[DEDICATION]
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TO
MY FELLOW MEMBERS OF
THE N. Z. INST, OF CIVIL ENGINEERS
[PREFACE]
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PREFACE
I have been asked to write a preface for this little hook, which contains an interesting and graphic account of the life and labours of Mr. A. Dudley Dobson.
Mr. Dobson is one of the best known men in the South Island, and most people know of the important part that he has played in the development of Canterbury.
It has for a long time been known by his family that both in diaries and note books, and above all in Mr. Dobson's remarkable memory, as fresh in his 88th year as it was in his youth, there exists material of great interest and value to the historian. It is due to the untiring efforts of his daughter, Edith Dobson, both in overcoming her father's modest reluctance to appear in print, and in arranging his material for publication, that we at last have a permanent record of his experiences, as an explorer, a surveyor, and an engineer.
This record, besides its interest as a record of fact, has also a true literary value. Mr. Dobson achieves a direct and graphic style, which might be envied by many an accomplished artist in words.
G. M. L. LESTER.
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[CONTENTS]
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CONTENTS
I.--Early Life ........ 7
II.--Return to New Zealand .. .. 20
III.--In North Canterbury......30
IV.--West Coast Survey......36
V.--Commencement of Work.. .. 53
VI.--The Fate of Mr. Townsend.. .. 60
VII.--West Coast Survey (continued).. 65
VIII.--Traverse of the Coast .. .. 73
IX.--River Surveys........87
X.--Terapuhi..........92
XI.--West Coast Road ......97
XII.--Rivers ..........99
XIII.--Work in Nelson District .. .. 106
XIV.--Country Work........116
XV.--Nelson and West Coast.. .. 121
XVI.--Nelson and West Coast (cont'd) 133
XVII.--Nelson and West Coast (cont'd) 141
XVIII.--Nelson and West Coast (cont'd) 151
XIX.--Work in Canterbury......166
XX.--England Re-visited......174
XXI.--Return to the Colonies.. .. 188
XXII.--Experiences in Sydney .. .. 208
XXIII.--Return to New Zealand .. .. 217
Index ..........221
[LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS]
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LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
A. Dudley Dobson, Aged 80.. .. Frontispiece
A. Dudley Dobson, Aged 23.. facing page 16
Sketch of Franz Josef Glacier from the deck of the "Gipsy," 1863 ........ " " 49
Nelson, 1867..... " " 64
Gorge at Canyon Creek, Upper Matthias River, 1885.... " " 97
Bridge over Branch of Upper Waimakariri.......... " " 112
Harbour Works, Warrnambool, 1887 .......... " " 161
A. Dudley Dobson, Aged 60..... " " 176
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