STONE BREAKING AT MANGERE.

Auckland Star, Volume XVIII, Issue 151, 29 June 1887, Page 5

STONE BREAKING AT MANGERE.

A Mangere correspondent writes to say that the members of the. Road Board of that district have been lately duped to a shameful extent by some stone-breakers, who took a contract for breaking about 200 yards of stones. The quantity of stones stipulated for was seemingly broken all right in two large, heaps ■by the side of the mountain, and. after the heaps were carefully measured by an officer of the Board the contractor was paid in full for his work, which appeared to have been well done, according to the judgment of the members of the Board, who reckon themselves good judges of such work; but lo ! when the carting out of one of the heaps took place, it was found that the heap, to a great extent, consisted of large boulders in the bottom, and right Up to the top, the aag.e_ of thS heap having been interlarded with fine large thistles (not Scotch thistles, however, as no specimen of that weed grows in the district), which were very artistically arranged to prop up'tha broken scoria stone on the top of the big boulders, so that the deception was never detected until after the contractor was paid and the broken metal carted out. Fully one-third of the heap consisted of large boulders, and the second heap is expected, when opened up, to prove the same;£ and the worst of the matter is,, the contractor, has left the 'district,