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OMETHING in the nature of a record has been established in the introduction of hydro-electricity to Marlborough, for the first of the loan money required for the Waihopai scheme was not received until June 4, 1925, and actual work was not commenced until the following month, so that the headworks have been completed, and the principal part of the district reticulated, in a period of just two years.

A movement in the direction of forming a Power Board for Marlborough was made about 1920, when petitions with that object in view were circulated, but it subsequently transpired that there had been a misunderstanding in regard to witnessing some of the signatures in certain parts of the district, and this resulted in a long delay. In the end, certain of the petitions had to be again circulated for re-signature. They were finally completed about the middle of 1923 and were presented to the Government.

As a result, the district was constituted a Power Board District, by the following proclamation in the Gazette, dated October 25, 1923:—

[L.S.] JELLICOE, Governor-General,

In pursuance and exercise of the powers conferred by section three of the Electric-Power Boards Act, 1918, I, John Rishworth, Viscount Jellicoe, Governor- General of the Dominion of New Zealand, do hereby proclaim the district as described in the Sehedule hereto to be an electric-power district, and I hereby assign to such district the name of the "Marlborough Electric-power District."

All that area in the Marlborough Land District, comprising the Borough of Blenheim and the Counties of Awatere and Marlborough, all as at present constituted. As the said area is more particularly delineated on the plan marked P.W.D. 57794, deposited in the office of the Minister of Public Works at Wellington, in the Wellington Land District, and thereon bordered red.

Given under the hand of His Excellency the Governor-General of the Dominion of New Zealand; and issued under the seal of that Dominion, this 24th day of October, 1923.

J. G. COATES, Minister of Public Works.

God Save the King !

The election of the Board was held on November 24, 1923, when the following gentlemen were returned :—

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Blenheim Borough : Messrs. William Carr and William James Girling, M.P.

Marlborough County: Messrs Redwood Felix Goulter, Frederick William Charles Nees, William George Rudd, and Henry Joseph Stace.

Awatere County: Messrs. Everard Aloysins Weld and Arthur John Murray.

The Board's first meeting was held on Deeember 11, 1923, when Mr. Goulter was elected as chairman. Mr. P. S. Boyes, who had acted as provisional secretary up to this stage, had notified the Board that he would be unable to continue the duties, and the Board decided to appoint Mr. E. J. Harvey as secretary. It was also decided to call for applications for an engineer to undertake preliminary surveys of the sources of electric power available in the district.

At the following mecting, on January 22, 1924, Messrs. Vickerman & Lancaster, of Wellington, were appointed as engineers and were commissioned to report on the various sources of electrical energy. Their report was received and considered by the Board at a meeting held on April 14, 1924, when they reported that they had considered the possibilities of supply by water power from the Pelorus River, Wakamarina River, the diiference in tidal conditions between Queen Charlotte and Pelorus Sounds, the Wairau, Clarence, and Waihopai rivers, as well as generation by steam or oil ; and, after going into the merits and demerits of the various localities named, they proceeded to recommend the harnessing of the Waihopai, at an estimated cost of £275,000, plus £25,000 to be borrowed tor the purpose of assisting would-be consumers in wiring their premises.

Having, in the meantime, secured a report upon a proposal that Kaikoura shoyld be included in the power district, the Board, at a meeting on June 25, 1924, adopted the engineers' recommendation and decided to place the Waihopai scheme before the ratepayers in the