Queenstown, October 14: Excellent progress with the construction of the Kawarau Gold Mining Co’s dam at the outlet of Lake Wakatipu is being maintained. The continual wet weather, with its natural accompaniment — a rise in the lake — has hampered operations, but in spite of these circumstances the work goes forward in a surprisingly speedy way. The outstanding features of the past week’s programme have been the completion of the excavation of the base of the eleventh pier; the extension of the temporary trestle bridge from side to side of the lake’s outlet, thus making it possible now to carry the concrete from the mixer to the site of the eleventh pier; the diversion above the site of No 10, and the lifting of the first and second gates so that portion of the lake’s outflow may be diverted through the openings. In connection with this latter it should he added that gates 3 and 4 are also in position, awaiting some small rivet finishings. When the fourth pier is completed — it only requires 15 feet to bring it up to its full stature — it will then be possible to raise them in like manner. A great deal of activity has been taking place in respect of the diversion above the site of No 10 pier, so that the diver, who has arrived in the district, may proceed with his operations on the base of No 10 and the sills between Nos 9 and 10, and Nos 10 and 11. This is a very interesting stage of the enterprise, and one beset with peculiar difficulties, but they will be readily met by expert means. The plan being worked out is to get the outer or extreme ends of the dam sufficiently forward to allow of the diversion, or actual division of the outflow, so that piers Nos 6 and 7, which come in the main central channel, may than be tackled. It is obvious what the advantages of the said division will be when it comes to laying down the foundations of these two piers. The depth of the channel has been estimated at approximately 15ft. Supplies of various kinds have been coming to hand during the past few days, including 124 tons of cement.
Voters tardy in enrolling
The common human weakness of invariably leaving till to-morrow what should be done to-day is strongly in evidence at tho office of the Dunedin registrar of electors. The supplementary rolls close finally at 6pm to-morrow, and for the past few days an ever-increasing stream of people has been pouring into the electoral office to register. In fact, as the registrar put it when approached yesterday, the office has been, and is still, inundated with anxious persons, and the staff is working at full pressure.
Harry Holland inexperienced
Mr Holland envisages a prospect of going straight to the Treasury benches without even a period of apprenticeship as Leader of the Opposition. The electors may think it advisable to grant him a further term of useful probation. They may feel a little uncertainty about the millennial promise of emancipation from class interest and about the security of the pledge that after the accession of the Labour Party to office all sorts and conditions of man will receive the just treatment upon which they can rely at the present time. ‘‘We will write the laws of the country in a way in which they were never written before,’’ Mr Holland predicts. Likely enough, but that is not tantamount to a guarantee that the new legislation would be better than the old. Militant Labour must purge itself of class animosity. — editorial — ODT, 15.10.1925
Compiled by Peter Dowden
