, directly above part of the reclaimed ground. There, at a height of 150 ft, there is now a quarry witL an exposed face of first-rate stono, about 90ft LigL and 200 ft wide. A steeply inclined tramway, up tLe Lill side, Las been constructed, its length, being 40ft ; and by means of a large wbeel and a powerful brake, on tLe quarry level, the blocks of stone, on trucks, arc easily lowered, and tbe cost of removing tLe stone from tLe quarry to tLe works is not id per foot. TLere are two or tLree powerful cranes on the ground, for moving the blocks as they are dressed ; a steam engine is, of course, used for the pile driving; and stone breaking machines are lying ready to be put up, as soon as there is a need for concrete. " Otago Cement," from Moeraki boulders is not to be used. All will be imported ; and there is a large iquantity on board the Celeeno, now due. In all there are 50men now on the works, 35 of them being quarrymen, masons, &c; and tho remainder being employed in preparing timber for the coffer-dam and breastwork, or in pile driving. With Murray & Co.'s Floating Dock continually proving its great usefulness, and with the Graving Dock works progressing so satisfactorily, Port Chalmers is n6t likely to be soon equalled, for dock accommodation, by any other port in New Zealand.

Taeanaki leon Sand. — Some of the Taranaki steel sand was smelted yesterday at Thorndon barracks in the presence of Mr. Sheath and other gentlemen, and we understand they were much impressed with the success of the operations. The sand in question was brouglit down from Taranaki by the Defence Minister and the smelting was carried out at Lis suggestion. We trust that some means will be found of utilizing this valuable mineral. — Independent, March 4. A Model Goveenment. — Mr. Reverdy Johnson, in a speech which he made at a Liverpool banquet, said:— "ln America every man is educated ! If the Government find that a district is not sufficiently educated they at once levy a tax on it, and make education compulsory in it. A correspondent of the Independent asks : — " When will a representative of New Zealand be able to say this of Lis country P The inoro educated of our New Zealand colonists are those who Lave spent their youth in England. The uneducated of the land are those who Lave been born and brought up in it. Does not a Leavy reproacL rest on our rulers wLo, Laving tLe power to cLange tLis state of tilings still let it continue ?"