WELLINGTON HARBOR BOARD.

New Zealand Mail, 22 April 1887, Page 10

WELLINGTON HARBOR BOARD.

The usual fortnightly meeting of the Harbor Board was held yesterday week. Present—Messrs J. Duthie (chairman), S* Brown, J. Petherick, J. Dransfield, W. Booth, Wheeler, and Captains Rose and Williams. The bank account showed a credit balance of £BB4 0s lid. Accounts amounting to £1173 12s lOd were passed for payment. On the motion of Mr Dransfield, seconded by Mr Booth, it was decided that a fire injector be procured, along with hydraulic machinery, from Home, at a cost of about £7O. It wasresolvedthat the seal of the Board should be affixed to a power of attorney to empower the Secretary to represent fch® Board at meetings of creditors, &c. With reference to the Harbor Board Bill, the Chairman mentioned that Mr George Beetham would take charge of it in the House of Representatives, and Mr Randall Johnson in the Legislative Council. Captain Williams proposed, and Mr Dransfield seconded, that the member for Te Aro be associated with Mrßaethamin taking charge of the Bill in the Lower House. After some discussion this motion was withdrawn, and the following substituted, Thatthe city and district members be asked to assist in carrying the Bill, Messrs Duthie, Booth, and Captain Rose were appointed a committee to look after the Bill and give evidence if necessary. With reference to the Harbors Act, the Secretary had written to the Premier’s office asking the Government to amend the laws so as to make it clear that goods imported for use on Government contracts,are not free. Aletter was received in answer and. submitted to the Board, stating that if a Bill is brought forward with the object stated the Government would support it. Re pilotage, an opinion was received from Mr Bell (Bell, Gully, and Izard) that the Harbor Board’s pilots should be re-examined and re-licensed by the Board, and on the motion of Mr Booth, seconded by Captain Williams, it, was resolved that the- Secretary be instructed to take the necessary steps to carry out the opinion contained in Mr Bell’s letter. An opinion was also received from the same firm re Mrs Meech’s case. It stated that the Board had not power to remit costs, and that therefore the judgment must be enforced, unless Mrs Meech accedes to the Board’s terms. The terms, as already stated, are that she have a 14 years’ lease at a peppercorn rental, subject to the ordinary foreshore license conditions. The Chairman mentioned that Mrs Meech would get a reasonable time, and no harsh measures would be taken. This concluded the business, and the meeting adjourned.

THE ENGINEER, SECRETARY, AND TREASURER’S ANNUAL REPORT. The Engineer, Secretary, and Treasurer’s (Mr WV Ferguson) report for the year ending December 31st, 1886, is to hand, and contains a very large amount of information of a most interesting character. The report mentions, among other interesting items, that a pile of the Queen's Wharf, ' driven in April, 1862,, was taken up on February 20. The pile was of red heart of totara, sawn 12ia square, not tarred, but sheathed with 20oz Munta metal, laid on felt. The metal both below the ground service and between it and the low-water line seems not to have wasted away much, the brand being quite fresh and distinct on the plates, but at and near the successive mud-line& the metal had been eaten away completely, and the felting had also perished where it. was thus exposed to the mud and water. The pile itself, after nearly 24 years, was. quite sound and in good condition, showing; no signs of any attack by teredo or other form of life. The pile was drawn toy the aid of a jet of water issuing under the town’s pressure from the lower end of a 2in pipe, tapped lightly down alongside it until tbe adjacent clay was loosened. The lesson learnt from this pile is, that Muntz metal sheathing cannot be looked upon as protecting a pile for more than, say, 20 years, and that if the life of the sheathing is to be equal all over tbe pile, it should be thicker at the ground line than elsewhere. There is nothing to show how far the totara, after remaining in water for twenty yeaje, v , retains its peculiar property of resisting the attacks of the teredo ; buff in this case tUctb

appears to have been no sign of any change in the timber, so that it would be reasonable to conclude that the pile would last for Another twenty years at least after tbe destruction of its covering, being then merely eaten away by the nibbling action of the small crabs and centipedes, which find their abode amongst the vegetable and other forms of life that so soon attach themselves to unprotected timber in these waters. Referring to the albo-carbon, VVenham, And ordinary gaslights, the report says : “Acomparative trial was made between the albo-carbou, the Wenlmm, and the ordinary gas lights, resulting in the fact being ascertained that for outdoor work the results obtained from the albo-carbon lamps were not worth the trouble they involved, and that the Wenhatn gave an increase of light for the same consumption of gas of about a third more as compared with a cluster of the No. 4 Bray’s burners. It was therefore resolved to give a further trial to the VVenham lamps, and four No. 2 lamps have been erected on the outer tee.’”J In alluding to the practice of removing material from the foreshore, the Engineer 'Says : —“lt seems to me to be desirable that this trade should be properly recognised and ■encouraged, but the chief difficulty in dealing with the matter arises from the raot that the Board does not own the soil above the foreshore, and any removal of material below high water mark necessarily, tends to the encroachment of the sea on the soil owned by the adjacent land proprietors. It is questionable whether the Board ought not to acquire in a suitable place rights over the land adjacent to the foreshore, recouping itself by charging a royalty for the removal of ballast therefrom, and insisting that it shall not be removed from elßewhere. The necessity for providing ships with suitable water-borne ballast is an urgent one, as the material procured from town is expensive, aud at times difficult to be obtained, whilst the wear, tear, and inconvenience from cartmg is very great on the wharves. The report also refers to the various works carried out during tbe year, and at considerable length to the Te Aro reclamation question, and many other matters. The Harbormaster, in his report, stated that the duties appertaining to the service In the harbor, at the Heads, and signal stations, had been carried out in a satisfactory manner by the pilots and men, without accident or loss of any kind. Forty-one vessels were piloted into port, 11 out, and 190 removed by the pilots during ths year. There had been a fair increase in the number of vessels arriving during the year, and, notwithstanding the great improvements in the wharf accommodation, every berth had attimes been occupied. The returns, however, showed a slight falling off in the amount of tonnage. In conclusion, he takes the liberty to suggest that the addition of another tee will be reouired in a short time. It would be of great Advantage, particularly to the ocean steamers, as it would be perfectly safe and easy of access at all times, and would obviate the necessity and great risk now incurred by this class of vessel having to go into the inner berths as at present. The report.also contains the statement of accounts, a precis of which has already been published. The shipping returns for the port of Wellington for the year ending 31st December, show that the total arrivals were 2353, with a tonnage of .712,965, showing an increase on the previous year of 111 vessels, although there ia a decrease of 8024 tons in the tonnage.