Argus (Melbourne, Vic. : 1848 - 1957), Wednesday 9 January 1861, page 5


HARBOUR COMMISSION ;¿

The following report from the commission appointed lo inquire into the subject of'arii'er and harbour commission was laid upon the tablo of the Legislative Assenibly.yestcid.ay :- *

*' Your commissioners, upon a review of the wh >la of'tho evidence laid before them, includliig«tht» I report of the select committee of the Legislative

Assembly of February, 1859 ; also of the report of Mr. Henry Ginn, late colonial architect, dated October, 1851, on the improvement of the Por; of Melbourne ; and the evidence appended to the report of the select committee, of the Legislative Council in December, 1832, and January, 1833, are of opinion

*' 1. That all matters connected with tho land-ing or shipping of merchandise or treasmro, such ns Wharfs, piers, jettios, docks, &c, anl all rolatine to the arrival or departure of vessels, such as lights, lighthouses, pilots, buoys, beacons, moorings, water police, ko, and generally all matters connected with the management and im-provement of the port, would bo conducted moro economically and efficiently by means of a har-bour trust or marine board, composed of porsons praotically acquainted with shipping, trade, and commerce, than under tho pi osent tysi em. Your commissioners refer especially on this subject to the evidence received from Tasmania and Sou 'h, Australia, where marino boards havo been in exislenca for some years, and have given gcnor.il

fintisfiinlinn.

" 2. Your cominissioneis arc of opinion that a harbour trust, to have control and direction of all matters connected with the management, expen-diture in coiiatiuction, ícpaiis, imel improvement! of all existing and prospectivo wharfs, piers, jetties, beacons, and other appliances connects I with ships and cargoes, should bo ciealed as soai as possible; and jour commissioner:», therefore, respectfully suggest that jour ilxcellenoy's re-sponsible adiisers bhould introduce a bill for tho creation of such a harbour trust, ns soon as it may be possible.

'' 3. Yow commissioners are of opinion that the number of membeis of such trust should be 15 {fifteen), to-be chosen as follows :

" Five (ÖJ members to he appointed by tho

Governor in Council, anil

"Ten (10) members to bo nominated or

selected by the following bodies, and the ninnes to be submitted, for approval, to the Governor in Counoil, viz. : -" Ten (10) members

" Four by the Melbourne Chamber cf

Commerce.

"Two by the Melbourno Ciiy Council.

" One by the Municipal Council of Sand-

ridge.

" One by the Municipal Council of Wil-

liamstown.

" One by tho Geelong Chamber of Com-

merce.

" One bv tho Goelontr Citv Council.

"4. Your commissioners" aro "of opinion that the Harbour Trust should havo jurisdiction over oil tho shores and waters of Poit Philip, the River Yarra, the Saltwater Uiver, and all rivers and creeks, as far as thoy aro or may bo made available for the purposes of navigation ; together with the management and control over tlio pilots and pilotage, as well as the lighthouses ot tho coasts of Victoria, leaving it to tho Legislature to deal with "all conflicting, private, or other in-

terests.

" 5. Your commissioners aro unanimously of «pinion that tho Government should be advised not lo alienate any of tho unsold Grown lands north and south of tho River Yarra, bounded by the waters of Hobson's Bay, tho Melbourne and llobson's Bay Hillway Station reservo at Sand-ridge ; up the western line of said railwuy to the lesen ve in rTindors-stroot ; thenco along Minde«- ? htieot west; thence hy ihc boundaries of the Victorian Ballway Station reserve and tho line of said raHftpy to tlie Saltwater ltivcr ; both bank) of that river; and from its juuetion with the Yaii'.t, bath banks to Hobsons Bay and Gollibrand's Point :-together with any land between tlie tiaudridge-rtud mid Princes Bridge, extending to tlio Hobson's Bay Hillway fonce, that may hi, suitable, for tlte purpose of being proclaimed as a spucial reserve, .tp^Iienble under «¡inótion of th_i, l,c¡,i-latiiro from time to time to improvement) for the port of .Melbourne.

"li, And your commissioners aro also of opinion that sp.jui.il reserves, in ibu neighbourhood ot tho port of Geelong, ty, St. Kilda, Schnapp3r l'oint, I'Vankston, Q lueubclbT, St. Leonardi, Brighton, or any otliei port or pl.iee of shipment nnd.discbarge, tliould bj proclaimed for a similar

I puipjse.

