Welsh Newspapers

Search 15 million Welsh newspaper articles

Hide Articles List

23 articles on this Page

GOSSIP FOR THE LADIES.

HODIE HINTS.

Advertising

;i HISTORY OF GLAMORGANSHIRE.

-------BOOKS RECEIVED.

------_---------LOUGHOR COLLIERY…

A LESSON FROM BELFAST.

News
Cite
Share

A LESSON FROM BELFAST. Foreshore Rights at Swansea. Irish Enterprise in Re-claiming Land. "A Burgess" writes :-On a recent visit to Ireland, 1 was particularly struck with tho phenoininal manufacturing prosperity of Bel- fast, esnecially by its large iron industries, to feed witiell, both coal and iron have to be imported, and contrasting its prosperity in this respect with the comparatively backward condition of Swansea, notwithstanding that this town is in possession of a good port, and has iron and coal in the vicinity. One element conducive to the success of Belfast has been the holding by the Harbour Commissioners of the fore shore rights, these being public pro- perty and the inal iena ble right of its citizens, administered by the commissioners for the benefit of the community. Many years ago the Belfast Commissioners used to deposit (as is done at the present time at Swansea), in deep water, the mud dredged out of the harbour, this action they now regret, as not only did a considerable quantity return, but the opera- tion tendede to shallow the fairway, it also detrimentally affected the fisheries. The sys- tem now pursued is transforming and improv- ing the harbour, whilst covering and utilizing the ullsig-htly mud-banks of the harbour lit- tcrat and adjacent land. The process consists ixi constructing a ridge of stones and slag at low water mark. inside, this the dredgmgs from the harbour are deposited together with ballast and trade refuse, the mud being tipped direct from the dredger into kibbles, holding about six tons, these are emptied by a crane into a sloping shoot, the mud is thus conveyed by its own gravity to the desired place of de- ■*>sit, the value of the ground reclaimed goes a. considerable way to cover the cost of dredg- ing, and effectually prevents any of the mud returning to the offing. The land so reclaimed is vested in the commissioners, and becomes public property. The Swansea Harbour Trustees are pre- cluded from adopting a similar course, as any land they might recover would belong to the Lord of the Manor, who has already been largely enriched by land recovered from the fore-shore. If it were not for this, it is pro- bable that efforts would have been made to cover the mud banks lying between Brynmill and Ovstermoutk, and the town now would I have been in possession of many hundreds of acres of valuable land, which could have been utilized and rated, thus swelling the Corpora- tion revenue, and coming in to reduce the rates. The non-possession by a public body (such as the Corporation), of the fore-shore rights, and the alienation by the thralldom of feudalism of what should have been the birth- right of the burgesses, cannot but exercise a baneful influence on the progress and advance- ment of the port. ft seems hard that the dead hand of mediaevalism, should, in tlt(,20tit cen- tury. so press on the well-being of a town as to interfere with its advancement. It might be said that the Harbour of Swansea is unlike that of Belfast, inasmuch as it is more ex- posed to the force of the sea. but a. wall of slag has good resisting properties, as evi- denced by the reclamations made by Messrs. Lambert at Port Tennant (a portion of the bay very much exposed to the action of the waves), even if unusually stormy weather oc- casionally caused a breach in the embank- bankment ,there would always be slag avail- able for its restoration, besides the removal of slag from its present site would render available for useful purposes, ground now oc- cupied by refuse heaps. The proposed new- dock in which such large hopes are centered for the future advancement of Swansea, could not be constructed until the foreshore rights had been purchased from the Lord of the Manor; these have been acquired at a heavy cost by the Trustees, and to that extent finan- cially "hampering the undertaking. Belfast. 1 need hardly point euit, is not similarly handi- capped in the extension and development of the latent potentialities of its port, so what might be termed the unearned increment be- comes public property. It ever the ground of the foreshore is re- claimed at Swansea, the weirs which are so destructive to immature fish would be abol- ished to the great advantage of piscatorial operations in the bay and surrounding seas. The Legislature has imposed close seasons for some birds and tish, and neither are inter- fered with when breeding, but weirs are of a permanent nature and capture fish, in and out of season, thus not gn-mg them a fair chance of existence and the natural propaga- tion of their species. According to present appearances the reclamation of the foreshore is so remote an event that it is unnecessary to discuss this aspect of the injury inflicted on the commonwealth. Considering the large revenue derived from the Corporation estate, Sv ansea is a heavily taxed borough, burden- some rates have a tendency to drive away and force industries into channels enjoying more favourable conditions; high rates are cer- tainly a contributing cause in arresting the progress of a town and the means whereby they could be reduced is a problem it should b-i our endeavour to solve. The triple scheme was the result of an effort having that object ii view. That project having lapsed, we should try other means of attacking the problem; one mode would be by an extension of the contributing rating area. another bv rating to their fullest value the usufruct of the foreshore rights- the possession of these by a private individual is anachronic and by a private individual is anachronistic and pressing with great severity on the commer- cial interests of this town and retarding its progress and development. ':=1i' JOo,: 1C.o,

Advertising

COOK AND KITCHENER. -

[No title]

jEDUCATION BILL CONTROVERSY.

-----------LOCAL MUNICIPAL…

\ New Swansea Shipping- Company…

Advertising

FOOTBALL NOTES.

Llandovery College v Swansea…

CAN YOU WRITE THIS

TELEGRAPH MESSENGERS.

--------HOW IS IT? -I

[No title]

Advertising

CHAMBER OF TRADE QUESTION.

Advertising