THE BACK-BLOCK ROADS.

Taranaki Herald, Volume LIV, Issue 13664, 30 May 1908, Page 6

THE BACK-BLOCK ROADS.

(to the Editor.)

Sir. — Kindly allow me space to draw the attention to the neglect our district is suffering from. Winter has come on and- the Moki Road is in a terrible state. Slips are coming down and all temporary bridges are breaking down with the heavy traffic of packhorses and cattle and sheep, and they are hardly all in yet. There wore two surfacemen put on, but it is hopeless for them to try and keep / the road in good condition. Had they been put on in the dry weather the road would now have been passable. If reinforcements do not appear soon no one will be able to get along for scrub and. long grass which hangs over the road and almost pulls a person x>ff his horse, to say nothing of the wild bush-lawyers ; then you must stop altogether and fight to free yourself the best way you pan. Even in the best of times this road is very bad and dangerous, and there are two papa faces which require shooting down and widening. At the tunnel, the Defence Department ought to nave been sent out with two very strong batteries of the largest guns in this Dominion A to shoot down some of tho largest points of papa, more especially the huge flanges of papa on the top of the tunneJ and on either side before it slips. After this shooting the road could be laid off straigfyter and shorter and not so dangerous to passers by, and then tho road could be taken in hand and formed properly at a very reasonable expense. Up till now the settlers have a road on paper. That is very easily made, but I think it is time a very strong step in the direction of making it should be taken , to help the poor struggling settlers. I served in the Defence Force for five years from time to time and I know the service and power of these big guns and what good they would do. The loans borrowed from England would go far further along tho roads and last for longer. I would also liko to point out that there is very wonderful scenery olong this road and other small bye-roads, wonderful water falls, grand in the eyes of tourists. Another wonderful thing is that on a small branch road, tho Turakeano, a suspension bridge is to bo erected. This structure takes tho eye of an artist at once, for it is to convey many thousands of sheep and cattle in the near future. It is not yet built, but will be built shortly. When it is built it will only be two feet wide. ;Why could this bridge not be built; \tihe full width. The owner on tho other side of tho river to , advance money from his) own purse to have it the full width, so that packhorses could be taken across without unloading as will now be the case and then swim them across. The chief engineer said it cannot be altered. I think tho Government could very easily strain a point hero and luivo a substantial bridge built for almost tho satno money. I tliink iho settlors on the upper end of Iho Moki Koad and those on the Moki and other branch!

roads look forward from cno year's end to tho other to see this important road pushed on w ith tho utmost despatch, and all hope to see a very substantial sum placed on the Estimates this coming year. — I am, etc., O. HOOK.