THAMES BOROUGH QUARRY.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIV, Issue 19564, 17 February 1927, Page 6

THAMES BOROUGH QUARRY.

QUESTION OF PRODUCTIVITY, DECISION TO CONTINUE WORK. [BY TELEGRAPH. —OWN CORRESPONDENT.] THAMES, Wednesday. Thames ratepayers have been concerned of late at the increasing cost of the borough quarry at Waiotahi. The original loan to equip the quarry was for £SOOO. A further £SOOO was borrowed in 1925, a year and seven months later, and the Borough Council recently diverted j £3OOO profit on the sale of electricity and j £2OOO from a streets improvements loan ; to further finance the quarry, which remains unproductive. The matter was dehated at a special meeting of the Borough Council at which the town clerk, Mr. A. Chapman, said the co?t of the quarry to date amounted to £15,160. The borough engineer, Mr. W. Anderson, seated that a successful trial of the plant had been held and it should not he long before it was in permanent working order. Mr. Mackay said he hoped a resolution to adopt the town clerk's report would not forestall any decision the council might wish to reach in the future, particularly as to obtaining an outside ■opinion of the value of the quarry. He said he thought it their bounden duty to get expert opinion as to the working efficiency of the tramline and other matters. He doubted if it was going to prove a paying proposition, and moved that an independent quarry expert he requested to report on the quarry. The Mayor said he saw difficulty in obtaining expert opinion. An outside opinion might have been useful a year ago, but the time for it had passed. Mr. Morlev said the quarry might bo workable, but he was afraid the tramway was going to require further expensive alterations before it could be worked permanently. He would favour a report as to the quantity of metal available. This was the biggest problem of all and should be settled. He added that he was not satisfied as to the position in this respect. Mr. Mackay said the council would have been well advised to have obtained expert opinion three years ago. There was no guarantee that the metal was there in any quantity. The council would be welt advised to spend £SO and get expert opinion as to whether the quarry could be worked or not. The motion was lost. Mr. Christie moved that the council continue running tho ouarry until it was proved a success or otherwise—say, for a period of one month. This was carried.