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Page Six form of a loan proposal. After the scheme had been formally approved by the Public Works Department, the Board placed the issue before the ratepayers in a series of memorable mectings held in various parts of the district between October 1 and October 10, 1924. Considerable opposition to the proposal to borrow such a large sum as £300,000 was in evidence, but the opposition turned out to be but a noisy minority, for the loan proposal was carried, on October 11, 1924, by a majority of 1334 votes to 300. There had also been opposition to the Waihopai scheme in the Awatere district, where the Clarence scheme Was advoeated ; but a large part of this opposition vanished in the face of the explanation that the district would be unable to use the large amount of power available at the Clarence, and that, therefore, the development of this source of energy would be economically unsound.

Once the loan was carried, all difference of local opinion vanished, and the Board has since enjoyed the loyal co-operation of the whole province in carrying out the work.

At a meeting held on November 19, 1924, the Board appointed Messrs. Vickerman & Lancaster as engineers to prepare detailed plans for the development of the Waihopai scheme, and negotiations for the raising of the necessary £300,000 loan were also commenced. Finally a loan of the required amount was secured from the A.M.P. Society at 5¾ per cent. interest, plus 1 per cent, sinking fund, for a period of 36½ years. It was arranged that £100,000 should be paid to the Board immediately on completion of the necessary securities, and £10,000 per month thereafter until the whole of the £300,000 had been received, The first instalment of the money (£100,000) came to hand on June 4, 1925, and the Board let its first contract on June 29, 1925, work being actually commenced in the following month.

The original members of the Board retained office until April, 1925, when Mr. Girling retired, his place being taken by Mr. E.S. Parker. In May, 1926, Messrs. Weld and Murray, the Awatere representatives, retired, Messrs. J. Mervilield and F. Lissaman being elected in their stead. The present membership of the Board is therefore as follows:—

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Blenheim Borough : Messrs. William Carr and E. S. Parker.

Marlborough County : Messrs. R. F. Goulter, F. W. C. Nees, W. G Rudd, and H. J. Stace.

Awatere County: Messrs. F. Lissaman and J. Merrifield.

Mr. Goulter has been Chairman since the Board's inception.

During the early part of the construction work, Mr. H. Langdon, of Messrs. Vickerman & Lancaster's staff, acted as resident engineer in Blenheim, but, after a few months, he was placed in charge of the construction work at Benopai, and Mr. Geo. F. MacLean was appointed resident engineer in Blenheim. He was recently, in view of the approaching completion of the scheme, appointed engineer to the Board, Mr. Langdon being appointed station engineer in charge of the headworks. Mr. T. H. Ranger has been appointed assistant to Mr. MacLean, and Mr. K. R. Martin as assistant to Mr. Langdon, Messrs. L. F. Row and H. H. Crabb are associated with the engineers as surveyors and draughtsmen.

Mr. W. K. Inder was appointed in May, 1926, as foreman in eharge of pole and line erection, while Mr. H. M. Clark has acted as clerk of works at the headworks since May, 1926. Mr. E. Evans is foreman in charge of the concrete pole-making works at Renwick, and Mr. E. Eves is in charge of the Seddon pole works. Mr. W R. Richardson has undertaken the duties of inspector of wiring installations.

As mentioned above, all suitable sources of power in the district were investigated and carefully considered before d decision was reached by the Board to adopt the Waihopai, and even then this decision was not unanimous, on account of the comparatively limited amount of power available there as compared with the Clarence. However, a review of the financial side of the two proposals, and of the power likely to be required for the first ten years of the Board's existence, showed that the power capable of generation would be sufficient and that, on account of the relative cheapness of the Waihopai development, especially for small blocks of power, the reduced overheads with that scheme when compared with those involved by the Clarence would effect an annual saving sufficient in ten years to wipe off the whole cost of the headworks at Waihopai. As the installation there would always, even though the Clarence might ultimately be required, remain a serviceable and valuable power supply uit, this decided the ease, and a decision was made to go forward. The amount of power capable of being generated at Waihopai is, with 50 per cent. load factor and minimum river flow (110 cusecs), some 1910 h.p., thus admitting of installing a third 500 k.w. unit, and of, under average river flow, eventually developing in the neighborhood of 3000 hp. there.

The site chosen on the Waihopai was the gorge at Benopai, some 25 miles out of Blenheim. This spot had for many years been regarded as being favorable for a hydro-electric development for the province, owing to the comparative narrowness and height of the gorge and the apparently good rock foundations there available. After considering numerous alternatives, it was finally decided to build an arched concrete dam in the narrowest part of the gorge to raise and impound the water and to carry it thence by tunnel and pipe to the machinery to be erected in the power housr, at a site some 19 chains downstream, the head thus rendered available after coustruction of the dam being 100 feet.

The first works to be undertaken were construction of a diversion tunnel, quarters for staff employers, branch road, and bridge across the Waihopai to give aceoess to the power house site. The diversion tunnel, 9 feet x 7 feet and 300 feet loug, was contracted for and completed by Mr. C. Anderson, of Blenheim, but not before meeting with great difficultics on account of very frequent floods in the river. Tho construction of a number of workers' huts was undertaken by Messrs Cresswell and White, and of a staff cottage by Messrs Ward, Tylor, & Co. Ltd, who also built the bridge across the Waihopai, using therein for the main beams stringy bark gum trees grown near by. A second staff cottage was later built by Mr. D. M. Wemyss. The access road was contracted for by Mr. D. Horgan, who,