" 7. Your coiumit.sioncis have had before thom tho most iccunt neu passed by the Brunah Par-liament for the torm.uioii ot trunts to preserve ; ml manage improvements already effected, and to tiiiry out um works, in the Hivers Mersey, Cljde. and Tyne, us well as the acts of tho Legij,l.ituren of Tasmania and South AuJtialU, for canblitutilig marino boards, and aro unanimously of cpiniun that a bill embodying i lip principal pro11*1191% tyifl cVI'lnfi)2v.of thone arts should ba at

" 8. Your couiniiti,ioncrs have already had the honour to report their opinion, -that tho bsst means of connecting tlio Oity of Melbourne with llobson's Buy would bo by ii deep water ship canal from Hobsun's Bay to tlio river Yarra, in connexion with iree't'! to ho fo.-med in the low ground near the railway rcsirvo at Batman's Hill ; but that without it thorough examination of tho ground hy a series of borings they couli not obtain a relmbio estimate of the co3t of Fitch works. The commissioners havo further to represent, that any estimate n hielt they have had before tiieni has been of such large amount, that m tlio prtsent extent of the trado of tho colony they do not feel justified in recommending

theil- immediato construction.

"0. Your comniissiotieis havo since then re-ceived from the bon. tho Chief Secretary tho plan of a ship canal and sections of tlie borings made in 1851, by Mr. Henry Ginn, late colonial archi-tect. They havo also had before them his report, already alluded to, and his evidence ; and that ot thu l.iii. Mr. Blackburn, city surveyor, before the ulcct cuinmittee of the Legislative Council, from which it appears that those gentlemen wcro both of opinion, in common with ¡nany of tho wit nc-sses examined by your commissioners, that the nature of the strata was not by any means unfa vourubto for the construction of canals or docks

" 10. Your commissioners would, therefore recommend that tho sum of £DU0 be placed ot the Kstimates, to enable the proposed harbou' trust to niako a proper survey of a line of sh'.| canal, and tho best site for dockt, ; with a tho rough examination of the strata, by a series o borings find trial.shaf ts.

"11. VTour commissioners havo paid'great at tention to the question of making the Rivci '.Yarra available, as a means o! bringing tin 'largest class of ships frequenting tho port up ti "the Melbourne wharfs; but tho weight of evi dence goes to show that the dcptli of water ra quired'to ofleot such a purpose, and the necessar; increase in width, would bo more costly than th shorter line of a ship canal, and be at same tim; lies available, from the much greater distant) and the \t mdiug of the river channel.

' " 12. Your commissioners are, therefore, o opinion, that tho Uiver Yarra should bo deepene throughout, from tho fulls to the sea in Hobson' Bay, to a doptk of 12ft. at low water, which the consider a sufficient depth for the purposes c river navigation at present. And they recon mend that the sum of £37,000 ba placed on th estimates to effect this object.

" 13. Your Commissioners consider that th

present system under which the dredging opeiv tions aro conducted, is costly and very blow in i operation ; and they therefore recommend tut the dredging of the Yarra should bo submitted t public competition, with-a view to its bein performed by contract. They aro also of opinio that the excavated soil should be deposited whei ever most required, on both banks of tho Itivt Yarra, instead of being, as at present, towe round Gellibrands Point, and thrown into iii

tea.

"14. Your commissioners have to report ( ' j our Excellency that the greatest draught of-wati ' with which any vessel can at present come v ' to Melbourne wharfs ,is lift, to lift. Gin,

and as the work recommended above, if ca ' tied out efficiently, will enable vessels drawit

fiom 14ft. to 14ft. Oin., to como up at hif water, there is little doubt that, when this wo: is accomplished, a greater number of vessels w come up to the Melbourne wharfs ; and it w therefore beoomo necessary to increase t wharfage at the city, in order to accommoda them. -Your commissioners would therefore i commend that tho sum of ¿'22,500 should

placed on the Estimates, for the construction of wharf on tho south bank of tho Yarra, betwo I the falls and the line of Clarendon-street, Enierj ¡ IBU, and Sponcor-stroet, Melbourne,.from whi ! nharf goods could be transported to tho city

carts or waggons crossing the now bridge at t I falls, or by a now swingHjridgo at Spencer-atrc I as recommended in a subsequent paragraph

this report.

