34 J. H. MAIDEN. 
reported from time to time to be decayed beyond repair. Many 
of these structures have been in existence from twenty-five to 
thirty years, and some even longer still, a fact which speaks well 
for the lasting qualities of our hardwood timbers ; and it is antici- 
pated, with the modern type of structures which are now being 
erected, and with the increased care now bestowed on the selection 
of the timber employed, that even better results will be obtained 
in the future. Among the old bridges which are now in process 
of being renewed are the Berrima bridge, an old truss bridge on 
masonry piers (built thirty-six years back), the superstructure of 
which is now being replaced by truss spans of the latest standard 
type, and the old truss bridge over the Kangaroo River, on the 
road Moss Vale to Nowra, in place of which a new suspension 
bridge is being built in one span of two hundred and fifty-two 
feet, with steel wire rope cables, and a timber stiffening truss. 
During the year new bridges were completed at Inverell and 
Wallis Creek, Maitland, in place of the old structures at those 
places. The former consists of three one hundred and ten feet 
truss spans ofa similar type to those recently designed for the 
new Wagga Wagga bridge, and this type is also being employed 
in the large timber truss bridges at Morpeth and Albury, which 
-are now in course of construction. Wallis Creek bridge is a 
substantial structure on the road between East and West Maitland, 
formed of steel girders carrying a tarred metal deck. 
The Swan Hill bridge over the Murray River, was also opened 
for traffic during the year, being the third of the steel lift bridges 
"which have been erected over that river within the past seven 
years at the joint expense of the two colonies of Victoria and New 
South Wales, the work having been designed and carried out in 
-each case by the Public Works Department of New South Wales. 
‘Swan Hill bridge consists of two ninety feet timber truss spans, 
with timber beam approaches and a steel lift span of fifty-eight 
feet four inches, centres of piers giving fifty feet five inches clear 
waterway, and thirty feet seven inches clear headway above the 
highest known flood-level when the span is raised to its full height. 
