The Floods.

Thames Star, Volume XLIV, Issue 10195, 18 January 1907, Page 2

The Floods.

A, TiltP TO (PAjBROIA.

EVEINTFUL E'XP'EIRiIiEINOE-

(From our 1 own Goirespondent.)

iressrs 'El. Father's a,n.d VV'. Bain left Waihi at about 6 o'clock in. a sulky for Paeroa. The first drawback was encountered jusit beloiW the Waitete bridge drlcro there was over three feefc of waiter. They rassed through thia safely, and reached Waikino. Here the*^ left the sulky and continued" their journey on horseibadk, accompanied hy CM" 'Si Baiin, who> wanted to cat oh the train at Paeroa 1. Abiout two miles fronu Wa.ikinol the pajrty met with two. big slips on the road, but managed after soveiMl attempts to get over them. From this on the road was clear till they i'ea,ched Mackaytown. Hero thero was, OVer 3ft of water on the road. Passing this they 'continued safely till they reached the flat ground two mriles. from' Paeroai. At this point the road and sairrounding country was a sheet of rushing water 1 to a depth of 5 to 8 foot. The horsemen swam their horses for fully two hundred yardsi, when they got a> foothold. Further along tho flat they plunged into deep water, and the horsesi began s.win> ming again- AJftoi" swinmningi about 100 yards they got into a strong* ourt'ent, which swept the whole party, ho«rsesi and all, over a fence, skirting thei road 1. The riders 1 were washed off thleir horses and had to* swiml for higher land. Faith.ersi' Jiiorae, • which sWain in the direction of the^ river, was soon lost to view, ibiut the other two horses landed 1 on! dry ground. After reoa.pturing the horsesi, they again, resumed; their journey.

Taikarei's Creels', whichi wasi rtunning saddle-flap high, Was siafely negotJaited, apdi after passing over thie -rise.and dipping into the succeeding 8' h'oflow anotihieir sea, of water was oncountered, and a swimi of aibtaut 100 yards Was accompnshedi. The last ibridgei, before entering Paeroa, -wiasi Completely submerged!, not ev:en the 'hand rails being visible. They finally rode into the Paer&ai township nearly knee deep at 10 o'clock in; a, thoroughly exhausted condition, and, to quote a mem'bier 1 of tihb party, half'Ml of

The experience right through Avas thrilling, and their escape from drowning when they ■wotp washod off thoir iho'ilsesi i« litfrlo short of imiirx-cllous

Alt. 5 o'clock ihc following morniwe: Fathers and Tsiun nlnrtetl on Ih'oir return journey, and, keeping ai sharp look-out for t.hei missimr horso, found it in a -paddock aibout 'halif a, milo aiWay from wlnero it was last seen, Tb had been wiflhod over no less t^ian four fences. The flood waiter a.t this timtei had nem^ly dlsappoarod. 'A e'onsideraiblo amount of onrlh and rock hd« to'bci roinin\'cd before thci rowl'-will be dlonii" for h'iiiffic.