SEASIDE NOTES.

Wanganui Herald, Volume XXI, Issue 6115, 8 January 1887, Page 4

SEASIDE NOTES.

1 (B? A COHVALISOEOT).

Two months' illness has put me somewhat out of the running of the news of the day, but they have given me a delightful experience as a convalescent. I can give you a good tip. If you or any of yours want a real good "pick-me-up," come to the Heads for a fortnight— do nothing — sit on the breakwater with your mouth wide open and swallow ozone ! We may laugh at our Heads Railway, the great wharf, and its reef, but the fact remains that Wanganui has now at its door a sanatorium, that the country settlers as well as the town folk will do well to think more of. I know I shall never forget the intoxicating perfume of sea air and lucerne hay which greeted me as soon as my weak limbs had carried me to the welcome shelter of the pilot station. By the way, how comes all the lucerne here ? As it does so well, could it not be supplanted with some other grasses 1 There is a powerful lot of country roundabout here that looks very naked, and would be much the better of a top coat . This question of the sand is a burning question to all the owners of sections. As soon as I got on my pins I prowled round, taking stock of the place, and there have been some considerable changes in the contour of the country since it was sold by auction some four years ago, and I remember right. Take the seabeach, for instance. The maps at the auction sale showed the highwater in delightful proximity to the marine parade, if I may so call it; but where is it now ? Right away at the end of the breakwater, and the sandbank high with the wall, seeming to say— "Eight you are, sonny; go on with your wall; I am ready for another length now; and if you don't give me another length soon, I won't wait for you, but will turn the corner of your breakwater." But let me get back to my sand. We will come to the water later on. At the first glance you don't see much change in the run of the country, but closer inspection shows you unmistakably that the sandhills are "on the wallaby'", and, what is of importance, they are walking out of Castlecliff and not into it, and this in the face of the increase of exposed sand fronting the sea. Take, for instance, section 85, formerly intended for the hotel, and realizing a sweet price at the sale; that section was located formerly on the top of a high sandhill, but in the last two years the hill has lost 30ft in height. It has gone —fairly blown away. As a proof of this, the telephone-post on the top has been lowered five times to the amount of six feet each time, and now it is lying fiat. In two years more there will be no hill at all. The same may be said of the hill called Lundon's Park — that is bodily walking away. I wish I could say the same of the bar; it walks about, but in a contrary spirit, and will give trouble again soon if not tickled up. The bar is the hub of conversation. You may break off to pipis cr schnapper, but sooner or later you are bound to come round to the bar and the channel. Day after day I have sat and watched the bar and the sandspits varying with every tide, and yet subject to natural law at the same time; and the question rises constantly in my mind, do the people of Wanganui realize the fact that the Harbour Bill is dead, and the little show they had of seeing it passed was smothered the day the WellingtonManawatu Railway was opened: Goods and passengers will still be carried by water cheaper than by rail. I don't deny that; but the days of loans for small harbours are over. This being the case, Wanganni must improve her harbour herself, unaided by the outside world. How it is to be done is the difficulty. Stonework the same as the last 900ffc is of course out of the question, and I was very glad to see the new Mayor taking time by the forelock and coming to inspect the place for him self. If he is stuck for an idea to get over the difficulty. I will help him with one, probably only to get laughed at for my pains, because I can't stick O.E. after my name, and yet I may have had all the education required for a C.E. The great change that I have noticed since staying here is the widening of the channel to the south, the formation of a sandspit from the end of the breakwater, thereby turning the water on to the South Spit, where it has cut a channel through, and where we shall soon have the same bother as we had last year. This danger ought to be stopped at once. I use the word "stopped" advisably. I mean stopped at this spot this year. Next year, or the year after, the same danger will occur again, but further out to sea, and the question must be fought but year by year in deep water haß been reached and then it may cease. That being the case the remedy must be a cheap one. There is no necessity to confine the current between solid walls, all that is necessary is to deflect the current from the weak spot until the sand has sufficiently banked up to stand by itself. The best remedy is to tether trunks of trees end to end to form a companion wall to the present one. The anchorage would be very simple and of the mushroom pattern — 20 big trees with the chains and necessary anchorage would not cost so very much — I do not claim anything original in this idea as it has been worked successfully in other places, and if the members of the Harbor Board would feel more confidence if the scheme were put before them by a real life C.E. I can produce one who has all the working plans in his possession of a somewhat similar piece of work, but on a very much larger Bcalo than ever Wanganui would require. But will the Harbor Board dare to do anything different to what has been recommended by Sir John Coode and others, "regardless of cost," and seeing that they cannot complete those eminent schemes consider they do their duty to their country by doing nothing.