WATER SUPPLY.

Oxford Observer, Volume V, Issue V, 14 April 1894, Page 3

WATER SUPPLY.

Sir,— knowing the keen interest you have taken in this, the geatest and most important question that was ever before the people of this" district. I make no apology in occupying a little .of your valued space— to place before you, not my ideas, but^the ideas I hear expressed on all sides. What do

people want ? A cheap drinking supply the same as they have in Ashburton at 2£d. per acre, and I do not think at the present time 8 men in the whole District care to try irrigation, and it is evident that irrigation to pay must be cheap and plentiful, neither of which important factors are to be found in the Rockford scheme/ In its present shape it is impossible to know how much.it will cost and who will pay '"'f ot'itV Forali ground supplied with streams and springs etc. is exempt and as the rates become excessive,' large areas of the district will undoubtedly dispute payment and be exempted, leaving this huge scheme to be paid for by the unlucky wretches kt in. Again if the scheme is too.- expen sive people will become hostile- and refuse under the act to take the- water, and in large numbers of cases, races will have to be -forced over farms by the public Works Act, the land will have to be bought severance- and compensation paid and the Board compelled to fence on each: side before* construction can begin (for which; there is no estimate or provision ) Again does any one know what will be the- cost of taking a system of races 6veir the North and South Downs; the wholie road will have to be altered and: shifted for a race to be taken from Mr Dickensons to Mr Thompsons — paddocks will have to be cut through cornerwis© and fenced and compensi tedl for, and, -we have no estimate. ;'■ -

Then the Rock-ford literally bristles with expensive difficulties and " dangerous experiments "" we were told it was to cost £15 000 to come on to- the surface, but we are quite flabb«r gasted, when the average! of the teasers for the first contract is £18000. It is written in the lhernosy of many of us that an irregular supply of only about twice the quantity was estimated to come from the Rakaia Gorge aad Mr Baxter the best israter engineer in Canteibury declined to trust a race at all on the face of a targe shingle terrace and plainly tolcl the people ha his report that such a race could not bo maintained and therefore estimated for tunnel from the- headworks right to the surface 8^ miies. at a cost 06 £276,250 and a total cost of the scheiaae at £337, 500. Mr Baxter placed has estimates at what he took to be the actual cost while our estimates seem Ho have been placed at tlatefigurejit was thought the people would vote for and perhaps if wo put the ultimate cost at £1,000,000 we will he as near the trath as any one else. And who is to pay for it, Manuka scrub cannot— Elli's flat cannot—ether stony land cannot, and the stop of good land down . the centre will have to.

Well cannot we fioadi. -haven of rest in a happy medium, fwhat about MtSharpe's Rockford drinking supply a.% £12,0,00 and cut the scrub out, fos i^ can, hardly pay for the cheapest a^ety that^can he brought on to r it, as^ why saddle H on the rest of the d&^igk lam &c. ' * 4