OBSTRUCTING WATER COURSES.

Taranaki Herald, Volume XLII, Issue 9666, 7 April 1893, Page 2

OBSTRUCTING WATER COURSES.

TO THE EDITOR. Sir, —Perhaps to others busiJua myself the subjoined o'er true story may, in tho face of recent disasters to the Taranaki County roads, possess some littlo interest. It has been stat d, in moro than one quarter, that the frightful damage, to tho South Road especially, caused l>y tho late great flood, has been much increased, if not mainly caused, by the loga, drift-wood, an) other rubbish, brought down by tho swollen water, being dashed against the pilos of the County bridges and choking up the culvorts. This statomont I can corroborate by what happened in my own case. Several years ago, (I could find the exact date, I believe, by a eearch through my farm journals),l discovered thattimber, logs, bush wood, and rubbieh. brought down by successive freshee in the Honui River, bounding my property on tho Upper Carrington Road, had at 1-ngth formed a dam right across that stream, almost completely blocking it, the obstruction being plainly cuused by tho almost invxriablo practice, throughout Taranaki and, indeed, tho colony, of felling bush right down the banks and to the level o the water in our rivers ; and, not only that, but Of not uafroquently allowing ontire trunks with their branches lo fall across tho river on to the opposite side. This dam in question, cniofly through tho latter causo, hud, sinco the last heavy Hood in tho Honui, when the liver had risen, in certain parts, from 8 to 10£t within a few hours, created, as already said, a hugo dam fifteen to twenty-five feet in height, by about eight to twolve feet in width, completely across the Henui river. At the uatk of this dam had been formed a small liiko into which, at every new Hood, had been washing tons of earth, chiefly, as it happened, from my own ci le of the river banks. After consulting my solicitor, and finding there were legal difliculties in tho way of taking private action, I brought up the Chairman of the Carrington Road Board, of which I was also at that timo a member. Mr Lowry Colvill carefully went over the place with me, and agreed that something would t.ave to be done, for there could beinodoubt the obstruction was a serious nuisanco, not only to private" property but a too possible danger in the not distant future, to tho County bridges lower down. Accordingly, tho matter was brought up at the next mooting of the Carringtou Road Board. Finding, however, that Road Boards had no jurisdiction in such things, it was agreed to call the attention of the Taranaki County Council, the chairman of the Road Board and myself being deputed to wait upon that august body. Armed with Vincent Pyke'B " Handy Book o£ Local Government Law," Mr Lowry Colvill and your correspondent accordingly met Mr John Elliot, then the Caairman, and Mr Thomas Kelly, the Council itself having just risen. Whilst not desiring to deny that, like many other laws in that model Code, the New Zealand Statute Book, the clauses are open, perhaps, to some Bniall doubt, still wo did feel, I confess, a little surprised and indignant, when, after listening with a degree of impatience to our arguments and emphatic warning that any day this accumulated mass of foiled timber, etc., mi?ht be swept down the Henui and possibly do great damage to the bridges, Mr John Elliot, without stooping from his lofty eminence to our lower level, replied, with equal brevity and courtesy, " It won't happen in oar time; it is not worth bothering. To these words of wisdom Mr Thoraaß Kelly murmured a gentle assent, and we were bowed out by the Council's ever-courteous secretary. My old friend Colvill, now resident in Auckland, will, I know, bo ready to confirm this plain narrative of facts, whioh may be well commended to tho attention of fellow ratepayers. As few people possess the Handy Book above-named — certainly there was not then a ccpy of it to be found in tho othorvvico copious literature of the County Council Chamber — I venture to ask spaco for a quotation of the clauses in point. 'Of Public Drains.' 426. The word Drain includes "Every passage or underground through (which ?) water flows, except a navigable river" I'liie " drain " is further declared to include every natural watercourse and river "not navigable" (t.c, the Honui). Further, in 427 : we read '• Unless otherwise ordered, all ' Public Drains' (i.e., not Navigablo Rivers) are unicr the control of County Counols." (Sect 185, Pub Works Aot, 1882.)-! am, &c, R. H. Gibson (Late of River Hurst Farm, Upper Carrington Road.) New Plymouth, April 6, 1893.