PUBLIC WORKS METHODS.

Press, Volume L, Issue 15016, 10 July 1914, Page 7

PUBLIC WORKS METHODS.

CHARGES AGAINST OVERSEERS

"PAID TO SPY ON THE GOVERNMENT."

SERIOUS ALLEGATIONS. (srrcur. to "the miss.") WELLINGTON, July 9. '•There is a bcrow loose somewhere," declared Mr C. K. Wilson (Tauroarunui) in speaking in tho House this evening on the method of carrying out public works. Ho went on to make some allegations of a serious nature. Mr Wilson said that although provision was made for road works, they wero not properly carried out by certain overseers. "Although money is voted," ho said, "and its expenditure authorised, there are men who were appointed to,the Public Service by the lato Government whoso only one object—l am speaking of the underlings—is to bring discredit on tho present Government. There are men who aro entrusted with tho expenditure of public money in tho backbloeks who decry the Government on every possible oe«v,sion, and who deliberately falsify tho position ami missiaie laets. sueii men aro iv tho habit ol tsayuig 'wo cannot get any authority to spend tuis money,' *iv cases iv wnich they have had the authorities lor weeKs ami weeks. 1 say ciiat tucro aro paid agitators in the Public Service wno aro doing their best to do injury to tho pre- j sent Government. I know of one man j wno was dismissed by an engineer. A member ot Parliament intenered, and I insisted upon tho .man being reinstated. That is the typo of man who is doing all that is possible to injure the present ( Government." As an instance of what ho had spoken of, Mr Wilson mentioned a caso which ho said had come under his notice tho other day. in this caso ho used tho statement "no authority," although the authority had been issued several months before, instead of tho road overseer doing tho work for which tho grapt was made, tho bulk of tho money was wasted in a most shocking manner, and at the same time the man told tho settlers that ho could not got the authority. Mr Wilson declared that there wero men in tho Public Servico who were nothing less than paid spies— men who were paid to spy on the Government and to give information to tho Opposition. He was not speaking of tho engineers, but of the overseers. Ho also stated that these men wero wilfully "fooling" with the co-operative labourors by telling them that they did not know what they were" going to get for their work when they had tho information in their possession. Tho Minister of Public Works (tho Hon. W. Fraser) said that if Mr Wiisou would formulate specific charges, giving tho names of tho men concerned, the localities and tho works upon which they wero engaged, he would have a searching .enquiry mado into them.- (Hear, hear.) If what Mr Wilson had stated w-as proved to bo correct, ho (Mr Fraser) would see that it would not occur again. He added that he had had a complaint made to him in writing by a certain man, stating that he had been refused work by a ganger, but when he had had an enquiry made by a competent officer, who met the man in company with tho ganger, the man had denied writing tho letter, and had stated that the whole thing was a fabrication.