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men's Rachel pool, ladies' Rachel pool, four Priest baths, and four Radium baths. The whole building is completely equipped with administrative offices, massage and rest rooms, &c. At the entrance to the building there is a large hall, 38 ft. square, and a lounge hall, 38 ft. by 12 ft. " The old Duchess bath building was removed to a site on the Department's workshop reserve, and will be equipped and used in future as the departmental store. " A start was made on the building of the new Blue bath, but unfortunately the work has been delayed for financial reasons. " A new propagating-house has been completed in the kitchen-garden grounds and a new storageshed, &c., will be completed within the next month. "A considerable amount of painting and repair work has been done during the year. The painting of the main bath building is well in hand, and a great improvement in appearance has been effected. The smaller buildings, such as the bowling-pavilion, band-rotunda, &c., have also been renovated. It is hoped to put in hand shortly the painting of the Sanatorium, tea-house, and bureau. " The Department will have to face a big job in interior repairs to the main bath buildings at an early date, particularly in so far as the roofs and ceilings are concerned. Gardens. —The playing-areas, flower-beds, &c., have received the necessary attention during the year, and have made a good show of blooms, &c., during the season. The usual supply of vegetables from the kitchen-garden, eggs, and poultry has been obtained for consumption at the Sanatorium and King George V Hospital. " The new hard tennis-court, which was laid down last year, seems to have stood the test very well, and it is hoped that the Department will be able to afford to complete the job in the near future. " The various reserves have been well looked after, the following work having been undertaken in connection with same :— " Kuirau Reserve.—The boundary-fences have been renewed with post and wires. All paths have been dressed with pumice, drains cleaned out, and the noxious-weed pest kept well in. hand. " Arikikapakapa Reserve. —A new entrance has been made to this reserve, owing to the Golf Club requiring the ground where the old entrance was. All paths, &c., have been kept in good repair. " Whakarewarewa Reserve and Model Pa.—l have been able to get a considerable amount of work which was badly needed done to this reserve under the No. 5 Unemployment Scheme. All paths have had a dressing of pumice, the track cleared right to the top of the Trig., culverts made, &c. One whare in the Model Pa has been completely rebuilt, all others overhauled, and the pa generally cleaned up. I still hope to do more towards repairing the pa fences, &c., which badly need attention. " A considerable amount of work has been done in the area of the proposed golf-links by unemploy-ment-relief labour. I have had a rough drive formed round the edge of the lake which some day I hope will be made a proper road. The whole area has been harrowed, rolled, and sown, and lam pleased to say we seem to have got a fairly good strike of grass in most parts. Even if nothing further was done, the area certainly is now much nicer to look upon than it was a few months back. " The bathing-sheds at Picnic and Sulphur Points have been cleaned up and painted, and conveniences erected at both these places. " The main drives are at present being top-dressed with bitumen, &c., by the Public Works Department, and I trust that this will save much maintenance-work in future. " Water and Drainage Section.—-During the year eighty new consumers were connected with the water-mains. " The following pipe-lines have been laid in various streets to provide for extensions and new connections : 3,251 ft. of 1 in., 410 ft. of | in., and 1,926 ft. of J in. galvanized wrought-iron piping. "A 3 in. galvanized wrought-iron pipe connection to 12 in. cast-iron main on Whaka Road has been made to connect supply to the Rotorua Golf-links. A " bubble " drinking-fountain has been installed in the gardens between the bowling-greens and tennis-courts. " The usual maintenance-work on all town mains and on all pipes and fittings in gardens and departmental buildings has been carefully carried out. "I regret to say that trouble in connection with our water-supply has this year been very marked, owing to the exceptionally dry season. Consumers on the higher levels have been without water for days at a time, and many complaints have consequently been received. The question of a higherpressure supply is really one of urgency. " Six new connections have been made to the drainage system. All pumps in connection with the sewage-pumping section, filter-beds, septic tank, main sewers, manholes, branch drains, &c., have been maintained in good working-order throughout the year. " Concrete walls and floors have been built, all necessary hot-water pipes and Robin Hood boiler, &c., installed at the new propagating-house in the kitchen-garden. " The usual trouble has been experienced with the hot-water main from Whakarewarewa, and this year 40 ft. of 6 in. cast-iron main and 12 ft. of 8 in. cast-iron main had to be renewed. " Ten chains of 4 in. cast-iron main supply to the Blue bath, which was choked up with silica deposit, there being only 1 in. waterway, had to be taken up and the pipes put through the fire and silica scraped out. " In connection with the Ward baths all the work in so far as hot- and cold-water supply is concerned has been done by our own staff. This entailed 4 in. supplies to the two swimming-pools, 3 in. supplies to public Rachael baths, 2 in. galvanized wrought-iron supplies to all douches and showers; 4 in. supplies to twenty-two private baths, and the designing and fitting-up of special standing waste-pipes. It will be readily understood, without detailing all the various jobs, that the plumbing-work in connection with our water and drainage systems, baths, &c., is considerable, and it is made much more so by the acids, &c., contained in the earth and the water itself continually eating away the pipes and fittings.

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