The Daily Telegraph. THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 1883.

Daily Telegraph (Napier), Issue 3801, 20 September 1883, Page 2

The Daily Telegraph. THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 1883.

It is not often that Mr Charles Weber is to bo caught tripping in his relation of either facts or figures in connection with public events in this province. His letter, that we published yesterday, however, offers an exception to the usual care displayed in his Communications, and is likely to mislead. Mr Weber's contention is that the Government owes this town nothing for street encroachments; that what has been taken was actually given by the Provincial Government, which had power to do so before Napier was declared a borough ; further that tlio town wan [imply compcrmtited for any encroachments by the gift of the Court House reserve. Mr Weber concluded by saying that the Government was acting in the full knowledge of the "facts" stated by him, and was acting well within its rights in insisting on the surrender of tho Corporation offices. We are very sorry for tho Government if it has no better knowledge of tho real facts of tho case than what Mr Weber jjossosses. Now, the real facts are these: —ln May, 1874, tenders wero called for the erection of Post and Telegraph Offices at Napier, and the tenders were to close on July 6. It was not till October following that the old building was dismantled, and early in November tho piles were put down for the now offices. On tho sth of that month tho follow- ■ ing appeared in tho Daily Teleoeato : — '' We should like to know by whoso authority, or by what right, the Government has encroached on the public footpath at tho corner of Hastings street and tlio Shakespeare road, in the construction of the V new Post and Telegraph Offices. Now that the piles are put down, and the lower plates for the building laid, some idea of the space the fnow offices •will monopolise of tho public thoroughfare can bo formed. The street as originally laid off was too narrow, but when tho new building is finished Shakespeare road will bo contracted to little better than a lane, increasing the risk of lire, and making an already dangerous cornor still more so. There is plenty of time to shift tho site, which can be removed further towards tho Government building, or indeed to any other vacant space in town. The parsimony of the Government, and the excessive good nature of the Superintendent and people alone havo permitted tho public rights to be encroached upon." On tho 7th, two days later, we recorded the fact that the work had been stopped, and that it avus proposed to shift the site back to encroach on Browning street. To that wo added theso words:— " Wo cannot see an advantage to be gained by any such course, nor, indeed, would our objections be removed if the public thoroughfaro is to bo invaded. If tlio General Govvornment cannot afford to purchase a site for their offices, probubly tho Provincial Government has the means to do so. It is .1 remarkable circumstance that, while Mr Yogel complains of the inipecuniosity of tlio provinces, the General Government come begging for a few square yards of the provincial estate on which to build offices. . The town of Napier_ has supplied the General Government with offices gratis long enough, and no reason can be urged why it .should now givo up its streets and footpaths for buildings. The General Government may complain as much as it pleases about the obstructiveness of the provinces, but in reply it may be said the latter havo found to their cost that if they give an inch an oil will be taken " Mr Weber is quite correct in saying that the Post Offico plans had to be sent back to Wellington for alteration, for it was not till nearly the end of November that wo wero enabled to state that it had been definitely decided to encroach on Browning-street. And now comes tho rub. 5 Whatever arrangement was come to between the Government and the Superintendent on the subject, in the matter of taking and appropriating any portion of a public road, an Act of tho Provincial Council was necessary to give finality and legality i to tlio transaction. We have already said that it was not till towards the end of November that it was decided to shift tho site of the Post Office to whero it is now. On the 20th of November the town of Napier was proclaimnd' a municipality, and I months before tho meeting of the Provincial Council every road in the borough was vested in tlio Corporation. It was not competent then for the Provincial Coun* cil to legalise the act of tho Superintendent in giving away a public street, and from that dato to this the Corporation hag liiid claim to tho portion of thoroughfare occupied by tho Post Office. With regard to the encroachment of tho Court Houso, there is a difference of opinion as to whether r the building does encroach or not, but thero is no question concerning tlto fact that tho ground enclosed encroaches very consider* ably on tlio Marine Parade. Mr Webc}? then refers to tho railway station. Thero has been no complaint except from private persons as to any encroachments in that direction. Mr Weber quietly ignores the scandalous encroachment on Munroe-street by the railway, and it is of this that the Corporation most justly complains. This encroachment does not come under any proclamation made under tho Public Works Act, but was the outcome of a careless survey, as we understand, that failed to make'the curve .of the railway lino keep within the limits of the ground proclaimed as taken. Now, it will bo seen that tho case as stated by us is a very different one to that which Mr Weber would havo us believe. It will bo seen that not only lias the Corporation a good claim against tho Government for its encroachments, but that the Government has not a leg tostandupon in support of its attitude towards the Corporation. The quid pro quo referred to by Mr Weber in the "gift" of the Court House reserve by tho Superintendent tothe Corporation could no more have been withr held than the "gift" of Clive Square. Tho reserves within tlio borough naturally became the property of the Corporation, and it is a grievance to this day that on tho abolition of the province tho old provincial buildings were not granted to tho borough as a town hall.