C.—B.

No. 29 Bay City Light Excavator : At the commencement of the year this machine was employed filling clay into motor-trucks for ballasting the Orchard West Road. During the period May to November the machine was used to raise the stop-bank on the right bank of the Piako River, completing 28 chains between the 5-mile and 6-mile pegs and 91 chains downstream from the Ngatea Bridge. Later it was used for enlarging Prices Drain for the Hauraki United Drainage Board, and in February the plant was sent by rail to Tangowahine, where it is still employed. In 167f workingdays the output of this machine has been 46,346 cubic yards and the unit cost 4-4 d. per cubic yard. No. 11 Priestman Dredge has been used for the removal of willows from the bed and banks of the Piako and Waitoa Streams. Working in the Waitoa Stream, the dredge cleared the reach 150 chains in length upstream from the Piako River Junction. Since October the dredge has worked in the Piako River for a distance of 200 chains downstream from, the Waitoa River. Because of the low river-banks, this work would be frequently interrupted by floods if carried out by the usual method of employing some type of bank-operated hauler. By the use of the dredge as a floating crane the difficulty has to a considerable extent been overcome. The following table shows the total quantities excavated each year by the dredges with the average annual unit cost for eighteen years : — Year. Cubic Yards. Cost per Cubic Yard. d. 1922-23 .. .. .. .. 440,092 8-20 1923-24 .. .. .. .. 508,654 7-27 1924-25 .. .. .. .. 822,286 5-86 1925-26 .. .. .. .. 856,653 6-32 1926-27 .. .. .. .. 647,182 7-42 1927-28 .. .. .. .. 652,413 7-32 1928-29 .. .. .. .. 619,911 6-54 1929-30 .. .. .. .. 595,565 6-25 1930-31 .. .. .. ..536,692 8-32 1931-32 .. .. .. .. 390,611 7-99 1932-33 .. .. .. .. 200,954 8-00 1933-34 .. .. .. .. 116,224 5-96 1934-35 .. .. .. .. 52,517 10-02 1935-36 .. .. .. .. 164,046 8-26 1936-37 .. .. .. .. 171,717 8-69 1937-38 .. .. .. .. 261,347 5-72 1938-39 .. .. .. .. 206,412 6-70 1939-40 .. .. .. ..142,517 9-48 Waitakaruru-Torehape Districts. As a result of considerable activity in road and drain construction and land development important advances have been made during the last three years with the preparation for settlement of a block of 10,000 acres of peat land situated within these districts and known as the Pouarua Block. A comprehensive roading system is being constructed, and, because the land is deep peat, road-formation is carried out by laying clay ballast varying in depth from 4 ft. to 6 ft. over the peat subgrade. Some of the clay ballast is obtained by deep excavation in canals, but most of the required material is transported from the hills by tramway for distances varying between one and seven miles. Road-construction carried out during the past year comprises formation of the Maukoro Canal Right Bank Road for a distance of 153 chains southwards from the main highway bridge and completing base-course metalling with 2,404 cubic yards of metal, also delivery by" tramway of 22,816 cubic yards of clay ballast along 3 miles 63 chains of roadway and 852 cubic yards by motortrucks along the Orchard West Road. One 25-ft.-span. road bridge was constructed on Central Road. Preliminary construction has been practically completed on a grid-iron system of drains covering the entire area of the Pouarua Block, comprising main, subsidiary, and field drains. The latter are generally 4 ft. deep and spaced at about 10 chain intervals. Drainage-work of the future will be principally widening and deepening these drains as the land, consolidates and subsides. Drainage-work carried out during the year by manual labour comprises—cleaning 51 miles 22 chains of drains ; excavation of 28,660 cubic yards of materials in widening and deepening 13 miles 12 chains of existing drains, and 53,452 cubic yards in the construction of 33 miles 9 chains of new drains. Pre-settlement land development work on behalf of the Small Farms Board is being carried out on the Pouarua Block as the land consolidates in response to drainage. At Waitakaruru primary pasture has been established on an area of 1,300 acres, and this area is now carrying 2,500 sheep and some cattle. An area of 785 acres has been cleared in another block of 860 acres at Waitakaruru, and this land will be burnt and sown in grass this autumn. At Torehape a block of 680 acres was fenced and sown when an accidental fire swept the area while the scrub was being felled, and another area of 440 acres of heavily timbered swamp, growing scrub, and rough feed, has been ring-fenced in preparation for stocking with cattle. The principal works carried out during the year under review comprises 750 acres of' scrub clearing, 915 acres sown in grass, and 13 miles 25 chains of fencing erected. Kerepeeiii-Awaiti Districts. Operations in this district have been principally connected with drain-maintenance and landdevelopment. In the neighbourhood of Kerepeehi 20 miles 46 chains of main and subsidiary drains were cleaned by manual labour, and 7 miles 20 chains were cleaned and 64 chains widened and deepened at Orongo Settlement. Seven miles of large drains and canals were cleaned by weed-cutting launch.

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