HYDRO-ELECTRIC SUPPLY.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume 46, Issue 141002, 21 April 1920, Page 5

HYDRO-ELECTRIC SUPPLY.

(To the .Editor.) Sir,—The following is Dr. Newman s . speech at the late Conference m ■ c jington, ,re Mr Parry’s opinion ot local . hydro-electric supplies. 1 ® iv ® -Order that Wairarapa may not tm-ow ..away h large sum of money without considering Mr Parry (the most able hydro-electric engineer who ever came ’■ . south of the line), Dr. Newmans ami .my opinion on the matter. .mail and.l can, at least, be gnen e qredit ot being two independent-minded .men having no “axe to grind. J. C. Cooper happens to have a \cry Big one, as he is only out tor the .supply of his meat company, .no ..absolutely careless as to the incidence of the rate upon a very large numbei ot householders in the district, « h 0 not Ant the power at all; my c ® tion being that those who want the power sluvyUl pay for it. But e- L ,r sent inSf ion is to make ineiyoiai*. under aWmeral rate. And it the M aio..hine dam, or dams (as 1 understand two are now to be provided) are found to .be unreliable (as they certainly be, all the ratepayers will have to pay. for the blunder. Therefore ,before the expenditure is incurred it is as nil -• to consider Mr Parry s, Dr. * and mvi objections. Tne supply iro n a dam or dams in any shingle mu .M> a verv different thing to harnessin Lake Coleridge, the Mangahao, 01 U ' Waikaremoana, where there is . shingle difficulty to eon tend w ill • Lsi what Dr. Newman said (and let forgotten it was not so very L e that “the little doctor, ' as in Wellington, told us that 6 hnd motor lorry traction .of mSPse to the district than branch railways, ’ ’ which is turning out to be .-quite true): —“Special attention should (be paid to the Mangahao scheme. M E. Parrv, who was an expert of y. .. high standing, had reported ‘that t m scheme would serve the needs ot Wellington and the neighbouring , for some years to come, am t ( ferenee was not in a. position to d .' pute his ruling. All the -Works tl.ai had been mentioned by the Mayor were im- : portrtaLA The city wanted - also a bet's ter Hia<flb' ross the Hnnutakas, am '•*' Vious ot" things. But he thought that :£he deputation had better coneuitia ,on the most important need, mum>N the speedy completion of the M.in e a hao scheme. The power ought to bo made available in two and a-half y cay • There was no line of railway und•constyuetion in the Wellington inee, and t-hev were entitled to ask tor the quick completion of the power scheme A time-limit of three yeais ougWo be fixed. He was sorry to see that the harnessing of various sm.il sources of power was being proposed in the district. Mr Parry had . reported definitely against such schemes. Such is the report of tlrn speech. Let; it also be noted that I am not opposed to a hydro-electric supply for Wairarapa at all ,as we shall get that from Mangahao. Only wliat I urge is that those who use the supply should pay Tor it —not those who do not use n. •Also .1 am as opposed to the Waiohnie ' dams as I am to the one proposed by 'Ccdon>L Mitchell, ALP., m the Hutt River (for Wellington supply), at The iiinctioix-»of the Pahakuratain. '■ people #tke Capital City admit .he cogency W mv argument there, and aic not going to put that dam in, but jock the river up out of its bed a good (lea higher up stream’, which will of course diminish the power to be gained trom it. I do not object to that, as the river will be lifted out of its bed clear -of the shingle difficulty. ours etc., COLEMAN PHILLIPS. April 20th, 1920. V '*v