DEPUTATIONS.

Evening Post, Volume XXI, Issue 36, 14 February 1881, Page 2

DEPUTATIONS.

A deputation from the Board of Education, consisting of the Hon. C. J. Pharazyn, his Worship the Mayor, and Mr. J. R. Blair, waited upon ths Minister of Education today to ask him to introduce a short bill into Parliament during next session to ratify an exchange of the present school acre and buildings at Masterton for three acres ia another and more suitable part of the township—between Masterton and Kurupuni. It wa9 pointed out that the majority of tho inhabitants were agreeable to the exchange, though a few had petitioned against it. Tho present site was swampy, and as further sohool accommodation was necessary, it was thonght better to have new buildings on the three-acre site which was quite dry than to add the present buildings on an unsuitable site. Mr. Dick promised to considor tho matter and let the deputation know tho rosnlt of his deliberations before next meeting of tho Board of Education. A deputation from thoßatepayers' Reform Association waited upon his Worship the Mayor at noon to-day to present to him and through him the Council with a series of resolutions adopted by the Association at a meeting on Friday last (published in Saturday's issue of the Post). The Chairman of the Association, Mr. M. Quin, said what the Association wantod was retrenchment in public expenditure, as the ratepayers saw their money squandered day by day. Thoro was a notable instance of this in tho To Aro drain work, which should have boen taken down Cuba-street, in front of Mr. Barber's premises, instead of going under pcoplo's houses. TMb, he thought, was a scandiloua waste of publio money. Indeod, had there been an engineer of skill ho would have intercepted the stream at Willis-street and taken it down to the sea that way. Then he wished to draw attention to the extravagant waste of water opposite tho Police Station in Te Aro. Enough water waß wasted there to supply one hnndrod families.— Mr. T. M'Kenzie then read over the resolutions of the Association, and urged the odviaablencsn of getting the sanction of Parliament to carry on the Te Aro reclamation ; also of the City Council reducing the expenditure as much as possible. — The Mayor pointed out that the Association wore late in dealing with tho To Aro reclamation, as they should have assisted him last session. It was a work ho entirely favored. He thought some of the overseers might be dispensed with , and their duties undertak en by the City Engineer ; also that the City Valuer ought not to be valuer for tho Government too, but the Council thought otherwise. Several of -the streets had been made for the purpose of giving work to the unemployed, but the money spent on them had boen previously voted for that purpose, and could not be spent elsewhere. He promised to bring the views of the deputation under the notice of the Council. — Mr. Baird, the City Engineer, explained that the Te Aro drain work was being carried out in the cheapest way possible, but this failed to satisfy Mr. Quinn, who said ho would not take the engineer's word.— The doputation then withdrew.