BUCKETS VERSUS PUMPS.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XLIV, Issue 14195, 12 January 1917, Page 6

BUCKETS VERSUS PUMPS.

(To the Editor at um. Herald.) Sir,— lt seems from the tenor of Mr Smith's remarks at last Harbor Board meeting that he is to bring forward a resolution at next Monday's meeting that ' the buckets should be . reinstated upon the Maui One can hardly conceive that a member of the Board, leaving the benefit of the past experience with the buckets, and in face of Messrs McDonald and Fergusop'Js condemnation of same, should in the face of expert opinion venture to bring forward such a resolution. To clear the silt in the river we have two ) methods, namely, bucketing and pumping. We bucketed for two months in the May 'flood and ! were back in exactly the same position lat the end of the two mouths as when) we started. During this period the harbor was practically closed to all shipping, any small craft which did enter! during; the two months berthed at Kaiti i much to the inconvenience of passengers and consignees. After . the flood last week exactly the same condition obtained in the river as in the May and August floods, namely that we had sft of water at low tide, but being able to get straight to work upon the -silt while in the soft condition we have increased the depth of the whole channel by two feet and within the week we have the Ripple berthed at the town wharf. Had the buckets been on, the { Maui would now at this crisis jusi about j have completed laying her moorings and ! the Tuatea would still be working tides. The members of the Board in fatvor of reinstating the buckets would do well to study how the Maui is going to get out with her load after filling herself, also if they intend to work pumping, in conjunction with bucketng, how the dredge is going to 'pump up and down the channel with chain moorings laid across it. How also do they expect any shipowner to send his vessel to the port to endeavor to, navigate/the river chains on the bottom, which, with the present depth of water, are almost certain to become entangled with- the propellers. As the contents of this letter may be taken asi the utterances of a. layman, let the Board ask the opinion of their engineer and also. call, in the harbor master to their meeting and obtain his opinion upon the feasibility of putying on the buckets in conjunction with pumping and also if he could recommend the ship- 1 ownei* to bring his vessel up the river j with bare water and chains on the' bottom. — I am, etc., , SHIPOWNER.