The Evening Star: WITH WHICH ARE INCORPORATED The Evening News, Morning News, and Echo. WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 1884.

Auckland Star, Volume XXVI, Issue 4516, 19 November 1884, Page 2

The Evening Star: WITH WHICH ARE INCORPORATED The Evening News, Morning News, and Echo.

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 1884.

For the caniie that laoks assistance, For tho wrong that needs resistance, For the futuroln the distance, And the good that we can do.

There is a very decided feeling that the City Council are on the ere of spending a very large sum of money to little useful purpose at the bottom of Hobson-street. If properly carried out, no work would confer so much benefit upon the whole western side of the city. It would give a direct and easy access from the Customhouse-street level to the higher parts of Auckland. There can be no comparison between the importance and public utility of this undertaking and that upon which the Council are spending some thousands of pounds on the east side cf Queen-street, at Emily Place. But the level upon which the portion of the street already constructed has boen graded is a useless one. The mere widening of the street on that level would be of no value to anybody, while it will temporarily, damage a good many people What is wanted to make the proposed improvement a permanent good to the local residents and the city at large is the construction of a street upon a moderately easy grade for cart traffic. This, well done, would save many hundreds of pounds every year to the industries.on Custom-house-street in reduced wear and tear upon carriage of materials. But to accomplish it, the cutting must be carried out to Victoria-street, or at least to Durham-street. We do not believe that any opposition to the alteration would come from pro-perty-owners affected by the extension. Unless these owners are stupidly blind to their own interests, they must bo eager for the work to be done. We have reason to believe that a majority of them are most anxious for it, and one of them, having a large frontage, addressed a petition to the Council on the subject. At the risk of delaying the.work for another year, it would be advisable for the Council to defer approving the plans until it has been ascertained whether the permanent improvement cannot be carried out without serious additional cost to the Corporation. If not, it is fair to ask if tha work now meditated is worth the money it will cost.