THE ROVING ROAD.

Auckland Star, Volume LVIII, Issue 115, 18 May 1927, Page 9

THE ROVING ROAD.

"ONCE A HIGHWAY ALWAYS A HIGHWAY."

CHIEF JUSTICE'S DICTUM.

HOWICK BOUNDARIES DISPUTE

The hearing was continued before Chief Justice Skerrett in the Supreme Court of the action brought by the Manukau County Council (Mr. Prendergast), to determine the boundaries of a road at Howick. It was alleged that either W. H. Nicholas (Mr. Holmden) or J. T. and H. N. Shaw (Mr. Armstead), owners of land on either side of the road, had encroached upon it, and they were joined as defendants. Mr. V. N. Hubble appeared on behalf of the District Land Registrar. It was stated yesterday that the portion of the road which forms the basis of the case had been made "bottle necked," but both defendants denied encroachment. It is not a main road and the strip of land in dispute measures only 372 links in length and tapers from 50 links to nothing, but the case has already involved long and expensive litigation. Yesterday his Honor laid down the principle "once a highway, always a highway," and said no amount of adverse occupation could infringe upon a road's legal limits. Unfortunately in this case the Crown grant title was more of a diagram than a survey. The problem before the Court was to find from the plans the site and situation of the road, and also to determine whether there had been encroachment. All three defendants denied infringement, and to-day Mr. Nicholas gave evidence of digging into the bank which divides the property from the road. He said he found no evidence of the land having been disturbed. The bank was on a clay subsoil, and the clay, which witness and his son had that morning penetrated in several places, was untouched. Witness had never tampered with the road boundary. Evidence as to the plans of the old road was given by Mr. Felix Kelly, an Auckland surveyor of 35 years experience.