OTAGO EXPANSION LEAGUE

Otago Daily Times, Issue 22285, 11 June 1934, Page 5

OTAGO EXPANSION LEAGUE

ANNUAL REPORT 4 The annual report of the president of the Otago Expansion League (Mr J. J. Marlow), which will be presented at the annual meeting, states, inter alia:— GOLD-MINING IN OTAGO.

The hopes which were confidently held . a year ago that men would , soon be working on the Cromwell Flat have not been realised. Fresh leads have been discovered, and, according to reports made pubic, the geophysical survey has given indications of much gold amid the gravelly sub-strata of the plain; ,no . steps have yet materiallised for the miner to get after it. The history of the year is one long record of, obstacles —physical, legal, mechanical, departmental. The hopes of the local authorities that the active resumption of mining would relieve the unemployment position by putting into work at full pay the idle men of the district, and perhaps even enable them to draw upon outside districts for extra labour has not materialised. The league does not desire to minimise the. difficulties, or to lay the blame promiscuously upon any shoulders, believing as it does that both the State Departments and the .. local authorities are sincere and singleminded in their efforts at reaching working arrangements. The league proposes keeping the question before the legislators and administrators, thereby endeavouring to stimulate progress. Over and above the question of alluvial mining on the flats and reefing in the hills, the question of the gold in the Molyneux—the great natural gluic«-box of Otago—is constantly arising. Old miners and young alike are satisfied that if only the water could be held up for a few weeks so that men could get.down into the bed and along the submerged banks of this great river, much gold- could be won from pockets and crevices and lurking behind great boulders or rocky ledges. The closing of the Kawarau gates brought down the level of the main river, and gold was found in many places, especially in the rocky gorges between Cromwell and Clyde, and Alexandra and Roxburgh. Those who know the river declare that its wealth awaits the adventurous seeker. To secure this end, a proposal has been made to close the outlets of Lakes Wanaka and Hawea by the erection of great barrages which would i-egulate the flow of the rivet. These, acting in conjunction with the proposed new dam on the Kawarau, would reduce the main stream to a mere trickle from the tributaries for a few weeks during the frosty part of the year and so a close examination of the river could be made. During this period a great quantity of gravel be hauled up on the bank and carefully washed after the water had been released. The league has put the proposal before the Government, but neither the Public Works fior the Unemployment Board can be induced to adopt it. THE HAAST PASS ROAD.

Since the infant days of Otago there have been those who have said: “What is there beyond the ranges; go and see,” and since Julian Von Haast discovered the natural gateway that bears his name there have been those who have visualised a road across the pass to Westland. The Haast has the lowest altitude of any pass in the Alps, under 1800 feet above sea level, and is the natural site of a road connecting east and west. From the /Otira route in northern Canterbury south/ward to the sea only goats and alpinists can face the strenuous task of crossing the “great divide,” yet this section holds in the Haast by far the easiest of the gaps in the great mountain chain. In these days when the road has gained its old supremacy and mechanical traction has placed at the disposal of the millions a rapid system of transport there is no valid reason why the great through road should not be linked up. The owners of motor vehicles are paying, and paving heavily, for the privilege of travelling, through the petrol tax and the tyre tax, and common justice demands that they should have free access to nil parts of the Dominion. The construction of the road is purely for the benefit of tourists and travellers, and it makes a convenient short link between two of the many »t-

tractions of the South Island, viz., the Western Glacier and the southern lakes. A great deal has been said of late of the pushing forward of the'work of the road extension in the Eglinton Valley, and some are prone to see in it a menace to Otago. The league does not share that view, but metaphorically takes off its hat to the man who had the vision to place a road to Milford and the courage to carry it through- If the West Coast road can be carried down to the Hollyford so much the better, because so much more of the wonderful coast and mountain scenery becomes, accessible, and the fact that a great main road is running so close to the Haast makes the construction of the road from Makarora an absolute necessity. RAILWAYS BOARD AND RAILCARS.

For well over a decade the Railways Committee of the Otago Expansion League urged, amongst other things, the need of a Railways Board and also tlie advantages that would accrue from the introduction of the railcar unit on the New Zealand railway system. Eventually the Railways Board was created, and the excellent results attained by that body are a striking tribute to its chairman (Mr H. H. Sterling) and also to its members.

It is particularly pleasing to the league to see the changing opinions of the board and members of the railway service towards the railcar unit. For many years now the league has been in touch with makers of railcars in several countries, and has been well supplied with data as to the successful running of these small and mobile units on suburban and branch lino traffic. In most cases duplicate copies of all information, including graphs and specifications, were sent on to the responsible officials. In order ,to avoid the latest information as to railcars and their propulsive power being pigeon-holed and overlooked, arrangements were also made with the various makers to keep the essentia] men in the service posted with the information also. It is, therefore, pleasing to see the changing opinions and the realisation dawning that the day of the railcar unit has arrived, and how especially it will suit New Zealand conditions on suburban and branch lines. This mobile and adjustable unit, which in a few seconds may be changed from about 100 to 250-passenger, capacity, and on which the fuel consumption would be in relation to its size and loading, would undoubtedly prove economical and satisfactory in every respect on many lines in New Zealand. SOUTH ISLAND-MELBOURNE SERVICE.

The question of the South Island-Mel-bonrhc steamer sendee is still with ns, and apparently no nearer a satisfactory solution. The failure of the effort to Hoat a company to undertake the service was keenly felt by all well-wishers of the south, and (he hopes of an early direct connection have receded. Efforts' are being made to work up an enthusiasm over the centenary celebrations and to utilise that spectacular event as a means of restarting the service by catering for the holiday-makers. Together with the Chamber of Commerce, the Manulactuvers’ Association, the Shippers and Importers’ Association, and others, the league has endeavoured to stimulate snllicient interest in the question to enable them to move for the reinstatement of a regular time table, making Hobart one of the ports of call. At the close of the year no great success had attended the united efforts of-the societies, and the fear has grown that any service which might now be inaugurated would oe a purely passenger one, limited to the most popular period of the centenary celebrations, and in no way calculated to further the interests of close commercial contact with the Commonwealth. SOUTH ISLAND TOURIST LEAGUE. In December, 1932, the first steps were taken to bring about the formation of the South Island Tourist League, and rne league was requested to undertake the duty of communicating with the local bodies and others interested seeking their co-operation in creating a body strong enough and rea} enough to handle- tuis important and beneficial service. With few exceptions the local bodies were enthusiastic, real in spirit but lean of purse, the transport services were lukewarm, and the accommodation interests in many cases hostile. At present the ques-

tion remains in abeyance because a still wider project embracin'* t’-e whole Dominion is being considered. ROADS BY LAKE WAKATIPU. The subject of roads along the shore of the great lake was brought before f he league by petitions from the inhabitants of Glenorchy requesting the leagues assistance in pressing for the construction of a road from Queenstown to Glenorchy. The isolation of (ho settlers at the head of the lake—even with the steamer service—is admitted, but under present conditions the league could not urge the expenditure of so large a sum on a road without through connection. The construction of a. road from Queenstown to Kingston had been undertaken some years ago, but during the “economy period." construction was abandoned. Representations were made to the Government that this work should be completed, and fears were expressed that the opening of such a road would so reduce the revenue of the steamers on the lake as to lead to their withdrawal. The question of road versus steamer service will require most careful consideration, and must torni the subject* of scrutiny by the most interested parties.