over the winter months. Recession In 1921 there was a world-wide economic slump made worse by the termination of the commandeer system (which resulted in a dramatic fall in the export prices of meat, wool and dairy products), caused the New Zealand government to look at means of reducing public and private expenditure. As a result, they were no longer prepared to guarantee to fund SEPB. In compliance with the government directives to reduce expenditure Lawrence Birks who was by now Chief Engineer of the Hydro-Electric Branch of the Public Works Department wrote to SEPB on 19 April 1921 that with expenditure of £100,000 to date and contracts in place for another £100,000 they had to reduce capital expenditure in order to ensure that the supply and reticulation become profitable as easily as possible. Therefore, while he wanted Monowai to be completed it was necessary to reducing the area that was to be supplied and to change the system of charging consumers in order to reduce the total cost to £600,000. In response, Hay and Vickerman were requested by SEPB to provide a detailed estimate for a modified scheme costing £600,000. In June 1921 they replied with an estimate of £700,000 which lead the board to instruct Sir Joseph Ward who was then in London to arrange a load for £750,000. With no money or credit or government approval the board of SEPB decided to cancel the contracts for the purchase of poles and insulators. As they had not been satisfied with the performance of Hay and Vickerman, they also decided to dispense with their services. Among the reasons were the absence of both Hay and Vickerman during the early stage of the work, their estimates were proving to be too low, progress was slow on upgrading the roads to allow their use in winter, materials were being purchased before they were required and at high prices. The cancellation of the contract would eventually lead to arbitration, which resulted in SEPB having to pay the firm 2% of the capital costs. While five staff members of Hay and Vickerman's staff were employed by SEPD, 112 men working at Monowai were let go. Ward meanwhile in July 1921 managed to obtain a loan for £750,000 at an interest rate of 6%, which would be guaranteed by the New Zealand Government. With no engineer, SEPB approached Evan Parry who had left the