106 OTJR COAL AND OITE COAL PORTS. 



The great facilities presented at Lake Macquarie for utilizing 

 very thick, easily worked, and excellent coal, would seem to war- 

 rant the adoption, by an enterprising Company, of a small fleet of 

 the so-called " West Hartley" flat-bottomed vessels, with move- 

 able centreboards — these to trade in and out at high water by aid 

 of twin screw steam launches as tug-boats. Such vessels are 

 made on about 3 to 4 feet draught of water, whilst carrying 150 

 tons of coal. 



With a capital invested in an adequate number of such vessels 

 and with two or three such steam-launches as I describe, a very 

 large and, I suppose, safe trade might be done in thus conducting 

 coals to large ships in the Newcastle bay, Port Stephens, or in 

 Port Jackson. In such case it would be desirable to have one of 

 the little screw tugs in the Newcastle harbour to bring the vessels 

 in and out, and to utilize its steam power to help the discharging 

 of coals. 



Possibly some of the Lake Macquarie coal may be shipped from 

 the seaward side by means of jetties having some southern pro- 

 tection from a promontory in same form as at BuUi ; but to 

 endeavour to connect Lake Macquarie by rail with Newcastle 

 would avail nothing, as at that port they can give the fullest 

 employment to their steam cranes, staiths, and every yet available 

 means for shipping, by opening out more of their illimitable sup- 

 plies of coal along the existing G-reat Northern Railway within 

 easy distance of Newcastle. 



So much then for our possible future exports from Lake Mac- 

 quarie ; and now for Newcastle. 



I, for one, quite rejoice at the fact of one ship having lately 

 left Newcastle in ballast for Califoruia. The captain or agent 

 for that ship ought to be rewarded with a suitable present in the 

 form of a chronometer, to be subscribed for at general expense, 

 for having thus taught our authorities a most valuable lesson, 

 namely, the due apjjreciation of the value of time ; and for having 

 adopted the most effective manner of showing the public how 

 wretchedly we are behind the times in our appliances for availing 

 ourselves of Nature's biggest gift in our possession in these 

 Colonies. 



The public are, however, in some measure to blame for their 

 present difficulties, by reason of the outcry that was made some 

 years ago against the existing Grovernment, for their reputed 

 " lavish expenditure at Newcastle." 



With reference to Newcastle, I beg to submit the following 

 suggestions, as being possibly the best means of rapidly increasing 

 our shipment of coals as fast as required ; and, by such method, 

 to reduce the existing waste of capital in ships and the waste of 

 labour in idle ships' crews. 



Mv idea is that the Government should at once send to the 