" 15. Your commissioners may at this til mention that they have directed several of I plans for a ship canal, docks, wharfs, impro mentó in.the basin at the falls, and the mode laying out land resert ed for Jeaso or sale, to lithographed and appended to the printed rope ' "io. Your commissioners aro of opinion ti an efficient mode of improving tho connection ¡ tween Hobson's Bay and the city of Mclbour would bo by the immediate constt action of a st( or iron tratnroad,.which would bo available common drays or waggons from the town pior Bay-street, Sandridge, to Spencer-streot, _&l bourne, crossing tho Hobson's Bay Hail way Ingles-strott, near tho Baglan station, andere ing the Uiver Yarra by a siting bridge with opening of 50 feet ; uud that, in the opinion your commissioners, tho old pier at S.indric 1 i-hould be widened to CO feet, and lengthened

an addition of 400 feet to, tho present contra and a proper goods shed erected on it for the o

Iyonionoo of vessels loading or discharging cargo. 3Phey have received and printed two estimates oC the cost'of thirl improvement, and would recatnI mend that a sum of £50,000 be placed on tho Estimates for 1801, to enable this work to b e carried out as soon as possible, under the sup sr

vision of the Harbour Trust.

" 17. Your commissioners havo also taken evi-dence with respect to one great want in this colony, namely, the necessity of a dry dook oí sufficient capacity to admit of examining and re-pairing tho largest class of stíip3 frequent-ing the port, as well as steamers, smb. as the Great Britain and those Of tho Peninsular and Oriental Company. Various sites have boen pointed out as suited for such a work -, thoy have also h id evidence of a. conflicting nature with rospect to the merits of the oielinary patent slip, known as Morton's Eatent, of Mr. Edwin Olarko's patent hydraulic

ft, of tho ordinary dry dook formed of stone» work, and of floating docks of wood or iron ; but in tho absence of a thorough examination of thsr various sites by practical oivil engineers, their have found it impossible to obtain a reliable osttmatei of the cost of such work, or to get sufficient ovidenco as to the comparative merits and demerits of the different modes of dock-ing ships. They are therefore of opinion, that it should be one of the first duties of tha Harbour Trust to make such examination into the subject (being one of vast national import-ance) as will lead in a short time to providing th.3 port of Welbourne with the most efficient mean»

of examining and repairing the largest clasä of

shins.

rV l8. Your commissioners are unanimously of opinion that such Harbour Tiust should hava Ílower to levy a rate on all goods or treasure

apded or shipped in Port Philip or Biver Yarra; such rate not to exceed the expense of mainten-ance, and the interest on cost of future works ; and that this rate should bo adjusted from tims to time, and should be collected by the Custom? department, and paid over to the trust. And they aro unanimously of opinion that tho harbour of Port Phillp should be free to all vessels, oxcopting as regards a rato not more than suffi-cient to cover the expenses incurred for lights, pilotage, buoys, &o. ; that the cost of all im-provements should ba advanced or secured by the Government to tho Harbour Trust, which would repay the advance from any revenue derived aï aforesaid, or from aoy moneys elerived from tho leasing of any lands which ni ay be reserved by the Government nt Melbourne, or at any other port within their jurisdiction, for tho uses of tho

trust. -

"19. Your commissioners feel confident that

tho works they have now recommonded to ba ' «arried out at once, under the supervision of a Harbour Trust, will materially reduce the charges for lighterage or other carnage, which noiv press

so heavily on all tho imports and exports of the ' colony, and thereby be a positive bonettt ; whilst they will in no way interfere with the formation of a ship canal and docks, should it ever be found

advisable to construct them. , . " Bstimato of the Cost of Works recommended

in the foregoing Re|>ort :" Clause 10.-Examination and test-ing of sites for a ship canal, docks,

and a graving dook . £303

" Clause 12 -Dredging Riven- Yarra throughout, from the sea at llobson's

Bay up to tho falls, to 12 feet at low -

water . :. 37,003

" Clause 14.-Throwing back south bank, and constructing wharf and

Toadway between the two bridges ... 22,509

" Clause 16.-Horso tramway from Sandridge, suing bridge at Spencer?stroet, extension and widening of Sandridge pier, and construction of

goods shed . 50,009

£110,003 " Dated at tho Custom-house, Melbourne,

Saturdav. tho 10th dav of Novombor. I860.

(Signed) " ClIAULlîS Ia. BRIGHT.

" J. BLACKWOOD. " it. CALDWELL.

" JOHN K FREITJSR. " B. HAWTHORN.

" CLEMENT HODOKINSOS'. "JOSEPH H. KAY,

Commander, B..N. " PHILIP LEIGH.

"SAML. P. LORD.

" T. J. NANKIVELL.

" THEO. Jyo. SUMNER."