THE MAYORALTY.

Evening Post, Volume XVII, Issue 516, 22 May 1879, Page 2

THE MAYORALTY.

MR. GEORGE HUNTER AT THE ATHEN^UM. Mr. George Hunter addressed a well attended meeting at the Athenaeum Hall last evening. Mr. P. Moell^r occupied the chair. Mr. Huntbr spoil e at considerable length, bat he said nothing more than he had already said on the previous evening at Newtown, anil which ius already been published. He promised, however, to say something new when he had Mr. Hutchison's speech, which was to be delivered that evoning, before him. Mr. Hunter, who was loudly applauded at the conclusion of his address, invited any ratepayer to question him. A Ratepayer asked Mr. Hunter whether, if Mr. Clark's drainage schema were adopted, the plant would necessarily have to be imported ? Mr. Huhter replied that Mr. Clark had simply been asked to give an opinion as an engineer, and he would have nothing to do with carrying out the work. Neither had he anything to do with the supply of plant. Mr. Madbley asked the candidate whether, if elected, he would support a proposition that the plant necessary for carrying out the drainage scheme should be manufactured m the colony. Mr. Hum-dek would be happy to do so, provided the work could be done here on reasonable terms. He had no doubt the drainpipes could be made in Wellington, but he was doubtful about the pumping gear, Slc. He did not think that tbe gear and the engines could be manufactured here at as low a price as they could be got for at HomeMr. Quick said he took a great interest in this election, and he hoped Mr. Hunter would be elected. The Mayor they required at present was one who would ba able to judiciously supervise the expenditure of large sums of public money — a man of integrity, a man of ability, a man able and willing to help the ratepayers. Such a man was Mr. Hunter. Nobody could call him a member of any " ring," and they all knew him as one of the

oldest residents of Wellington. As he bad represented thorn faithfully in Parliament, so would he serve them faithfully a» Mayor. He (Mr. Quick) moved — "That Mr. George Hunter is a tit and proper person to be elected to the position of Mayor of Wellington." Mr. C. Richardson seconded the motion. The motion was carried unanimously, and a vote of thanks to the chairman terminated the proceedings.

MR HUTCHISON AT TORY- STREET. Last night Mr. W. Hutchison addressed a meeting of tbe electors of Cook Ward at tbe Princess Theatre, Tory-«treet. Mr. Buck was voted to the cbair. Thare wa* a good attendance, the Theatre being well filled. Mr. Hutchison, who was received with applause, submitted in tbe first placo that there ought to have been no contest at this election, but that it would hnve been but gracious ef their opponents, undor tho circumstances, to say— >c Well, our man got in at tho last election ; he is now retiring, and we will let your man in for the rest of the year at all events." (Applause.) The fact that they would not do this showed that they would not, as far as possible, let any man who professed to be a representative of the people pure and simple, hold office. They had declared war, and war they should have. (Applause.) After alleging that the other side had refused to agree to conduct the election without cabs, Sea., he said that this was the first election at which he had seen it unblushingly set forth that It vrss wealth alone that ougiit to afibrd a passport to public office. No doubt Mr. George Hun tor was wealthy — although in these days it was difficult to say who was and who was not wealthy— (A laugh)— andif he (Mr. Hutchison) had been lucky enough to come bore and buy land at 5s an acre, and had sold it for £7 or £8 or £40 an acre, he would bave been wealthy too. It did not require any great amount of brains to become wealthy in this way. He (the speaker; was not arich man, but he was perfectly independent, and he was just as honest as Mr. George Hunter or ten thousand Hunters. He . hurled back with the contempt they merited, the base innuendoes about honesty being incompatible with poverty. He asked them what had Mr. George" Hunter done for them during all the time he had been in power ? Why was it that there was no town having so many hundreds of inhabitants as Wellington had thousands which had so little deme'for it by the 1 Government as Wellington ? Referring to Mr. HLnter's remarks as to the Councillors, Mr. HntcliisoQ said it would appear that if sonw serious doom were hanging over the city ashad happened to some cities of old, those 12 City Fathers were so puro and so good that the city would be saved by them if there were no other good men in the town. (Laughter.) He did not say the Council were a " ring " — of course they were all " honorable " men— but he spoke of a "ring party" who were determined that nobody sbould get within their charmed circle. He submitted that tho management of the City Council ought to be changed very materially. In the first place, the expenses of the management were outrageously high. (Hear, hear). During the time that he had a seat at the Council the expenses of the Town Clerk's office were never £1000; now they amounted vory much nearer to £2000. He alleged that a similar increase had taken place in the Surveyor's office, and then went on to say that £2500 had been paid to certain gentlemen who had purchased land from Mr. George Hunter, with the view, it was said, to let Mr. Clarke's drainage scheme be carried through this Island Bay properly. All the while the drainage scheme was not settled, it might never go through this land, and it it did, any person who bought land from these speculators could come upon the Council for compensation. After commenting unfavourably upon the payment to Mr. Clarke of £270" in connection with the Wainui-o-mata scheme, Mr. Hutchison said that whilo tho Council and the owners of the Te Aro foreshore were nnable to come to any settlement, the Gas Company had got permission to reclaim the land lying immediately behind the gasworks on an understanding which he took to bo entirely repugnant to the best interests of the city. Mr. George Hunter was a very large shareholder to. the Gas Company, and it was a very rich company. Mr. Hutchison next spoke against the refusal of the Council to reduce the water rate, and then said that very recently a return was made to the Council, in which it wna stated that £30,629 had been expended out of the drainage loan, and of that sum £19,000 had bean spent by Mr. O'Neill, when ho was surveyor, and that it had been spent at his (Mr. Hutchison's) dictation. |The drainage loan, they would remember, was £50,000, and on tbe 25th July last the Financial Committed reported that there remained a balance unexpended on the drainage loan of £40,287. Deducting this from £50,000 they would find there had been expended up to the 25th July last, according to tbe returns of the Finance Committee, £3713. This was the £19,000 spent by Hutchison, and tho £1800 by somebody else ! ' Mr. Hutchison urged that if the drains which were laid duriog his Mayoralty were laid in little by-streets, the people there had as much right to have their health looked after as those who lived in bigger streets. He condemned Councillor Diver's motion as an .attempt to crush email contractors. Referring to the Te Aro Reclamation, ho said that the ■' expense of acclaiming should bo borne by tbe Reclamation 1 Itself, and that no rate should be imposed, and urged that Mr.' Hunter was not a proper person to carry on negotiations with regard to the foreshore question, seeing that ho was largely interested in it himself. He condemned the proposals made by tbe Chamber of Commerce, with regard to the Harbor Board as being altogether too one-sided, and repeated the old arguments against Mr Clark's scheme of drainage. With regard to the allegation that he (Mr. Hutchison) had shilly-shallied with Mr. Climie'B scheme, he said ' that he proposed its adoption at ttio Council. Ho did not care to hurry it on, because it was only right that the ratepayers should have time to 'consider it fully. With regard to the £100,000 loan, ho thought they should begin to expend it at onco, the bank advancing the money, so as to find work for the unemployed and relieve tbe present depression in trade. Ho was opposed to the Waioui-o-mata water scheme, and in conclusion pointed out that although there were only about six months of the Mayoralty unexpired, there were very large issues involved, especially for the ordinary ratepayers, who never came in for any of the titbits and sweet things. (Laughter.) On the motion of Mr. Crook, seconded by Mr. M'Ardlb, a vote of confidence in the candidate was passed by those present. '■ A vote of thanks to the chairman concluded the proceedings.