OUR WATER SUPPLY.

Auckland Star, Volume XXI, Issue 103, 2 May 1890, Page 3

OUR WATER SUPPLY.

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■*.-'." "~T~u« Mr Parker for I » emoO !tfSS asks me to 'advise . showed » 6 t th o 6 n d i a deed protecting the , 6 say or the business rigSoX purpose of establfching a feUat Auc&nd, I am anxious to to formed what is the nature and extent of Wright Mr privilege whtoh .ha* been granted to Meeers Jagger and Parktt. ■fSy remind you thab the Crown is by law entitled to an uninterrupted flow of, this stream through its land in a pure and nnpolluted state, and thatthis righti may_be affected by the nattirS and tferms of the grant in question. Hence this inquiry, to *hich I shaft be dad of a reply at your J early convenience. ? ■• . „„._, - Cr. Cooper Said It "Would be t ©collected that when he moved the amendment which was carried a> the previous meeting, he remarked that they should defer to the opinion of their solicitor. The opinion of their solicitor, although it went a certain extent in the direction of the amendment, wenb further than was intended. If the solicitor had not pub in the former and latter part of hie letter) bub simply the middle Of it, he (Cr. Cooper) would have gone on with the matter. Mr Cotter etated that he had previously advisdd the Qouncil against thie concession, and although he could draw ft deed ac requested, he could not saY whetbet 4hc Council Would be protfs<ited again sb contamination of the water, fie thought therefore, that he would be perfectly con sistent in mbvitig "tfhat this mafctef- bo nc further proceeded wifcb. *' Ite was still of opiriion that no harm could Bβ done by granting to Messrs Jngget and Parker the concession they asked for, bub his personal opinion was ndt sttfiicibfttty itopbrfcaiit In a matter of this sort to be set up against the opinions of of against the eehti- * large number ot the ratepayers of the city.' '-Il6thought:th4t*h6h tlttofi was such an amount of public feeling as He believed there existed against granting a concession" of this sort, the Council'wound act wisely in refusing it. { , - Cr. Swales seconded the motion. €r. Lennox said he had been very much amused when he heard all the talk about "public opinion." As a matter of fact, the way in which public opinion wai worked was this: A man moved a resolution afc a public meeting, find immediately rushed pf afld told the newspapers! Vublicopinion Waa then entifely agMjjib the public body, and its, members :weee -a, lot .of jackaes^s; bub the fact as he had $aid. One ttewspapef had'labbM him (Cfc Lennox) for something he had done in the Board of Education, and there was only one fault he had'td find Vith the ajitack, that there was not a wprd of trtfth in* it Hehad aavieed the writer of that artich always to write his articles JirSfe out the facts afterwaVfls, '(Laughter.) Cr Lennox went oti ,to itate th*b, from per eonal inspection of the ground, he was con ■raced that no injury would have reeulte< to the watet supply by the granting o Messrs Jagger and Pa*ker*e applieatioi He wouldnever stand in tKe way -of the* ci tabliehmenb of a,local industry for th Jnere sentiment of a few people who ha jiQfc thought out the question,.. . ; >. i. Cr.* Hewson said he considered publi opinion a, hujribug, Specially in thi Uiatteh (Gries of « Oh.») It WkkM feuWl opinion 6h the mafcWf at fesue. ha been _ somewhat iie|bled aboufi this affuii and had been itching all the.time since tb agitation had beeh:comtn;enced.' He there tore had meb of. hi> oonetituent asne could to find out what they though about the matter. He was anxious to gi v them an opportunity of calling uponiic to; give an aC eduflt at bis kcfi6rt in th matter and to place hie side of the quea fi°s «n°i. re , Bwt " hiß constituent! hewljalf of wha|,we htot in.thßm w&teS ' Sft? ad ?^ n rejjreeiniedlnthi! matter. Ifc.was abated that,he,had turnec his coat, jutnping upon dhe horse and ther upon andtherj and he hdped pntlemer PJ^f Wesentingf would dul against the concision, being granted in the first voted in th fnS hooted ffi whisper in the ear. gbhiSßTdH th« whole arid If & w h a t prompted those two b&M Shit' th ae a -remaekibleulq A ftS , Bam f '>ttfl«6nc!e shoal* .haw grbfflptea both Utteti. Messfa Jarfir &m ' run& ld / r °P } the ydidnot wahb J ofthil a ' h L eadßa S aifli,t the Public opinior ■■'§»#*? inspired the odlumni of th ■'iSS^ to.kounb fcdenhe^duld fa y'fiuSS 1- W i M b6 «*SSfiiBSW;. Theeentdininatiofi rtißed. q the facd of the objection* «■« ao ak Tbi» tit 'h n 1, ew thafc there *«•» talk about contamination

by Cγ. Atkin Was humbug and bunkum, and until ib had been proved that their filter beds were Useless, he would continue to hold to this opinion. He maintained that their water supply was second to none this side of the Line. Mr Pond had told them this, and they believed it Until those Sentimental people could nob aband it any longer. They heard stories about the slaughter-house and all that kind of bunkum, and he thought ib was time, at any rate, bhab the Council should know better and stop talking about ib. Cr. Goldie paid bhab whilst Cr. CrowtbJr might tell them there waa no fear of contamination, bhere Were wiser heads thab said there was very much danger of using contaminated water in this city. Before Dr. Stockwell died he told him (bho speaker) of a very remarkable way in which the springs were rendered liable to contamination. Dr. Walkor wrote very much in tho same strain. Their great danger Was contamination from above the springs and not from below, and ib was absurd to gay the granting of bhis concession bo Jagger and Parker would have had this effect. Cr. Peterson, who described himself as "another of the offenders," said he agreed With the words that had fallen from Cr. Atkin. The creek was nob in too pure a Sbate where they drew the water from ib, aad whab he would liko to see was a dam below this point where bhe cabtle could be Watered without stirring up the stream. He also believed that contamination must come from above and nob from below the springs. He did not lay much stress on Dr MacGrcor's lebter, because Mr Parker told him that" he had obbained liberty from tho parbiee on the other side of the creek. The Mayor said he hoped enough had been said to show how vigilant the Council Should be in the care of its water supply ; they could nob be too careful in guarding it conbamination. The resoluiion was then pub and carried unanimously.