The City Engineer,

Evening Post, Volume XXXVI, Issue 23, 27 July 1888, Page 2

The City Engineer,

+ A PECULIAB POSITION OP APFAIES. In the fortnightly report of the Oity Enginoer, which was considered by the Counoil last evening, the following paragraph appeared :— " I beg to forward herewith for the information of the Council, a document which I have received, through the Assistant Town Clerk, from Councillors Brandon Williams, and Bicbardson, and I most respeotfully ask if it is the wish of the Council that I should answer the questions contained therein, more especially as the information asked for has -been already known to the councillors, and is also reported on by me in my fortnightly report, and contained in the wages sheet every fortnight." The following is the memo, referred to by Mr. Loughrey :— " We request the City Engineer to furnish the Committee on Municipal Affairs with the following information :— (1) Copies of instructions issned for the general guidance of the overseers and workmen ; (2J a statement showing the work of each man in the employment of the Corporation, and under control of the City Surveyor ; (3) what steps are taken from time to time for the purpose of ascertaining the state of repairs oi the streets and condition of the waterworks ; (4) what steps are taken on the happening of casualties anch as the following) (a) a burst in a water main; (6) a ohoke in a drain ; (c) a heavy downpour of rain. Answers to be specific, and to show as near as possible how each man's time is occupied from day to day.— A. Deß. Beakdon, H. J. Williams, John M. Bichardson." Councillor Coombe — Is this a joke PConncillor Smith— lt looks very muoh like an examination paper. Councillor Coombe— These are just the sort of questions one would put to a cadet. Councillor Danks maintained thut the questions were fair and reasonable, and that the gentleman who had asked tfeem, had been perfectly Justified in so dojng. Councillor Bichardson spoke to the same, effect. The Mayor ruled that any member of the Counoil was in order in asking auch questions of the Engineer. Councillor Coombe said that there waa both pathos and poetry in the queries submitted to the Engineer. There were 1 (a) a buist in a water main ; (b) a eh.oka pi a drain; (o) a heavy downpour of rain. (Laughter.) He would m*ve as an amendment that the following should be added :— Tar spilled °n street, lamp-post out of plumb \ glass bottles on the foreshore ; short tail on Corporation horse; who feeds the horse, and how long does it take the horse to eat his food?" (A laugh.) He said ho looked upon the memo, to the Engineer as a huge joke and treated it as such. If he had anything to say against the Engineer he said jt to that gentlemiyn's face, and did not go hehind his back to do so. What the three members of the oommittee had done waa not according to Cooker, and that wag the reason he moved the amendment, The Mayor, ruled that the proposition of Councillor Coombe could not be accepted as an amendment. Councillor Brandon said he failed to aeo

that there was anything insulting in tU memorandum, and ho albo failed to see that any committeo of tho Council was debarred from asking any question of its officers. It was the duty of every member to make himself acquainted with the whole of the affairs of tho Council, and the information in question could only be obtained from the Engineer. The committee didnot go to the baok yards and interview workmen on the subjeot ; they did not use any baok stairs influence ; but they asked the head of the department for the information, and ho failed to see that exoeption could be taken to that oonrse. If Mr. Lontrhrey said that be bad bnen insulted by the oommitteo he wonld like that gentleman to say in what way he bnd been insulted. So long as ho was a Counoillor he expected -to receive the fullest information from any officer of the Council if ho chose to ask for it in a civil manner. The committee ' t simply wished to know from the Engineer how oertain things were done by him. They were not burrowing round to got anyone out of his billet, but simply to aoquiro information so that they might be able to make a proper roport to tho Counoil. He held it to be an improper thing fof any offioer of the Corporation to appeal to the Counoil without first stating his objeotion to the oommittee. Replying to Councillor Coombs, ) Councillor Brandon said that the memo, to i the Engineer was signed by only three mem- • bers, in order to prevent the necessity of I calling the wholo oommittee together. ¦ Counoillor Edwards said that the unfor- ' tunato part of the business had been that the information had been asked for by only half the members of the committee, otherwise there waH nothing at all to be found fault with. Ho considered that the questions ought to have beon answered. If the information had been asked by tho full committee, Mr. Loughrey would either have had to answer them or resign. He suggested that the committee should hold a mooting and ask tho Engineer to furnith . answers to the questions.' The Mayor thought it was a groat pity i the disoussion had taken place. There was f no doubt that if the questions had been pnt ) through the Town Clerk the Engineer would 3 have had to answer them. 1 Councillor Smith considered that Mr. r Loughrey had been taken aback by these 3 quoßtions, many of whioh were very silly. , He thought there was some motive in the document being signed by only three members. _ Counoillor Brandon repeated the explana- • tion that the memo, had been signed by three members only in ordor to obviate the necessity of calling a meeting of the oom* inittee to ask the questions. Counoillor Pethoriok said that although 1. he was a member of the oommitteo ho had f never been oonsnlted in the matter, and had . never heard about the questions until that c evening. He thought the oommittee ought „ to have boen oalled togethor before the quese tions were put. He considered a slur had 1 boen cast npon the Engineer by the three l t members of the oommitteo who had framed a tho questions, and ho would uphold that j gentleman's aotion in appealing to the ; . Counoil. „ Counoillor Williamß considered that the ¦,t, t Engineer had committed a breach of faith 0 in bringing the questions before the Counoil. cl He maintained that what Councillors Bran0 don and Bichardson and himself desired to a know was legitimate information, and he g expressed his surprise at the attitudo taken > t up by Counoillor Smith and others. He „ would like to ask Mr. Loughrey if he con0 nidered that he (Counoillor Williams) had -. insulted him by signing tho document. If ¦ r tha Engineer said ho had beon insulted, he 0 (Counoillor Williams) would say that that ] < gentleman was very muoh mistaken. ' [. Counoillor Allen Baid that he was a mom- [. bor of the committee, and had never been 0 oonsnlted, but ho did not feel very muoh hurt at tho aotion of Counoillor Brandon and c others. L . Counoillor Hoaton was of opinion that D Councillors Brandon, Richardson, and Wil- [. liams had made a mistake by putting tha 0 questions on paper, instead of asking Mr. 0 Loughrey to furnish the information viva 0 voce, & Councillor A. Young considered that tha c three members of the oommittee who had c Bignod the papor had themselves to blame* ,j for what had boon said about thorn. He felt g auro that if the Engineer had been ap. > B proaohed ki a proper manner, Mr. Loughrey c would have furnished the information quite c cheerfully. 0 Counoillor J. Young thought that th» y questions were vory childish, and when tha ¦ c matter was broached, he really thought [ 0 Councillors Brandon, Richardson, and WiU n lianis were trying to take a rise out of Mr. 3. Loughroy. It had been assorted in the n Counoil that Mr. Longhrey wal not an ond gineer, and he (Counoillor Toung) wonld ;. ask that that gentleman should produce his t. papers, co that Councillors might so© whether , he was duly qualified. ,j The Mayor ruled that the question oould it not be put to Mr. Loughrey. t t Councillor J. Yonng said that on one „ oooaeion the Mayor had remarked that he had yet to learn that Mr. Loughroy was an 3. engineer. Councillor Young went; on to n p-opose that the memo, einrned by Conn,t cillors Brandon, Williams, and Richardson should he framed and hunp up in tha a ohambor in order to show future generations d what kind of gentlemen these three were. x . Tho resolution was not seoonded, although ¦ g Counoillor J. Young offerod, if it were* d passed, to defray the cost of the frame oub a of his own pooket. .j The subject then dropped.